{"work":{"slug":"baudelaire","title":{"source":"Les Fleurs du mal","translated":"The Flowers of Evil"},"author":"Charles Baudelaire","language":"French","languageCode":"fr","url":"https://1732studios.com/books/baudelaire"},"unit":{"kind":"poem","number":null,"id":"duellum","title":{"source":"Duellum","translated":"Duel"},"section":"Spleen and Ideal","summary":null,"url":"https://1732studios.com/books/baudelaire/duellum","lines":14},"previous":"https://1732studios.com/books/baudelaire/le-chat","next":"https://1732studios.com/books/baudelaire/le-balcon","license":"Source text: public domain (Charles Baudelaire, d. 1867). English translation: © 2026 1732 Studios, LLC — original draft, pending editorial review.","audioBase":null,"lines":[{"number":1,"label":"1","id":"duellum-s1-l1","source":"Deux guerriers ont couru l'un sur l'autre, leurs armes","translation":"Two warriors have rushed upon each other, their weapons","stanza":1,"audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"l'un sur l'autre","title":"«l'un… l'autre» (reciprocal)","body":"«l'un sur l'autre» = 'one upon the other' — the reciprocal construction «l'un… l'autre» expresses that the action is mutual: each warrior charges at the other. Here it sets the two combatants as mirror images locked in a single mutual assault."}],"words":[{"surface":"Deux","lemma":"deux","morphology":"numeral","role":"quantifies guerriers","gloss":"two"},{"surface":"guerriers","lemma":"guerrier","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"subject of couru","gloss":"warriors"},{"surface":"ont","lemma":"avoir","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, third-person, plural","role":"depends on couru","gloss":"have"},{"surface":"couru","lemma":"courir","morphology":"verb, past, participle, masculine, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"rushed"},{"surface":"l'","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of un","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"un","lemma":"un","morphology":"pronoun, masculine, singular","role":"reciprocal expression (l'un sur l'autre) with autre","gloss":"one"},{"surface":"sur","lemma":"sur","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking autre","gloss":"upon"},{"surface":"l'","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of autre","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"autre","lemma":"autre","morphology":"pronoun, singular","role":"object of sur, forms reciprocal l'un sur l'autre","gloss":"other"},{"surface":"leurs","lemma":"leur","morphology":"determiner, plural","role":"determiner of armes","gloss":"their"},{"surface":"armes","lemma":"arme","morphology":"noun, feminine, plural","role":"subject of Ont éclaboussé (s1-l2)","gloss":"weapons"}]},{"number":2,"label":"2","id":"duellum-s1-l2","source":"Ont éclaboussé l'air de lueurs et de sang.","translation":"have spattered the air with flashes and with blood.","audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"éclaboussé","title":"éclabousser","body":"«éclabousser» = 'to splash, to spatter' (as mud or liquid flung up). Pairing «lueurs» (glints of steel) with «sang» under one verb makes light and blood splash together — the sparks of the blades and the gore become a single spray."}],"words":[{"surface":"Ont","lemma":"avoir","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, third-person, plural","role":"depends on éclaboussé","gloss":"have"},{"surface":"éclaboussé","lemma":"éclabousser","morphology":"verb, past, participle, masculine, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"spattered"},{"surface":"l'","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of air","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"air","lemma":"air","morphology":"noun, masculine, singular","role":"direct object of éclaboussé","gloss":"air"},{"surface":"de","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking lueurs","gloss":"with"},{"surface":"lueurs","lemma":"lueur","morphology":"noun, feminine, plural","role":"modifies air","gloss":"flashes"},{"surface":"et","lemma":"et","morphology":"conjunction","role":"links the coordination","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"de","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking sang","gloss":"with"},{"surface":"sang","lemma":"sang","morphology":"noun, masculine, singular","role":"coordinated with lueurs","gloss":"blood"}]},{"number":3,"label":"3","id":"duellum-s1-l3","source":"Ces jeux, ces cliquetis du fer sont les vacarmes","translation":"These games, this clashing of steel are the uproar","audio":null,"notes":[],"words":[{"surface":"Ces","lemma":"ce","morphology":"determiner, plural","role":"determiner