Heart of Darkness — Page 7
Imagine him here—the very end of the world, a sea the colour of lead, a sky the colour of smoke, a kind of ship about as rigid as a concertina—and going up this river with stores, or orders, or what you like.
Stellen Sie sich ihn hier vor – am äußersten Ende der Welt, ein Meer von der Farbe des Bleis, ein Himmel von der Farbe des Rauchs, eine Art Schiff, ungefähr so starr wie ein Konzertina – und wie er diesen Fluss hinauffahrt mit Vorräten, oder Befehlen, oder was auch immer.
Sand-banks, marshes, forests, savages,—precious little to eat fit for a civilized man, nothing but Thames water to drink.
Sandbänke, Sümpfe, Wälder, Wilde – herzlich wenig zu essen, das für einen zivilisierten Menschen geeignet wäre, nichts als Themsewasser zu trinken.
No Falernian wine here, no going ashore.
Kein falernischer Wein hier, kein Landgang.
Here and there a military camp lost in a wilderness, like a needle in a bundle of hay—cold, fog, tempests, disease, exile, and death—death skulking in the air, in the water, in the bush.
Hier und dort ein Militärlager, verloren in einer Wildnis, wie eine Nadel im Heuhaufen – Kälte, Nebel, Stürme, Krankheit, Verbannung und Tod – der Tod luernd in der Luft, im Wasser, im Gebüsch.
They must have been dying like flies here.
Sie müssen hier wie die Fliegen gestorben sein.
Oh, yes—he did it.
Oh ja – er hat es getan.
Did it very well, too, no doubt, and without thinking much about it either, except afterwards to brag of what he had gone through in his time, perhaps.
Hat es auch sehr gut gemacht, ohne Zweifel, und ohne viel darüber nachzudenken, außer um hinterher vielleicht damit zu prahlen, was er in seiner Zeit durchgemacht hatte.
They were men enough to face the darkness.
Sie waren Manns genug, um der Dunkelheit ins Gesicht zu sehen.
And perhaps he was cheered by keeping his eye on a chance of promotion to the fleet at Ravenna by and by, if he had good friends in Rome and survived the awful climate.
Und vielleicht wurde er dadurch aufgeheitert, dass er die Aussicht auf eine Beförderung zur Flotte in Ravenna im Auge behielt, wenn er gute Freunde in Rom hatte und das schreckliche Klima überlebte.
Or think of a decent young citizen in a toga—perhaps too much dice, you know—coming out here in the train of some prefect, or tax-gatherer, or trader even, to mend his fortunes.
Oder denken Sie an einen anständigen jungen Bürger in einer Toga – vielleicht zu viel Würfelspiel, Sie wissen schon – der hier im Gefolge eines Präfekten, oder Steuereintreibers, oder gar eines Händlers herauskam, um sein Glück zu verbessern.
Vocabulary
- Stellen
- To place or put something somewhere
- Sie
- You (formal) or they
- sich
- Reflexive pronoun meaning oneself or themselves
- ihn
- Him, accusative form of er
- hier
- Here, in this place
- vor
- Before, in front of, or ago
- am
- Contraction of an dem, at the
- äußersten
- Outermost, utmost, or extreme end
- Ende
- End, conclusion, or tip of something
- der
- Definite article the, masculine or genitive
- Welt
- World, the earth or universe
- ein
- Indefinite article a or an
- Meer
- Sea, a large body of saltwater
- von
- Of, from, or by
- Farbe
- Color or paint
- des
- Of the, genitive definite article
- Bleis
- Of lead, the heavy grey metal
- Himmel
- Sky or heaven
- Rauchs
- Of smoke, gaseous byproduct of burning
- eine
- Indefinite article a or an, feminine
- Art
- Type, kind, or sort of something
- Schiff
- Ship or boat, a large watercraft
- ungefähr
- Approximately, roughly, or about
- so
- So, as, or in such a way
- starr
- Rigid, stiff, or motionless
- wie
- Like, as, or how
- und
- And, connecting words or clauses
- er
- He, third person singular masculine pronoun
- diesen
- This, accusative masculine demonstrative pronoun
- Fluss
- River, a flowing body of water
- hinauffahrt
- Travels up a river or road
- mit
- With, together with or by means of
- Vorräten
- Supplies, provisions or stored goods
- oder
- Or, indicating an alternative choice
- Befehlen
- Orders or commands given to someone
- was
- What or which, interrogative or relative pronoun
- auch
- Also, too, or as well
- immer
- Always or ever, indicating constant occurrence
- Sandbänke
- Sandbars, shallow ridges of sand in water
- Sümpfe
- Swamps, wetlands with standing water
- Wälder
- Forests, large areas covered with trees
- Wilde
- Savages or wild people, primitive inhabitants
- herzlich
- Heartfelt, warm, or very little ironically
- wenig
- Little, few, or not much
- zu
- To, too, or closed
- essen
- To eat food
- das
- The, neuter definite article or that
- für
- For, on behalf of something or someone
- einen
- A or an, accusative masculine indefinite article
- zivilisierten
