Glossary entry (derived from question below)
French term or phrase:
\"Le bruit ne fait pas de bien, le bien ne fait pas de bruit\"
English translation:
In fame there is no virtue, in virtue there is no fame.
Added to glossary by
Susannah Bayley
Sep 24, 2012 15:49
11 yrs ago
1 viewer *
French term
"Le bruit ne fait pas de bien, le bien ne fait pas de bruit"
French to English
Art/Literary
Idioms / Maxims / Sayings
A quote meaning the truest charity is that which you don't hear about... Does anyone have a neat English equivalent?
Thanks!
Thanks!
Proposed translations
(English)
References
Info | Conor McAuley |
Proposed translations
+1
3 hrs
Selected
In fame there is no virtue, in virtue there is no fame.
It's not entirely faithful to the FR - bruit and fame are not quite the same thing - but it does keep its structure and is fairly pithy, which is the point, I think :-)
Also thought of "Virtue is anonymous", but that's obviously less idiomatic than the FR.
Also thought of "Virtue is anonymous", but that's obviously less idiomatic than the FR.
Peer comment(s):
agree |
Daryo
: what about "fame doesn't seek virtue, virtue doesn't seek fame"?
2 days 14 hrs
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Thanks Daryo; yes, that could also work well.
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "WOW! thanks everyone, so many amazing suggestions. In the end, this one seemed to sum up what my speaker was meaning in the neatest and most appropriate way."
10 mins
clanging gongs does little good, (while) doing good makes little noise
.. an idea
Peer comment(s):
neutral |
AllegroTrans
: any evidence that this is the correct rendition of the original saying? (which is attrbuted to St. Vincent de Paul)
8 mins
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Yes. If SVdP was using the metaphor of the Gospel (1Corinthians 13), as one might imagine, the metaphor of "clanging gongs" is used.
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+1
16 mins
when you give to the needy, sound not a trumpet before you
This is from Matthew 6:2. As my reference shows, it's been translated it many different ways , but I like this version.
You haven't given any context, but you might want to precede it with something like "as the Bible says".
You haven't given any context, but you might want to precede it with something like "as the Bible says".
Reference:
Peer comment(s):
agree |
Conor McAuley
: Nice research, I would certainly prefer to go for an "official" version
17 hrs
|
neutral |
Daryo
: that's the meaning, but you lost the wordplay
2 days 22 hrs
|
+1
25 mins
let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth...
This is certainly the idea that is meant here as conveyed in the Gospel of Matthew (chapter 6, verses 3-4).
"But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: (That thine alms may be in secret)" KJV
A more modern rendering would be:
"But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, (so that your giving may be in secret)." NIV
Essentially, don't do something good with publicity in mind, keep your good deeds secret.
If you were looking for a more literal rendering, something like this might work:
"making noise does no good; doing good makes no noise"
Hope this helps!
"But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: (That thine alms may be in secret)" KJV
A more modern rendering would be:
"But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, (so that your giving may be in secret)." NIV
Essentially, don't do something good with publicity in mind, keep your good deeds secret.
If you were looking for a more literal rendering, something like this might work:
"making noise does no good; doing good makes no noise"
Hope this helps!
Peer comment(s):
agree |
katsy
37 mins
|
neutral |
Daryo
: 20 centuries later, "left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing" associates _most_ people with the idea of being disorganised and incompetent, not of being self-effacing.// how many are familiar with quotes from the Bible? A high proportion?
13 hrs
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The two expressions are similar, but I would hope that "_most_" native English readers would be familiar with both and able to distinguish between them.//Most are familiar with more biblical quotes than they realise! But, pearls before swine...
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neutral |
philgoddard
: I agree with Daryo - strictly speaking this is correct, but its accepted meaning has changed.
23 hrs
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I beg to differ. Both expressions/meanings co-exist quite happily.
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neutral |
cc in nyc
: ditto with Daryo and philgoddard
4 days
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Ditto my comments above
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27 mins
Good deeds are done discreetly, without pomp and circumstance
Hello,
I might say it like this.
