Frankenstein; or, the modern prometheus — Page 4
These visions faded when I perused, for the first time, those poets whose effusions entranced my soul and lifted it to heaven.
Diese Visionen verblassten, als ich zum ersten Mal jene Dichter las, deren Ergüsse meine Seele verzückten und sie in den Himmel hoben.
I also became a poet and for one year lived in a paradise of my own creation;
Auch ich wurde ein Dichter und lebte ein Jahr lang in einem Paradies meiner eigenen Schöpfung;
I imagined that I also might obtain a niche in the temple where the names of Homer and Shakespeare are consecrated.
Ich bildete mir ein, dass auch ich eine Nische in jenem Tempel erhalten könnte, in dem die Namen Homers und Shakespeares geweiht sind.
You are well acquainted with my failure and how heavily I bore the disappointment.
Sie kennen mein Scheitern und wissen, wie schwer ich die Enttäuschung trug.
But just at that time I inherited the fortune of my cousin, and my thoughts were turned into the channel of their earlier bent.
Doch gerade zu jener Zeit erbte ich das Vermögen meines Cousins, und meine Gedanken wandten sich wieder in die Bahn ihrer früheren Neigung.
Six years have passed since I resolved on my present undertaking.
Sechs Jahre sind vergangen, seit ich mich zu meinem gegenwärtigen Vorhaben entschlossen habe.
I can, even now, remember the hour from which I dedicated myself to this great enterprise.
Ich kann mich noch jetzt an die Stunde erinnern, in der ich mich diesem großen Unternehmen widmete.
I commenced by inuring my body to hardship.
Ich begann damit, meinen Körper an Entbehrungen zu gewöhnen.
I accompanied the whale-fishers on several expeditions to the North Sea;
Ich begleitete die Walfischer auf mehreren Expeditionen in die Nordsee;
I voluntarily endured cold, famine, thirst, and want of sleep;
Ich ertrug freiwillig Kälte, Hunger, Durst und Schlafmangel;
I often worked harder than the common sailors during the day and devoted my nights to the study of mathematics, the theory of medicine, and those branches of physical science from which a naval adventurer might derive the greatest practical advantage.
Ich arbeitete tagsüber oft härter als die gewöhnlichen Matrosen und widmete meine Nächte dem Studium der Mathematik, der Medizintheorie und jenen Zweigen der Naturwissenschaft, aus denen ein Seefahrer den größten praktischen Nutzen ziehen könnte.
Twice I actually hired myself as an under-mate in a Greenland whaler, and acquitted myself to admiration.
Zweimal verdingte ich mich tatsächlich als Unteroffizier auf einem Grönlandwalfänger und machte meine Sache zur allgemeinen Bewunderung.
I must own I felt a little proud when my captain offered me the second dignity in the vessel and entreated me to remain with the greatest earnestness, so valuable did he consider my services.
Ich muss gestehen, dass ich ein wenig stolz war, als mein Kapitän mir die zweithöchste Würde auf dem Schiff anbot und mich mit größtem Nachdruck bat zu bleiben, so wertvoll erachtete er meine Dienste.
