Notre-Dame de Paris — Page 14
It had been arranged for the purpose, early in the morning; its rich slabs of marble, all scratched by the heels of law clerks, supported a cage of carpenter's work of considerable height, the upper surface of which, within view of the whole hall, was to serve as the theatre, and whose interior, masked by tapestries, was to take the place of dressing-rooms for the personages of the piece.
Había sido dispuesta para tal propósito, desde temprano en la mañana; sus ricas losas de mármol, todas rayadas por los tacones de los escribientes de leyes, sostenían una estructura de carpintería de considerable altura, cuya superficie superior, visible desde toda la sala, había de servir como teatro, y cuyo interior, oculto por tapices, había de hacer las veces de camerinos para los personajes de la obra.
A ladder, naively placed on the outside, was to serve as means of communication between the dressing-room and the stage, and lend its rude rungs to entrances as well as to exits.
Una escalera, ingenuamente colocada en el exterior, había de servir como medio de comunicación entre el camerino y el escenario, y prestar sus rudos peldaños tanto para las entradas como para las salidas.
There was no personage, however unexpected, no sudden change, no theatrical effect, which was not obliged to mount that ladder.
No había personaje alguno, por inesperado que fuese, ningún cambio repentino, ningún efecto teatral, que no estuviera obligado a subir por aquella escalera.
Innocent and venerable infancy of art and contrivances!
¡Inocente y venerable infancia del arte y de los artificios!
Four of the bailiff of the palace's sergeants, perfunctory guardians of all the pleasures of the people, on days of festival as well as on days of execution, stood at the four corners of the marble table.
Cuatro de los sargentos del alguacil del palacio, guardianes rutinarios de todos los placeres del pueblo, tanto en días de fiesta como en días de ejecución, estaban apostados en las cuatro esquinas de la mesa de mármol.
The piece was only to begin with the twelfth stroke of the great palace clock sounding midday.
La obra no debía comenzar hasta la duodécima campanada del gran reloj del palacio que anunciara el mediodía.
It was very late, no doubt, for a theatrical representation, but they had been obliged to fix the hour to suit the convenience of the ambassadors.
Era muy tarde, sin duda, para una representación teatral, pero se habían visto obligados a fijar la hora para acomodarse a la conveniencia de los embajadores.
Now, this whole multitude had been waiting since morning.
Pues bien, toda aquella multitud llevaba esperando desde la mañana.
Vocabulary
- Había
- Past imperfect of 'haber'; there was/had been
- sido
- Past participle of 'ser'; been
- dispuesta
- Arranged, prepared, or set up for use
- para
- Preposition meaning for, in order to
- tal
- Such, such a, referring to something mentioned
- propósito
- Purpose, intention, or goal
- desde
- Preposition meaning from or since a time
- temprano
- Early, referring to an early time
- en
- Preposition meaning in, on, or at
- mañana
- Morning; also tomorrow depending on context
- sus
- Possessive adjective meaning his, her, their, its
- ricas
- Rich, elaborate, or luxurious in quality
- losas
- Stone slabs or flagstones used for flooring
- mármol
- Marble, a hard decorative stone material
- todas
- All, every, referring to a complete group
- rayadas
- Scratched, striped, or marked with lines
- por
- Preposition meaning by, through, or because of
- tacones
- Heels of shoes or boots
- escribientes
- Clerks or scribes who copy written documents
- leyes
- Laws, legal statutes, or rules
- sostenían
- They supported or held up something structurally
- estructura
- Structure, framework, or organized arrangement of parts
- carpintería
- Carpentry, woodwork, or the craft of woodworking
- considerable
- Considerable, significant, or noteworthy in size
- altura
- Height, elevation, or altitude of something
- cuya
- Relative possessive pronoun meaning whose
- superficie
- Surface, top face, or outer layer of something
- superior
- Upper, higher, or of greater quality
- visible
- Visible, able to be seen by observers
- toda
- All, the whole, or entire amount
- sala
- Room, hall, or large indoor gathering space
- había
- There was; imperfect of haber used impersonally
- servir
- To serve, function as, or be used for
- como
- As, like, how, used for comparison
- teatro
- Theater, stage, or place for dramatic performances
- cuyo
- Relative possessive pronoun meaning whose
- interior
- Interior, inside part of a structure or space
- oculto
- Hidden, concealed, or not visible to observers
- tapices
- Tapestries or decorative woven fabric hangings
- hacer
- To make, do, or perform an action
