Heart of Darkness — Page 5
"And this also," said Marlow suddenly, "has been one of the dark places of the earth."
«Anche questo», disse Marlow all'improvviso, «è stato uno dei luoghi oscuri della terra».
He was the only man of us who still "followed the sea."
Era l'unico tra noi che ancora «seguisse il mare».
The worst that could be said of him was that he did not represent his class.
La cosa peggiore che si potesse dire di lui era che non rappresentava la sua classe.
He was a seaman, but he was a wanderer, too, while most seamen lead, if one may so express it, a sedentary life.
Era un marinaio, ma era anche un vagabondo, mentre la maggior parte dei marinai conduce, se così si può dire, una vita sedentaria.
Their minds are of the stay-at-home order, and their home is always with them—the ship; and so is their country—the sea.
Le loro menti sono di indole casalinga, e la loro casa è sempre con loro — la nave; e così la loro patria — il mare.
One ship is very much like another, and the sea is always the same.
Una nave è molto simile a un'altra, e il mare è sempre lo stesso.
In the immutability of their surroundings the foreign shores, the foreign faces, the changing immensity of life, glide past, veiled not by a sense of mystery but by a slightly disdainful ignorance; for there is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless it be the sea itself, which is the mistress of his existence and as inscrutable as Destiny.
Nell'immutabilità del loro ambiente le rive straniere, i volti stranieri, la mutevole immensità della vita, scorrono via, velati non da un senso di mistero ma da una leggera ignoranza sprezzante; poiché non vi è nulla di misterioso per un marinaio a meno che non sia il mare stesso, che è la padrona della sua esistenza e impenetrabile quanto il Destino.
For the rest, after his hours of work, a casual stroll or a casual spree on shore suffices to unfold for him the secret of a whole continent, and generally he finds the secret not worth knowing.
Per il resto, dopo le sue ore di lavoro, una passeggiata occasionale o una baldoria occasionale a terra è sufficiente a svelargli il segreto di un intero continente, e in genere trova che il segreto non valga la pena di essere conosciuto.
The yarns of seamen have a direct simplicity, the whole meaning of which lies within the shell of a cracked nut.
I racconti dei marinai hanno una semplicità diretta, il cui significato intero sta dentro il guscio di una noce spaccata.
Vocabulary
- Anche
- Also, too, even; used to add emphasis or inclusion.
- questo
- This; demonstrative pronoun indicating something nearby.
- disse
- Said; past tense of dire, to say or tell.
- all
- To the; contraction of 'a il' in Italian.
- improvviso
- Sudden, unexpected; happening without prior warning.
- stato
- State, condition; past participle of essere (to be).
- uno
- One; the number 1 or indefinite article.
- dei
- Of the; contraction of 'di i' in Italian.
- luoghi
- Places, locations; plural of luogo.
- oscuri
- Dark, obscure; plural adjective indicating lack of light.
- della
- Of the; contraction of 'di la' in Italian.
- terra
- Earth, land, ground; solid surface of planet.
- Era
- Was; past tense of essere (to be).
- unico
- Unique, only, sole; one of a kind.
- tra
- Between, among; preposition indicating spatial or temporal position.
- noi
- Us, we; first-person plural pronoun.
- che
- That, which, who; relative pronoun.
- ancora
- Still, yet, again; temporal adverb indicating continuation.
- seguisse
- Followed; past subjunctive of seguire (to follow).
- il
- The; masculine singular definite article.
- mare
- Sea, ocean; large body of salt water.
- La
- The; feminine singular definite article.
- cosa
- Thing, matter; object or concept.
- peggiore
- Worst; superlative form of cattivo (bad).
- si
- Oneself, himself, herself; reflexive pronoun.
- potesse
- Could, might; past subjunctive of potere (can).
- dire
- To say, to tell; fundamental verb meaning utterance.
- di
- Of, from; fundamental preposition indicating possession or origin.
- lui
- Him, he; third-person masculine singular pronoun.
- era
- Was; past tense of essere (to be).
- non
- Not, no; fundamental negation adverb.
- rappresentava
- Represented; past tense of rappresentare (to represent).
- sua
- His, her; possessive adjective feminine singular.
- classe
- Class, category; social or hierarchical group.
- un
- A, an; indefinite article masculine singular.
- marinaio
- Sailor; person who works on ships.
- ma
- But; fundamental conjunction indicating contrast.
- vagabondo
- Vagrant, wanderer; person without fixed residence.
- mentre
- While, whereas; temporal conjunction indicating simultaneity.
- maggior
- Greater, larger; comparative adjective of grande.
- parte
- Part, portion; section or component of whole.
- marinai
- Sailors; plural of marinaio.
- conduce
- Conducts, leads; third person singular of condurre.
- se
- If; conditional conjunction.
- così
- Thus, so; adverb indicating manner or way.
- può
- Can, is able; third person singular of potere.
- una
- A, an; indefinite article feminine singular.
- vita
- Life; existence or way of living.
- sedentaria
- Sedentary; characterized by little physical activity.
- Le
- The; feminine plural definite article.
- loro
- Their, theirs; third-person plural possessive pronoun.
- menti
- Minds; plural of mente (mind).
- sono
- Are; third person plural of essere (to be).
- indole
- Nature, character; innate temperament or disposition.
- casalinga
- Domestic, home-loving; feminine adjective relating to home.
- casa
- House, home; dwelling place or residence.
- sempre
- Always, ever; adverb indicating continuity or perpetuity.
- con
- With; preposition indicating accompaniment or association.
- nave
- Ship, vessel; large watercraft for maritime transport.
- patria
- Fatherland, native country; nation of origin.
- Una
- A, an; indefinite article feminine singular.
- molto
- Very, much; adverb of degree or quantity.
- simile
- Similar, alike; adjective indicating resemblance.
- altra
- Other, another; feminine adjective indicating difference.
- lo
- The, him; masculine singular definite article or pronoun.
- stesso
- Same, self; adjective indicating identity or sameness.
- Nell
- In the; contraction of 'in il' in Italian.
- ambiente
- Environment, surrounding; physical or social context.
- le
- The; feminine plural definite article.
- rive
- Shores, banks; plural of riva (shoreline).
- straniere
- Foreign, strange; feminine plural adjective.
- volti
- Faces, turned; plural of volto (face).
- stranieri
- Foreigners, strange; masculine plural adjective or noun.
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