Spoon River Anthology — Page 6

English → It Full Text Level 4/10

Robert Fulton Tanner

If a man could bite the giant hand

Se un uomo potesse mordere la mano gigante

That catches and destroys him,

Che lo cattura e lo distrugge,

As I was bitten by a rat

Come fui morso da un topo

While demonstrating my patent trap,

Mentre dimostravo la mia trappola brevettata,

In my hardware store that day.

Nel mio negozio di ferramenta quel giorno.

But a man can never avenge himself

Ma un uomo non può mai vendicarsi

On the monstrous ogre Life.

Sul mostruoso orco Vita.

You enter the room—that's being born;

Entri nella stanza — questo è nascere;

And then you must live—work out your soul,

E poi devi vivere — logorare la tua anima,

Aha! the bait that you crave is in view:

Ah! l'esca che desideri è in vista:

A woman with money you want to marry,

Una donna ricca che vuoi sposare,

Prestige, place, or power in the world.

Prestigio, posizione, o potere nel mondo.

But there's work to do and things to conquer—

Ma c'è lavoro da fare e cose da conquistare —

Oh, yes! the wires that screen the bait.

Oh, sì! i fili che schermano l'esca.

At last you get in—but you hear a step:

Alla fine entri — ma senti un passo:

The ogre, Life, comes into the room,

L'orco, Vita, entra nella stanza,

(He was waiting and heard the clang of the spring)

(Stava aspettando e udì il clangore della molla)

To watch you nibble the wondrous cheese,

Per guardarti rosicchiare il meraviglioso formaggio,

And stare with his burning eyes at you,

E fissarti con i suoi occhi ardenti,

And scowl and laugh, and mock and curse you,

E squadrarti torvo e ridere, e deriderti e maledirti,

Running up and down in the trap,

Mentre corri su e giù nella trappola,

Until your misery bores him.

Finché la tua miseria non lo annoia.

Cassius Hueffer

They have chiseled on my stone the words:

Hanno scolpito sulla mia pietra le parole:

"His life was gentle, and the elements so mixed in him

«La sua vita fu mite, e gli elementi in lui così mescolati

That nature might stand up and say to all the world,

Che la natura avrebbe potuto alzarsi e dire a tutto il mondo,

This was a man."

Costui era un uomo.»

Those who knew me smile

Coloro che mi conoscevano sorridono

As they read this empty rhetoric.

Mentre leggono questa vuota retorica.

My epitaph should have been:

Il mio epitaffio avrebbe dovuto essere:

"Life was not gentle to him,

«La vita non fu mite con lui,

And the elements so mixed in him

E gli elementi in lui così mescolati

That he made warfare on life

Che egli mosse guerra alla vita

In the which he was slain.

Nella quale fu ucciso.

