How Pantagruel persuaded Panurge to take counsel of a fool.
When Pantagruel had withdrawn1 himself, he, by a little sloping window in one of the galleries, perceived Panurge in a lobby not far from thence, walking alone, with the gesture, carriage, and garb2 of a fond dotard, raving3, wagging, and shaking his hands, dandling, lolling, and nodding with his head, like a cow bellowing4 for her calf5; and, having then called him nearer, spoke6 unto him thus: You are at this present, as I think, not unlike to a mouse entangled7 in a snare8, who the more that she goeth about to rid and unwind herself out of the gin wherein she is caught, by endeavouring to clear and deliver her feet from the pitch whereto they stick, the foulier she is bewrayed with it, and the more strongly pestered9 therein. Even so is it with you. For the more that you labour, strive, and enforce yourself to disencumber and extricate10 your thoughts out of the implicating11 involutions and fetterings of the grievous and lamentable12 gins and springs of anguish13 and perplexity, the greater difficulty there is in the relieving of you, and you remain faster bound than ever. Nor do I know for the removal of this inconveniency any remedy but one.
Take heed14, I have often heard it said in a vulgar proverb, The wise may be instructed by a fool. Seeing the answers and responses of sage15 and judicious16 men have in no manner of way satisfied you, take advice of some fool, and possibly by so doing you may come to get that counsel which will be agreeable to your own heart’s desire and contentment. You know how by the advice and counsel and prediction of fools, many kings, princes, states, and commonwealths17 have been preserved, several battles gained, and divers18 doubts of a most perplexed19 intricacy resolved. I am not so diffident of your memory as to hold it needful to refresh it with a quotation20 of examples, nor do I so far undervalue your judgment21 but that I think it will acquiesce22 in the reason of this my subsequent discourse23. As he who narrowly takes heed to what concerns the dexterous24 management of his private affairs, domestic businesses, and those adoes which are confined within the strait-laced compass of one family, who is attentive25, vigilant26, and active in the economic rule of his own house, whose frugal27 spirit never strays from home, who loseth no occasion whereby he may purchase to himself more riches, and build up new heaps of treasure on his former wealth, and who knows warily28 how to prevent the inconveniences of poverty, is called a worldly wise man, though perhaps in the second judgment of the intelligences which are above he be esteemed29 a fool,— so, on the contrary, is he most like, even in the thoughts of all celestial30 spirits, to be not only sage, but to presage31 events to come by divine inspiration, who laying quite aside those cares which are conducible to his body or his fortunes, and, as it were, departing from himself, rids all his senses of terrene affections, and clears his fancies of those plodding32 studies which harbour in the minds of thriving men. All which neglects of sublunary things are vulgarily imputed33 folly34. After this manner, the son of Picus, King of the Latins, the great soothsayer Faunus, was called Fatuus by the witless rabble35 of the common people. The like we daily see practised amongst the comic players, whose dramatic roles, in distribution of the personages, appoint the acting36 of the fool to him who is the wisest of the troop. In approbation37 also of this fashion the mathematicians38 allow the very same horoscope to princes and to sots. Whereof a right pregnant instance by them is given in the nativities of Aeneas and Choroebus; the latter of which two is by Euphorion said to have been a fool, and yet had with the former the same aspects and heavenly genethliac influences.
I shall not, I suppose, swerve39 much from the purpose in hand, if I relate unto you what John Andrew said upon the return of a papal writ40, which was directed to the mayor and burgesses of Rochelle, and after him by Panorme, upon the same pontifical41 canon; Barbatias on the Pandects, and recently by Jason in his Councils, concerning Seyny John, the noted42 fool of Paris, and Caillet’s fore43 great-grandfather. The case is this.
