The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People — Page 12
A man who marries without knowing Bunbury has a very tedious time of it.
Ein Mann, der heiratet, ohne Bunbury zu kennen, hat es sehr langweilig.
JACK.
JACK.
That is nonsense.
Das ist Unsinn.
If I marry a charming girl like Gwendolen, and she is the only girl I ever saw in my life that I would marry, I certainly won't want to know Bunbury.
Wenn ich ein reizendes Mädchen wie Gwendolen heirate, und sie ist das einzige Mädchen, das ich je in meinem Leben gesehen habe, das ich heiraten würde, werde ich sicherlich kein Verlangen haben, Bunbury kennenzulernen.
ALGERNON.
ALGERNON.
Then your wife will.
Dann wird es Ihre Frau wollen.
You don't seem to realise, that in married life three is company and two is none.
Sie scheinen nicht zu begreifen, dass im Eheleben drei eine Gesellschaft sind und zwei keiner.
JACK.
JACK.
[Sententiously.] That, my dear young friend, is the theory that the corrupt French Drama has been propounding for the last fifty years.
[Salbungsvoll.] Das, mein lieber junger Freund, ist die Theorie, die das verdorbene französische Drama seit den letzten fünfzig Jahren verbreitet.
ALGERNON.
ALGERNON.
Yes; and that the happy English home has proved in half the time.
Ja; und das glückliche englische Heim hat es in der halben Zeit bewiesen.
JACK.
JACK.
For heaven's sake, don't try to be cynical.
Um Himmels willen, versuchen Sie nicht, zynisch zu sein.
It's perfectly easy to be cynical.
Es ist vollkommen leicht, zynisch zu sein.
ALGERNON.
ALGERNON.
My dear fellow, it isn't easy to be anything nowadays.
Mein lieber Freund, es ist heutzutage nicht leicht, irgendetwas zu sein.
There's such a lot of beastly competition about.
Es gibt so viel scheußliche Konkurrenz.
[The sound of an electric bell is heard.]
[Man hört das Läuten einer elektrischen Klingel.]
Ah! that must be Aunt Augusta.
Ah! Das muss Tante Augusta sein.
Only relatives, or creditors, ever ring in that Wagnerian manner.
Nur Verwandte oder Gläubiger läuten je auf diese wagnerische Weise.
Now, if I get her out of the way for ten minutes, so that you can have an opportunity for proposing to Gwendolen, may I dine with you to-night at Willis's?
Wenn ich sie nun für zehn Minuten aus dem Weg schaffe, damit Sie die Gelegenheit haben, Gwendolen einen Antrag zu machen, darf ich heute Abend mit Ihnen bei Willis speisen?
JACK.
JACK.
I suppose so, if you want to.
Ich nehme an, wenn Sie möchten.
ALGERNON.
ALGERNON.
Yes, but you must be serious about it.
Ja, aber Sie müssen es ernst nehmen.
I hate people who are not serious about meals.
Ich hasse Menschen, die Mahlzeiten nicht ernst nehmen.
It is so shallow of them.
Das ist so oberflächlich von ihnen.
[Enter Lane.]
[Lane tritt auf.]
LANE.
LANE.
Lady Bracknell and Miss Fairfax.
Lady Bracknell und Miss Fairfax.
[Algernon goes forward to meet them. Enter Lady Bracknell and Gwendolen.
[Algernon tritt vor, um sie zu empfangen. Lady Bracknell und Gwendolen treten auf.
Vocabulary
- Mann
- An adult male person; a man
- heiratet
- Third-person singular present of 'to marry'
- ohne
- Preposition meaning 'without'
- kennen
- To know or be acquainted with someone
- sehr
- Adverb meaning 'very' or 'much'
- langweilig
- Adjective meaning boring or tedious
- Unsinn
- Nonsense; foolish or meaningless talk or behavior
- Wenn
- Conjunction meaning 'if' or 'when'
- reizendes
- Adjective meaning charming, delightful, or attractive
- Mädchen
- A girl or young woman
- heirate
- First-person singular present of 'to marry'
- einzige
- Adjective meaning the only or sole one
- je
- Adverb meaning 'ever' in comparative contexts
- Leben
- Noun meaning 'life' or 'living'
- gesehen
- Past participle of 'sehen,' meaning 'seen'
- heiraten
- Infinitive verb meaning 'to marry' or 'to wed'
- würde
- Subjunctive form of 'werden,' meaning 'would'
- werde
- First-person singular of 'werden,' meaning 'will/become'
- sicherlich
- Adverb meaning 'certainly' or 'surely'
- kein
- Negative article meaning 'no' or 'not a'
- Verlangen
- Noun meaning desire, longing, or craving
- kennenzulernen
- Infinitive meaning 'to get to know someone'
- Dann
- Adverb meaning 'then' indicating sequence or consequence
- Ihre
- Formal possessive pronoun meaning 'your'
- Frau
- Noun meaning 'woman,' 'wife,' or formal 'Mrs.'
