The Picture of Dorian Gray — Page 2
In the centre of the room, clamped to an upright easel, stood the full-length portrait of a young man of extraordinary personal beauty, and in front of it, some little distance away, was sitting the artist himself, Basil Hallward, whose sudden disappearance some years ago caused, at the time, such public excitement and gave rise to so many strange conjectures.
Au centre de la pièce, fixé à un chevalet vertical, se dressait le portrait en pied d'un jeune homme d'une beauté personnelle extraordinaire, et devant lui, à quelque distance, était assis l'artiste lui-même, Basil Hallward, dont la disparition soudaine, quelques années auparavant, avait causé, à l'époque, une telle agitation publique et donné lieu à tant d'étranges conjectures.
As the painter looked at the gracious and comely form he had so skilfully mirrored in his art, a smile of pleasure passed across his face, and seemed about to linger there.
Tandis que le peintre contemplait la forme gracieuse et belle qu'il avait si habilement reproduite dans son art, un sourire de plaisir traversa son visage et sembla vouloir s'y attarder.
But he suddenly started up, and closing his eyes, placed his fingers upon the lids, as though he sought to imprison within his brain some curious dream from which he feared he might awake.
Mais il se leva soudainement, et fermant les yeux, posa ses doigts sur ses paupières, comme s'il cherchait à emprisonner dans son esprit quelque rêve étrange dont il craignait de s'éveiller.
"It is your best work, Basil, the best thing you have ever done," said Lord Henry languidly.
« C'est votre meilleure œuvre, Basil, la meilleure chose que vous ayez jamais faite », dit Lord Henry avec langueur.
"You must certainly send it next year to the Grosvenor.
« Vous devez absolument l'envoyer l'année prochaine au Grosvenor.
The Academy is too large and too vulgar.
L'Académie est trop grande et trop vulgaire.
Whenever I have gone there, there have been either so many people that I have not been able to see the pictures, which was dreadful, or so many pictures that I have not been able to see the people, which was worse.
Chaque fois que j'y suis allé, il y avait soit tant de monde que je n'ai pas pu voir les tableaux, ce qui était épouvantable, soit tant de tableaux que je n'ai pas pu voir les gens, ce qui était pire.
The Grosvenor is really the only place."
Le Grosvenor est vraiment le seul endroit. »
"I don't think I shall send it anywhere," he answered, tossing his head back in that odd way that used to make his friends laugh at him at Oxford.
« Je ne pense pas que je l'enverrai nulle part », répondit-il, rejetant la tête en arrière de cette façon singulière qui faisait rire ses amis de lui à Oxford.
"No, I won't send it anywhere.
« Non, je ne l'enverrai nulle part.
Vocabulary
- centre
- The middle or central point of something
- pièce
- A room in a building or a theatrical play
- fixé
- Attached or fastened securely to something
- chevalet
- A wooden stand used to support a painting
- vertical
- Upright, perpendicular to the horizontal plane
- dressait
- Rose up or stood tall in a place
- portrait
- A painted or drawn image of a person
- pied
- Foot; 'en pied' means full-length depiction
- jeune
- Young in age or appearance
- homme
- An adult male person; a man
- beauté
- The quality of being very attractive or pleasing
- personnelle
- Relating to or belonging to a particular person
- extraordinaire
- Remarkable or exceptional beyond ordinary standards
- devant
- In front of something or someone
- quelque
- Some or a certain unspecified amount or degree
- distance
- The space or gap between two points or objects
- assis
- Seated; in a sitting position
- artiste
- A person who creates art professionally
- même
- Same; or used for emphasis meaning 'himself'
- dont
- Relative pronoun meaning 'whose', 'of which', 'from which'
- disparition
- The act of disappearing or vanishing suddenly
- soudaine
- Happening quickly and unexpectedly; sudden
- quelques
- A few; a small number of something
- années
- Plural of 'année'; years of time
- auparavant
- Previously; before a particular time or event
- causé