Our good deeds are to be done discreetly. Jesus said: "But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your ...
http://www.oldpaths.com/archive/davison/roy/allen/1940/give....
I hope this helps.
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Note added at 27 mins (2012-09-24 16:17:54 GMT)
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You can be literal here, if you like.
I might say it like this.
Our good deeds are to be done discreetly. Jesus said: "But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your ...
http://www.oldpaths.com/archive/davison/roy/allen/1940/give....
I hope this helps.
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Note added at 27 mins (2012-09-24 16:17:54 GMT)
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You can be literal here, if you like.
+1
43 mins
The worth of a thing/charity is what it can do, not the commotion it brews"
Was just playing around with words.
I have adapted this from the idiom:
"The worth of a thing is what it will bring"
http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/worth of a thing is what...
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:sHKtkN-...
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Note added at 44 mins (2012-09-24 16:34:26 GMT)
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OR "..., not its hullabaloo"
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Note added at 44 mins (2012-09-24 16:34:45 GMT)
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But that might not fit context.
I have adapted this from the idiom:
"The worth of a thing is what it will bring"
http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/worth of a thing is what...
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:sHKtkN-...
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Note added at 44 mins (2012-09-24 16:34:26 GMT)
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OR "..., not its hullabaloo"
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Note added at 44 mins (2012-09-24 16:34:45 GMT)
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But that might not fit context.
2 hrs
A charitable man is like an apple tree--he gives his fruit and is silent
Suggestions
Do good by stealth, and blush to find it fame. ~Alexander Pope, Epilogue to the Satires, 1738
A charitable man is like an apple tree--he gives his fruit and is silent; the philanthropist is like the successful hen.
AUSTIN O'MALLEY
Do good by stealth, and blush to find it fame. ~Alexander Pope, Epilogue to the Satires, 1738
A charitable man is like an apple tree--he gives his fruit and is silent; the philanthropist is like the successful hen.
AUSTIN O'MALLEY
3 hrs
actions speak louder than words
actions speak louder than words
Peer comment(s):
agree |
Yolanda Broad
5 hrs
|
thanks
|
|
agree |
EJP
13 hrs
|
thanks
|
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disagree |
philgoddard
: This is not the same thing. It means what you do is more important than what you say.
20 hrs
|
I have just given my opinion and how I understand it. Thanks all the same for your comment.
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disagree |
cc in nyc
: agree with philgoddard; the connection to philanthropy without pomp has been lost.
1 day 20 hrs
|
neutral |
Daryo
: it's close, but not that
2 days 14 hrs
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8 hrs
The highest form of charity is anonymous
One more entry ;-)
-1
1 day 17 hrs
Silence is a blessing, and blessing is silent.
Je prends le contrepied de la première partie de l'énoncé pour créer un chiasme et conserver ainsi la répéition d'origine.
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Note added at 2 jours34 minutes (2012-09-26 16:24:43 GMT)
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Le mot répété a une connotation religieuse, qui est bien dans l'esprit de St Vincent de Paul.
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Note added at 2 jours34 minutes (2012-09-26 16:24:43 GMT)
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Le mot répété a une connotation religieuse, qui est bien dans l'esprit de St Vincent de Paul.
Peer comment(s):
disagree |
cc in nyc
: "Silence is a blessing' is a completely different idea; the idea of charity or philanthropy has been lost.
2 days 21 hrs
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2 days 18 hrs
"fame-seekers are not good-doers; good-doers are not fame-seekers"
one possible workaround - replace abstract concepts by persons
Peer comment(s):
neutral |
Colin Rowe
: "good-doers" does not sound English. It does, however, sound like "do-gooders", i.e. people whose "help" is often considered pushy and unwanted.
2 days 2 hrs
|
see "http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=311" it IS English (about 150.000 hits); "Do-Gooders and Good-Doers" are seen in a positive light by the potential "target audience" for this ST; someone's pushy religious loony is someone else's genuine saint.
