German composition

Section 140. HERO WORSHIP⁠[1]. I.

Reading edition

Section 140. HERO WORSHIP⁠[1]. I.

Do⁠[2] not think it a mean thing to look up to (zu) those who are superior to yourselves⁠[3]. On the contrary, you will find in practice⁠[4], that it is only the meanest hearts, the shallowest and the basest (S. 128, N. 11) who feel no admiration, but (S. 6, N. 10) only envy for those who are better than themselves, who delight in⁠[5] finding fault with them, blackening (S. 1, N. 3) their character, and showing that they are not after all so much superior to other⁠[6] people; while⁠[7] it is the noblest-hearted, the very men who are most worthy to be admired themselves, who feel⁠[8] most the pleasure, the joy, and the strength of reverence (S. 3, N. 2); of⁠[9] having some one whom they can look up to and admire; some one in whose company they can forget⁠[10] themselves, their own interest, their own pleasure, their own honour and⁠[11] glory, and cry: “Him I must hear; him I must follow; to him I must cling, whatever⁠[12] may betide!”

Notes in this chapter

Note 3 · to finish, beendigen. The Supine is generally used for rendering the English Gerund (i.e. the verbal in -ing) when the latter is governed by Note 2 · Use the gen. of the def. art. The definite article is always required before nouns representing the whole of a given class, and before abstr Note 10 · The co-ordinative conjunction ‘but’ must be rendered by ‘sondern’, when, after a negative statement, the subsequent clause expresses an idea Note 11 · All parts qualifying a noun must be placed before it.Note 1 · Heldenverehrung, f.Note 2 · Do — thing, Halte es nicht für zu gering.Note 3 · Use the second person plural; to be superior to a person, einem weit überlegen sein.Note 4 · in practice = always.Note 5 · in — them = to discover weaknesses in (an, with dat.) them.Note 6 · to other people = to others.Note 7 · while — men, während die hochherzigsten Menschen, gerade diejenigen.Note 8 · ‘to feel’, here empfinden; ‘most’ here = deepest, am tiefsten; pleasure, Genuß, m.Note 9 · In order to connect this sentence more closely with the preceding, I propose to say: ‘the pleasure (Genuß, m.) of having (S. 34, N. 10) some Note 10 · Where must you place the two verbs, and in what order?Note 11 · It is a matter of course that the words ‘their own’ must be repeated here in German. Why?Note 12 · Whatever (Was auch) may happen.