Vocabulary
- Diese
- This; demonstrative pronoun referring to nearby noun
- Visionen
- Visions; imaginative mental images or dreams
- verblassten
- Faded; grew pale or lost intensity over time
- als
- When; used to introduce a past-tense clause
- ich
- I; first-person singular nominative pronoun
- zum
- To the; contraction of zu and dem
- ersten
- First; ordinal number indicating initial occurrence
- Mal
- Time; instance or occurrence of an event
- jene
- Those; demonstrative pronoun for distant reference
- Dichter
- Poets; authors who write verse and poetry
- las
- Read; past tense of lesen, to read
- deren
- Whose; genitive relative pronoun referring to persons
- Ergüsse
- Outpourings; effusive emotional or literary expressions
- meine
- My; first-person singular possessive adjective
- Seele
- Soul; the spiritual or emotional inner self
- verzückten
- Enraptured; filled with ecstasy or intense delight
- und
- And; basic coordinating conjunction linking elements
- sie
- She/they/it; third-person pronoun in various uses
- in
- In/into; preposition indicating location or direction
- den
- The; definite article in accusative masculine form
- Himmel
- Heaven/sky; the celestial space above or paradise
- hoben
- Lifted; past tense of heben, to raise
- Auch
- Also; adverb indicating addition or agreement
- wurde
- Became/was; past tense auxiliary of werden
- ein
- A/an; indefinite article for singular nouns
- lebte
- Lived; past tense of leben, to live
- Jahr
- Year; period of twelve months
- lang
- Long; indicating duration or physical length
- einem
- A/an; indefinite article in dative case
- Paradies
- Paradise; a perfect, blissful place or state
- meiner
- My; first-person possessive in genitive/dative case
- eigenen
- Own; belonging exclusively to oneself
- Schöpfung
- Creation; something made or imagined by someone
- Ich
- I; first-person singular nominative pronoun
- bildete
- Imagined/formed; past tense of bilden, to form
- mir
- Me/myself; first-person singular dative pronoun
- dass
- That; subordinating conjunction introducing a clause
- auch
- Also; adverb indicating addition or similarity
- eine
- A/an; indefinite article in feminine nominative form
- Nische
- Niche; a special place suited to someone
- jenem
- That; demonstrative pronoun in dative masculine form
- Tempel
- Temple; a sacred or revered place or institution
- erhalten
- Obtain/receive; to get or preserve something
- könnte
- Could; subjunctive form of können, expressing possibility
- dem
- The; definite article in dative masculine/neuter form
- die
- The; definite article for feminine or plural nouns
- Namen
- Names; words by which persons or things are known
- geweiht
- Consecrated/dedicated; set apart as sacred or honored
- sind
- Are; third-person plural present tense of sein
- Sie
- You; formal second-person singular or plural pronoun
- kennen
- Know; to be familiar with a person or thing
- mein
- My; first-person singular possessive adjective
- Scheitern
- Failure; the act of failing or not succeeding
- wissen
- Know; to have factual knowledge of something
- wie
- How/as; conjunction or adverb indicating manner
- schwer
- Heavy/difficult; indicating weight or hardship
- Enttäuschung
- Disappointment; feeling of unfulfilled hopes or expectations
- trug
- Bore/carried; past tense of tragen, to carry
- Doch
- Yet/however; conjunction expressing contrast or emphasis
- gerade
- Just/precisely; adverb indicating exactness or immediacy
- zu
- To/at; preposition indicating direction or purpose
- jener
- That; demonstrative adjective referring to something distant
- Zeit
- Time; a period or point in time
- erbte
- Inherited; past tense of erben, to inherit
- das
- The; neuter definite article or demonstrative pronoun
- Vermögen
- Fortune/wealth; financial assets or capability
- meines
- My; first-person possessive in genitive neuter form
- Cousins
- Cousin's; genitive of cousin, a relative's child
- Gedanken
- Thoughts; ideas or reflections in the mind
- wandten
- Turned; past tense of wenden, to turn or direct
- sich
- Themselves/oneself; reflexive pronoun for all persons
- wieder
- Again; adverb indicating repetition or return
- Bahn
- Path/track; a course or trajectory of movement
- ihrer
- Their/her; possessive pronoun in genitive form
- früheren
- Earlier/former; adjective indicating a previous state
- Neigung
- Inclination/tendency; a preference or natural leaning
- Sechs
- Six; the cardinal number 6
- Jahre
- Years; plural of Jahr, periods of twelve months
- vergangen
- Passed/elapsed; past participle of vergehen, to pass
- seit
- Since/for; preposition indicating time elapsed
- mich
- Me; first-person singular accusative pronoun
- meinem
- My; first-person possessive in dative masculine form
- gegenwärtigen
- Current/present; adjective describing the current situation
- Vorhaben
- Plan/project; an intended undertaking or enterprise
- entschlossen