of jeux","gloss":"these"},{"surface":"jeux","lemma":"jeu","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"subject of vacarmes","gloss":"games"},{"surface":"ces","lemma":"ce","morphology":"determiner, plural","role":"determiner of cliquetis","gloss":"this"},{"surface":"cliquetis","lemma":"cliquetis","morphology":"noun, masculine, singular","role":"coordinated with jeux, subject of vacarmes","gloss":"clashing"},{"surface":"du","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking fer","gloss":"of"},{"surface":"fer","lemma":"fer","morphology":"noun, masculine, singular","role":"modifies cliquetis","gloss":"steel"},{"surface":"sont","lemma":"être","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, third-person, plural","role":"copula linking to vacarmes","gloss":"are"},{"surface":"les","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, plural","role":"determiner of vacarmes","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"vacarmes","lemma":"vacarme","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"head of the phrase","gloss":"uproar"}]},{"number":4,"label":"4","id":"duellum-s1-l4","source":"D'une jeunesse en proie à l'amour vagissant.","translation":"of a youth in the grip of love still wailing in its cradle.","audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"vagissant","title":"vagir / vagissant","body":"«vagir» is the verb for the cry of a newborn; «vagissant» = 'wailing like an infant'. Calling this violent love «vagissant» makes it brand-new and helpless — a love so young it still cries in the cradle, even as it arms itself for combat."}],"words":[{"surface":"D'","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking jeunesse","gloss":"of"},{"surface":"une","lemma":"un","morphology":"determiner, feminine, singular","role":"determiner of jeunesse","gloss":"a"},{"surface":"jeunesse","lemma":"jeunesse","morphology":"noun, feminine, singular","role":"head of the phrase","gloss":"youth"},{"surface":"en","lemma":"en","morphology":"preposition","role":"part of idiom en proie à, marking proie","gloss":"in"},{"surface":"proie","lemma":"proie","morphology":"noun, feminine, singular","role":"modifies jeunesse (idiom en proie à = in the grip of)","gloss":"grip","note":"'en proie à' is an idiom meaning 'prey to, in the grip of'."},{"surface":"à","lemma":"à","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking amour","gloss":"to"},{"surface":"l'","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of amour","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"amour","lemma":"amour","morphology":"noun, masculine, singular","role":"modifies proie","gloss":"love"},{"surface":"vagissant","lemma":"vagir","morphology":"verb, present, participle","role":"clause modifying amour","gloss":"wailing"}]},{"number":5,"label":"5","id":"duellum-s2-l1","source":"Les glaives sont brisés! comme notre jeunesse,","translation":"The swords are shattered! — like our youth,","stanza":2,"audio":null,"notes":[],"words":[{"surface":"Les","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, plural","role":"determiner of glaives","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"glaives","lemma":"glaive","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"subject of passive brisés","gloss":"swords"},{"surface":"sont","lemma":"être","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, third-person, plural","role":"passive auxiliary of brisés","gloss":"are"},{"surface":"brisés","lemma":"briser","morphology":"verb, past, passive, participle, masculine, plural","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"shattered"},{"surface":"comme","lemma":"comme","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking jeunesse","gloss":"like"},{"surface":"notre","lemma":"notre","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of jeunesse","gloss":"our"},{"surface":"jeunesse","lemma":"jeunesse","morphology":"noun, feminine, singular","role":"head of the phrase","gloss":"youth"}]},{"number":6,"label":"6","id":"duellum-s2-l2","source":"Ma chère! Mais les dents, les ongles acérés,","translation":"my dear! But the teeth, the sharpened nails,","audio":null,"notes":[],"words":[{"surface":"Ma","lemma":"mon","morphology":"determiner, feminine, singular","role":"determiner of chère","gloss":"my"},{"surface":"chère","lemma":"cher","morphology":"adjective, feminine, singular","role":"head of the phrase (vocative)","gloss":"dear"},{"surface":"Mais","lemma":"mais","morphology":"conjunction","role":"links the coordination","gloss":"but"},{"surface":"les","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, plural","role":"determiner