The divine comedy — Page 1

English → De HELL OR THE INFERNO CANTO I Level 9/10

In the midway of this our mortal life,

Auf halbem Wege unseres sterblichen Lebens

I found me in a gloomy wood, astray

fand ich mich in einem finsteren Wald, verirrt

Gone from the path direct: and e'en to tell

vom geraden Pfade abgekommen: und selbst zu schildern

It were no easy task, how savage wild

wäre keine leichte Aufgabe, wie wild und rau

That forest, how robust and rough its growth,

jener Wald war, wie dicht und hart sein Wuchs,

Which to remember only, my dismay

dessen bloße Erinnerung meinen Schrecken

Renews, in bitterness not far from death.

erneuert, in einer Bitterkeit, die dem Tode nahe ist.

Yet to discourse of what there good befell,

Doch um von dem Guten zu sprechen, das sich dort zutrug,

All else will I relate discover'd there.

will ich alles andere berichten, was ich dort entdeckte.

How first I enter'd it I scarce can say,

Wie ich zuerst hineinging, kann ich kaum sagen,

Such sleepy dullness in that instant weigh'd

so schwere Schläfrigkeit lastete in jenem Augenblick

My senses down, when the true path I left,

auf meinen Sinnen, als ich den wahren Pfad verließ,

But when a mountain's foot I reach'd, where clos'd

Doch als ich den Fuß eines Berges erreichte, wo sich schloss

The valley, that had pierc'd my heart with dread,

das Tal, das mein Herz mit Schrecken durchbohrt hatte,

I look'd aloft, and saw his shoulders broad

blickte ich empor und sah seine breiten Schultern

Already vested with that planet's beam,

bereits umhüllt von dem Strahle jenes Gestirns,

Who leads all wanderers safe through every way.

das alle Irrenden sicher durch jeden Weg geleitet.

Then was a little respite to the fear,

Da kam eine kleine Linderung der Furcht,

That in my heart's recesses deep had lain,

die tief in den Tiefen meines Herzens gelegen hatte,

All of that night, so pitifully pass'd:

die ganze Nacht hindurch, so jämmerlich verstrichen:

And as a man, with difficult short breath,

Und wie ein Mann mit schwerem, kurzem Atem,

Forespent with toiling, 'scap'd from sea to shore,

erschöpft von der Mühsal, dem Meer ans Ufer entronnen,

Turns to the perilous wide waste, and stands

sich zur gefährlichen weiten Öde umwendet und steht

At gaze; e'en so my spirit, that yet fail'd

und starrt; so auch mein Geist, der noch erschöpft war

Struggling with terror, turn'd to view the straits,

im Ringen mit dem Schrecken, wandte sich, die Enge zu schauen,

That none hath pass'd and liv'd. My weary frame

die niemand durchquert und gelebt hat. Mein müder Leib

After short pause recomforted, again

nach kurzer Rast gestärkt, zog wieder

I journey'd on over that lonely steep,

ich meines Weges über jenen einsamen Abhang,

The hinder foot still firmer. Scarce the ascent

den hinteren Fuß stets fester setzend. Kaum hatte der Aufstieg

Began, when, lo!

begonnen, als, sieh!

Vocabulary

Auf: On; upon; at; up
halbem: Half; middle (dative singular of halb)
Wege: Ways; paths; roads (plural/dative of Weg)
unseres: Our; of our (possessive genitive)
Lebens: Life; of life (genitive singular of Leben)
fand: Found; discovered (past tense of finden)
ich: I; first person singular pronoun
mich: Me; myself (accusative of ich)
in: In; into; within
einem: A; an; one (dative singular)
finsteren: Dark; gloomy; obscure (dative singular)
Wald: Forest; woods; large area of trees
verirrt: Lost; gone astray; misled (past participle)
vom: From the; of the (contraction von+dem)
geraden: Straight; direct; upright (dative singular)
Pfade: Path; trail; way (dative singular of Pfad)
und: And; conjunction connecting words
selbst: Self; myself; even; alone
zu: To; at; for; toward
schildern: Describe; depict; narrate; portray
wäre: Would be; should be (conditional subjunctive)
keine: No; not a; none (nominative feminine)
leichte: Easy; light; simple (nominative feminine)
Aufgabe: Task; assignment; job; problem to solve
wie: How; as; like; in what way
wild: Wild; savage; untamed; fierce
rau: Rough; harsh; coarse; rugged
jener: That; that one; yonder (demonstrative)
war: Was; past tense of sein (to be)
dicht: Dense; thick; close; tightly packed
hart: Hard; harsh; severe; difficult
sein: To be; his; its (pronoun/verb)
dessen: Whose; of which; its (possessive)
bloße: Mere; bare; only; sheer (nominative)
Erinnerung: Memory; recollection; remembrance; reminder
meinen: My; to mean; to think; to intend
Schrecken: Terror; fright; horror; fear
erneuert: Renewed; revived; restored (past participle)
einer: One; a; an (dative feminine singular)
die: The; that; which (feminine article)
dem: The; to the (dative singular)
Tode: Death; dying (dative singular of Tod)
nahe: Near; close; nearby; approaching
ist: Is; present tense of sein
Doch: Yet; still; however; but (conjunction)
um: Around; about; for; in order to
von: From; of; by; about
Guten: Good; good thing; goodness (dative)
sprechen: Speak; talk; say; discuss
das: The; that; which (neuter article)
sich: Himself; herself; itself; oneself
dort: There; in that place; over there
will: Want; wish; will; intend
alles: Everything; all; all things
andere: Other; different; else
berichten: Report; tell; recount; relate
was: What; which; that (relative pronoun)
entdeckte: Discovered; revealed; found (past tense)
Wie: How; as; like; in what way
zuerst: First; at first; initially; formerly
kann: Can; am able; is able to
kaum: Hardly; scarcely; barely; almost not
sagen: Say; tell; speak; utter
so: So; thus; like this; in this way
schwere: Heavy; difficult; serious; grave (nominative)
jenem: That; that one (dative masculine)
Augenblick: Moment; instant; twinkling of eye
als: As; when; than; like
wahren: True; real; genuine; authentic

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