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Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, Part 8. Chapter 10.

Part 8. Chapter 10.

When Levin thought what he was and what he was living for, he could find no answer to the questions and was reduced to despair, but he left off questioning himself about it. It seemed as though he knew both what he was and for what he was living, for he acted and lived resolutely and without hesitation. Indeed, in these latter days he was far more decided and unhesitating in life than he had ever been.

When he went back to the country at the beginning of June, he went back also to his usual pursuits. The management of the estate, his relations with the peasants and the neighbors, the care of his household, the management of his sister's and brother's property, of which he had the direction, his relations with his wife and kindred, the care of his child, and the new bee-keeping hobby he had taken up that spring, filled all his time. These things occupied him now, not because he justified them to himself by any sort of general principles, as he had done in former days; on the contrary, disappointed by the failure of his former efforts for the general welfare, and too much occupied with his own thought and the mass of business with which he was burdened from all sides, he had completely given up thinking of the general good, and he busied himself with all this work simply because it seemed to him that he must do what he was doing—that he could not do otherwise. In former days—almost from childhood, and increasingly up to full manhood—when he had tried to do anything that would be good for all, for humanity, for Russia, for the whole village, he had noticed that the idea of it had been pleasant, but the work itself had always been incoherent, that then he had never had a full conviction of its absolute necessity, and that the work that had begun by seeming so great, had grown less and less, till it vanished into nothing. But now, since his marriage, when he had begun to confine himself more and more to living for himself, though he experienced no delight at all at the thought of the work he was doing, he felt a complete conviction of its necessity, saw that it succeeded far better than in old days, and that it kept on growing more and more.

Now, involuntarily it seemed, he cut more and more deeply into the soil like a plough, so that he could not be drawn out without turning aside the furrow.

To live the same family life as his father and forefathers—that is, in the same condition of culture—and to bring up his children in the same, was incontestably necessary. It was as necessary as dining when one was hungry. And to do this, just as it was necessary to cook dinner, it was necessary to keep the mechanism of agriculture at Pokrovskoe going so as to yield an income. Just as incontestably as it was necessary to repay a debt was it necessary to keep the property in such a condition that his son, when he received it as a heritage, would say "thank you" to his father as Levin had said "thank you" to his grandfather for all he built and planted. And to do this it was necessary to look after the land himself, not to let it, and to breed cattle, manure the fields, and plant timber.

It was impossible not to look after the affairs of Sergey Ivanovitch, of his sister, of the peasants who came to him for advice and were accustomed to do so—as impossible as to fling down a child one is carrying in one's arms. It was necessary to look after the comfort of his sister-in-law and her children, and of his wife and baby, and it was impossible not to spend with them at least a short time each day.

And all this, together with shooting and his new bee-keeping, filled up the whole of Levin's life, which had no meaning at all for him, when he began to think. But besides knowing thoroughly what he had to do, Levin knew in just the same way how he had to do it all, and what was more important than the rest.

He knew he must hire laborers as cheaply as possible; but to hire men under bond, paying them in advance at less than the current rate of wages, was what he must not do, even though it was very profitable. Selling straw to the peasants in times of scarcity of provender was what he might do, even though he felt sorry for them; but the tavern and the pothouse must be put down, though they were a source of income. Felling timber must be punished as severely as possible, but he could not exact forfeits for cattle being driven onto his fields; and though it annoyed the keeper and made the peasants not afraid to graze their cattle on his land, he could not keep their cattle as a punishment.

To Pyotr, who was paying a money-lender 10 per cent. a month, he must lend a sum of money to set him free. But he could not let off peasants who did not pay their rent, nor let them fall into arrears. It was impossible to overlook the bailiff's not having mown the meadows and letting the hay spoil; and it was equally impossible to mow those acres where a young copse had been planted. It was impossible to excuse a laborer who had gone home in the busy season because his father was dying, however sorry he might feel for him, and he must subtract from his pay those costly months of idleness. But it was impossible not to allow monthly rations to the old servants who were of no use for anything.

Levin knew that when he got home he must first of all go to his wife, who was unwell, and that the peasants who had been waiting for three hours to see him could wait a little longer. He knew too that, regardless of all the pleasure he felt in taking a swarm, he must forego that pleasure, and leave the old man to see to the bees alone, while he talked to the peasants who had come after him to the bee-house.

Whether he were acting rightly or wrongly he did not know, and far from trying to prove that he was, nowadays he avoided all thought or talk about it.

Reasoning had brought him to doubt, and prevented him from seeing what he ought to do and what he ought not. When he did not think, but simply lived, he was continually aware of the presence of an infallible judge in his soul, determining which of two possible courses of action was the better and which was the worse, and as soon as he did not act rightly, he was at once aware of it.

So he lived, not knowing and not seeing any chance of knowing what he was and what he was living for, and harassed at this lack of knowledge to such a point that he was afraid of suicide, and yet firmly laying down his own individual definite path in life.


Part 8. Chapter 10.