At Paris, in the roastmeat cookery of the Petit Chastelet, before the cookshop of one of the roastmeat sellers of that lane, a certain hungry porter was eating his bread, after he had by parcels kept it a while above the reek44 and steam of a fat goose on the spit, turning at a great fire, and found it, so besmoked with the vapour, to be savoury; which the cook observing, took no notice, till after having ravined his penny loaf, whereof no morsel45 had been unsmokified, he was about decamping and going away. But, by your leave, as the fellow thought to have departed thence shot-free, the master-cook laid hold upon him by the gorget, and demanded payment for the smoke of his roast meat. The porter answered, that he had sustained no loss at all; that by what he had done there was no diminution46 made of the flesh; that he had taken nothing of his, and that therefore he was not indebted to him in anything. As for the smoke in question, that, although he had not been there, it would howsoever have been evaporated; besides, that before that time it had never been seen nor heard that roastmeat smoke was sold upon the streets of Paris. The cook hereto replied, that he was not obliged nor any way bound to feed and nourish for nought47 a porter whom he had never seen before with the smoke of his roast meat, and thereupon swore that if he would not forthwith content and satisfy him with present payment for the repast which he had thereby49 got, that he would take his crooked50 staves from off his back; which, instead of having loads thereafter laid upon them, should serve for fuel to his kitchen fires. Whilst he was going about so to do, and to have pulled them to him by one of the bottom rungs which he had caught in his hand, the sturdy porter got out of his grip, drew forth48 the knotty51 cudgel, and stood to his own defence. The altercation52 waxed hot in words, which moved the gaping53 hoidens of the sottish Parisians to run from all parts thereabouts, to see what the issue would be of that babbling54 strife55 and contention56. In the interim57 of this dispute, to very good purpose Seyny John, the fool and citizen of Paris, happened to be there, whom the cook perceiving, said to the porter, Wilt58 thou refer and submit unto the noble Seyny John the decision of the difference and controversy59 which is betwixt us? Yes, by the blood of a goose, answered the porter, I am content. Seyny John the fool, finding that the cook and porter had compromised the determination of their variance60 and debate to the discretion61 of his award and arbitrament, after that the reasons on either side whereupon was grounded the mutual62 fierceness of their brawling63 jar had been to the full displayed and laid open before him, commanded the porter to draw out of the fob of his belt a piece or money, if he had it. Whereupon the porter immediately without delay, in reverence64 to the authority of such a judicious umpire, put the tenth part of a silver Philip into his hand. This little Philip Seyny John took; then set it on his left shoulder, to try by feeling if it was of a sufficient weight. After that, laying it on the palm of his hand, he made it ring and tingle65, to understand by the ear if it was of a good alloy66 in the metal whereof it was composed. Thereafter he put it to the ball or apple of his left eye, to explore by the sight if it was well stamped and marked; all which being done, in a profound silence of the whole doltish67 people who were there spectators of this pageantry, to the great hope of the cook’s and despair of the porter’s prevalency in the suit that was in agitation68, he finally caused the porter to make it sound several times upon the stall of the cook’s shop. Then with a presidential majesty69 holding his bauble70 sceptre-like in his hand, muffling71 his head with a hood72 of marten skins, each side whereof had the resemblance of an ape’s face sprucified up with ears of pasted paper, and having about his neck a bucked73 ruff, raised, furrowed74, and ridged with pointing sticks of the shape and fashion of small organ pipes, he first with all the force of his lungs coughed two or three times, and then with an audible voice pronounced this following sentence: The court declareth that the porter who ate his bread at the smoke of the roast, hath civilly paid the cook with the sound of his money. And the said court ordaineth that everyone return to his own home, and attend his proper business, without cost and charges, and for a cause. This verdict, award, and arbitrament of the Parisian fool did appear so equitable75, yea, so admirable to the aforesaid doctors, that they very much doubted if the matter had been brought before the sessions for justice of the said place, or that the judges of the Rota at Rome had been umpires therein, or yet that the Areopagites themselves had been the deciders thereof, if by any one part, or all of them together, it had been so judicially76 sententiated and awarded. Therefore advise, if you will be counselled by a fool.
1 withdrawn | |
vt.收回;使退出;vi.撤退,退出 | |
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2 garb | |
n.服装,装束 | |
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3 raving | |
adj.说胡话的;疯狂的,怒吼的;非常漂亮的;令人醉心[痴心]的v.胡言乱语(rave的现在分词)n.胡话;疯话adv.胡言乱语地;疯狂地 | |
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4 bellowing | |
v.发出吼叫声,咆哮(尤指因痛苦)( bellow的现在分词 );(愤怒地)说出(某事),大叫 | |
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5 calf | |
n.小牛,犊,幼仔,小牛皮 | |
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6 spoke | |
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说 | |
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7 entangled | |
adj.卷入的;陷入的;被缠住的;缠在一起的v.使某人(某物/自己)缠绕,纠缠于(某物中),使某人(自己)陷入(困难或复杂的环境中)( entangle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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8 snare | |
n.陷阱,诱惑,圈套;(去除息肉或者肿瘤的)勒除器;响弦,小军鼓;vt.以陷阱捕获,诱惑 | |
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9 pestered | |
使烦恼,纠缠( pester的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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10 extricate | |
v.拯救,救出;解脱 | |
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11 implicating | |
vt.牵涉,涉及(implicate的现在分词形式) | |
