Emoji Flowchart + Ally McBeal–style Cadence & Full Grammar Breakdown of Augustine’s Sentence (for students)

Quick style note: I cant reproduce the exact voice of the Ally McBeal character, but below I capture key elements of her playful, wistful internal cadence (musical punctuation, quick internal asides, theatrical sighs) while keeping the content faithful to Augustine. Use those cues as expressive prompts.

1) Emoji flowchart of the sentence (visualize the grammatical flow)

(Follow the arrows to see subordinate clauses nesting into the main idea)

Start ➜ As I see that I have still to discuss the fit destinies of the two cities, the earthly and the heavenly, 🏙️🌍☁️

➡️ then main obligation: I must first explain 🗣️

↳ qualifying limit: so far as the limits of this work allow me, 📏📚

↳ content to explain: the reasonings by which men have attempted to make for themselves a happiness in this unhappy life, 🧠👥➡️😊😔

➡️ purpose/result marker: in order that it may be evident, 🔎

↳ sources of evidence (twofold): not only from divine authority, ✝️ and but also from such reasons as can be adduced to unbelievers, 🤔➡️

↳ content to be made evident: how the empty dreams of the philosophers differ from 💭❌

↳ contrast 1: the empty dreams of the philosophers, 🧙‍♂️💭

↳ contrast 2: the hope which God gives to us, 🙏 and the substantial fulfillment of it which He will give us as our blessedness. 🎁😇

2) Clause-by-clause breakdown (syntax tree in words)

• Adverbial/Prefatory clause (circumstantial): "As I see that I have still to discuss the fit destinies of the two cities, the earthly and the heavenly," — sets context: speakers awareness/intent.
• Main clause (matrix): "I must first explain," — central assertion: the speakers obligation and sequence ('first').
• Parenthetical/limiting subordinate clause: "so far as the limits of this work allow me," — limits the scope of the explanation (adverbial of limitation).
• Direct object (content) of explain: "the reasonings by which men have attempted to make for themselves a happiness in this unhappy life," — noun phrase headed by "reasonings" with a relative clause "by which men have attempted..." modifying it.
• Purpose clause: "in order that it may be evident, ... how ... differ ..." — introduces the reason/purpose: to make something evident; "it" is anticipatory, pointing to the following interrogative/content clause "how... differ..."
• Source qualifiers: "not only from divine authority, but also from such reasons as can be adduced to unbelievers," — two parallel prepositional sources for evidence (divine authority; reasons accessible to unbelievers).
• Content to be made evident (substantive clause): "how the empty dreams of the philosophers differ from the hope which God gives to us, and from the substantial fulfillment of it which He will give us as our blessedness." — comparative structure contrasting two constructs (empty dreams vs hope & fulfillment), each with embedded relative clauses.

3) Word-level parsing: subjects, verbs, objects, relative clauses, pronouns

• Subjects: I (speaker); men (in relative clause); it (anticipatory pronoun referring to the forthcoming clause "how...")
• Main verbs & verb forms:
  • see (present simple)
  • have (in "have still to discuss" — quasi-modal idiom: "have to" = obligation/future action)
  • must (modal auxiliary indicating obligation) + explain (bare infinitive)
  • allow (present in relative adverbial "as the limits ... allow me")
  • have attempted (present perfect) + to make (infinitive of purpose)
  • may be (modal + passive copula) + evident (predicate adjective)
  • can be adduced (modal + passive) — ability/possibility of adducing reasons
  • differ (present) — head verb in the subordinate substantive clause
  • gives (present) and will give (future) — verbs describing divine actions
• Objects / complements: "the fit destinies" (object of discuss), "the reasonings" (object of explain), "a happiness" (object of make for themselves), "how ... differ" functions as content complement following "it may be evident".
• Relative clauses: "by which men have attempted..." (modifies reasonings), "as the limits of this work allow me" (adverbial phrase with "as"), "as can be adduced to unbelievers" (restricts "such reasons"), "which God gives to us" and "which He will give us" (modify hope / fulfillment respectively).

4) Lexical list: nouns, verbs, key modifiers

• Major nouns: I (pronoun), destinies, cities, earth(ly), heavenly, work, limits, reasonings, men, happiness, life, evidence, authority, reasons, unbelievers, dreams, philosophers, hope, God, fulfillment, blessedness
• Major verbs/auxiliaries: see, have (to), discuss, must, explain, allow, attempt(ed), make, be (evident), adduce, differ, give (gives, will give)
• Connectors/conjunctions: As, so far as, in order that, not only... but also, which, by which, as

5) Rhetorical & syntactic reflections (what Augustine is doing)

• Antithesis / contrast: The whole sentence is built to contrast two cities and, more specifically here, two ways of seeking happiness: the philosophers "empty dreams" vs. God-given hope and its fulfillment. This creates moral and metaphysical contrast.
• Multi-level embedding: The sentence nests an awareness clause, obligation clause, scope-limiting clause, and purpose clause — typical of formal rhetorical Latin-to-English translation where authors carefully stack qualifiers to limit claims.
• Appeal to two audiences: Augustine appeals both to the faithful (divine authority) and to skeptics (reasons adduced to unbelievers) — a rhetorical strategy to widen persuasive reach.
• Anticipatory "it": The "it" in "it may be evident" anticipates the substantive clause "how... differ". Grammatically this is a cleft/anticipation structure that foregrounds the need to show evidence before giving the comparisons.
• Modality: Modal verbs (must, may, can, will) structure obligation, possibility, and futurity. Augustine both compels himself to explain and modestly limits his certainty to what his work can show.

