My Italian word of the day: ecco

I have set myself the challenge of translating ‘Storia di una Capinera’ by Giovanni Verga into English at the rate of one word a day.

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; . . .

___________

The story so far

(Original text)

Storia di una capinera

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; si rifuggiava in un angolo della sua gabbia, e allorché udiva il canto allegro degli altri uccelletti che cinguettavano sul verde del prato o nell’azzurro del cielo, li seguiva con uno sguardo che avrebbe potuto dirsi pieno di lagrime. Ma non osava ribellarsi, non osava tentare di rompere il fil di ferro che la teneva carcerata, la povera prigioniera. Eppure i suoi custodi, le volevano bene, cari bambini che si trastullavano col suo dolore e le pagavano la sua malinconia con miche di pane e con parole gentili. La povera capinera cercava rassegnarsi, la meschinella; non era cattiva; non voleva rimproverarli neanche col suo dolore, poiché tentava di beccare tristamente quel miglio e quelle miche di pane; ma non poteva inghiottirle. Dopo due giorni chinò la testa sotto l’ala e l’indomani fu trovata stecchita nella sua prigione.

Era morta, povera capinera! Eppure il suo scodellino era pieno. Era morta perché in quel corpicino c’era qualche cosa che non si nutriva soltanto di miglio, e che soffriva qualche cosa oltre la fame e la sete.

Allorché la madre dei due bimbi, innocenti e spietati carnefici del povero uccelletto, mi narrò la storia di un’infelice di cui mura del chiostro avevano imprigionato il corpo, e la superstizione e l’amore avevano torturato lo spirito: una di quelle intime storie, che passano inosservate tutti i giorni, storia di un cuore tenero, timido, che aveva amato e pianto e pregato senza osare di far scorgere le sue lagrime o di far sentire la sua preghiera; che infine si era chiuso nel suo dolore ed era morto; io pensai alla povera capinera che guardava il cielo attraverso le gretole della prigione; che non cantava; che beccava tristamente il suo miglio; che aveva piegato la testolina sotto l’ala ed era morta.

Ecco . . . 

___________

Today’s new word

ecco (adverb) = here is, there is, that is, this is

___________

Example of use in a sentence

Ecco perché il presidente ha ragione.

      =

That is why the president is right.

___________

My Translation

Story of a blackcap

By Giovanni Verga
(translated by Eddie Bosticco)

I had seen a poor blackcap locked in a cage: shy, sad and sickly, she watched us with terrified eyes. She cowered in the corner of her cage and on hearing the joyful singing of the other small birds in the green meadow and in the blue sky, her gaze followed the sound with an expression that one would say was full of tears. But she dared not rebel, she dared not try to break the iron wire that held her captive, the poor prisoner. And yet her wardens, dear children, loved her. They amused themselves with her suffering and rewarded her for her distress with crumbs of bread and kind words. The poor blackcap was trying to adapt, pathetic little wretch; she was not bad; she did not want to reproach them not even with her distress, after all she was desperately trying to peck at the millet and the bread crumbs, but she could not to swallow them. After two days she tucked her head under her wing and the following day she was found cold and stiff in her prison.

She was dead! Poor little blackcap! Yet, her little bowl was full. She was dead because there was something in that tiny body that did not feed on millet alone, and that was suffering something more than hunger and thirst.

When the mother of the two children, the innocent and cruel torturers of the poor little bird, told me the story of an unfortunate whose body had been imprisoned by cloister walls and whose spirit had been tortured by superstition and love: one of those personal dramas that take place, unobserved, every day; the story of a tender, timid heart that had loved and cried and prayed without daring to let her tears be seen or her prayer be heard; and that; finally; she had locked herself in her suffering and had died; I thought of the poor blackcap that was staring up at the sky through the bars of her prison; that was not singing; that was sadly pecking at her millet; that had folded her little head under her wing and was dead.

That is . . . 

___________

Translator’s Notes

The current sentence is long and obscure when translated word by word (and word for word). It will become clearer as more words are translated and rearranged into a more recognizable English structure.

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Navigation

	Previous Italian Word of the Day: ed	Next Italian Word of the Day: l’ (direct object pronoun)

___________

 

If you would like to follow this story from the first word, please click here:

 

If you would like to take a peep at the vocabulary so far, please click here:

___________

My Italian word of the day: ed

I have set myself the challenge of translating ‘Storia di una Capinera’ by Giovanni Verga into English at the rate of one word a day.

