Question for linguists

[ffutures]

Anyone able to translate this (allegedly Schiller) into English?

Noch niemand entfloh dem verhangten Geschick

I think it's some reasonably well-known quote, but unfortunately it isn't one I know and the automatic translators are as always useless.

later: Thanks, this will be added to the notes for the etext.

Comments

[rozk.livejournal.com]

My German is not very good, but I think it means something like ' Yet no-one can escape impending fate'.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Seems about what I'd expect from the context - Dr. Nikola has just said he's used his occult powers to predict the circumstances of his own death, your German is a good deal better than the web sites I tried!

I think I prefer the Sarah Connor version, "No fate but what we make," e.g. bugger prophecy.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

Nearly so - "prophecied fate" or "given fate" rather then "impending", I'd say, but otherwise it's an excellent translation. It's from Die Braut von Messina, one of Schiller's last plays, and the full quote goes:

»Noch niemand entfloh dem verhängten Geschick;
Und wer sich vermißt es klüglich zu wenden,
Der muß es selber erbauend vollenden.«

The other two verses roughly mean: "and who dares to smartly challenge it/ must fulfill what he himself created". Die Braut von Messina was Schiller's attempt to write a Greek tragedy, with two brothers, a sister, incest and fratricide.

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

Also, "has escaped" rather than "can escape".