When Levin thought what he was and what he was living for, he could find no answer to the questions and was reduced to despair, but he left off questioning himself about it. Quand Levin pensa ce qu'il était et ce pour quoi il vivait, il ne put trouver aucune réponse aux questions et fut réduit au désespoir, mais il cessa de s'interroger à ce sujet. It seemed as though he knew both what he was and for what he was living, for he acted and lived resolutely and without hesitation. Atrodė, lyg jis žinotų, kas jis yra, ir už tai, ką gyvena, nes jis elgėsi ryžtingai ir nedvejodamas. Indeed, in these latter days he was far more decided and unhesitating in life than he had ever been.

When he went back to the country at the beginning of June, he went back also to his usual pursuits. The management of the estate, his relations with the peasants and the neighbors, the care of his household, the management of his sister's and brother's property, of which he had the direction, his relations with his wife and kindred, the care of his child, and the new bee-keeping hobby he had taken up that spring, filled all his time. These things occupied him now, not because he justified them to himself by any sort of general principles, as he had done in former days; on the contrary, disappointed by the failure of his former efforts for the general welfare, and too much occupied with his own thought and the mass of business with which he was burdened from all sides, he had completely given up thinking of the general good, and he busied himself with all this work simply because it seemed to him that he must do what he was doing—that he could not do otherwise. Ces choses l'occupaient maintenant, non pas parce qu'il se les justifiait par quelque sorte de principes généraux, comme il l'avait fait autrefois; au contraire, déçu par l'échec de ses efforts antérieurs pour le bien-être général, et trop occupé de sa propre pensée et de la masse des affaires dont il était chargé de toutes parts, il avait complètement renoncé à penser au bien général, et il s'occupait de tout ce travail simplement parce qu'il lui semblait qu'il devait faire ce qu'il faisait - qu'il ne pouvait pas faire autrement. In former days—almost from childhood, and increasingly up to full manhood—when he had tried to do anything that would be good for all, for humanity, for Russia, for the whole village, he had noticed that the idea of it had been pleasant, but the work itself had always been incoherent, that then he had never had a full conviction of its absolute necessity, and that the work that had begun by seeming so great, had grown less and less, till it vanished into nothing. But now, since his marriage, when he had begun to confine himself more and more to living for himself, though he experienced no delight at all at the thought of the work he was doing, he felt a complete conviction of its necessity, saw that it succeeded far better than in old days, and that it kept on growing more and more.

Now, involuntarily it seemed, he cut more and more deeply into the soil like a plough, so that he could not be drawn out without turning aside the furrow. Or, involontairement il semblait, il entaillait de plus en plus profondément le sol comme une charrue, de sorte qu'il ne pouvait pas être tiré sans détourner le sillon.

To live the same family life as his father and forefathers—that is, in the same condition of culture—and to bring up his children in the same, was incontestably necessary. It was as necessary as dining when one was hungry. And to do this, just as it was necessary to cook dinner, it was necessary to keep the mechanism of agriculture at Pokrovskoe going so as to yield an income. Et pour ce faire, tout comme il était nécessaire de préparer le dîner, il était nécessaire de maintenir le mécanisme de l'agriculture à Pokrovskoe afin de générer un revenu. Just as incontestably as it was necessary to repay a debt was it necessary to keep the property in such a condition that his son, when he received it as a heritage, would say "thank you" to his father as Levin had said "thank you" to his grandfather for all he built and planted. Tout aussi incontestablement qu'il était nécessaire de rembourser une dette était-il nécessaire de garder la propriété dans un état tel que son fils, quand il la recevait en héritage, dirait «merci» à son père comme l'avait dit Levin «merci "à son grand-père pour tout ce qu'il a construit et planté. And to do this it was necessary to look after the land himself, not to let it, and to breed cattle, manure the fields, and plant timber. Et pour ce faire, il fallait s'occuper lui-même de la terre, ne pas la louer, et élever du bétail, engrais les champs et planter du bois.

It was impossible not to look after the affairs of Sergey Ivanovitch, of his sister, of the peasants who came to him for advice and were accustomed to do so—as impossible as to fling down a child one is carrying in one's arms. Il était impossible de ne pas s'occuper des affaires de Sergueï Ivanovitch, de sa sœur, des paysans qui venaient lui demander conseil et qui avaient l'habitude de le faire - aussi impossible que de jeter un enfant que l'on porte dans les bras. It was necessary to look after the comfort of his sister-in-law and her children, and of his wife and baby, and it was impossible not to spend with them at least a short time each day.

And all this, together with shooting and his new bee-keeping, filled up the whole of Levin's life, which had no meaning at all for him, when he began to think. Et tout cela, avec le tir et sa nouvelle apiculture, a rempli toute la vie de Levin, qui n'avait aucun sens pour lui, quand il a commencé à réfléchir. But besides knowing thoroughly what he had to do, Levin knew in just the same way how he had to do it all, and what was more important than the rest.