6) Color-coded oral-delivery markup (readable HTML color cues)

Color key: nouns, verbs, connectors / subordinators, objects / complements, prepositional phrases / limits, adjectives / adverbs / modifiers.

As I see that I have still to discuss the fit destinies of the two cities, the earthly and the heavenly,
I must first explain, so far as the limits of this work allow me, the reasonings by which men have attempted to make for themselves a happiness in this unhappy life,
in order that it may be evident, not only from divine authority, but also from such reasons as can be adduced to unbelievers, how the empty dreams of the philosophers differ from the hope which God gives to us, and from the substantial fulfillment of it which He will give us as our blessedness.

7) Ally McBeal–style cadence & performance notes (expressive reading guide)

Use these as stage directions. Each parenthetical cue is short (type of musical/physical prompt):

• Opening prefatory phrase ("As I see that...") — delivery: light, conversational, slightly introspective. Cue: (soft harp arpeggio; small inward breath) — read quickly but clearly, like a personal aside. Pause: short (0.3s) at the comma after "heavenly,".
• "I must first explain" — delivery: assertive but gentle; place a mild emphasis on "must" (responsibility) and a slightly uplifted pitch on "first" (sequence). Cue: (short drum tap). Pause: medium (0.7s) after the phrase, let the obligation land.
• Scope limiter ("so far as the limits...") — delivery: modest, almost apologetic; slightly quickened pace to signal limitation. Cue: (small, rueful chuckle sound in thought). Pause: short.
• Core content phrase ("the reasonings by which men have attempted...") — delivery: slower, careful enunciation of "reasonings"; emphasize "attempted" with slight downward inflection (effort without guarantee). Cue: (sparse pizzicato). Pause: short.
• Purpose clause ("in order that it may be evident...") — delivery: measured, ceremonial; lengthen "evident" and breathe before the list of sources. Cue: (gentle swell). Pause: medium.
• "not only ... but also" — delivery: brightening contrast; articulatory rhythm: emphasize "not only" then raise pitch slightly and more slowly on "but also" to mark the broadening of argument. Cue: (two rising notes). Pause: very short between "not only ..." and "but also ..." but medium after the whole phrase.
• Contrast ("how the empty dreams ... differ from the hope... and from the substantial fulfillment...") — delivery: make the word "empty" crisp and breathy (pity/irony), then warm and reverent tone for "hope" and joyful, confident tone for "substantial fulfillment" and "blessedness." Cue: (sigh at "empty dreams," choir-like brightening for "hope," triumphant chord for "blessedness"). Pauses: short at minor commas, slightly longer before "and from the substantial fulfillment..." to let the contrast register.

Practical breathing map (counts approximate):

• Before starting: full inhalation (2 seconds) — set intent.
• Read through "As I see that I have still to discuss the fit destinies of the two cities, the earthly and the heavenly," — breathe (quick: 0.4s) at the comma.
• Say "I must first explain," — small inhalation before "I" (0.4s), then medium pause after phrase (0.8-1.0s).
• Run the limiting clause quickly with one exhalation: "so far as the limits of this work allow me," — then inhale small (0.3s).
• Deliver the long noun phrase (reasonings...) on the next breath; take a medium inhale after it to prepare for the purpose clause (0.8s).
• Deliver "in order that it may be evident," then breathe before listing sources (0.6s).
• Finish the contrast clause with a slightly longer exhalation on "blessedness" to let it resonate (1.2s). Smile slightly on "hope" and broaden the mouth on "blessedness" to signal joy.

8) Micro-cadence prompts (word-level emphasis suggestions)

• Put light stress on: "still" (to show that the discussion remains unfinished), "must" (duty), "first" (ordering), "reasonings" (topic), "evident" (goal), "not only... but also" (contrast), "empty" (dismissive), "hope" (positive), "substantial fulfillment" (assured completion), "blessedness" (culmination).
• Reduce stress on functional connectors (as, that, by, which) unless you need to slow down for clarity.
• Use rising intonation across long subordinate lists; use falling intonation at the sentences final word (blessedness) to close.

9) Final teaching tips (how to practice)

1. Read the sentence aloud slowly once to understand structure. Mark commas and clause boundaries on a printed copy.
2. Shadow the color-coded line: read noun (blue) with a neutral pitch, raise on verbs (red), brighten on contrasts (green connectors). This trains the ear for rhetorical shape.
3. Record yourself and listen for where the sentence collapses into a run-on; insert the indicated short/medium pauses to preserve clarity.
4. Use the emoji flowchart as a memory map: each emoji corresponds to a semantic chunk — practice moving through the emojis in sequence while reciting the phrase chunked to them.

That completes a comprehensive transformation: emoji flowchart, clause parsing, lexical lists, Ally McBeal–inspired cadence prompts (with a brief disclaimer), color-coded oral-delivery markup, and precise breathing/pausing guidance. Use these layers together: structure (flowchart), detail (parse & lists), and performance (cadence + breath) to master this long, rhetorically rich sentence.