- wollen
- Modal verb meaning 'to want' or 'to wish'
- scheinen
- Verb meaning 'to seem' or 'to appear'
- begreifen
- Verb meaning 'to understand' or 'to grasp mentally'
- Eheleben
- Noun meaning married life or life in matrimony
- Gesellschaft
- Noun meaning society, company, or social group
- keiner
- Negative pronoun meaning 'nobody' or 'none'
- Salbungsvoll
- Adjective meaning unctuous, self-righteous, or sanctimonious
- lieber
- Adjective meaning 'dear' or 'beloved' (term of address)
- junger
- Adjective meaning 'young' in attributive form
- Freund
- Noun meaning 'friend' or close male companion
- Theorie
- Noun meaning a theory or set of principles
- verdorbene
- Adjective meaning corrupt, spoiled, or depraved
- französische
- Adjective meaning French, relating to France
- Drama
- Noun meaning a play or dramatic work
- seit
- Preposition meaning 'since' or 'for' (time duration)
- letzten
- Adjective meaning 'last' or 'most recent'
- fünfzig
- The cardinal number fifty
- Jahren
- Dative plural of 'Jahr,' meaning 'years'
- verbreitet
- Adjective or past participle meaning widespread or disseminated
- glückliche
- Adjective meaning happy, fortunate, or blissful
- englische
- Adjective meaning English, relating to England
- Heim
- Noun meaning home, dwelling, or domestic abode
- halben
- Adjective meaning half, used in dative or genitive form
- Zeit
- Noun meaning time or a period of time
- bewiesen
- Past participle of 'beweisen,' meaning 'proven' or 'demonstrated'
- Himmels
- Genitive of 'Himmel' (heaven/sky), used in exclamations
- willen
- Used in phrase 'um...willen' meaning 'for the sake of'
- versuchen
- Verb meaning 'to try' or 'to attempt something'
- zynisch
- Adjective meaning cynical or distrustfully negative
- vollkommen
- Adjective or adverb meaning completely, perfectly, or absolute
- leicht
- Adjective meaning easy, light, or simple
- heutzutage
- Adverb meaning 'nowadays' or 'these days'
- irgendetwas
- Indefinite pronoun meaning 'something' or 'anything'
- viel
- Adjective or adverb meaning 'much' or 'a lot'
- scheußliche
- Adjective meaning dreadful, horrible, or disgusting
- Konkurrenz
- Noun meaning competition or rivalry among parties
- Man
- Impersonal pronoun meaning 'one' or 'people in general'
- hört
- Third-person singular present of 'hören' (to hear)
- Läuten
- Noun or infinitive meaning 'ringing' (of a bell)
- elektrischen
- Adjective meaning electric or electrical
- Klingel
- Noun meaning a small bell or doorbell
- muss
- First/third-person singular of 'müssen' (must/have to)
- Tante
- Noun meaning aunt, a parent's sister
- Nur
- Adverb meaning 'only,' 'just,' or 'merely'
- Verwandte
- Noun meaning relatives or family members
- Gläubiger
- Noun meaning creditors or those owed money
- läuten
- Verb meaning 'to ring' (a bell or doorbell)
- wagnerische
- Adjective meaning Wagnerian, in the style of Wagner
- Weise
- Noun meaning manner, way, or fashion of doing something
- nun
- Adverb meaning 'now' or 'well' as a filler
- Minuten
- Plural noun meaning 'minutes' (units of time)
- Weg
- Noun meaning way, path, or road
- schaffe
- First-person singular of 'schaffen,' meaning 'to manage/create'
- damit
- Conjunction meaning 'so that' or 'in order that'
- Gelegenheit
- Noun meaning opportunity, occasion, or chance
- Antrag
- Noun meaning proposal, especially a marriage proposal
- machen
- Verb meaning 'to make' or 'to do'
- darf
- First/third-person singular of 'dürfen' (may/be allowed to)
- heute
- Adverb meaning 'today'
- Abend
- Noun meaning evening or the end of the day
- Ihnen
- Formal dative pronoun meaning 'you' (indirect object)
- speisen
- Verb meaning 'to dine' or 'to eat a meal'
- nehme
- First-person singular present of 'nehmen' (to take/assume)
- wenn
- Conjunction meaning 'if' or 'when' (subordinate clause)
- möchten
- Polite modal verb meaning 'would like'
- aber
- Coordinating conjunction meaning 'but' or 'however'
- müssen
- Modal verb meaning 'must' or 'to have to'
- ernst
- Adjective meaning serious, grave, or earnest
- nehmen
- Infinitive verb meaning 'to take'
- hasse
- First-person singular present of 'hassen' (to hate)
- Menschen
- Noun meaning people, human beings, or persons
- Mahlzeiten
- Plural noun meaning meals or mealtimes
- oberflächlich
- Adjective meaning superficial, shallow, or not deep
- tritt
- Third-person singular of 'treten,' meaning 'steps/enters'
- empfangen
- Verb meaning 'to receive' or 'to welcome' guests
- treten
- Verb meaning 'to step,' 'to enter,' or 'to kick'
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