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The English version presented below is a literal, word-for-word translation. It attempts to preserve the poet's word order as far as possible, for a better appreciation of the composer's musical treatment of individual words and phrases. | ||||
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Dans l'interminable Ennui de la plaine, La neige incertaine Luit comme du sable.
Le ciel est de cuivre Sans lueur aucune. On croirait voir vivre Et mourir la lune.
Comme des nuées Flottent gris les chênes Des forêts prochaines Parmi les buées.
Le ciel est de cuivre Sans lueur aucune. On croirait voir vivre Et mourir la lune.
Corneilles poussives, Et vous, les loups maigres, Par ces bises aigres Quoi donc vous arrive?
Dans l'interminable Ennui de la plaine La neige incertaine Luit comme du sable . . .
Paul Verlaine |
In the endless Tedium of the plain, The uncertain snow Gleams like sand.
The sky is copper, Without any light. It seems as though The moon lives and dies.
Like clouds, [the forms of] oak trees In the nearby forests Drift grayly in the mists.
The sky is copper, Without any light. It seems as though The moon lives and dies.
Wheezy crows, And you, scrawny wolves, In these bitter winds, What happens to you?
In the endless Tedium of the plain, The uncertain snow Gleams like sand . . . | |||
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