of dents","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"dents","lemma":"dent","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"subject of Vengent (s2-l3)","gloss":"teeth"},{"surface":"les","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, plural","role":"determiner of ongles","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"ongles","lemma":"ongle","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"coordinated with dents (subject of Vengent)","gloss":"nails"},{"surface":"acérés","lemma":"acéré","morphology":"adjective, masculine, plural","role":"modifies ongles","gloss":"sharpened"}]},{"number":7,"label":"7","id":"duellum-s2-l3","source":"Vengent bientôt l'épée et la dague traîtresse.","translation":"soon avenge the sword and the treacherous dagger.","audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"la dague traîtresse","title":"traître / traîtresse","body":"«traîtresse» is the feminine of «traître» ('treacherous, traitor'), agreeing with «la dague» (the dagger). The adjective makes the broken blade itself faithless — and as the weapons fail, teeth and nails take up the quarrel in their place."}],"words":[{"surface":"Vengent","lemma":"venger","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, plural","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"avenge"},{"surface":"bientôt","lemma":"bientôt","morphology":"adverb","role":"modifies Vengent","gloss":"soon"},{"surface":"l'","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of épée","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"épée","lemma":"épée","morphology":"noun, feminine, singular","role":"direct object of Vengent","gloss":"sword"},{"surface":"et","lemma":"et","morphology":"conjunction","role":"links the coordination","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"la","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, feminine, singular","role":"determiner of dague","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"dague","lemma":"dague","morphology":"noun, feminine, singular","role":"coordinated with épée","gloss":"dagger"},{"surface":"traîtresse","lemma":"traître","morphology":"adjective, feminine, singular","role":"modifies dague","gloss":"treacherous"}]},{"number":8,"label":"8","id":"duellum-s2-l4","source":"— Ô fureur des coeurs mûrs par l'amour ulcérés!","translation":"— O fury of hearts ripened, ulcerated by love!","audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"coeurs mûrs par l'amour ulcérés","title":"An adjective and a past participle on one noun","body":"«mûrs» is the masculine plural of the adjective «mûr» (ripe, mature) — not a past participle (which would be «mûris»). «ulcérés» is a past participle meaning 'ulcerated, made raw', with «par l'amour» ('by love') as its passive agent. The two words both modify «coeurs», but only «ulcérés» takes «par l'amour» as its agent. Love both ripens and festers these mature hearts — the same force that brings them to fullness also leaves them as open sores."}],"words":[{"surface":"Ô","lemma":"ô","morphology":"interjection","role":"interjection introducing fureur (vocative)","gloss":"o"},{"surface":"fureur","lemma":"fureur","morphology":"noun, feminine, singular","role":"head of the phrase","gloss":"fury"},{"surface":"des","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"determiner of coeurs","gloss":"of the"},{"surface":"coeurs","lemma":"coeur","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"modifies fureur","gloss":"hearts"},{"surface":"mûrs","lemma":"mûr","morphology":"adjective, masculine, plural","role":"modifies coeurs","gloss":"ripened"},{"surface":"par","lemma":"par","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking amour","gloss":"by"},{"surface":"l'","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of amour","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"amour","lemma":"amour","morphology":"noun, masculine, singular","role":"modifies ulcérés (agent of by-phrase)","gloss":"love"},{"surface":"ulcérés","lemma":"ulcérer","morphology":"adjective, masculine, plural","role":"modifies coeurs, coordinated with mûrs (ulcerated by love)","gloss":"ulcerated"}]},{"number":9,"label":"9","id":"duellum-s3-l1","source":"Dans le ravin hanté des chats-pards et des onces","translation":"In the ravine haunted by wildcats and snow-leopards","stanza":3,"audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"des chats-pards et des onces","title":"chat-pard / once","body":"«chat-pard» (from «chat» + «pard», leopard) is an archaic name for a spotted wildcat — a leopard-like cat, not the «guépard» (cheetah); «once» is an archaic word for the snow leopard (cf. English 'ounce'). The rare, feral beast-names make the gully a wild, predatory place, fit for the savagery the two lovers are about to act out."