Book 14: 《憲問》 Xian Wen (Xian Asked)
《憲問》 Passage 14.6
Legge Translation (1861)
The Master said: "Superior men, and yet not always virtuous, there have been, alas! But there never has been a mean man, and, at the same time, virtuous."Word by word
- 子曰 zǐ yuē
the Master said
- 子 Master, honorific title for Confucius
- 曰 said, spoke
- 君子 jūn zǐ
exemplary person, gentleman, superior man
- 君 lord, ruler; 君子 is literally a lord's son
- 子 son; 君子 is literally a lord's son, one of the ruling class, which the Analects makes a term of character
- 而 ér
contrastive conjunction: and yet, but
- 不仁者 bù rén zhě
one who is not human-hearted
- 不 bù
not
- 仁 rén
humane, benevolent
仁, the cardinal Confucian virtue; translators diverge between benevolence, capitalized Goodness, and authoritative conduct.
- 者 zhě
nominalizing particle: one who, such a person
- 有 yǒu
there is, there are, to exist
- 矣夫 yǐ fú
final particles of exclamatory assertion: indeed, surely, alas
- 矣 final particle marking a completed or asserted state
- 夫 final particle of exclamatory assertion: indeed, alas
矣 marks a completed or asserted state and 夫 adds exclamatory force; together they intensify the claim, which several translators render as a hedge or tag question instead.
- 未有 wèi yǒu
there has never been, there is no such thing as
- 未 not yet, never (negates existence)
- 有 there is, there are; to exist, to have
- 小人 xiǎo rén
petty person, small man (morally base, opposite of 君子)
- 小 small, petty, morally base
- 人 person, man
- 而 ér
contrastive conjunction: and yet, but
- 仁者 rén zhě
the human-hearted; one who possesses 仁
- 仁 rén
humane, benevolent
仁, the cardinal Confucian virtue; translators diverge between benevolence, capitalized Goodness, and authoritative conduct.
- 者 zhě
nominalizing particle: one who, such a person
- 也 yě
final particle of assertion
English closes the sentence with a period.
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