Beowulf: An Anglo-Saxon Epic Poem — Page 3
Once in a while, however, he has added a conjecture of his own to the emendations quoted from the criticisms of other students of the poem.
Di tanto in tanto, tuttavia, ha aggiunto una sua propria congettura alle emendazioni citate dalle critiche di altri studiosi del poema.
This work is addressed to two classes of readers.
Quest'opera si rivolge a due categorie di lettori.
From both of these alike the translator begs sympathy and co-operation.
Da entrambe il traduttore chiede simpatia e collaborazione.
The Anglo-Saxon scholar he hopes to please by adhering faithfully to the original.
Lo studioso anglosassone spera di accontentarlo attenendosi fedelmente all'originale.
The student of English literature he aims to interest by giving him, in modern garb, the most ancient epic of our race.
Lo studente di letteratura inglese mira a interessarlo offrendogli, in veste moderna, l'epopea più antica della nostra stirpe.
This is a bold and venturesome undertaking; and yet there must be some students of the Teutonic past willing to follow even a daring guide, if they may read in modern phrases of the sorrows of Hrothgar, of the prowess of Beowulf, and of the feelings that stirred the hearts of our forefathers in their primeval homes.
Questa è un'impresa audace e arrischiata; eppure devono esserci alcuni studiosi del passato teutonico disposti a seguire anche una guida ardimentosa, se possono leggere in frasi moderne dei dolori di Hrothgar, del valore di Beowulf e dei sentimenti che agitavano i cuori dei nostri antenati nelle loro dimore primordiali.
In order to please the larger class of readers, a regular cadence has been used, a measure which, while retaining the essential characteristics of the original, permits the reader to see ahead of him in reading.
Al fine di compiacere la categoria più ampia di lettori, è stata adottata una cadenza regolare, una misura che, pur conservando le caratteristiche essenziali dell'originale, permette al lettore di anticipare ciò che verrà nella lettura.
Perhaps every Anglo-Saxon scholar has his own theory as to how Beowulf should be translated.
Forse ogni studioso anglosassone ha la propria teoria su come il Beowulf dovrebbe essere tradotto.
Some have given us prose versions of what we believe to be a great poem.
Alcuni ci hanno fornito versioni in prosa di quello che riteniamo essere un grande poema.
Is it any reflection on our honored Kemble and Arnold to say that their translations fail to show a layman that Beowulf is justly called our first _epic_?
È forse un'offesa ai nostri stimati Kemble e Arnold affermare che le loro traduzioni non riescono a mostrare a un profano che il Beowulf è giustamente chiamato il nostro primo _epico_?
Vocabulary
- tanto
- So much, so many; indicates quantity or degree.
- tuttavia
- Nevertheless, however; used to introduce a contrast.
- aggiunto
- Added, appended; past participle of aggiungere.
- propria
- Own, one's own; emphasizes personal possession or identity.
- congettura
- Conjecture, guess; an opinion formed without full evidence.
- emendazioni
- Emendations, corrections; textual corrections made to a work.
- citate
- Cited, quoted; mentioned or referenced by other scholars.
- critiche
- Criticisms, critiques; analytical evaluations of a work.
- studiosi
- Scholars, academics; people who study a subject deeply.
- poema
- Poem, epic poem; a long literary work in verse.
- opera
- Work, opus; a literary, artistic, or musical composition.
- rivolge
- Addresses, turns to; directs itself toward an audience.
- categorie
- Categories, groups; classifications of people or things.
- lettori
- Readers; people who read a text or book.
- entrambe
- Both; referring to two groups or people together.
- traduttore
- Translator; a person who translates texts between languages.
- chiede
- Asks for, requests; third-person singular of chiedere.
- simpatia
- Sympathy, goodwill; friendly understanding and support.
- collaborazione
- Collaboration, cooperation; working together toward a goal.
- studioso
- Scholar, learned person; someone devoted to academic study.
- anglosassone
- Anglo-Saxon; relating to early medieval English culture.
- spera
- Hopes; third-person singular of sperare (to hope).
- accontentarlo
- To satisfy him, to please him; infinitive plus object pronoun.
- attenendosi
- Adhering, keeping strictly; reflexive gerund of attenersi.
- fedelmente
- Faithfully, loyally; in a faithful and accurate manner.
- originale
- Original; the authentic source text being translated.
- letteratura
- Literature; written works, especially of artistic value.