- veces
- Times, instances; hacer las veces means to serve as
- camerinos
- Dressing rooms or backstage rooms for performers
- personajes
- Characters in a play or notable persons
- obra
- Work, play, or artistic creation
- escalera
- Staircase, ladder, or set of steps
- ingenuamente
- Naively, innocently, or simply without sophistication
- colocada
- Placed, positioned, or set somewhere deliberately
- exterior
- Exterior, outside, or outer part of something
- medio
- Means, medium, or way of doing something
- comunicación
- Communication or connection between two places or people
- entre
- Preposition meaning between or among
- camerino
- Dressing room or backstage space for a performer
- escenario
- Stage, setting, or scenario for a performance
- prestar
- To lend, offer, or provide something to someone
- rudos
- Rough, crude, or unrefined in construction
- peldaños
- Steps or rungs of a staircase or ladder
- tanto
- So much, as much, or both in phrases
- entradas
- Entrances, entries, or coming onto the stage
- salidas
- Exits, departures, or leaving a place
- personaje
- Character, figure, or notable person in story
- alguno
- Some, any, or someone in a group
- inesperado
- Unexpected, surprising, or unforeseen in occurrence
- fuese
- Imperfect subjunctive of ser or ir; were, went
- ningún
- No, none, not any before masculine singular noun
- cambio
- Change, shift, or alteration in something
- repentino
- Sudden, abrupt, or happening without warning
- efecto
- Effect, result, or theatrical visual impact
- teatral
- Theatrical, relating to theater or dramatic performance
- estuviera
- Imperfect subjunctive of estar; were, was placed
- obligado
- Obliged, forced, or required to do something
- subir
- To go up, climb, or ascend something
- aquella
- Demonstrative pronoun meaning that one over there
- Inocente
- Innocent, naive, or pure in character
- venerable
- Venerable, worthy of great respect and reverence
- infancia
- Infancy, childhood, or early beginnings of something
- arte
- Art, skill, or creative expression in general
- artificios
- Artifices, tricks, devices, or clever contrivances
- Cuatro
- Four, the cardinal number four
- sargentos
- Sergeants, military or police non-commissioned officers
- alguacil
- Bailiff or constable, a minor law enforcement official
- palacio
- Palace, a large grand official residence or building
- guardianes
- Guardians or guards who watch over something
- rutinarios
- Routine, habitual, or ordinary without much variation
- todos
- All, every, referring to a complete masculine group
- placeres
- Pleasures, enjoyments, or delightful experiences
- pueblo
- People, town, or common folk of a place
- días
- Days, referring to units of time or occasions
- fiesta
- Feast day, festival, celebration, or holiday
- ejecución
- Execution, performance, or carrying out of something
- estaban
- They were; imperfect tense of estar
- apostados
- Stationed or posted at a specific position
- cuatro
- Four, the cardinal number four
- esquinas
- Corners of a room, table, or building
- mesa
- Table, a flat-surfaced piece of furniture
- debía
- Should, ought to, or was supposed to do
- comenzar
- To begin, start, or commence an action
- hasta
- Until, up to, as far as a point
- duodécima
- Twelfth, the ordinal number twelve
- campanada
- Bell stroke, the sound of a bell ringing
- gran
- Great, large, grand before a singular noun
- reloj
- Clock or watch used to tell the time
- anunciara
- Imperfect subjunctive of anunciar; would announce
- mediodía
- Noon, midday, or twelve o'clock in the afternoon
- Era
- Was; imperfect tense of ser, describing a state
- muy
- Very, extremely, used to intensify an adjective
- tarde
- Late; also afternoon depending on context
- sin
- Without, lacking something in particular
- duda
- Doubt, uncertainty, or lack of confidence
- representación
- Performance, representation, or theatrical show put on
- pero
- But, however, a coordinating conjunction of contrast
- habían
- They had; imperfect of haber used as auxiliary
- visto
- Past participle of ver; seen
- obligados
- Obliged, forced, or required to do something
- fijar
- To fix, set, or establish something firmly
- hora
- Hour or time of day
- acomodarse
- To accommodate oneself, adapt, or adjust to something
- conveniencia
- Convenience, suitability, or the state of being fitting
- embajadores
- Ambassadors, diplomatic representatives of a country
- Pues
- Well, then, since; a discourse filler or conjunction
- bien
- Well, good, or fine; used to indicate quality
- multitud
- Multitude, crowd, or large number of people
- llevaba
- Was carrying or had been doing for a time
- esperando
- Waiting or hoping for something to happen
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