Frankenstein; or, the modern prometheus — Page 7
I returned home not disappointed, for I have said that I had long considered those authors useless whom the professor reprobated; but I returned not at all the more inclined to recur to these studies in any shape.
Regresé a casa sin sentirme decepcionado, pues ya he dicho que hacía mucho tiempo que consideraba inútiles a aquellos autores a quienes el profesor reprobaba; pero tampoco regresé con mayor inclinación a retomar esos estudios en ninguna forma.
M. Krempe was a little squat man with a gruff voice and a repulsive countenance; the teacher, therefore, did not prepossess me in favour of his pursuits.
El señor Krempe era un hombre pequeño y rechoncho, de voz áspera y semblante repulsivo; el maestro, por lo tanto, no me predispuso a favor de sus investigaciones.
In rather a too philosophical and connected a strain, perhaps, I have given an account of the conclusions I had come to concerning them in my early years.
En un tono quizás demasiado filosófico y coherente, he expuesto las conclusiones a las que había llegado respecto a ellos en mis primeros años.
As a child I had not been content with the results promised by the modern professors of natural science.
De niño no me había conformado con los resultados prometidos por los modernos profesores de ciencias naturales.
With a confusion of ideas only to be accounted for by my extreme youth and my want of a guide on such matters, I had retrod the steps of knowledge along the paths of time and exchanged the discoveries of recent inquirers for the dreams of forgotten alchemists.
Con una confusión de ideas que solo podía explicarse por mi extrema juventud y mi falta de un guía en tales asuntos, había recorrido de nuevo los pasos del conocimiento a lo largo de los senderos del tiempo y había cambiado los descubrimientos de los investigadores recientes por los sueños de olvidados alquimistas.
Besides, I had a contempt for the uses of modern natural philosophy.
Además, sentía desprecio por las aplicaciones de la filosofía natural moderna.
It was very different when the masters of the science sought immortality and power; such views, although futile, were grand; but now the scene was changed.
Era muy distinto cuando los maestros de la ciencia buscaban la inmortalidad y el poder; tales aspiraciones, aunque vanas, eran grandiosas; pero ahora el panorama había cambiado.
The ambition of the inquirer seemed to limit itself to the annihilation of those visions on which my interest in science was chiefly founded.
La ambición del investigador parecía limitarse a la aniquilación de aquellas visiones en las que se fundaba principalmente mi interés por la ciencia.
I was required to exchange chimeras of boundless grandeur for realities of little worth.
Se me exigía cambiar quimeras de grandeza ilimitada por realidades de escaso valor.
Vocabulary
- Regresé
- I returned to a place after being away
- casa
- Home or house where one lives
- sin
- Without; lacking something or someone
- sentirme
- To feel a certain way about oneself
- decepcionado
- Feeling disappointed or let down by something
- pues
- Well; since; because; used for explanation
- ya
- Already; now; expresses prior action or emphasis
- dicho
- Said; past participle of decir
- hacía
- Was doing; imperfect tense of hacer
- mucho
- Much; a lot; great in quantity or degree
- tiempo
- Time; weather; period or duration
- consideraba
- Was considering or regarding something as
- inútiles
- Useless; having no practical value or purpose
- aquellos
- Those; demonstrative pronoun referring to distant things
- autores
- Authors; writers of books or texts
- quienes
- Who; relative pronoun referring to people
- profesor
- Teacher or professor who instructs students
- reprobaba
- Was failing or condemning someone or something
- pero
- But; conjunction expressing contrast or contradiction
- tampoco
- Neither; not either; also not
- regresé
- I returned; went back to a place
- mayor
- Greater; larger; older; more significant
- inclinación
- Inclination; tendency or desire toward something
- retomar
- To resume or take up something again
- esos
- Those; demonstrative adjective for nearby things
- estudios
- Studies; academic subjects or courses pursued
- ninguna
- No; none; not any form or type
- forma
- Form; way; manner or shape of something
- señor
- Mister; sir; title of respect for men
- era
- Was; imperfect tense of ser indicating description
- hombre
- Man; adult male person
- pequeño
- Small; little in size or stature
- rechoncho
- Chubby; stocky; short and plump in build
- voz
- Voice; sound produced when speaking or singing
- áspera
- Harsh; rough; unpleasant in sound or texture
- semblante
- Countenance; facial expression or appearance
- repulsivo
- Repulsive; causing strong disgust or revulsion
- maestro
- Teacher; master; instructor in a subject
- tanto
- So much; therefore; consequently
- predispuso
- Predisposed; inclined someone toward something beforehand
- favor
- Favor; support; benefit or positive disposition
- investigaciones
