Frankenstein; or, the modern prometheus — Page 6
During the day I was sustained and inspirited by the hope of night, for in sleep I saw my friends, my wife, and my beloved country; again I saw the benevolent countenance of my father, heard the silver tones of my Elizabeth's voice, and beheld Clerval enjoying health and youth.
Durante el día me sostenía y animaba la esperanza de la noche, pues en el sueño veía a mis amigos, a mi esposa y a mi amada patria; de nuevo contemplaba el semblante benévolo de mi padre, escuchaba los tonos plateados de la voz de mi Elizabeth y veía a Clerval disfrutar de salud y juventud.
Often, when wearied by a toilsome march, I persuaded myself that I was dreaming until night should come and that I should then enjoy reality in the arms of my dearest friends.
A menudo, cuando me rendía el agotamiento de una penosa marcha, me convencía a mí mismo de que estaba soñando hasta que llegara la noche y de que entonces disfrutaría de la realidad en los brazos de mis más queridos amigos.
What agonising fondness did I feel for them! How did I cling to their dear forms, as sometimes they haunted even my waking hours, and persuade myself that they still lived!
¡Qué agonizante ternura sentía por ellos! ¡Cómo me aferraba a sus queridas figuras, cuando a veces rondaban incluso mis horas de vigilia, y me convencía de que aún vivían!
At such moments vengeance, that burned within me, died in my heart, and I pursued my path towards the destruction of the dæmon more as a task enjoined by heaven, as the mechanical impulse of some power of which I was unconscious, than as the ardent desire of my soul.
En tales momentos, la venganza que ardía en mi interior se apagaba en mi corazón, y proseguía mi camino hacia la destrucción del demonio más como una tarea ordenada por el cielo, como el impulso mecánico de algún poder del que no era consciente, que como el ardiente deseo de mi alma.
What his feelings were whom I pursued I cannot know.
Lo que sentía aquel a quien perseguía no puedo saberlo.
Sometimes, indeed, he left marks in writing on the barks of the trees or cut in stone that guided me and instigated my fury.
En ocasiones, en efecto, dejaba marcas escritas en la corteza de los árboles o grabadas en piedra que me guiaban e instigaban mi furia.
"My reign is not yet over"—these words were legible in one of these inscriptions—"you live, and my power is complete. Follow me; I seek the everlasting ices of the north, where you will feel the misery of cold and frost, to which I am impassive.
«Mi reinado aún no ha terminado»—estas palabras eran legibles en una de estas inscripciones—«tú vives, y mi poder es absoluto. Sígueme; busco los hielos eternos del norte, donde sentirás la miseria del frío y la escarcha, ante los cuales yo soy impasible.
Vocabulary
- Durante
- Throughout a period of time; while something occurs
- día
- A 24-hour period; daytime hours
- sostenía
- Imperfect tense of sostener; was sustaining or supporting
- animaba
- Was encouraging or cheering someone on
- esperanza
- A feeling of optimism about future outcomes; hope
- noche
- The dark period between sunset and sunrise; night
- pues
- Conjunction meaning 'since,' 'for,' or 'well then'
- sueño
- A series of mental images during sleep; dream
- veía
- Imperfect tense of ver; was seeing or used to see
- amigos
- People with whom one shares a close bond; friends
- esposa
- A woman to whom one is legally married; wife
- amada
- Deeply loved or cherished; beloved (feminine form)
- patria
- The country or land of one's birth; homeland
- nuevo
- Recently made or not seen before; new
- contemplaba
- Was gazing at or thinking deeply about something
- semblante
- The expression or appearance of a person's face
- benévolo
- Showing kindness and goodwill toward others; benevolent
- padre
- A male parent; father
- escuchaba
- Was listening to or paying attention to sounds
- tonos
- Qualities of sound or color; tones
- plateados
- Having the color or sheen of silver; silvery
- voz
- Sound produced by vocal cords; voice
- disfrutar
- To take pleasure in or derive enjoyment from something
- salud
- The general condition of the body and mind; health
- juventud
- The period of life between childhood and adulthood; youth
- menudo
- Used in 'a menudo' meaning frequently or often
- cuando
- Conjunction or adverb meaning 'when' in time references
- rendía
- Was yielding or surrendering to a force or feeling
- agotamiento
- A state of extreme tiredness or depletion; exhaustion
- penosa
- Causing distress or great difficulty; painful, arduous
- marcha
- The act of walking steadily forward; march, trek
- convencía
- Was persuading or causing someone to believe something
- mismo
- Referring to the same person or thing; self, same
- soñando
- Present participle of soñar; in the act of dreaming
- hasta
- Preposition meaning 'until,' 'up to,' or 'even'
- llegara
- Imperfect subjunctive of llegar; that one might arrive
- entonces
- Adverb referring to that moment in time; then
- disfrutaría
- Conditional tense of disfrutar; would enjoy something