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; . . .

___________

The story so far

(Original text)

Storia di una capinera

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; si rifuggiava in un angolo della sua gabbia, e allorché udiva il canto allegro degli altri uccelletti che cinguettavano sul verde del prato o nell’azzurro del cielo, li seguiva con uno sguardo che avrebbe potuto dirsi pieno di lagrime. Ma non osava ribellarsi, non osava tentare di rompere il fil di ferro che la teneva carcerata, la povera prigioniera. Eppure i suoi custodi, le volevano bene, cari bambini che si trastullavano col suo dolore e le pagavano la sua malinconia con miche di pane e con parole gentili. La povera capinera cercava rassegnarsi, la meschinella; non era cattiva; non voleva rimproverarli neanche col suo dolore, poiché tentava di beccare tristamente quel miglio e quelle miche di pane; ma non poteva inghiottirle. Dopo due giorni chinò la testa sotto l’ala e l’indomani fu trovata stecchita nella sua prigione.

Era morta, povera capinera! Eppure il suo scodellino era pieno. Era morta perché in quel corpicino c’era qualche cosa che non si nutriva soltanto di miglio, e che soffriva qualche cosa oltre la fame e la sete.

Allorché la madre dei due bimbi, innocenti e spietati carnefici del povero uccelletto, mi narrò la storia di un’infelice di cui mura del chiostro avevano imprigionato il corpo, e la superstizione e l’amore avevano torturato lo spirito: una di quelle intime storie, che passano inosservate tutti i giorni, storia di un cuore tenero, timido, che aveva amato e pianto e pregato senza osare di far scorgere le sue lagrime o di far sentire la sua preghiera; che infine si era chiuso nel suo dolore ed era morto; io pensai alla povera capinera che guardava il cielo attraverso le gretole della prigione; che non cantava; che beccava tristamente il suo miglio; che aveva piegato la testolina sotto l’ala ed . . . 

___________

Today’s new word

ed (conjunction: before a vowel) = and

___________

Example of use in a sentence

Alcuni scienziati hanno creato un nuovo dispositivo basato sulla fotosintesi artificiale in grado di produrre idrogeno ed elettricità.

      =

Some scientists have created a new device based on artificial photosynthesis that can produce hydrogen and electricity.

___________

My Translation

Story of a blackcap

By Giovanni Verga
(translated by Eddie Bosticco)

I had seen a poor blackcap locked in a cage: shy, sad and sickly, she watched us with terrified eyes. She cowered in the corner of her cage and on hearing the joyful singing of the other small birds in the green meadow and in the blue sky, her gaze followed the sound with an expression that one would say was full of tears. But she dared not rebel, she dared not try to break the iron wire that held her captive, the poor prisoner. And yet her wardens, dear children, loved her. They amused themselves with her suffering and rewarded her for her distress with crumbs of bread and kind words. The poor blackcap was trying to adapt, pathetic little wretch; she was not bad; she did not want to reproach them not even with her distress, after all she was desperately trying to peck at the millet and the bread crumbs, but she could not to swallow them. After two days she tucked her head under her wing and the following day she was found cold and stiff in her prison.

She was dead! Poor little blackcap! Yet, her little bowl was full. She was dead because there was something in that tiny body that did not feed on millet alone, and that was suffering something more than hunger and thirst.

When the mother of the two children, the innocent and cruel torturers of the poor little bird, told me the story of an unfortunate whose body had been imprisoned by cloister walls and whose spirit had been tortured by superstition and love: one of those personal dramas that take place, unobserved, every day; the story of a tender, timid heart that had loved and cried and prayed without daring to let her tears be seen or her prayer be heard; and that; finally; she had locked herself in her suffering and had died; I thought of the poor blackcap that was staring up at the sky through the bars of its prison; that was not singing; that was sadly pecking at her millet; that had folded her little head under her wing and . . . 

___________

Translator’s Notes

The current sentence is long and obscure when translated word by word (and word for word). It will become clearer as more words are translated and rearranged into a more recognizable English structure.