- Investigations; research studies or inquiries conducted
- tono
- Tone; manner or style of expression
- quizás
- Perhaps; maybe; expressing uncertainty or possibility
- demasiado
- Too much; excessively; beyond what is appropriate
- filosófico
- Philosophical; relating to philosophy or deep thought
- coherente
- Coherent; logically consistent and clearly expressed
- expuesto
- Exposed; presented; set forth for consideration
- conclusiones
- Conclusions; final judgments reached after reasoning
- había
- Had; imperfect auxiliary for past perfect tense
- llegado
- Arrived; reached; past participle of llegar
- respecto
- Regarding; with respect to something
- primeros
- First; earliest in order or time
- años
- Years; units of time equal to twelve months
- niño
- Child; young boy in early years
- conformado
- Satisfied; content with or resigned to something
- resultados
- Results; outcomes or conclusions of an activity
- prometidos
- Promised; pledged or guaranteed in advance
- modernos
- Modern; contemporary; relating to the present era
- profesores
- Teachers; professors who instruct in academic settings
- ciencias
- Sciences; branches of systematic knowledge and study
- naturales
- Natural; relating to nature or natural sciences
- confusión
- Confusion; state of being mixed up or unclear
- ideas
- Ideas; thoughts or concepts in the mind
- solo
- Only; alone; just; solely
- podía
- Could; was able to; imperfect of poder
- explicarse
- To be explained; to account for oneself
- extrema
- Extreme; very great in degree or intensity
- juventud
- Youth; the period of being young
- falta
- Lack; absence; shortage of something needed
- guía
- Guide; guidance; direction or mentor figure
- tales
- Such; of that kind or nature
- asuntos
- Matters; subjects; affairs or topics of concern
- recorrido
- Traveled; covered a route or path
- nuevo
- New; fresh; recently made or encountered
- pasos
- Steps; stages in a process or journey
- conocimiento
- Knowledge; understanding gained through learning or experience
- largo
- Long; extended in length or duration
- senderos
- Paths; trails or narrow roads through terrain
- cambiado
- Changed; exchanged; past participle of cambiar
- descubrimientos
- Discoveries; new findings in science or exploration
- investigadores
- Researchers; people who conduct studies and investigations
- recientes
- Recent; happening or appearing not long ago
- sueños
- Dreams; aspirations or visions during sleep
- olvidados
- Forgotten; no longer remembered or considered
- alquimistas
- Alchemists; medieval practitioners seeking to transform matter
- Además
- Furthermore; in addition; also; besides
- sentía
- Felt; was feeling; imperfect tense of sentir
- desprecio
- Contempt; scorn; strong disregard for something
- aplicaciones
- Applications; practical uses of knowledge or science
- filosofía
- Philosophy; study of fundamental nature of knowledge
- natural
- Natural; of or relating to nature
- moderna
- Modern; contemporary; of the current era
- Era
- Was; imperfect tense describing a past state
- muy
- Very; extremely; used to intensify adjectives
- distinto
- Different; distinct; not the same as another
- cuando
- When; at the time that something occurred
- maestros
- Teachers; masters; instructors with expert knowledge
- ciencia
- Science; systematic study of the natural world
- buscaban
- Were searching for; seeking something earnestly
- inmortalidad
- Immortality; the state of living forever
- poder
- Power; ability; can; to be able to
- aspiraciones
- Aspirations; ambitions; strong desires for achievement
- aunque
- Although; even though; expressing concession
- vanas
- Vain; futile; empty; without real substance
- eran
- Were; imperfect plural form of ser
- grandiosas
- Grandiose; magnificent; impressively great in scope
- ahora
- Now; at this present moment in time
- panorama
- Panorama; overall view or broad picture of something
- ambición
- Ambition; strong desire to achieve success
- investigador
- Researcher; one who investigates or studies systematically
- parecía
- Seemed; appeared to be; imperfect of parecer
- limitarse
- To limit oneself; to be restricted to something
- aniquilación
- Annihilation; complete destruction or elimination of something
- aquellas
- Those; feminine demonstrative adjective for distant things
- visiones
- Visions; mental images or imaginative perceptions
- fundaba
- Was founded on; based on; imperfect of fundar
- principalmente
- Mainly; principally; above all else
- interés
- Interest; curiosity or concern about something
- exigía
- Was demanding; required; imperfect tense of exigir
- cambiar
- To change; to exchange one thing for another
- quimeras
- Chimeras; wild dreams; impossible fanciful ideas
- grandeza
- Greatness; grandeur; magnificence or noble quality
- ilimitada
- Unlimited; boundless; without restrictions or limits
- realidades
- Realities; things that actually exist or occur
- escaso
- Scarce; limited; of little quantity or value
- valor
- Value; worth; courage or importance of something
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