The Souls of Black Folk — Page 5
I had thereafter no desire to tear down that veil, to creep through; I held all beyond it in common contempt, and lived above it in a region of blue sky and great wandering shadows.
Da allora non ebbi più alcun desiderio di strappare quel velo, di strisciare attraverso di esso; tenevo tutto ciò che vi stava al di là in comune disprezzo, e vivevo al di sopra di esso in una regione di cielo azzurro e di grandi ombre erranti.
That sky was bluest when I could beat my mates at examination-time, or beat them at a foot-race, or even beat their stringy heads.
Quel cielo era più azzurro quando riuscivo a superare i miei compagni al momento degli esami, o a batterli in una corsa a piedi, o persino a colpire le loro teste scarne.
Alas, with the years all this fine contempt began to fade; for the words I longed for, and all their dazzling opportunities, were theirs, not mine.
Ahimè, con gli anni tutto questo nobile disprezzo cominciò a svanire; poiché le parole che desideravo ardentemente, e tutte le loro abbaglianti opportunità, erano loro, non mie.
But they should not keep these prizes, I said; some, all, I would wrest from them.
Ma non avrebbero dovuto tenere questi premi, dicevo tra me; alcuni, tutti, li avrei strappati loro.
Just how I would do it I could never decide: by reading law, by healing the sick, by telling the wonderful tales that swam in my head,—some way.
Proprio come avrei fatto non riuscivo mai a deciderlo: studiando legge, curando i malati, raccontando le meravigliose storie che nuotavano nella mia mente — in qualche modo.
With other black boys the strife was not so fiercely sunny: their youth shrunk into tasteless sycophancy, or into silent hatred of the pale world about them and mocking distrust of everything white; or wasted itself in a bitter cry, Why did God make me an outcast and a stranger in mine own house?
Per gli altri ragazzi neri la lotta non era così fieramente luminosa: la loro giovinezza si restringeva in una scipita adulazione, o in un odio silenzioso verso il pallido mondo che li circondava e in una beffarda diffidenza verso tutto ciò che era bianco; oppure si consumava in un grido amaro, Perché Dio mi ha fatto un reietto e uno straniero nella mia stessa casa?
The shades of the prison-house closed round about us all: walls strait and stubborn to the whitest, but relentlessly narrow, tall, and unscalable to sons of night who must plod darkly on in resignation, or beat unavailing palms against the stone, or steadily, half hopelessly, watch the streak of blue above.
Le ombre della prigione si chiusero intorno a noi tutti: mura anguste e ostinate per i più bianchi, ma inesorabilmente strette, alte e inscalabili per i figli della notte che devono avanzare oscuramente nella rassegnazione, o battere inutilmente i palmi contro la pietra, o fissare, costantemente, quasi senza speranza, il bagliore di azzurro in alto.
Vocabulary
- Da
- From; by; since; at (preposition/conjunction)
- allora
- Then; at that time; so (adverb/conjunction)
- non
- Not; negative particle for verbs
- ebbi
- I had (first person singular past historic)
- più
- More; no longer; plus (adverb/adjective)
- alcun
- Any; some (indefinite adjective/pronoun)
- desiderio
- Desire; wish; longing (noun)
- di
- Of; from; about; by (preposition)
- strappare
- To tear; to snatch; to pull (verb)
- quel
- That; those (demonstrative adjective)
- velo
- Veil; sail; thin cloth covering (noun)
- strisciare
- To crawl; to drag; to slither (verb)
- attraverso
- Through; across; by way of (preposition)
- esso
- It; that one (masculine pronoun)
- tenevo
- I held; I kept (first person singular imperfect)
- tutto
- Everything; all; whole (pronoun/adjective)
- ciò
- That; this (demonstrative pronoun)
- che
- That; which; who (relative pronoun)
- vi
- There; to you (adverb/pronoun)
- stava
- Was; stood (third person singular imperfect)
- al
- To the; at the (contraction: a+il)
- là
- There; over there; yonder (adverb)
- in
- In; into; on (preposition)
- comune
- Common; shared; municipality (adjective/noun)
- disprezzo
- Contempt; scorn; disdain (noun)
- vivevo
- I lived (first person singular imperfect)
- sopra
- Above; over; on top of (preposition/adverb)
- una
- A; an; one (feminine indefinite article)
- regione
- Region; area; territory (noun)
- cielo
- Sky; heaven; celestial realm (noun)
- azzurro
- Blue; azure; sky-blue color (adjective/noun)
- grandi
- Big; great; large (adjective)
- ombre
- Shadows; shades; ghosts (noun plural)
- erranti
- Wandering; roaming; straying (adjective)
- Quel
- That; those (demonstrative adjective)
- era
- Was (third person singular imperfect)
- quando
- When; at which time (adverb/conjunction)
- riuscivo
- I succeeded; I managed (first person singular imperfect)
- superare
- To surpass; to exceed; to overcome (verb)
- miei
- Mine; my (possessive pronoun/adjective)
- compagni
- Companions; classmates; friends (noun plural)
- momento
- Moment; instant; time (noun)
- degli
- Of the; some (contraction: di+gli)
- esami
- Exams; tests; examinations (noun plural)
- batterli
- To beat them; to defeat them (verb)
- corsa
- Race; running; course (noun)
- piedi
- Feet; on foot (noun plural)
- persino
- Even; including; as much as (adverb)
- colpire
- To hit; to strike; to affect (verb)
- le
- The; them (feminine definite article/pronoun)
- loro
- Their; them; those (possessive/pronoun)
- teste
- Heads; minds; brains (noun plural)
- Ahimè
- Alas; oh dear; unfortunately (interjection)
- con
- With; along with; by means of (preposition)
- gli
- To him; the; those (pronoun/article)
- anni
- Years; age (noun plural)
- questo
- This; these (demonstrative pronoun/adjective)
- nobile
- Noble; aristocratic; high-minded (adjective)
- cominciò
- Began; started; commenced (third person singular past)
- svanire
- To fade; to disappear; to vanish (verb)
- poiché
- Since; because; for (conjunction)
- parole
- Words; speech; language (noun plural)
- desideravo
- I desired; I wanted (first person singular imperfect)
- ardentemente
- Ardently; passionately; intensely (adverb)
- tutte
- All; every; each (feminine plural)
- opportunità
- Opportunities; chances; occasions (noun)
- dovuto
- Had to; owed; should have (past participle)
- tenere
- To hold; to keep; to maintain (verb)
- questi
- These; these ones (demonstrative pronoun)
- premi
- Prizes; rewards; awards (noun plural)
- dicevo
- I said; I was saying (first person singular imperfect)
- tra
- Between; among; within (preposition)
- me
- Me; myself (pronoun)
- alcuni
- Some; a few; certain (indefinite adjective/pronoun)
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