He knew he must hire laborers as cheaply as possible; but to hire men under bond, paying them in advance at less than the current rate of wages, was what he must not do, even though it was very profitable. Il savait qu'il devait engager des ouvriers au meilleur prix possible; mais engager des hommes sous caution, les payer d'avance à moins que le salaire actuel, c'était ce qu'il ne fallait pas faire, même si c'était très rentable. Jis žinojo, kad privalo kuo pigiau samdyti darbininkus; samdyti vyrus pagal obligacijas, mokėdamas jiems iš anksto už mažesnį nei dabartinis darbo užmokestis dydį, to jis neturėjo padaryti, nors tai buvo labai pelninga. Selling straw to the peasants in times of scarcity of provender was what he might do, even though he felt sorry for them; but the tavern and the pothouse must be put down, though they were a source of income. Vendre de la paille aux paysans en période de pénurie de provender était ce qu'il pouvait faire, même s'il se sentait désolé pour eux; mais la taverne et le pothouse doivent être abattus, bien qu'ils fussent une source de revenus. Parduodamas šiaudus valstiečiams tais atvejais, kai trūkdavo maisto, jis galėjo tai padaryti, nors jų gailėjosi; bet smuklę ir sodybą reikia nugriauti, nors tai buvo pajamų šaltinis. Stro verkopen aan de boeren in tijden van schaarste aan voedsel was wat hij kon doen, ook al had hij medelijden met hen; maar de herberg en het pothouse moesten worden afgebroken, hoewel ze een bron van inkomsten waren. Felling timber must be punished as severely as possible, but he could not exact forfeits for cattle being driven onto his fields; and though it annoyed the keeper and made the peasants not afraid to graze their cattle on his land, he could not keep their cattle as a punishment. L'abattage du bois doit être puni aussi sévèrement que possible, mais il ne peut exiger des forfaits pour le bétail conduit dans ses champs; et bien que cela agaçait le gardien et que les paysans n'aient pas peur de faire paître leur bétail sur sa terre, il ne pouvait pas garder leur bétail en guise de punition. Už iškirstą medieną turi būti baudžiama kiek įmanoma griežčiau, tačiau jis negalėjo tiksliai nustatyti netekimų, kai galvijai buvo varomi į jo laukus; ir nors tai erzino laikytoją ir privertė valstiečius nebijoti ganyti savo galvijų jo žemėje, jis negalėjo laikyti jų galvijų kaip bausmės.

To Pyotr, who was paying a money-lender 10 per cent. À Pyotr, qui payait 10 p. 100 à un prêteur. a month, he must lend a sum of money to set him free. But he could not let off peasants who did not pay their rent, nor let them fall into arrears. Mais il ne pouvait pas laisser sortir les paysans qui ne payaient pas leur loyer, ni les laisser tomber en arriérés. Bet jis negalėjo atleisti nei valstiečių, nemokėjusių nuomos, nei leisti įsiskolinti. It was impossible to overlook the bailiff's not having mown the meadows and letting the hay spoil; and it was equally impossible to mow those acres where a young copse had been planted. Il était impossible d'oublier que l'huissier n'avait pas fauché les prés et laissé le foin se gâter; et il était également impossible de faucher ces acres où un jeune bosquet avait été planté. It was impossible to excuse a laborer who had gone home in the busy season because his father was dying, however sorry he might feel for him, and he must subtract from his pay those costly months of idleness. Nebuvo įmanoma pateisinti darbininką, kuris grįžo namo intensyviu sezonu, nes jo tėvas mirė, kad ir kaip gailisi, kad jam gali jaustis, ir jis turi atimti iš savo atlyginimo tuos brangius dykinėjimo mėnesius. But it was impossible not to allow monthly rations to the old servants who were of no use for anything. Bet buvo neįmanoma neleisti mėnesinių normų seniems tarnams, kurie niekam nenaudingi.

Levin knew that when he got home he must first of all go to his wife, who was unwell, and that the peasants who had been waiting for three hours to see him could wait a little longer. He knew too that, regardless of all the pleasure he felt in taking a swarm, he must forego that pleasure, and leave the old man to see to the bees alone, while he talked to the peasants who had come after him to the bee-house. Il savait aussi que, quel que soit le plaisir qu'il éprouvait à prendre un essaim, il devait renoncer à ce plaisir, et laisser le vieillard s'occuper seul des abeilles, pendant qu'il parlait aux paysans qui l'avaient suivi jusqu'à l'abeille. loger.

Whether he were acting rightly or wrongly he did not know, and far from trying to prove that he was, nowadays he avoided all thought or talk about it.

Reasoning had brought him to doubt, and prevented him from seeing what he ought to do and what he ought not. When he did not think, but simply lived, he was continually aware of the presence of an infallible judge in his soul, determining which of two possible courses of action was the better and which was the worse, and as soon as he did not act rightly, he was at once aware of it.

So he lived, not knowing and not seeing any chance of knowing what he was and what he was living for, and harassed at this lack of knowledge to such a point that he was afraid of suicide, and yet firmly laying down his own individual definite path in life. Alors il a vécu, ne sachant pas et ne voyant aucune chance de savoir ce qu'il était et ce pour quoi il vivait, et a été harcelé par ce manque de connaissances à un point tel qu'il avait peur du suicide, et pourtant en établissant fermement son propre individu défini. chemin dans la vie.