___________

Navigation

	Previous Italian Word of the Day: testolina	Next Italian Word of the Day: ecco

___________

 

If you would like to follow this story from the first word, please click here:

 

If you would like to take a peep at the vocabulary so far, please click here:

___________

Tragedy – (An occasional digression into English Literary Criticism and Theory)

Oedipus and Antigone, by Antoni Brodowski (1828)

This paragraph by R. L. Brett is so crisp and concise, I felt compelled to share it with you.

1. Tragedy by R. L. Brett

Tragedy, like epic, is centred upon a hero. In Aristotle’s account this hero should be neither wholly good nor wholly bad. The one would make his tragic fate intolerable for us, the other would remove him from our sympathy. He should be a man like ourselves, though rather better than average, and of sufficient status for his downfall to involve others as well as himself. Given these conditions, we experience pity (for we feel his misfortunes are not entirely deserved). and terror (for we can imagine ourselves in his place). The tragic hero suffers a change in his fortunes from happiness to misery, which is produced by some fatal error of judgement (hamartia). The tragic error was generally attributed in Greek tragedy to overweening pride (hubris) which offended divine justice (dike). This hubris brought upon itself the judgement of the gods (nemesis). The tragic story, or plot, according to Aristotle, moved from a beginning, through complication, to a catastrophe or tragic reversal, both of intention and fortune. This reversal (peripeteia) becomes apparent to the audience before the hero himself is aware of it and thus produces an element of dramatic irony which is sustained until his own tragic recognition (anagnorisis) of the real situation.

(Source: An Introduction to English Studies by R.L. Brett – pub. Edward Arnold – 1967)

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See also:

L’eredità spirituale di Roma – 1. La Lingua

L’eredità spirituale di Roma – 2. Costruzioni

My Italian word of the day: testolina

I have set myself the challenge of translating ‘Storia di una Capinera’ by Giovanni Verga into English at the rate of one word a day.

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; . . .

___________

The story so far

(Original text)

Storia di una capinera

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; si rifuggiava in un angolo della sua gabbia, e allorché udiva il canto allegro degli altri uccelletti che cinguettavano sul verde del prato o nell’azzurro del cielo, li seguiva con uno sguardo che avrebbe potuto dirsi pieno di lagrime. Ma non osava ribellarsi, non osava tentare di rompere il fil di ferro che la teneva carcerata, la povera prigioniera. Eppure i suoi custodi, le volevano bene, cari bambini che si trastullavano col suo dolore e le pagavano la sua malinconia con miche di pane e con parole gentili. La povera capinera cercava rassegnarsi, la meschinella; non era cattiva; non voleva rimproverarli neanche col suo dolore, poiché tentava di beccare tristamente quel miglio e quelle miche di pane; ma non poteva inghiottirle. Dopo due giorni chinò la testa sotto l’ala e l’indomani fu trovata stecchita nella sua prigione.

Era morta, povera capinera! Eppure il suo scodellino era pieno. Era morta perché in quel corpicino c’era qualche cosa che non si nutriva soltanto di miglio, e che soffriva qualche cosa oltre la fame e la sete.

Allorché la madre dei due bimbi, innocenti e spietati carnefici del povero uccelletto, mi narrò la storia di un’infelice di cui mura del chiostro avevano imprigionato il corpo, e la superstizione e l’amore avevano torturato lo spirito: una di quelle intime storie, che passano inosservate tutti i giorni, storia di un cuore tenero, timido, che aveva amato e pianto e pregato senza osare di far scorgere le sue lagrime o di far sentire la sua preghiera; che infine si era chiuso nel suo dolore ed era morto; io pensai alla povera capinera che guardava il cielo attraverso le gretole della prigione; che non cantava; che beccava tristamente il suo miglio; che aveva piegato la testolina . . . 

___________

Today’s new word

testolina (noun: feminine, singular) = little head.

___________

Example of use in a sentence

Vi siete mai chiesti cosa passa nella testolina del vostro gatto?