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12 lamentable | |
adj.令人惋惜的,悔恨的 | |
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13 anguish | |
n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦,烦恼 | |
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14 heed | |
v.注意,留意;n.注意,留心 | |
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15 sage | |
n.圣人,哲人;adj.贤明的,明智的 | |
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16 judicious | |
adj.明智的,明断的,能作出明智决定的 | |
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17 commonwealths | |
n.共和国( commonwealth的名词复数 );联邦;团体;协会 | |
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18 divers | |
adj.不同的;种种的 | |
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19 perplexed | |
adj.不知所措的 | |
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20 quotation | |
n.引文,引语,语录;报价,牌价,行情 | |
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21 judgment | |
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见 | |
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22 acquiesce | |
vi.默许,顺从,同意 | |
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23 discourse | |
n.论文,演说;谈话;话语;vi.讲述,著述 | |
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24 dexterous | |
adj.灵敏的;灵巧的 | |
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25 attentive | |
adj.注意的,专心的;关心(别人)的,殷勤的 | |
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26 vigilant | |
adj.警觉的,警戒的,警惕的 | |
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27 frugal | |
adj.节俭的,节约的,少量的,微量的 | |
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28 warily | |
adv.留心地 | |
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29 esteemed | |
adj.受人尊敬的v.尊敬( esteem的过去式和过去分词 );敬重;认为;以为 | |
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30 celestial | |
adj.天体的;天上的 | |
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31 presage | |
n.预感,不祥感;v.预示 | |
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32 plodding | |
a.proceeding in a slow or dull way | |
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33 imputed | |
v.把(错误等)归咎于( impute的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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34 folly | |
n.愚笨,愚蠢,蠢事,蠢行,傻话 | |
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35 rabble | |
n.乌合之众,暴民;下等人 | |
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36 acting | |
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的 | |
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37 approbation | |
n.称赞;认可 | |
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38 mathematicians | |
数学家( mathematician的名词复数 ) | |
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39 swerve | |
v.突然转向,背离;n.转向,弯曲,背离 | |
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40 writ | |
n.命令状,书面命令 | |
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41 pontifical | |
adj.自以为是的,武断的 | |
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42 noted | |
adj.著名的,知名的 | |
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43 fore | |
adv.在前面;adj.先前的;在前部的;n.前部 | |
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44 reek | |
v.发出臭气;n.恶臭 | |
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45 morsel | |
n.一口,一点点 | |
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46 diminution | |
n.减少;变小 | |
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47 nought | |
n./adj.无,零 | |
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48 forth | |
adv.向前;向外,往外 | |
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49 thereby | |
adv.因此,从而 | |
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50 crooked | |
adj.弯曲的;不诚实的,狡猾的,不正当的 | |
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51 knotty | |
adj.有结的,多节的,多瘤的,棘手的 | |
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52 altercation | |
n.争吵,争论 | |
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53 gaping | |
adj.口的;张口的;敞口的;多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 );张开,张大 | |
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54 babbling | |
n.胡说,婴儿发出的咿哑声adj.胡说的v.喋喋不休( babble的现在分词 );作潺潺声(如流水);含糊不清地说话;泄漏秘密 | |
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55 strife | |
n.争吵,冲突,倾轧,竞争 | |
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56 contention | |
n.争论,争辩,论战;论点,主张 | |
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57 interim | |
adj.暂时的,临时的;n.间歇,过渡期间 | |
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58 wilt | |
v.(使)植物凋谢或枯萎;(指人)疲倦,衰弱 | |
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59 controversy | |
n.争论,辩论,争吵 | |
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60 variance | |
n.矛盾,不同 | |
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61 discretion | |
n.谨慎;随意处理 | |
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62 mutual | |
adj.相互的,彼此的;共同的,共有的 | |
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63 brawling | |
n.争吵,喧嚷 | |
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64 reverence | |
n.敬畏,尊敬,尊严;Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称;v.尊敬,敬畏,崇敬 | |
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65 tingle | |
vi.感到刺痛,感到激动;n.刺痛,激动 | |
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66 alloy | |
n.合金,(金属的)成色 | |
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67 doltish | |
adj.愚蠢的 | |
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68 agitation | |
n.搅动;搅拌;鼓动,煽动 | |
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69 majesty | |
n.雄伟,壮丽,庄严,威严;最高权威,王权 | |
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70 bauble | |
n.美观而无价值的饰物 | |
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71 muffling | |
v.压抑,捂住( muffle的现在分词 );用厚厚的衣帽包着(自己) | |
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72 hood | |
n.头巾,兜帽,覆盖;v.罩上,以头巾覆盖 | |
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73 bucked | |
adj.快v.(马等)猛然弓背跃起( buck的过去式和过去分词 );抵制;猛然震荡;马等尥起后蹄跳跃 | |
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74 furrowed | |
v.犁田,开沟( furrow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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75 equitable | |
adj.公平的;公正的 | |
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76 judicially | |
依法判决地,公平地 | |
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