- Brought about or produced a particular effect
- époque
- A particular period or era in time
- telle
- Such; of that kind or degree
- agitation
- A state of anxiety, excitement, or public unrest
- publique
- Relating to the general public or community
- lieu
- Place; 'donner lieu' means to give rise to
- tant
- So much or so many; such a quantity
- étranges
- Unusual, odd, or difficult to explain
- conjectures
- Opinions or conclusions based on guesswork
- Tandis
- While or whereas; used to introduce simultaneous action
- peintre
- A person who paints pictures as an artist
- contemplait
- Was looking at thoughtfully or studying carefully
- forme
- The shape or outward appearance of something
- gracieuse
- Elegant and graceful in appearance or movement
- belle
- Beautiful; attractive in appearance
- habilement
- Skillfully; with great ability or dexterity
- reproduite
- Copied or recreated with accuracy and skill
- art
- Creative work expressing human imagination and skill
- sourire
- A smile; the facial expression of happiness
- plaisir
- A feeling of happiness or satisfaction; pleasure
- traversa
- Crossed or passed across something
- visage
- The face of a person
- sembla
- Appeared or seemed to be a certain way
- vouloir
- To want or wish to do something
- attarder
- To linger or stay longer than expected
- leva
- Raised or lifted something upward
- soudainement
- Suddenly; in an abrupt and unexpected manner
- fermant
- Closing; shutting something like eyes or a door
- yeux
- The plural of 'œil'; eyes
- posa
- Placed or put something down gently
- doigts
- Fingers on a hand
- paupières
- The eyelids covering and protecting the eyes
- cherchait
- Was searching or trying to find something
- emprisonner
- To imprison or trap something inside
- esprit
- The mind, spirit, or witty intelligence of a person
- rêve
- A dream; an imagined vision during sleep
- étrange
- Strange or unusual; difficult to understand
- craignait
- Was afraid of or feared something happening
- éveiller
- To awaken or arouse from sleep or stillness
- meilleure
- Feminine form of 'better' or 'best'
- œuvre
- A work of art or creative production
- chose
- A thing or object; something unspecified
- ayez
- Subjunctive form of 'avoir'; have
- jamais
- Never or ever; used in negation or emphasis
- langueur
- A pleasant, dreamy weariness or listlessness
- devez
- Must or have to; second-person plural of 'devoir'
- absolument
- Absolutely; completely or without any doubt
- envoyer
- To send something or someone somewhere
- année
- A year; a period of twelve months
- prochaine
- Next; the one immediately following in time
- Académie
- An official institution for arts or sciences
- trop
- Too much; excessively beyond what is desired
- grande
- Big or large in size or importance
- vulgaire
- Lacking refinement; crude or in poor taste
- Chaque
- Each or every individual one of a group
- fois
- Time; an instance or occurrence of something
- soit
- Either; subjunctive of 'être'; or used in alternatives
- monde
- World; also 'le monde' refers to society or people
- voir
- To see or to look at something
- tableaux
- Plural of 'tableau'; paintings or pictures
- épouvantable
- Dreadful or appalling; causing fear or disgust
- gens
- People; a general term for a group of persons
- pire
- Worse or worst; more bad than something else
- vraiment
- Really or truly; used to emphasize sincerity
- seul
- Alone or only; the single one of its kind
- endroit
- A place or location; a specific spot
- pense
- Think; first-person singular present of 'penser'
- enverrai
- Will send; future tense of 'envoyer'
- nulle
- No or none; used in 'nulle part' meaning nowhere
- part
- Part or place; 'nulle part' means nowhere
- répondit
- Replied or answered; past tense of 'répondre'
- rejetant
- Throwing back; rejecting or tossing something away
- tête
- The head; the uppermost part of the body
- arrière
- Behind or backward; toward the rear
- façon
- A way or manner of doing something
- singulière
- Peculiar, unique, or distinctive in character
- rire
- To laugh; also 'le rire' means laughter
- amis
- Friends; plural of 'ami'
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