Frankenstein; or, the modern prometheus — Page 1
I sat one evening in my laboratory; the sun had set, and the moon was just rising from the sea; I had not sufficient light for my employment, and I remained idle, in a pause of consideration of whether I should leave my labour for the night or hasten its conclusion by an unremitting attention to it.
Una tarde estaba sentado en mi laboratorio; el sol se había puesto y la luna acababa de elevarse sobre el mar; no tenía luz suficiente para mi trabajo, y permanecí ocioso, en una pausa de reflexión sobre si debía abandonar mi labor por esa noche o apresurar su conclusión prestándole una atención incesante.
As I sat, a train of reflection occurred to me which led me to consider the effects of what I was now doing.
Mientras estaba sentado, una serie de reflexiones acudió a mi mente que me llevó a considerar los efectos de lo que estaba haciendo en ese momento.
Three years before, I was engaged in the same manner and had created a fiend whose unparalleled barbarity had desolated my heart and filled it for ever with the bitterest remorse.
Tres años antes, me había ocupado de la misma manera y había creado un monstruo cuya barbarie sin igual había desolado mi corazón y lo había llenado para siempre del más amargo remordimiento.
I was now about to form another being of whose dispositions I was alike ignorant; she might become ten thousand times more malignant than her mate and delight, for its own sake, in murder and wretchedness.
Estaba a punto de crear otro ser cuyas disposiciones me eran igualmente desconocidas; ella podría volverse diez mil veces más maligna que su compañero y deleitarse, por el placer en sí mismo, en el asesinato y la miseria.
He had sworn to quit the neighbourhood of man and hide himself in deserts, but she had not; and she, who in all probability was to become a thinking and reasoning animal, might refuse to comply with a compact made before her creation.
Él había jurado abandonar la vecindad del hombre y ocultarse en los desiertos, pero ella no; y ella, que con toda probabilidad habría de convertirse en un ser pensante y razonador, podría negarse a cumplir un pacto concertado antes de su creación.
They might even hate each other; the creature who already lived loathed his own deformity, and might he not conceive a greater abhorrence for it when it came before his eyes in the female form?
Incluso podrían odiarse el uno al otro; la criatura que ya vivía aborrecía su propia deformidad, ¿y no podría concebir un aborrecimiento aún mayor hacia ella cuando la viera ante sus ojos en forma femenina?
Vocabulary
- tarde
- Evening or afternoon; also means 'late'.
- estaba
- Past imperfect of 'estar'; was (in a state).
- sentado
- Seated; past participle of 'sentar'.
- laboratorio
- A room or building used for scientific experiments.
- sol
- The sun; the star at the center of our solar system.
- había
- Past perfect auxiliary verb 'haber'; had.
- puesto
- Past participle of 'poner'; set or placed.
- luna
- The moon; Earth's natural satellite.
- acababa
- Imperfect of 'acabar'; was just finishing or just doing.
- elevarse
- To rise or lift oneself up; reflexive verb.
- sobre
- Preposition meaning 'over', 'above', or 'on'.
- mar
- The sea or ocean; large body of salt water.
- tenía
- Imperfect of 'tener'; had or used to have.
- luz
- Light; electromagnetic radiation visible to the eye.
- suficiente
- Sufficient or enough; adequate in quantity or degree.
- trabajo
- Work or job; a task or occupation.
- permanecí
- Preterite of 'permanecer'; I remained or stayed.
- ocioso
- Idle or inactive; not engaged in any work.
- pausa
- A pause or break; a temporary stop in activity.
- reflexión
- Reflection or thought; careful consideration of something.
- debía
- Imperfect of 'deber'; should or ought to.
- abandonar
- To abandon or leave behind; to give up entirely.
- labor
- Labor or work; a task or effort undertaken.
- noche
- Night; the period of darkness after sunset.
- apresurar
- To hurry or hasten; to speed something up.
- conclusión
- Conclusion or end; the final result of a process.
- prestándole
- Giving or lending to it; gerund of 'prestar' with pronoun.
- atención
- Attention or care; focused mental awareness on something.
- incesante
- Incessant or unceasing; continuing without stopping.
- Mientras
- While or meanwhile; during the same time as something.
- serie
- A series or sequence; a number of related things.
- reflexiones
- Reflections or thoughts; plural of 'reflexión'.
- acudió
- Preterite of 'acudir'; came or rushed to a place.
- mente
- Mind; the cognitive faculty of thinking and reasoning.
- llevó
- Preterite of 'llevar'; led or brought to something.
- considerar
- To consider or think about; to reflect on carefully.
- efectos
- Effects or results; outcomes of an action or cause.
- haciendo
- Doing or making; gerund of 'hacer'.
- momento
- A moment or instant; a brief period of time.
- años
- Years; plural of 'año'; units of time.
