I am currently encountering a top-alignment problem when using the paracol package to typeset three columns of three-language text:
https://i.stack.imgur.com/lC7DB.jpg
The text used in my MWE is the first paragraph in Aristotle's Physics (paragraphed according to the French version translated by Henri CARTERON in the Budé series), i.e. the ancient Greek text between 184a10 and 184a16 (Bekker numbering). This paragraph can be subdivided into two small subsections: 184a10-184a14 and 184a14-184a16, which are the two ancient Greek text chunks shown in the picture above: the former begins with 184a10, and the latter with 184a14. The rightmost column is the French translation of the entire paragraph 184a10-184a16. Since it is not easy to be taken apart from the middle like the English translation, it is placed in the rightmost column as a whole. The whole text on the page shown in the picture now is all put in a single "paracol" environment.
The problem is: I want the first paragraph in the English translation text on the leftmost to correspond to the Greek text beginning with 184a10, and at the same time to be top-aligned (this requirement is automatically fulfilled); and then the second paragraph in the English translation text corresponds to the Greek text beginning with 184a14 and to be top-aligned at the same time, which is exactly the problem here, because when I use the \switchcolumn command in the "paracol" environment, the final output is NOT top-aligned, as shown in the picture above.
PS: I'll post a picture displaying what I'm trying to achieve, as shown below:
https://i.stack.imgur.com/sMr8S.jpg
The layout shown in this picture came about through my own manual adjustments, i.e.: adding the command \vfill before the second paragraph in the English translation text, and \vspace{5\baselineskip} before the second Greek text. These two commands are both labeled as comments in the MWE I'll attach below:
\PassOptionsToPackage{table,xcdraw,dvipsnames}{xcolor}
\RequirePackage{scrlfile}
\documentclass[UTF8,a4paper,12pt]{article}
\usepackage{microtype}
%-------------------------------------------------
% Letter fonts setting up
%-------------------------------------------------
\usepackage{fontspec}
\newfontfamily\myGfsPorson{GFSPorson-Regular}% Selcet OpenType font by "Font Name".
\newcommand\pr[3]{{\myGfsPorson #1}}%Greek font: Porson
\newfontfamily\myVusillusIt{VusillusItalic}%Greek font: Vusillus
\newcommand\vit[3]{{\myVusillusIt #1}}
\newfontfamily\mySign{Zapfino}%Zapf handwriting typeface
\newcommand\qm[3]{{\mySign #1}}
\newfontfamily\AppleChancery{Apple-Chancery}%Apple font: Apple-Chancery
%-------------------------------------------------
% Babel Package Settings
%-------------------------------------------------
\usepackage[greek,english,french, provide=*]{babel}
\languageattribute{greek}{ancient}
%-------------------------------------------------
% Using Chinese fonts in XeLaTeX
%-------------------------------------------------
\usepackage[scheme=plain]{ctex}
%-------------------------------------------------
% Multiple Columns--paracol package
%-------------------------------------------------
\usepackage{paracol}
%\columnratio{0.4,0.2,0.4}
\setlength{\columnsep}{2cm}
%-------------------------------------------------
% Other packages
%-------------------------------------------------
\usepackage{alphabeta}
\usepackage{textalpha}
\usepackage{xunicode}
\usepackage{blindtext}
\usepackage{amssymb,amsmath,amsthm}
\usepackage[all,pdf]{xy}
\usepackage{verbatim}
\usepackage{fancyvrb}
\usepackage{listings}
\lstset{basicstyle=\ttfamily, breaklines=true}
\lstloadlanguages{TeX}
\usepackage{enumitem}
\usepackage{soul}
\usepackage{ulem}
\usepackage{graphicx}
\usepackage{ragged2e}
%-------------------------------------------------
% Page format
%-------------------------------------------------
\AfterPackage*{hyperref}{%
\usepackage{geometry}%
}
\usepackage[headheight=15pt,top=1.54cm,bottom=1.54cm,left=0.75in,right=0.75in]{geometry}
\usepackage{fancyhdr}
%-------------------------------------------------
% Color, hyperlink, bookmark settings
%-------------------------------------------------
\usepackage[svgnames,table,hyperref]{xcolor}
\usepackage[bookmarksopen=true,colorlinks,linkcolor=blue]{hyperref}
\usepackage[open,openlevel=2,atend]{bookmark}
\usepackage[most]{tcolorbox}% after xcolor
\usepackage{tikz}% after xcolor
%-------------------------------------------------
% Chapter headings and table of contents settings
%-------------------------------------------------
\usepackage{tocloft}
\usepackage[nottoc]{tocbibind}
\setcounter{tocdepth}{5}
\setcounter{secnumdepth}{5}
%-------------------------------------------------
% Title Design
%-------------------------------------------------
\title{Physics \thanks{Il s'agit d'un texte multilingue de la « Physique » d'Aristote, c'est-à-dire: Grec ancien, Français et Anglais.}}
\author{Rédigé par Nicolas}
\date{\today}
\begin{document}
\maketitle{}
\tableofcontents
\newpage
\section{Book 1}
\begin{paracol}{3}[\subsection{Partie 1}]
\textcolor{OliveGreen}{\textbf{Anglais}:}
Book I Chapter 1 When the objects of an inquiry, in any department, have principles, conditions, or elements, it is through acquaintance with these that knowledge, that is to say scientific knowledge, is attained. For we do not think that we know a thing until we are acquainted with its primary conditions or first principles,\
\switchcolumn
\textcolor{red}{\textbf{Grec}:} \
%\sloppy
{\RaggedRight
\indent \texttt{\textbf{184a10}} \pr{Ἐπειδὴ τὸ εἰδέναι καὶ τὸ ἐπίστασθαι συμβαίνει περὶ πάσας τὰς μεθόδους, ὧν εἰσὶν ἀρχαὶ ἢ αἴτια ἢ στοιχεῖα, ἐκ τοῦ ταῦτα γνωρίζειν (τότε γὰρ οἰόμεθα γιγνώσκειν ἕκαστον, ὅταν τὰ αἴτια γνωρίσωμεν τὰ πρῶτα καὶ τὰς ἀρχὰς τὰς πρώτας}
}
\switchcolumn
\textcolor{blue}{\textbf{Français}:}\
\textbf{Chapitre 1: Objet et méthode de la Physique.}\
\textcolor{blue}{Les principes}\
\indent Connaissance et science se produisant, dans tous les ordres de recherches dont il y a principes ou causes ou éléments, quand on a pénétré ces principes, causes ou éléments (en effet nous ne pensons avoir saisi une chose que lorsque nous avons pénétré les causes premières, les principes premiers et jusqu’aux éléments), il est donc clair que, dans la science de la nature, il faut s’efforcer de définir d’abord ce qui concerne les principes.
\switchcolumn
%\vfill
and have carried our analysis as far as its simplest elements. Plainly therefore in the science of Nature, as in other branches of study, our first task will be to try to determine what relates to its principles.
\switchcolumn
\bigskip
{\RaggedRight
%\vspace{5\baselineskip}
\texttt{\textbf{184a14}} \pr{καὶ μέχρι τῶν στοιχείων), δῆλον ὅτι καὶ τῆς περὶ φύσεως ἐπιστήμης πειρατέον διορίσασθαι πρῶτον τὰ περὶ τὰς ἀρχάς.}
}
\end{paracol}
\end{document}