Vocabulary

Se: Conjunction meaning 'if' in Italian
un: Indefinite article meaning 'a' or 'an'
uomo: A man or human male person
potesse: Imperfect subjunctive of 'potere,' meaning 'could'
mordere: To bite with teeth
la: Definite article or pronoun meaning 'the' or 'her'
mano: The hand, body part at end of arm
gigante: A giant; something or someone extremely large
Che: Relative pronoun or conjunction meaning 'that' or 'which'
lo: Definite article or pronoun meaning 'him' or 'it'
cattura: Captures or arrests someone or something
e: Conjunction meaning 'and'
distrugge: Destroys or demolishes something completely
Come: Adverb or conjunction meaning 'how' or 'as'
fui: First person singular past tense of 'essere,' meaning 'I was'
morso: Bitten; past participle of 'mordere'
da: Preposition meaning 'by,' 'from,' or 'since'
topo: A mouse or rat, small rodent
Mentre: Conjunction meaning 'while' or 'whereas'
dimostravo: I was demonstrating or showing something
mia: Possessive adjective meaning 'my,' feminine singular
trappola: A trap or snare used to catch animals
brevettata: Patented; protected by an official patent
Nel: Contraction of 'in' and 'il,' meaning 'in the'
mio: Possessive adjective meaning 'my,' masculine singular
negozio: A shop or store where goods are sold
di: Preposition meaning 'of,' 'from,' or 'about'
ferramenta: A hardware store selling tools and metal goods
quel: Demonstrative adjective meaning 'that,' masculine singular
giorno: A day, a 24-hour period of time
Ma: Conjunction meaning 'but,' expressing contrast
non: Negation adverb meaning 'not'
può: Third person singular of 'potere,' meaning 'can'
mai: Adverb meaning 'never' or 'ever'
vendicarsi: To take revenge or avenge oneself
Sul: Contraction of 'su' and 'il,' meaning 'on the'
mostruoso: Monstrous; enormous and frightening in nature
orco: An ogre or frightening monster in folklore
Vita: Life; the state of being alive
Entri: You enter; formal imperative or present of 'entrare'
nella: Contraction of 'in' and 'la,' meaning 'in the'
stanza: A room inside a building or house
questo: Demonstrative pronoun or adjective meaning 'this'
è: Third person singular of 'essere,' meaning 'is'
nascere: To be born; to come into existence
E: Conjunction meaning 'and'
poi: Adverb meaning 'then' or 'afterward'
devi: You must; second person singular of 'dovere'
vivere: To live; to exist and experience life
logorare: To wear out or erode gradually over time
tua: Possessive adjective meaning 'your,' feminine singular
anima: The soul or spirit of a person
l': Elided definite article 'la' or 'lo' before vowels
esca: Bait used to attract animals or fish
che: Relative pronoun or conjunction meaning 'that' or 'which'
desideri: You desire or wish for something strongly
in: Preposition meaning 'in,' 'into,' or 'at'
vista: View or sight; something visible to someone
Una: Indefinite article meaning 'a' or 'one,' feminine
donna: A woman; an adult female person
ricca: Rich or wealthy; having abundant money or resources
vuoi: You want; second person singular of 'volere'
sposare: To marry; to unite in marriage with someone
Prestigio: Prestige; high social standing and esteem
posizione: Position or status in society or a place
o: Conjunction meaning 'or,' indicating an alternative
potere: Power or ability; also the verb 'to be able'
nel: Contraction of 'in' and 'il,' meaning 'in the'
mondo: The world; the earth and human society
c': Elided form of 'ci,' meaning 'there' or 'here'
lavoro: Work or job; employment or a task
fare: To do or make; a fundamental Italian verb
cose: Things; plural of 'cosa,' general objects or matters
conquistare: To conquer or achieve; to win something by effort
sì: Adverb meaning 'yes,' affirmative response
i: Definite article meaning 'the,' masculine plural
fili: Wires or threads; plural of 'filo'
schermano: They shield or screen; hide something from view
Alla: Contraction of 'a' and 'la,' meaning 'to the'
fine: End or conclusion; also meaning 'fine' or 'thin'
entri: You enter; second person singular of 'entrare'
ma: Conjunction meaning 'but,' expressing contrast
senti: You hear or feel; second person of 'sentire'
passo: A step or pace; movement of one foot forward
L': Elided definite article before a vowel sound
entra: He/she/it enters; third person of 'entrare'
Stava: He/she was; imperfect of 'stare,' expressing continuous state
aspettando: Waiting; gerund of 'aspettare'
udì: He/she heard; past tense of 'udire'
il: Definite article meaning 'the,' masculine singular
clangore: A loud clanging or metallic resonant noise
della: Contraction of 'di' and 'la,' meaning 'of the'
molla: A spring; coiled metal device that stores energy
Per: Preposition meaning 'for,' 'through,' or 'in order to'
guardarti: To look at you; infinitive with second-person pronoun
rosicchiare: To gnaw or nibble on something repeatedly
meraviglioso: Wonderful or marvelous; something causing great admiration
formaggio: Cheese; dairy product made from curdled milk
fissarti: To stare at you; fixing one's gaze on you
con: Preposition meaning 'with,' indicating accompaniment
suoi: His/her/its; possessive adjective masculine plural form
occhi: Eyes; plural of 'occhio'
ardenti: Burning or ardent; intensely passionate or fiery
squadrarti: To size you up; to look at you scrutinizingly
torvo: Grim or sinister; with a threatening dark expression
ridere: To laugh; to express amusement with sound
deriderti: To mock or ridicule you; to laugh at you
maledirti: To curse you; to wish evil upon you
corri: You run; second person singular of 'correre'
su: Preposition meaning 'up' or 'on'
giù: Adverb meaning 'down' or 'downward'
Finché: Conjunction meaning 'until' or 'as long as'
miseria: Misery or wretchedness; extreme poverty or suffering
annoia: Bores or annoys; makes someone feel tedium
Hanno: They have; third person plural of 'avere'
scolpito: Carved or sculpted; past participle of 'scolpire'
sulla: Contraction of 'su' and 'la,' meaning 'on the'
pietra: Stone or rock; hard natural mineral material
le: Definite article or pronoun, feminine plural 'the'
parole: Words; plural of 'parola'
La: Definite article meaning 'the,' feminine singular
sua: His/her/its; possessive adjective feminine singular form
vita: Life; the period of being alive
fu: He/she/it was; past tense of 'essere'
mite: Mild or gentle; calm and not aggressive in nature
gli: Definite article or pronoun, meaning 'the' or 'to him'
elementi: Elements; fundamental components or natural forces
lui: Personal pronoun meaning 'he' or 'him'
così: Adverb meaning 'so' or 'thus,' in such a way
mescolati: Mixed or blended; past participle of 'mescolare'
natura: Nature; the natural world or one's inherent character
avrebbe: He/she would have; conditional of 'avere'
potuto: Been able; past participle of 'potere'
alzarsi: To stand up or rise; reflexive form of 'alzare'
dire: To say or tell; fundamental Italian verb
a: Preposition meaning 'to,' 'at,' or 'in'
tutto: All or everything; entirety without exception
Costui: This man here; a slightly archaic third-person pronoun
era: He/she/it was; imperfect tense of 'essere'
Coloro: Those people; a plural third-person demonstrative pronoun
mi: Personal pronoun meaning 'me' or 'myself'
conoscevano: They knew; imperfect of 'conoscere,' indicating acquaintance
sorridono: They smile; third person plural of 'sorridere'
leggono: They read; third person plural of 'leggere'
questa: Demonstrative adjective or pronoun meaning 'this,' feminine
vuota: Empty or hollow; lacking substance or meaning
retorica: Rhetoric; language used for persuasive or empty effect
Il: Definite article meaning 'the,' masculine singular
epitaffio: An epitaph; inscription on a tombstone honoring the deceased
dovuto: Should have; past participle of 'dovere'
essere: To be; the fundamental Italian verb of existence
egli: He; a formal literary third-person masculine pronoun
mosse: He/she moved or launched; past tense of 'muovere'
guerra: War; armed conflict between nations or groups
Nella: Contraction of 'in' and 'la,' meaning 'in the'
quale: Which or that; relative pronoun used in clauses
ucciso: Killed; past participle of 'uccidere'

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