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Jean Racine - Esther
890 For the spelling voi (which is etymologically correct, seeing that no first person singular
ends in "s" in Lat.), see App. I, Rhyme.
892 Cf. Claudian, In Rufinum, I. 22, 23.
. . . tolluntur in altum
Ut lapsu graviore ruant.
894 ces bords écartés, i.e., Macedonia. We have already referred to Rest of the Book of Esther, xvi. 10,
where Haman is described as a Macedonian.
896-897. See l. 485, N.
898 For enfin, see l. 160, N.
910 Note the skillful way in which the poet shows Haman so possessed with his grief that he can
entertain no other thought.
911 ce chagrin, i.e., that betrayed by l. 910.
928 dès longtemps, in prose depuis longtemps. See l. 75 N.
934 en, see App. V, ii. C.
935 se resserre = "is wrung."
938 ne le connaître pas. This position of pas, after the infinitive, is elegant and emphatic.
946 croître is transitive only in poetry.
955 Suspendez = "A truce to. . . ."
956 puissent is so frequently used to express an exclamative wish, that it usually drops the que,
which here however is retained.
962 encore, i.e., in addition to that fear.
992 riche is the subst. - Sous la loi goes closely after gémisse.
1008 For servir de, see l. 259, N.
1012 camp = "host."
1021 For the virtual superlative si sage, cf. l. 541.
1024 Dussiez-vous, = quand même vous devriez. This elegant use of the imperf. subj. with
subject pronoun inverted (= quand même and the conditional) is generally confined to the
auxiliaries, or pseudo-auxiliaries, such as savoir, pouvoir, falloir, etc. In the third
person sing. however, where the verb-forms are less unwieldly, other verbs may be so used: it is a matter
of euphony. - For the previous offer, see l. 660.
1039 aurait puise. Note this conditional past of hypothetical statement. It always implies that the speaker
is unwilling to indorse the statement on his own responsibility.
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