The Brothers Karamazov — Page 3
And a pliable imagination persuaded her, we must suppose, for a brief moment, that Fyodor Pavlovitch, in spite of his parasitic position, was one of the bold and ironical spirits of that progressive epoch, though he was, in fact, an ill-natured buffoon and nothing more.
E una fantasia malleabile la convinse, dobbiamo supporre, per un breve momento, che Fëdor Pavlovič, nonostante la sua posizione parassitaria, fosse uno degli spiriti audaci e ironici di quell'epoca progressista, sebbene fosse, in realtà, un buffone malvagio e nient'altro.
What gave the marriage piquancy was that it was preceded by an elopement, and this greatly captivated Adelaïda Ivanovna's fancy.
Ciò che conferiva piccantezza al matrimonio era il fatto che fosse stato preceduto da una fuga d'amore, e questo aveva grandemente affascinato la fantasia di Adelaïda Ivanovna.
Fyodor Pavlovitch's position at the time made him specially eager for any such enterprise, for he was passionately anxious to make a career in one way or another.
La posizione di Fëdor Pavlovič in quel momento lo rendeva particolarmente desideroso di qualsiasi tale impresa, poiché era appassionatamente ansioso di fare carriera in un modo o nell'altro.
To attach himself to a good family and obtain a dowry was an alluring prospect.
Legarsi a una buona famiglia e ottenere una dote era una prospettiva allettante.
As for mutual love it did not exist apparently, either in the bride or in him, in spite of Adelaïda Ivanovna's beauty.
Quanto all'amore reciproco, esso non esisteva apparentemente, né nella sposa né in lui, nonostante la bellezza di Adelaïda Ivanovna.
This was, perhaps, a unique case of the kind in the life of Fyodor Pavlovitch, who was always of a voluptuous temper, and ready to run after any petticoat on the slightest encouragement.
Questo era, forse, un caso unico nel suo genere nella vita di Fëdor Pavlovič, che era sempre di temperamento voluttuoso, e pronto a correre dietro a qualsiasi gonna al minimo incoraggiamento.
She seems to have been the only woman who made no particular appeal to his senses.
Lei sembra essere stata l'unica donna che non esercitasse alcun particolare fascino sui suoi sensi.
Immediately after the elopement Adelaïda Ivanovna discerned in a flash that she had no feeling for her husband but contempt.
Immediatamente dopo la fuga d'amore, Adelaïda Ivanovna comprese in un lampo che non provava per il marito altro che disprezzo.
The marriage accordingly showed itself in its true colors with extraordinary rapidity.
Il matrimonio mostrò quindi i suoi veri colori con straordinaria rapidità.
Although the family accepted the event pretty quickly and apportioned the runaway bride her dowry, the husband and wife began to lead a most disorderly life, and there were everlasting scenes between them.
Sebbene la famiglia avesse accettato l'evento abbastanza rapidamente e assegnato alla sposa fuggitiva la sua dote, marito e moglie cominciarono a condurre una vita quanto mai disordinata, e tra loro vi erano liti continue.
Vocabulary
- una
- A, an (feminine singular indefinite article)
- fantasia
- Fantasy, imagination, or whimsical musical composition
- malleabile
- Malleable, adaptable, capable of being shaped
- la
- The (feminine singular definite article)
- convinse
- Convinced, persuaded (past tense of convincere)
- dobbiamo
- We must, we have to (present tense of dovere)
- supporre
- To suppose, assume, or imagine something temporarily
- per
- For, by, through, in order to express purpose
- un
- A, an (masculine singular indefinite article)
- breve
- Brief, short in duration or length
- momento
- Moment, instant, short period of time
- che
- That, which, who (relative or subordinating conjunction)
- nonostante
- Despite, in spite of, notwithstanding
- sua
- His, her, its (feminine singular possessive adjective)
- posizione
- Position, location, social standing or status
- parassitaria
- Parasitic, relating to living at another's expense
- fosse
- Was (subjunctive imperfect of essere)
- uno
- One, a single unit or person
- degli
- Of the, some (preposition and article combined)
- spiriti
- Spirits, ghosts, or intellectual minded persons
- audaci
- Bold, daring, courageous, intrepid
- ironici
- Ironic, using irony or sarcasm
- di
- Of, from, belonging to or made by
- quell
- That, those (demonstrative adjective, shortened form)
- epoca
- Era, epoch, period in history or time
- progressista
- Progressive, favoring progress and social reform
- sebbene
- Although, even though, despite the fact that
- in
- In, within, during, at a location
- realtà
- Reality, in fact, actually, truthfully
- buffone
- Buffoon, fool, clown, ridiculous person
- malvagio
- Evil, wicked, malevolent person or character
- nient
- Nothing, not anything (shortened form of niente)
- altro
- Other, else, different from or additional
- Ciò
- This, that, it (neuter demonstrative pronoun)
- conferiva
- Conferred, gave, bestowed, granted (past tense)
- al
- To the, at the (preposition and article)
- matrimonio
- Marriage, the union of two persons
- era
- Was (past tense of essere)
- il
- The (masculine singular definite article)
- fatto
- Fact, deed, action, or something that happened
- stato
- State, condition, or past participle of essere
- preceduto
- Preceded, came before something in time
- da
- By, from, since, at, used with passive
- fuga
- Flight, escape, or elopement with loved one
- amore
- Love, affection, or romantic attachment to person
- questo
- This, that (demonstrative pronoun or adjective)
- aveva
- Had (past tense of avere)
- grandemente
- Greatly, very much, considerably, to great extent
- affascinato
- Fascinated, charmed, captivated by something
- Lo
- It, that, him (direct object pronoun)
- rendeva
- Made, rendered, caused to be (past tense)
- particolarmente
- Particularly, especially, in particular, notably
- desideroso
- Desirous, eager, keen, or anxious for something
- qualsiasi
- Any, whatever, whichever, any kind whatsoever
- tale
- Such, that kind of, like, similar
- impresa
- Enterprise, undertaking, business, or difficult task
- poiché
- Since, because, inasmuch as, for the reason
- appassionatamente
- Passionately, with intense emotion or fervor
- ansioso
- Anxious, eager, worried, or uneasy about
- fare
- To make, do, perform, create, or accomplish
- carriera
- Career, profession, occupation, or course of life
- modo
- Way, manner, mode, method, or fashion
- nell
- In the (preposition and article combined)
- Legarsi
- To bind oneself, tie, or commit to marriage
- buona
- Good, decent, kind (feminine singular adjective)
- famiglia
- Family, relatives, household, or kinship group
- ottenere
- To obtain, get, acquire, or achieve something
- dote
- Dowry, gift of money, or natural talent
- prospettiva
- Perspective, prospect, outlook, or future possibility
- allettante
- Attractive, enticing, alluring, tempting appeal
- Quanto
- How much, as much, as many, regarding
- all
- To the (preposition and article combined)
- reciproco
- Reciprocal, mutual, given in return by both
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