French · Spleen and Ideal

Les Hiboux

The Owls

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1
Beneath the black yews that shelter them
Sousbeneathsous · prepositionpreposition marking ifs
lesthele · determiner, pluraldeterminer of ifs
ifsyewsif · noun, masculine, plurallocative modifier of tiennent
noirsblacknoir · adjective, masculine, pluralmodifies ifs
quithatqui · pronounsubject of abritent
lesthemle · pronoun, pluraldirect object of abritent
abritentshelterabriter · verb, present, indicative, third-person, pluralrelative clause on ifs
Word«un if» — a yew «un if» is the yew tree, the dark, slow-growing evergreen traditionally planted in churchyards and long associated with death and mourning. «Sous les ifs noirs qui les abritent» = 'beneath the black yews that shelter them'. The funereal tree sets the still, tomb-like key of the whole scene before the owls are even named.
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the owls hold themselves in a row
GrammarPronominal «se tenir» — to hold oneself, to stand «se tenir» (reflexive «tenir») means 'to hold oneself, to stand, to keep still'. «Les hiboux se tiennent rangés» = 'the owls hold themselves drawn up in a row'. «rangés» is the past participle of «ranger» (to arrange, to line up), here describing how they stand — motionless and orderly, like a row of idols.
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just like alien gods
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darting their red eye. They meditate.
GrammarPresent participle «darder» «dardant» is the present participle of «darder» — to shoot or dart (a beam, a glance), from «un dard», a dart or sting. «Dardant leur oeil rouge» = 'darting their red eye', the fixed predatory stare leveled outward like a thrown spear. The clipped final sentence «Ils méditent.» ('They meditate.') closes the quatrain on the owls' uncanny stillness.
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Without stirring they will hold still
GrammarFuture of pronominal «se tenir» «se tiendront» is the future of the pronominal «se tenir» (to hold oneself, to keep still), the same verb as «se tiennent» in the first stanza. «Sans remuer ils se tiendront» = 'without stirring they will hold still'. «sans + infinitive» («sans remuer» = 'without moving') is the standard way French expresses 'without ...-ing'. The future tense projects the owls' immobility forward across the whole coming day.
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until the melancholy hour
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when, pushing aside the slanting sun,
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the darkness will settle in.
Word«les ténèbres» — darkness (plural) «les ténèbres» is a grammatically plural, always-elevated noun for deep darkness or gloom, weightier than ordinary «l'obscurité». «s'établiront» is the future of pronominal «s'établir» (to establish itself, to settle in). «Les ténèbres s'établiront» = 'the darkness will settle in' — night arrives not as a fall but as a sovereign taking up residence.
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Their bearing teaches the wise man
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that in this world he must dread
GrammarSubjunctive after «il faut que» «il faut que» ('it is necessary that / one must') always triggers the subjunctive. «craigne» is the present subjunctive of «craindre» (to fear, to dread). Read straight: «leur attitude enseigne au sage qu'il faut qu'il craigne...» = 'their bearing teaches the wise man that he must dread...'. The owls' stillness is moralized into a lesson: fear movement and tumult.
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all tumult and all movement;
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The man drunk on a passing shadow
Word«ivre de» — drunk on, intoxicated by «ivre» = 'drunk, intoxicated'; «ivre de» means 'drunk on / mad for' something. «une ombre qui passe» is 'a shadow that passes', a fleeting, insubstantial thing. «L'homme ivre d'une ombre qui passe» = 'the man intoxicated by a passing shadow' — the restless dreamer who chases mere appearances, set against the motionless, contemplative owls.
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always bears the punishment
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of having wished to change his place.
GrammarPast infinitive «avoir voulu» «avoir voulu» is the past infinitive — «avoir» plus the past participle of «vouloir» (to want, to wish) — expressing a completed prior action: 'to have wished'. «le châtiment d'avoir voulu changer de place» = 'the punishment for having wished to change his place'. «changer de place» = 'to move, to change position'. The sin punished is simply the desire to be elsewhere — the opposite of the owls' rooted calm.

The particulars

The text: Les Fleurs du mal, Charles Baudelaire. Spleen and Ideal.
Words: Every word of the text, by letter.
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