- mira
- Aims, intends; third-person singular of mirare (to aim).
- interessarlo
- To interest him; to capture his curiosity or attention.
- offrendogli
- Offering him; gerund of offrire with indirect object pronoun.
- veste
- Garb, guise, form; the outward presentation of something.
- epopea
- Epic, epic poem; a grand narrative of heroic deeds.
- antica
- Ancient, oldest; very old in origin or history.
- stirpe
- Lineage, stock, race; ancestral line or ethnic heritage.
- impresa
- Enterprise, undertaking; a bold or challenging endeavor.
- audace
- Bold, daring, audacious; showing courage and confidence.
- arrischiata
- Risky, hazardous; involving significant danger or uncertainty.
- eppure
- And yet, nevertheless; introduces a surprising contrast.
- devono
- Must, have to; third-person plural of dovere (must).
- teutonico
- Teutonic; relating to Germanic peoples or their heritage.
- disposti
- Willing, disposed; ready or inclined to do something.
- seguire
- To follow; to come after or go along with someone.
- guida
- Guide, leader; one who leads or directs others.
- ardimentosa
- Daring, bold, courageous; characterized by great bravery.
- leggere
- To read; to look at and understand written text.
- frasi
- Phrases, sentences; units of language conveying meaning.
- dolori
- Sorrows, pains, griefs; feelings of suffering or sorrow.
- valore
- Valor, courage, worth; bravery or merit in a person.
- sentimenti
- Feelings, sentiments, emotions; inner emotional states.
- agitavano
- Stirred, agitated; imperfect of agitare, to stir or trouble.
- cuori
- Hearts; plural of cuore, the organ or seat of emotion.
- antenati
- Ancestors, forebears; people from whom one is descended.
- dimore
- Dwellings, abodes, homes; places where people reside.
- primordiali
- Primordial, ancient; relating to the earliest times or origins.
- fine
- Purpose, end, aim; the goal or objective of something.
- compiacere
- To please, to satisfy; to fulfill someone's wishes or desires.
- categoria
- Category, class, group; a classification of similar things.
- ampia
- Wide, broad, large; of great extent or range.
- adottata
- Adopted; taken up or accepted as one's own approach.
- cadenza
- Cadence, rhythm; the rhythmic flow of a verse or speech.
- regolare
- Regular, steady; consistent and uniform in pattern or rhythm.
- misura
- Measure, meter; the rhythmic pattern or beat of verse.
- pur
- Yet, while still; used to indicate concession or contrast.
- conservando
- Preserving, keeping; maintaining essential features or qualities.
- caratteristiche
- Characteristics, features; distinctive qualities of something.
- essenziali
- Essential, fundamental; absolutely necessary or most important.
- permette
- Allows, permits; third-person singular of permettere.
- lettore
- Reader; a person who reads a text or publication.
- anticipare
- To anticipate, foresee; to expect something before it happens.
- ciò
- That, what, it; neuter demonstrative pronoun in Italian.
- verrà
- Will come; third-person singular future of venire (to come).
- lettura
- Reading; the act or activity of reading a text.
- Forse
- Perhaps, maybe; expresses uncertainty or possibility.
- teoria
- Theory; a system of ideas explaining something systematically.
- dovrebbe
- Should, ought to; conditional of dovere expressing obligation.
- tradotto
- Translated; past participle of tradurre (to translate).
- fornito
- Provided, supplied; past participle of fornire (to provide).
- versioni
- Versions, translations; different renderings of a text.
- prosa
- Prose; ordinary written language, not in verse form.
- riteniamo
- We consider, we hold; first-person plural of ritenere.
- forse
- Perhaps, maybe; expresses uncertainty or possibility.
- offesa
- Offense, insult; an act that disrespects or dishonors someone.
- stimati
- Esteemed, respected; held in high regard by others.
- affermare
- To affirm, to state; to assert something as being true.
- traduzioni
- Translations; rendered versions of a text in another language.
- riescono
- Succeed, manage; third-person plural of riuscire (to succeed).
- mostrare
- To show, to demonstrate; to make something visible or clear.
- profano
- Layperson, uninitiated; someone without specialized knowledge.
- giustamente
- Rightly, justly; in a correct or fair manner.
- _epico_
- Epic; relating to a long heroic narrative poem.
Unlock audio playback, vocabulary games, and reading progress tracking.
Create free account →