The Picture of Dorian Gray — Page 3
Lord Henry elevated his eyebrows and looked at him in amazement through the thin blue wreaths of smoke that curled up in such fanciful whorls from his heavy, opium-tainted cigarette.
Lord Henry haussa les sourcils et le regarda avec étonnement à travers les minces volutes bleues de fumée qui montaient en spirales si fantaisistes de sa lourde cigarette imprégnée d'opium.
"Not send it anywhere? My dear fellow, why?
« Ne pas l'envoyer nulle part ? Mon cher ami, pourquoi ?
Have you any reason?
Avez-vous une raison ?
What odd chaps you painters are!
Quels drôles de types vous êtes, vous les peintres !
You do anything in the world to gain a reputation.
Vous faites tout au monde pour vous faire une réputation.
As soon as you have one, you seem to want to throw it away.
Dès que vous en avez une, vous semblez vouloir la jeter.
It is silly of you, for there is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.
C'est stupide de votre part, car il n'y a qu'une seule chose au monde de pire que d'être le sujet des conversations, c'est de ne pas l'être.
A portrait like this would set you far above all the young men in England, and make the old men quite jealous, if old men are ever capable of any emotion."
Un portrait comme celui-ci vous placerait bien au-dessus de tous les jeunes hommes d'Angleterre, et rendrait les vieux hommes fort jaloux, si tant est que les vieux hommes soient jamais capables d'éprouver quelque émotion. »
"I know you will laugh at me," he replied, "but I really can't exhibit it.
« Je sais que vous allez vous moquer de moi, » répondit-il, « mais je ne peux vraiment pas l'exposer.
I have put too much of myself into it."
J'y ai mis trop de moi-même. »
Lord Henry stretched himself out on the divan and laughed.
Lord Henry s'étira sur le divan et éclata de rire.
"Yes, I knew you would; but it is quite true, all the same."
« Oui, je savais que vous le feriez ; mais c'est tout à fait vrai, quand même. »
"Too much of yourself in it! Upon my word, Basil, I didn't know you were so vain; and I really can't see any resemblance between you, with your rugged strong face and your coal-black hair, and this young Adonis, who looks as if he was made out of ivory and rose-leaves.
« Trop de vous-même ! Ma parole, Basil, je ne savais pas que vous étiez si vaniteux ; et je ne vois vraiment aucune ressemblance entre vous, avec votre visage robuste et fort et vos cheveux noir charbon, et ce jeune Adonis, qui semble avoir été fait d'ivoire et de pétales de rose.
Vocabulary
- haussa
- Raised or shrugged (past tense of hausser)
- sourcils
- Eyebrows, the hair above the eyes
- regarda
- Looked at or watched (past tense of regarder)
- étonnement
- Astonishment or great surprise
- travers
- Through or across, used in 'à travers'
- minces
- Thin or slender in shape or size
- volutes
- Spiral curls or coils, as of smoke
- fumée
- Smoke rising from a burning substance
- montaient
- Were rising or going up (imperfect tense)
- spirales
- Spirals or coiling shapes curving upward
- fantaisistes
- Whimsical, fanciful, or imaginatively irregular
- lourde
- Heavy or weighty in physical sensation
- imprégnée
- Saturated or soaked with a substance
- opium
- A narcotic drug derived from poppy plants
- envoyer
- To send something or someone somewhere
- nulle
- No or none, used in 'nulle part' (nowhere)
- part
- Place or part, used in 'nulle part' (nowhere)
- cher
- Dear or beloved, used in friendly address
- raison
- Reason, a cause or justification for something
- drôles
- Funny or strange, odd in character
- types
- Guys or fellows, informal for people
- peintres
- Painters, artists who paint pictures
- monde
- World or people; 'tout au monde' means everything
- réputation
- Reputation, how one is regarded by others
- Dès
- As soon as or from (used with 'que')
- semblez
- You seem or appear (second person plural)
- jeter
- To throw or to discard something
- stupide
- Stupid or foolish, lacking good sense
- car
- Conjunction meaning 'because' or 'for'
- seule
- Only or alone, single and no other
- pire
- Worse or worst, more bad than another
- sujet
- Subject or topic of discussion
- portrait
- A painting or image depicting a person
- celui
- That one or this one (masculine demonstrative)
- placerait
- Would place or put (conditional of placer)
- dessus
- Above or over, indicating higher position
- Angleterre
- England, country in the United Kingdom
- rendrait
- Would make or render (conditional of rendre)
- fort
- Very or strongly, used as an intensifier
- jaloux
- Jealous, feeling envy toward another person
- tant
- So much or as long as (conjunction/adverb)
- soient
- Subjunctive of être; 'they be' (third plural)
- jamais
- Never or ever, indicating absence of occurrence
- capables
- Capable or able to do something
- éprouver
- To feel or experience an emotion
- quelque
- Some or any, an indefinite small amount
- moquer
- To mock or make fun of someone
- répondit
- Replied or answered (past tense of répondre)
- vraiment
- Really or truly, emphasizing truth
- exposer
- To exhibit or display artwork publicly
- mis
- Put or placed (past participle of mettre)
- trop
- Too much or too many, excess amount
- même
- Even or same, used for emphasis
- étira
- Stretched out (past tense of s'étirer)
- divan
- A long low sofa or couch to recline on
- éclata
- Burst out (past tense of éclater)
- rire
- To laugh or laughter as a noun
- savais
- I knew (imperfect tense of savoir)
- feriez
- You would do (conditional of faire, second plural)
- fait
- Fact or done; 'en fait' means 'in fact'
- vrai
- True or real, corresponding to reality
- Trop
- Too much, indicating excess degree
- parole
- Word or speech; 'ma parole' expresses surprise
- étiez
- You were (imperfect of être, second plural)
- vaniteux
- Vain or conceited, excessively proud of oneself
- aucune
- No or none (feminine), not any at all
- ressemblance
- Resemblance or likeness between two things
- visage
- Face, the front part of the head
- robuste
- Robust or sturdy, strong in build
- cheveux
- Hair on the head of a person
- charbon
- Coal or charcoal, a dark black substance
- Adonis
- Mythological figure symbolizing extraordinary beauty
- semble
- Seems or appears (third person singular)
- ivoire
- Ivory, a creamy white material or color
- pétales
- Petals, the delicate parts of a flower
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