- antes
- Before or previously; earlier in time or order.
- ocupado
- Busy or occupied; engaged in a task or activity.
- misma
- Same; feminine form of 'mismo'; identical or equal.
- manera
- Manner or way; method of doing something.
- creado
- Created; past participle of 'crear'.
- monstruo
- A monster; a frightening or grotesque creature.
- cuya
- Relative possessive pronoun meaning 'whose' (feminine).
- barbarie
- Barbarity or savagery; extremely cruel or brutal behavior.
- sin
- Preposition meaning 'without'; lacking something.
- igual
- Equal or alike; without equal; unmatched in quality.
- desolado
- Desolated or devastated; left utterly ruined or empty.
- corazón
- Heart; the organ or center of emotions and feelings.
- llenado
- Filled; past participle of 'llenar'; made full.
- siempre
- Always; at all times; without exception.
- amargo
- Bitter; having a sharp, unpleasant taste or feeling.
- remordimiento
- Remorse or guilt; deep regret for a past wrongdoing.
- Estaba
- Past imperfect of 'estar'; was (in a state or condition).
- punto
- Point or moment; 'a punto de' means 'about to'.
- crear
- To create or make; to bring something into existence.
- otro
- Another or other; a different or additional one.
- ser
- To be; also a noun meaning a being or creature.
- cuyas
- Relative possessive pronoun meaning 'whose' (feminine plural).
- disposiciones
- Dispositions or tendencies; natural inclinations of character.
- eran
- Imperfect of 'ser'; were (description or characteristic).
- igualmente
- Equally or likewise; in the same manner or degree.
- desconocidas
- Unknown; feminine plural of 'desconocido'.
- podría
- Conditional of 'poder'; could or might be able to.
- volverse
- To become; reflexive form indicating a change of state.
- veces
- Times; plural of 'vez'; occurrences or instances.
- maligna
- Malignant or evil; harmful and wicked in nature.
- compañero
- Companion or partner; someone who accompanies another.
- deleitarse
- To delight in or take pleasure in something.
- placer
- Pleasure or delight; enjoyment or satisfaction.
- sí
- Reflexive pronoun meaning 'himself', 'herself', or 'itself'.
- mismo
- Same or self; used for emphasis or reflexive meaning.
- asesinato
- Murder or assassination; the intentional killing of someone.
- miseria
- Misery or wretchedness; extreme suffering or poverty.
- jurado
- Sworn; past participle of 'jurar'; also means 'jury'.
- vecindad
- Neighborhood or vicinity; the surrounding area or community.
- hombre
- Man; an adult male human being.
- ocultarse
- To hide oneself; to conceal oneself from others.
- desiertos
- Deserts; arid regions; also means deserted or uninhabited.
- toda
- All or entire; feminine form of 'todo'.
- probabilidad
- Probability or likelihood; the chance something will occur.
- habría
- Conditional of 'haber'; would have; auxiliary verb.
- convertirse
- To become or turn into; reflexive verb of transformation.
- pensante
- Thinking; capable of thought; a thinking being.
- razonador
- Reasoner; one who reasons or thinks logically.
- negarse
- To refuse; to deny oneself or decline to do something.
- cumplir
- To fulfill or comply; to carry out an obligation.
- pacto
- A pact or agreement; a formal arrangement between parties.
- concertado
- Arranged or agreed upon; past participle of 'concertar'.
- creación
- Creation; the act of making or bringing something into being.
- Incluso
- Even or including; used to add emphasis or inclusion.
- podrían
- Conditional plural of 'poder'; they could or might.
- odiarse
- To hate each other; reflexive reciprocal form of 'odiar'.
- criatura
- Creature or being; a living organism or created entity.
- ya
- Already or now; indicating something has occurred.
- vivía
- Imperfect of 'vivir'; was living or used to live.
- aborrecía
- Imperfect of 'aborrecer'; hated or detested something deeply.
- propia
- Own; one's very own; feminine of 'propio'.
- deformidad
- Deformity; an abnormality or distortion of physical form.
- concebir
- To conceive or imagine; to form an idea or notion.
- aborrecimiento
- Hatred or loathing; intense feeling of disgust and aversion.
- aún
- Still or even; greater degree or continuation of something.
- mayor
- Greater or larger; comparative of 'grande'.
- hacia
- Toward or towards; indicating direction or orientation.
- cuando
- When; at the time that something happens.
- viera
- Imperfect subjunctive of 'ver'; if or when she saw.
- ante
- Before or in front of; facing something or someone.
- ojos
- Eyes; the organs used for sight and vision.
- forma
- Form or shape; the external appearance of something.
- femenina
- Feminine; relating to female gender or characteristics.
Unlock audio playback, vocabulary games, and reading progress tracking.
Create free account →