- Civilized, pertaining to refined or cultured people
- Menschen
- People or human beings
- geeignet
- Suitable, appropriate, or fit for something
- wäre
- Would be, subjunctive form of sein
- nichts
- Nothing, not anything at all
- als
- As, than, or except
- trinken
- To drink a liquid
- Kein
- No, not a, or none
- Wein
- Wine, fermented grape beverage
- kein
- No, none, or not any
- Landgang
- Shore leave, permission to go ashore
- Hier
- Here, at this place or location
- dort
- There, at that place
- Militärlager
- Military camp or army encampment
- verloren
- Lost, misplaced or abandoned
- in
- In, inside, or within
- einer
- A or one, dative feminine indefinite article
- Wildnis
- Wilderness, a wild uncultivated natural area
- Nadel
- Needle, a thin pointed sewing instrument
- im
- In the, contraction of in dem
- Heuhaufen
- Haystack, a large pile of dried hay
- Kälte
- Cold, the state of low temperature
- Nebel
- Fog or mist, reduced atmospheric visibility
- Stürme
- Storms, violent weather with wind and rain
- Krankheit
- Illness or disease, a medical condition
- Verbannung
- Exile or banishment from one's homeland
- Tod
- Death, the end of life
- luernd
- Lurking, waiting hidden or in ambush
- Luft
- Air, the atmosphere or breathable gas
- Wasser
- Water, the clear liquid essential for life
- Gebüsch
- Bushes or shrubbery, dense low vegetation
- müssen
- Must, to have to do something
- die
- The, feminine or plural definite article
- Fliegen
- Flies, the buzzing insects or flying
- gestorben
- Died, past participle of sterben
- sein
- To be or his, possessive pronoun
- Oh
- Oh, exclamation of surprise or realization
- ja
- Yes, affirmative particle
- hat
- Has, third person singular of haben
- es
- It, neuter third person pronoun
- getan
- Done, past participle of tun
- Hat
- Has, third person singular of haben
- sehr
- Very, to a great degree
- gut
- Good, of high quality or well
- gemacht
- Made or done, past participle of machen
- ohne
- Without, lacking or absent of something
- Zweifel
- Doubt, uncertainty about something's truth
- viel
- Much or a lot of something
- darüber
- About it or over it, prepositional adverb
- nachzudenken
- To think about or reflect upon something
- außer
- Except, besides, or other than
- um
- Around, at, or in order to
- hinterher
- Afterwards, after the fact or behind
- vielleicht
- Perhaps, maybe, or possibly
- damit
- With it, so that, or thereby
- prahlen
- To boast or brag about something
- seiner
- His, genitive masculine possessive pronoun
- Zeit
- Time, a period or point in time
- durchgemacht
- Endured or gone through difficult experiences
- hatte
- Had, simple past of haben
- waren
- Were, simple past plural of sein
- Manns
- Man's, genitive of Mann meaning man
- genug
- Enough, sufficient in quantity or degree
- Dunkelheit
- Darkness, absence of light
- ins
- Into the, contraction of in das
- Gesicht
- Face, the front part of one's head
- sehen
- To see or look at something
- Und
- And, coordinating conjunction
- wurde
- Became or was, simple past of werden
- dadurch
- Thereby or because of that
- aufgeheitert
- Cheered up, brightened in mood or weather
- dass
- That, subordinating conjunction introducing a clause
- Aussicht
- Prospect, outlook, or view of something
- auf
- On, upon, or onto something
- Beförderung
- Promotion, advancement in rank or career
- zur
- To the, contraction of zu der
- Flotte
- Fleet, a group of ships or vehicles
- Auge
- Eye, the organ of sight
- behielt
- Kept or retained, simple past of behalten
- wenn
- If or when, conditional conjunction
- gute
- Good, adjective describing positive quality
- Freunde
- Friends, people one has close relations with
- schreckliche
- Terrible, dreadful, or horrible
- Klima
- Climate, the prevailing weather conditions of a region
- überlebte
- Survived, managed to stay alive through something
- Oder
- Or, presenting an alternative option
- denken
- To think or consider something
- an
- At, on, or to, a preposition
- anständigen
- Decent, respectable or proper
- jungen
- Young, of a young age
- Bürger
- Citizen, a member of a state or city
- Würfelspiel
- Dice game, a game played with dice
- wissen
- To know a fact or information
- schon
- Already, yet, or indeed
- Gefolge
- Entourage or retinue accompanying an important person
- eines
- Of a, genitive indefinite article neuter
- Steuereintreibers
- Tax collector, one who collects taxes
- gar
- At all, even, or completely
- Händlers
- Merchant's or trader's, genitive of Händler
- herauskam
- Came out or resulted, simple past of herauskommen
- Glück
- Luck, fortune, or happiness
- verbessern
- To improve or enhance something
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