      =

Have you ever wondered what goes on in your cat’s little head

___________

My Translation

Story of a blackcap

By Giovanni Verga
(translated by Eddie Bosticco)

I had seen a poor blackcap locked in a cage: shy, sad and sickly, she watched us with terrified eyes. She cowered in the corner of her cage and on hearing the joyful singing of the other small birds in the green meadow and in the blue sky, her gaze followed the sound with an expression that one would say was full of tears. But she dared not rebel, she dared not try to break the iron wire that held her captive, the poor prisoner. And yet her wardens, dear children, loved her. They amused themselves with her suffering and rewarded her for her distress with crumbs of bread and kind words. The poor blackcap was trying to adapt, pathetic little wretch; she was not bad; she did not want to reproach them not even with her distress, after all she was desperately trying to peck at the millet and the bread crumbs, but she could not to swallow them. After two days she tucked her head under her wing and the following day she was found cold and stiff in her prison.

She was dead! Poor little blackcap! Yet, her little bowl was full. She was dead because there was something in that tiny body that did not feed on millet alone, and that was suffering something more than hunger and thirst.

When the mother of the two children, the innocent and cruel torturers of the poor little bird, told me the story of an unfortunate whose body had been imprisoned by cloister walls and whose spirit had been tortured by superstition and love: one of those personal dramas that take place, unobserved, every day; the story of a tender, timid heart that had loved and cried and prayed without daring to let her tears be seen or her prayer be heard; and that; finally; she had locked herself in her suffering and had died; I thought of the poor blackcap that was staring up at the sky through the bars of its prison; that was not singing; that was sadly pecking at her millet; that had folded her little head . . . 

___________

Translator’s Notes

The current sentence is long and obscure when translated word by word (and word for word). It will become clearer as more words are translated and rearranged into a more recognizable English structure.

___________

Navigation

	Previous Italian Word of the Day: piegato	Next Italian Word of the Day: ed

___________

 

If you would like to follow this story from the first word, please click here:

 

If you would like to take a peep at the vocabulary so far, please click here:

___________

My Italian word of the day: piegato

I have set myself the challenge of translating ‘Storia di una Capinera’ by Giovanni Verga into English at the rate of one word a day.

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; . . .

___________

The story so far

(Original text)

Storia di una capinera

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; si rifuggiava in un angolo della sua gabbia, e allorché udiva il canto allegro degli altri uccelletti che cinguettavano sul verde del prato o nell’azzurro del cielo, li seguiva con uno sguardo che avrebbe potuto dirsi pieno di lagrime. Ma non osava ribellarsi, non osava tentare di rompere il fil di ferro che la teneva carcerata, la povera prigioniera. Eppure i suoi custodi, le volevano bene, cari bambini che si trastullavano col suo dolore e le pagavano la sua malinconia con miche di pane e con parole gentili. La povera capinera cercava rassegnarsi, la meschinella; non era cattiva; non voleva rimproverarli neanche col suo dolore, poiché tentava di beccare tristamente quel miglio e quelle miche di pane; ma non poteva inghiottirle. Dopo due giorni chinò la testa sotto l’ala e l’indomani fu trovata stecchita nella sua prigione.

Era morta, povera capinera! Eppure il suo scodellino era pieno. Era morta perché in quel corpicino c’era qualche cosa che non si nutriva soltanto di miglio, e che soffriva qualche cosa oltre la fame e la sete.

Allorché la madre dei due bimbi, innocenti e spietati carnefici del povero uccelletto, mi narrò la storia di un’infelice di cui mura del chiostro avevano imprigionato il corpo, e la superstizione e l’amore avevano torturato lo spirito: una di quelle intime storie, che passano inosservate tutti i giorni, storia di un cuore tenero, timido, che aveva amato e pianto e pregato senza osare di far scorgere le sue lagrime o di far sentire la sua preghiera; che infine si era chiuso nel suo dolore ed era morto; io pensai alla povera capinera che guardava il cielo attraverso le gretole della prigione; che non cantava; che beccava tristamente il suo miglio; che aveva piegato . . . 

___________

Today’s new word

piegato (verb: past participle) = bent, folded, bowed.

___________

A little bit of grammar

piegato is the past participle (participio passato) of the verb: piegare = to bend, to fold, to bow

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Example of use in a sentence

Il tovagliolo va piegato in due, lasciando da un lato una sporgenza di ca. 2 cm.

      =

The napkin must be folded in two, leaving an overlap of approximately 2 cm on one side.