- Resolved/determined; decided firmly to do something
- habe
- Have; first-person singular present of haben
- kann
- Can; first-person singular present of können
- noch
- Still/yet; adverb indicating continuation or addition
- jetzt
- Now; adverb referring to the present moment
- an
- At/on; preposition indicating position or reference
- Stunde
- Hour; a unit of time equal to 60 minutes
- erinnern
- Remember; to recall something from memory
- der
- The; definite article in various grammatical cases
- diesem
- This; demonstrative pronoun in dative masculine form
- großen
- Great/large; adjective describing size or importance
- Unternehmen
- Enterprise/venture; a large ambitious undertaking or project
- widmete
- Dedicated; past tense of widmen, to devote something
- begann
- Began; past tense of beginnen, to start
- damit
- With it/thereby; conjunction or pronoun of purpose
- meinen
- My; first-person possessive in accusative masculine form
- Körper
- Body; the physical form of a person
- Entbehrungen
- Hardships/privations; painful lack of necessities or comforts
- gewöhnen
- Accustom; to make used to something over time
- begleitete
- Accompanied; past tense of begleiten, to go with
- Walfischer
- Whalers; people or ships engaged in whale hunting
- auf
- On/upon; preposition indicating position or direction
- mehreren
- Several; adjective indicating more than two things
- Expeditionen
- Expeditions; organized journeys for exploration or research
- Nordsee
- North Sea; the sea between Britain and Scandinavia
- ertrug
- Endured; past tense of ertragen, to bear hardship
- freiwillig
- Voluntarily; done of one's own free will
- Kälte
- Cold; low temperature or the sensation of coldness
- Hunger
- Hunger; the painful sensation caused by lack of food
- Durst
- Thirst; the desire or need to drink liquid
- Schlafmangel
- Sleep deprivation; insufficient sleep causing fatigue
- arbeitete
- Worked; past tense of arbeiten, to work
- tagsüber
- During the day; throughout the daytime hours
- oft
- Often; adverb indicating frequent occurrence
- härter
- Harder; comparative of hart, indicating greater difficulty
- gewöhnlichen
- Ordinary/common; adjective describing something typical or regular
- Matrosen
- Sailors; crew members working aboard a ship
- Nächte
- Nights; plural of Nacht, the dark period of day
- Studium
- Study; the activity of learning or academic pursuit
- Mathematik
- Mathematics; the science of numbers and calculations
- Medizintheorie
- Medical theory; theoretical principles underlying medical science
- jenen
- Those; demonstrative pronoun in dative plural form
- Zweigen
- Branches; subdivisions of a field or a tree
- Naturwissenschaft
- Natural science; the study of the natural world
- aus
- From/out of; preposition indicating origin or source
- denen
- From which; relative pronoun in dative plural form
- Seefahrer
- Seafarers; people who travel or work at sea
- größten
- Greatest; superlative of groß, indicating highest degree
- praktischen
- Practical; relating to real application rather than theory
- Nutzen
- Benefit/use; practical advantage or utility gained
- ziehen
- Draw/pull; to extract benefit or move something
- Zweimal
- Twice; adverb indicating something occurred two times
- tatsächlich
- Actually/indeed; adverb confirming something is really true
- Unteroffizier
- Non-commissioned officer; a lower-ranking military or crew officer
- machte
- Made/did; past tense of machen, to do or make
- Sache
- Matter/thing; a subject, affair, or object
- zur
- To the; contraction of zu and der (feminine)
- allgemeinen
- General; adjective meaning widespread or common
- Bewunderung
- Admiration; a feeling of respect and approval
- muss
- Must; first-person singular present of müssen
- gestehen
- Confess/admit; to acknowledge something honestly
- wenig
- Little/few; indicating a small amount or degree
- stolz
- Proud; feeling satisfaction over an achievement
- war
- Was; past tense of sein, to be
- Kapitän
- Captain; the commander of a ship or aircraft
- zweithöchste
- Second highest; ranking just below the top position
- Würde
- Dignity/rank; an honorable position or sense of worth
- Schiff
- Ship; a large vessel for sea travel
- anbot
- Offered; past tense of anbieten, to offer something
- mit
- With; preposition indicating accompaniment or means
- größtem
- Greatest; superlative of groß in dative form
- Nachdruck
- Emphasis/insistence; forceful stress placed on something
- bat
- Asked/requested; past tense of bitten, to ask
- bleiben
- Stay/remain; to continue being in a place
- so
- So/thus; adverb indicating degree or consequence
- wertvoll
- Valuable; having great worth or importance
- erachtete
- Considered/regarded; past tense of erachten, to deem
- er
- He; third-person singular masculine nominative pronoun
- Dienste
- Services; acts of assistance or useful work rendered
Unlock audio playback, vocabulary games, and reading progress tracking.
Create free account →