Day 37: Seneca in the Cowshed
At morning milking on a dairy farm in the Allgäu, Kilian (B), a philosophy student home for the holidays, shares his latest ideas with his grandfather Alois (A), who has run the farm for sixty years.
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense. Point at (or tap) a German word to see what it means.
- Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native German, for example from the Resources page. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.
Dialogue
Audio recordings are on the way. For now, each lesson is the dialogue with its English translation.
Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day · point at a word to see its meaning
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A
Kilian, du schaust der Resi seit zehn Minuten in die Augen. Hülfe es ihr, wenn du das Melkzeug auch mal ansetzen würdest?
Kilian, you've been gazing into Resi's eyes for ten minutes. Might it help her if you actually put the milking cluster on?
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B
Ich denk nach, Opa. Laut dem Libet-Experiment entscheidet das Gehirn, bevor wir etwas wollen, also gibt es keinen freien Willen.
I'm thinking, Grandad. According to the Libet experiment, the brain decides before we want anything, so there's no such thing as free will.
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A
Soso. Und warum trottet die Resi dann jeden Morgen als Letzte in den Stall, obwohl ich mit dem Kraftfutter winke?
Well, well. Then why does Resi plod into the cowshed last every morning, even though I wave the feed at her?
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B
Das ist Rangordnung, kein freier Wille. Die Resi bekommt ihr Verhalten von Genen und Herde vorgeschrieben, genau wie du und ich.
That's the pecking order, not free will. Resi has her behaviour dictated to her by her genes and the herd, just like you and me.
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A
Den Hof hab ich überschrieben bekommen, zugegeben. Aber dass ich deine Oma geheiratet hab statt der reichen Müllerstochter, stand in keinem Gen.
I had the farm signed over to me, I grant you. But marrying your grandma instead of the rich miller's daughter wasn't written in any gene.
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B
Streng genommen hat das auch dein Gehirn entschieden. Du hast es nur eine halbe Sekunde später gemerkt.
Strictly speaking, your brain decided that too. You just noticed half a second later.
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A
Mag sein, und das Wetter macht freilich, was es will. Stünde aber in deinem Buch, dass ich deshalb nichts entscheide, empföhle ich deinem Professor eine Heuernte bei Gewitter.
Maybe so, and of course the weather does what it likes. But if your book said that means I decide nothing, I'd recommend your professor try haymaking in a thunderstorm.
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B
Das klingt ja fast nach Stoa, Opa. Wo hast du denn das her, aus dem Bauernkalender?
That sounds almost Stoic, Grandad. Where did you get that from, the farmer's almanac?
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A
„Den Willigen führt das Schicksal, den Unwilligen zerrt es.“ Seneca, gelesen im Winter dreiundsechzig, als wir drei Wochen eingeschneit waren.
'Fate leads the willing and drags the unwilling.' Seneca, read in the winter of sixty-three, when we were snowed in for three weeks.
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B
Du hast Seneca gelesen? Und ich erklär dir hier die Philosophie, als hätte ich sie erfunden.
You've read Seneca? And here I am explaining philosophy to you as if I'd invented it.
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A
Tja, Herr Philosoph: Gehst du jetzt freiwillig zur Resi, oder muss dich das Schicksal hinzerren? Gemolken wird sie so oder so.
Well, Mr Philosopher: are you going to Resi of your own free will, or does fate have to drag you there? She's getting milked either way.
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