___________

My Translation

Story of a blackcap

By Giovanni Verga
(translated by Eddie Bosticco)

I had seen a poor blackcap locked in a cage: shy, sad and sickly, she watched us with terrified eyes. She cowered in the corner of her cage and on hearing the joyful singing of the other small birds in the green meadow and in the blue sky, her gaze followed the sound with an expression that one would say was full of tears. But she dared not rebel, she dared not try to break the iron wire that held her captive, the poor prisoner. And yet her wardens, dear children, loved her. They amused themselves with her suffering and rewarded her for her distress with crumbs of bread and kind words. The poor blackcap was trying to adapt, pathetic little wretch; she was not bad; she did not want to reproach them not even with her distress, after all she was desperately trying to peck at the millet and the bread crumbs, but she could not to swallow them. After two days she tucked her head under her wing and the following day she was found cold and stiff in her prison.

She was dead! Poor little blackcap! Yet, her little bowl was full. She was dead because there was something in that tiny body that did not feed on millet alone, and that was suffering something more than hunger and thirst.

When the mother of the two children, the innocent and cruel torturers of the poor little bird, told me the story of an unfortunate whose body had been imprisoned by cloister walls and whose spirit had been tortured by superstition and love: one of those personal dramas that take place, unobserved, every day; the story of a tender, timid heart that had loved and cried and prayed without daring to let her tears be seen or her prayer be heard; and that; finally; she had locked herself in her suffering and had died; I thought of the poor blackcap that was staring up at the sky through the bars of its prison; that was not singing; that was sadly pecking her millet; that had folded  . . . 

___________

Translator’s Notes

The current sentence is long and obscure when translated word by word (and word for word). It will become clearer as more words are translated and rearranged into a more recognizable English structure.

___________

Navigation

	Previous Italian Word of the Day: beccava	Next Italian Word of the Day: testolina

___________

 

If you would like to follow this story from the first word, please click here:

 

If you would like to take a peep at the vocabulary so far, please click here:

___________

L’eredità spirituale di Roma – 2. Costruzioni

Le Terme di Carcalla

2.    Costruzioni di carattere utile ed artisico

Gl’Italiani dei tempi moderni che fanno i grandi lavori di costruzione nel mondo vecchio e nel nuovo, sono anche in questo degni successori dei loro antenati romani. Le magnifiche strade romane de cui ancora resta traccia in molti paesi del mondo, furono costruite nei vari paesi conquistati per scopi militari, per offrire cioè agli eserciti romani vie buone e durature su cui avrebbero potuto marciare in qualsiasi stagione dell’anno. Queste meravigliose strade erano l’applicazione pratica di profonda conoscenza dei principii d’ingegneria. Perchè esse giungessero in linea retta ai punti di destinazione, i Romani riempivano fossi, disseccavano paludi, traforavano montagne, costruivano arditi ponti sui fiumi, ed acquedotti, senza risparmio alcuno di lavoro, di tempo, di denaro. Queste strade univano Roma alle varie città dell’Impero Romano. Dovunque troviamo traccia dei numerosi acquedoti romani costruiti per trasportare l’acqua dai monti alle città. Alcuni di questi, come quello dell’acqua Marcia, sono in uso ancora oggi.

In simili lavori i Romani manifestarono alto senso pratico. Vi erano, inoltre, numerose costruzioni che univano al loro carattere utilitario grandi bellezze artisiche. Esse erano favorite da uomini ricchi ed ambiziosi, e dai capi del governo. Quale spettacolo imponente offrivano i Fori, grandi aree lastricate corrispondenti alle piazze moderne, adorni di templi, di sontuosi edificii, di statue; lì, dai rostri gli oratori parlavano a numerose folle!

Quale fosse il culto dei Romani per la forza e la bellezza fisica, e per le più alte forme di ricreazione spirituale, si rivela nelle meravigliose Terme, grandi e splendidi edifici che comprendevano bagni, palestre, portici per passegiare, biblioteche, sculture, fontane e sentieri ombreggiati. Le Terme di Caracalla contenevano 1600 posti per bagni, e quelle di Diocleziano 3000! . . .

(Source: ‘ L’Italia nel Passato e nel Presente ‘ by Ginevra Capocelli)

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'L'eredità spirituale di Roma' – table of contents:

L’eredità spirituale di Roma – 1. La Lingua

L’eredità spirituale di Roma – 2. Costruzioni

My Italian word of the day: beccava

I have set myself the challenge of translating ‘Storia di una Capinera’ by Giovanni Verga into English at the rate of one word a day.

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; . . .