}],"words":[{"surface":"Dans","lemma":"dans","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking ravin","gloss":"in"},{"surface":"le","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, masculine, singular","role":"determiner of ravin","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"ravin","lemma":"ravin","morphology":"noun, masculine, singular","role":"head of the phrase","gloss":"ravine"},{"surface":"hanté","lemma":"hanté","morphology":"adjective, masculine, singular","role":"modifies ravin","gloss":"haunted"},{"surface":"des","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking chats-pards","gloss":"by"},{"surface":"chats-pards","lemma":"chat-pard","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"modifies ravin","gloss":"cheetahs"},{"surface":"et","lemma":"et","morphology":"conjunction","role":"links the coordination","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"des","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking onces","gloss":"by"},{"surface":"onces","lemma":"once","morphology":"noun, feminine, plural","role":"coordinated with chats-pards","gloss":"snow-leopards"}]},{"number":10,"label":"10","id":"duellum-s3-l2","source":"Nos héros, s'étreignant méchamment, ont roulé,","translation":"our heroes, clutching each other viciously, have rolled,","audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"s'étreignant","title":"Reflexive «s'étreindre» as reciprocal","body":"«s'étreindre» = 'to embrace / grip each other'; the present participle «s'étreignant» here reads reciprocally — 'clutching one another'. The same verb covers a lover's embrace and a wrestler's grapple, so the embrace and the death-grip are one and the same gesture."}],"words":[{"surface":"Nos","lemma":"notre","morphology":"determiner, plural","role":"determiner of héros","gloss":"our"},{"surface":"héros","lemma":"héros","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"subject of étreignant","gloss":"heroes"},{"surface":"s'","lemma":"se","morphology":"pronoun, reflexive","role":"depends on étreignant","gloss":"each other"},{"surface":"étreignant","lemma":"étreindre","morphology":"verb, present, participle","role":"adverbial clause on roulé","gloss":"clutching"},{"surface":"méchamment","lemma":"méchamment","morphology":"adverb","role":"modifies étreignant","gloss":"viciously"},{"surface":"ont","lemma":"avoir","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, third-person, plural","role":"depends on roulé","gloss":"have"},{"surface":"roulé","lemma":"rouler","morphology":"verb, past, participle, masculine, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"rolled"}]},{"number":11,"label":"11","id":"duellum-s3-l3","source":"Et leur peau fleurira l'aridité des ronces.","translation":"and their skin will bring the barren brambles into flower.","audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"leur peau fleurira l'aridité","title":"«fleurir» used transitively","body":"«fleurir» normally means 'to bloom' (intransitive), but here it takes a direct object, «l'aridité des ronces» — 'their skin will flower the barrenness of the brambles'. Their torn flesh makes the dry thorns blossom: the wounds become the only flowers this wasteland will bear."}],"words":[{"surface":"Et","lemma":"et","morphology":"conjunction","role":"links the coordination","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"leur","lemma":"leur","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of peau","gloss":"their"},{"surface":"peau","lemma":"peau","morphology":"noun, feminine, singular","role":"subject of fleurira","gloss":"skin"},{"surface":"fleurira","lemma":"fleurir","morphology":"verb, future, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"will flower"},{"surface":"l'","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of aridité","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"aridité","lemma":"aridité","morphology":"noun, feminine, singular","role":"direct object of fleurira","gloss":"barrenness"},{"surface":"des","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking ronces","gloss":"of the"},{"surface":"ronces","lemma":"ronce","morphology":"noun, feminine, plural","role":"modifies aridité","gloss":"brambles"}]},{"number":12,"label":"12","id":"duellum-s4-l1","source":"— Ce gouffre, c'est l'enfer, de nos amis peuplé!","translation":"— This abyss is hell, peopled with our friends!","stanza":4,"audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"de nos amis peuplé","title":"Inverted past participle «peuplé»","body":"Normal prose order would be «peuplé de nos amis» ('peopled with our friends'). Baudelaire fronts the complement — «de nos amis peuplé» — for rhyme and emphasis, throwing the chilling phrase 'our friends' into the middle of the line: hell is already crowded with the people we know."