- realidad
- The state of things as they actually exist; reality
- brazos
- The upper limbs of the human body; arms
- más
- Comparative adverb meaning 'more' or 'most'
- queridos
- Deeply loved or held dear; beloved, dear (plural)
- Qué
- Exclamatory or interrogative word meaning 'what' or 'how'
- agonizante
- Causing or experiencing extreme anguish; agonizing
- ternura
- A gentle feeling of affection and warmth; tenderness
- sentía
- Imperfect tense of sentir; was feeling or experiencing
- Cómo
- Exclamatory or interrogative word meaning 'how'
- aferraba
- Was clinging tightly or grasping firmly to something
- queridas
- Deeply loved or cherished; beloved, dear (feminine plural)
- figuras
- Shapes or forms of people or things; figures
- veces
- Plural of vez; instances or times something occurs
- rondaban
- Were hovering around or haunting a place or mind
- incluso
- Adverb meaning 'even' or 'including' in a sentence
- horas
- Units of time equal to sixty minutes; hours
- vigilia
- The state of being awake and alert; wakefulness
- aún
- Adverb meaning 'still' or 'yet' indicating continuation
- vivían
- Imperfect tense of vivir; were living or used to live
- tales
- Adjective meaning 'such' referring to previously mentioned things
- momentos
- Brief points or periods in time; moments
- venganza
- The act of retaliating for a wrong; revenge
- ardía
- Imperfect tense of arder; was burning or blazing intensely
- interior
- The inner part or inside of something; interior
- apagaba
- Was extinguishing or dying down; was going out
- corazón
- The organ that pumps blood; heart, used emotionally
- proseguía
- Was continuing or proceeding forward with an action
- camino
- A route or path traveled between two places; road
- hacia
- Preposition indicating direction or movement toward something
- destrucción
- The act of causing severe damage or ruin; destruction
- demonio
- An evil supernatural being; demon, devil
- tarea
- A piece of work assigned or undertaken; task
- ordenada
- Commanded or directed by an authority; ordained, ordered
- cielo
- The expanse above the earth; sky or heaven
- impulso
- A sudden urge or force driving action; impulse
- mecánico
- Relating to machinery; automatic and without conscious thought
- algún
- Indefinite adjective meaning 'some' or 'any' (masculine)
- poder
- The ability to do something; power or to be able
- consciente
- Aware of and responsive to one's surroundings; conscious
- ardiente
- Intensely passionate or fervent; burning, ardent
- deseo
- A strong feeling of wanting something; desire, wish
- alma
- The spiritual or immaterial part of a person; soul
- aquel
- Demonstrative adjective or pronoun meaning 'that' (far away)
- quien
- Relative pronoun meaning 'who' referring to people
- perseguía
- Was chasing or pursuing someone relentlessly; was pursuing
- puedo
- First person singular present of poder; I can, I am able
- saberlo
- To know it; infinitive saber combined with object pronoun
- ocasiones
- Particular times or instances when something occurs; occasions
- efecto
- A result produced by a cause; effect
- dejaba
- Imperfect of dejar; was leaving or allowing something
- marcas
- Signs or impressions left on a surface; marks
- escritas
- Produced by writing; written (feminine plural form)
- corteza
- The tough outer covering of a tree; bark
- árboles
- Large perennial woody plants; trees
- grabadas
- Carved or engraved into a surface; etched (feminine plural)
- piedra
- Hard solid mineral material found in nature; stone
- guiaban
- Were guiding or directing someone along a path
- instigaban
- Were provoking or inciting someone to action; instigating
- furia
- Violent uncontrolled anger or rage; fury
- reinado
- The period during which a monarch rules; reign
- terminado
- Past participle of terminar; finished or ended completely
- estas
- Feminine plural demonstrative adjective meaning 'these'
- palabras
- Units of language conveying meaning; words
- legibles
- Clear enough to be read easily; legible (plural)
- inscripciones
- Words carved or written on a surface; inscriptions
- vives
- Second person singular present of vivir; you live
- absoluto
- Complete and total without restriction; absolute
- Sígueme
- Imperative form of seguir with pronoun; follow me
- busco
- First person singular present of buscar; I search for
- hielos
- Frozen water or icy expanses; ice, ices (plural)
- eternos
- Lasting forever without end; eternal (masculine plural)
- norte
- The direction toward the North Pole; north
- donde
- Relative adverb meaning 'where' indicating a location
- sentirás
- Future tense of sentir; you will feel or experience
- miseria
- A state of great suffering or poverty; misery
- frío
- A low temperature sensation; cold, coldness
- escarcha
- Ice crystals formed on surfaces in freezing weather; frost
- ante
- Preposition meaning 'before' or 'in the face of'
- cuales
- Relative pronoun meaning 'which' used after prepositions
- impasible
- Not affected by emotion or pain; impassive, unmoved
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