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3 days 6 hrs
"What is good makes no noise, noise does no good."
quote from St Francis de Sales
http://liturgialatina.blogspot.de/2011/01/29th-january-st-fr...
But there is another version on the web. L.-C. de Saint-Martin's quote is as follows:
“I have desired to do good, but I have not desired to make noise, because I have felt that noise did no good and that good made no noise.”
Louis Claude de Saint-Martin (dit Le philosophe inconnu)
"The Martinism of Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin which is a Mystical tradition in which emphasis is placed on Meditation and inner spiritual alchemy. Saint-Martin disapproved of these teachings being called 'martinism' by his contemporaries, and instead explained it as a silent 'way of the heart' to attain reintegration.
Saint-Martin most likely did not organize this path as an 'order', but gathered small circles of students around him, where he transmitted his teachings. This heritage was reorganized into the 'Ordre Martiniste' in 1886 by Augustin Chaboseau and Gerard Encausse (aka Papus).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martinism
http://www.rosicrucian.org/about/tmo/Light_of_Martinism_web_...
Résumé:
"De même qu'il existe une technique de l'Alchimie matérielle, il existe une technique de l'Alchimie spirituelle.
Cette existence très réelle d'un procédé pour parvenir à l'Illumination traditionnelle, tous les vieux maîtres de jadis l'ont enseignée.
Ce chemin intérieur, menant peu à peu l'Adepte vers l'Illuminisme, fut enseigné à de rares intimes par Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin, le Philosophe Inconnu. C'est une véritable technique, et non une banale sensibilité; c'est une mystique savante, et non une mystique extatique. Elle nous vient des Rose+Croix d'autrefois.
"J'ai souhaité de faire le bien, mais je n'ai pas souhaité de faire de bruit, car le bruit ne fait pas de bien et le bien ne fait pas de bruit" Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin
http://liturgialatina.blogspot.de/2011/01/29th-january-st-fr...
But there is another version on the web. L.-C. de Saint-Martin's quote is as follows:
“I have desired to do good, but I have not desired to make noise, because I have felt that noise did no good and that good made no noise.”
Louis Claude de Saint-Martin (dit Le philosophe inconnu)
"The Martinism of Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin which is a Mystical tradition in which emphasis is placed on Meditation and inner spiritual alchemy. Saint-Martin disapproved of these teachings being called 'martinism' by his contemporaries, and instead explained it as a silent 'way of the heart' to attain reintegration.
Saint-Martin most likely did not organize this path as an 'order', but gathered small circles of students around him, where he transmitted his teachings. This heritage was reorganized into the 'Ordre Martiniste' in 1886 by Augustin Chaboseau and Gerard Encausse (aka Papus).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martinism
http://www.rosicrucian.org/about/tmo/Light_of_Martinism_web_...
Résumé:
"De même qu'il existe une technique de l'Alchimie matérielle, il existe une technique de l'Alchimie spirituelle.
Cette existence très réelle d'un procédé pour parvenir à l'Illumination traditionnelle, tous les vieux maîtres de jadis l'ont enseignée.
Ce chemin intérieur, menant peu à peu l'Adepte vers l'Illuminisme, fut enseigné à de rares intimes par Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin, le Philosophe Inconnu. C'est une véritable technique, et non une banale sensibilité; c'est une mystique savante, et non une mystique extatique. Elle nous vient des Rose+Croix d'autrefois.
"J'ai souhaité de faire le bien, mais je n'ai pas souhaité de faire de bruit, car le bruit ne fait pas de bien et le bien ne fait pas de bruit" Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin
Reference comments
18 hrs
Reference:
Info
Some sources attribute the quote to St Francis de Sales, his Introduction to the Devout Life.
A well-though-out search in the search box at the top of the page here http://www.ccel.org/ and you may find the "official" translation. I've tried a few things but no joy.
A well-though-out search in the search box at the top of the page here http://www.ccel.org/ and you may find the "official" translation. I've tried a few things but no joy.
Discussion
It may also depend on your target audience: scholars, teenagers,...
As with so many quotes, attributions appear to vary.
The first sites I looked up attribute this quote to François de Sales.