}],"words":[{"surface":"Ce","lemma":"ce","morphology":"determiner, masculine, singular","role":"determiner of gouffre","gloss":"this"},{"surface":"gouffre","lemma":"gouffre","morphology":"noun, masculine, singular","role":"left-dislocated topic, resumed by c'","gloss":"abyss"},{"surface":"c'","lemma":"ce","morphology":"pronoun, singular","role":"subject of est, resumes gouffre","gloss":"it"},{"surface":"est","lemma":"être","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"copula linking to enfer","gloss":"is"},{"surface":"l'","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of enfer","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"enfer","lemma":"enfer","morphology":"noun, masculine, singular","role":"head of the phrase","gloss":"hell"},{"surface":"de","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking amis","gloss":"with"},{"surface":"nos","lemma":"notre","morphology":"determiner, plural","role":"determiner of amis","gloss":"our"},{"surface":"amis","lemma":"ami","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"object of preposition de, modifies peuplé","gloss":"friends"},{"surface":"peuplé","lemma":"peupler","morphology":"adjective (past participle), masculine, singular","role":"modifies enfer (peopled by amis)","gloss":"peopled"}]},{"number":13,"label":"13","id":"duellum-s4-l2","source":"Roulons-y sans remords, amazone inhumaine,","translation":"Let us roll into it without remorse, inhuman amazon,","audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"Roulons-y","title":"Imperative + adverbial «y»","body":"«Roulons» is the first-person-plural imperative of «rouler» ('let us roll'); the attached «y» = 'there / into it', pointing back to «ce gouffre» (this abyss). The pronoun clings to the verb in the imperative — 'let us roll down into it' — turning the fall into hell into a shared, willed plunge."}],"words":[{"surface":"Roulons","lemma":"rouler","morphology":"verb, imperative, first-person, plural","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"let us roll"},{"surface":"y","lemma":"y","morphology":"pronoun, adverbial","role":"adverbial pronoun, oblique argument of Roulons (into it)","gloss":"into it"},{"surface":"sans","lemma":"sans","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking remords","gloss":"without"},{"surface":"remords","lemma":"remords","morphology":"noun, masculine, plural","role":"object of sans","gloss":"remorse"},{"surface":"amazone","lemma":"amazone","morphology":"noun, feminine, singular","role":"vocative, in apposition (addressing the amazon)","gloss":"amazon"},{"surface":"inhumaine","lemma":"inhumain","morphology":"adjective, feminine, singular","role":"modifies amazone","gloss":"inhuman"}]},{"number":14,"label":"14","id":"duellum-s4-l3","source":"Afin d'éterniser l'ardeur de notre haine!","translation":"so as to make eternal the ardor of our hatred!","audio":null,"notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"Afin d'éterniser","title":"«afin de» + infinitive (purpose)","body":"«afin de» + infinitive expresses purpose: 'in order to…'. The goal of the willed plunge into hell is «éterniser l'ardeur de notre haine» — 'to make our hatred's ardor eternal'. The final twist: damnation is embraced not to end the strife but to keep it burning forever."}],"words":[{"surface":"Afin","lemma":"afin","morphology":"adverb","role":"part of compound conjunction afin de (so as to)","gloss":"so as"},{"surface":"d'","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking éterniser","gloss":"to"},{"surface":"éterniser","lemma":"éterniser","morphology":"verb, infinitive","role":"oblique argument of Afin d'","gloss":"make eternal"},{"surface":"l'","lemma":"le","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of ardeur","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"ardeur","lemma":"ardeur","morphology":"noun, masculine, singular","role":"direct object of éterniser","gloss":"ardor"},{"surface":"de","lemma":"de","morphology":"preposition","role":"preposition marking haine","gloss":"of"},{"surface":"notre","lemma":"notre","morphology":"determiner, singular","role":"determiner of haine","gloss":"our"},{"surface":"haine","lemma":"haine","morphology":"noun, feminine, singular","role":"modifies ardeur","gloss":"hatred"}]}]}