tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Fri May 22 10:08:36 1998
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Re: Proverbs 29:11
- From: Steven Boozer <[email protected]>
- Subject: Re: Proverbs 29:11
- Date: Fri, 22 May 1998 12:07:45 -0500 (CDT)
>> A foolish person loses his temper, but a wise person controls his temper.
>> QeHDaj SeHbe' ghut Dogh 'ach QeHDaj SeH ghut val.
>>
>> tu'wI'
> Qay' DoghwI', Qay'be' valwI'.
>
> Replacing /QeHDaj SeHbe'/ with /Qay'/ seems a more succinct use of the
> vocabulary to me. There's nothing wrong with /ghut Dogh/, but I just felt
> that this is exactly what /-wI'/ is intended for, so I went with /DoghwI'/.
>
> --Holtej
: majQa'! vIparHa'qu'! Good use of the vocabulary!
:
: How about {qoH}? It has been used in several Okrandian proverbs
: already. Klingons seem to like the word for this meaning. I'd
: also wonder if {wIgh} would do for {valwI'}. It is all a matter
: of threshold. You could soften it with {wIghHey}.
:
: charghwI'
reH lugh charghwI'. {qoH} is perfect for the Hebrew *k'sil* of the original
text:
kol ruHo yotsi k'sil ve-Hakham be-aHor y'shabHennah
"A fool vents all his spirit; but a wise man praises in retrospect."
The *k'sil* "fool, dunce" is a frequent target in Mishlei (short for
*Mishlei Sh'lomoh* "The Proverbs of Solomon"), just as Klingons target the
actions of a {qoH}:
Hagh qoHpu' neH HeghtaHvIS SuvwI'pu'
Only fools laugh while warriors die. PK
not qoHpu''e' neH ghIjlu'
Only fools have no fear. TKW
meQtaHbogh qachDaq Suv qoH neH
Only a fool fights in a burning house. TKW
qoH vuvbe' SuS
The wind does not respect a fool. TKW
HIvbe' qoHpu' neH
Only fools don't attack. TKW
Hegh neH chav qoH
A fool's only achievement is death. TKW
qanchoHpa' qoH, Hegh qoH
Fools die young. TKW
OTOH, I do like Holtej's version better -- it's more succinct, and the
parallelism of {DoghwI'} vs. {valwI'} is perfect. {wIgh} "genius" does
balance {qoH}, but since Okrand has never used it in context we don't really
know what {wIgh} means in Klingon culture. Also, {valwI'} -- from {val} "be
clever, smart, intelligent" -- is a better translation of Hebrew *Hakham*
"wise man, learned man, sage" as *Hakham* is also an adjective meaning
"wise", which immediately calls to mind the noun *Hokhmah* "wisdom"
(*sophia* in Greek thought). Perhaps {SovwI'} "one who knows (i.e. how to
behave correctly)" would work here, as it would remind the Klingon reader of
the nouns {Sov} "knowledge" and {leSSov} "foresight".
Voragh
_____________________________________________________________________
Steven Boozer University of Chicago Library [email protected]