___________

The story so far

(Original text)

Storia di una capinera

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; si rifuggiava in un angolo della sua gabbia, e allorché udiva il canto allegro degli altri uccelletti che cinguettavano sul verde del prato o nell’azzurro del cielo, li seguiva con uno sguardo che avrebbe potuto dirsi pieno di lagrime. Ma non osava ribellarsi, non osava tentare di rompere il fil di ferro che la teneva carcerata, la povera prigioniera. Eppure i suoi custodi, le volevano bene, cari bambini che si trastullavano col suo dolore e le pagavano la sua malinconia con miche di pane e con parole gentili. La povera capinera cercava rassegnarsi, la meschinella; non era cattiva; non voleva rimproverarli neanche col suo dolore, poiché tentava di beccare tristamente quel miglio e quelle miche di pane; ma non poteva inghiottirle. Dopo due giorni chinò la testa sotto l’ala e l’indomani fu trovata stecchita nella sua prigione.

Era morta, povera capinera! Eppure il suo scodellino era pieno. Era morta perché in quel corpicino c’era qualche cosa che non si nutriva soltanto di miglio, e che soffriva qualche cosa oltre la fame e la sete.

Allorché la madre dei due bimbi, innocenti e spietati carnefici del povero uccelletto, mi narrò la storia di un’infelice di cui mura del chiostro avevano imprigionato il corpo, e la superstizione e l’amore avevano torturato lo spirito: una di quelle intime storie, che passano inosservate tutti i giorni, storia di un cuore tenero, timido, che aveva amato e pianto e pregato senza osare di far scorgere le sue lagrime o di far sentire la sua preghiera; che infine si era chiuso nel suo dolore ed era morto; io pensai alla povera capinera che guardava il cielo attraverso le gretole della prigione; che non cantava; che beccava . . . 

___________

Today’s new word

beccava (verb: imperfect) = he/she/it was pecking; he/she/it pecked; he/she/it used to peck; he/she/it would peck.

___________

A little bit of grammar

beccava is the 3rd personal singular imperfect indicative (3° persona singolare dell’indicativo imperfetto) of the verb beccare (to peck)

___________

Example of use in a sentence

Quando la gallina beccava il pulcino questo scappava.

      =

When the hen pecked the chick it ran away.

___________

My Translation

Story of a blackcap

By Giovanni Verga
(translated by Eddie Bosticco)

I had seen a poor blackcap locked in a cage: shy, sad and sickly, she watched us with terrified eyes. She cowered in the corner of her cage and on hearing the joyful singing of the other small birds in the green meadow and in the blue sky, her gaze followed the sound with an expression that one would say was full of tears. But she dared not rebel, she dared not try to break the iron wire that held her captive, the poor prisoner. And yet her wardens, dear children, loved her. They amused themselves with her suffering and rewarded her for her distress with crumbs of bread and kind words. The poor blackcap was trying to adapt, pathetic little wretch; she was not bad; she did not want to reproach them not even with her distress, after all she was desperately trying to peck at the millet and the bread crumbs, but she could not to swallow them. After two days she tucked her head under her wing and the following day she was found cold and stiff in her prison.

She was dead! Poor little blackcap! Yet, her little bowl was full. She was dead because there was something in that tiny body that did not feed on millet alone, and that was suffering something more than hunger and thirst.

When the mother of the two children, the innocent and cruel torturers of the poor little bird, told me the story of an unfortunate whose body had been imprisoned by cloister walls and whose spirit had been tortured by superstition and love: one of those personal dramas that take place, unobserved, every day; the story of a tender, timid heart that had loved and cried and prayed without daring to let her tears be seen or her prayer be heard; and that; finally; she had locked herself in her suffering and had died; I thought of the poor blackcap that was staring at the sky through the bars of her prison; that was not singing; that was pecking  . . . 

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Translator’s Notes

The current sentence is long and obscure when translated word by word (and word for word). It will become clearer as more words are translated and rearranged into a more recognizable English structure.

___________

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My Italian word of the day: cantava

I have set myself the challenge of translating ‘Storia di una Capinera’ by Giovanni Verga into English at the rate of one word a day.

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; . . .

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The story so far

(Original text)

Storia di una capinera

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; si rifuggiava in un angolo della sua gabbia, e allorché udiva il canto allegro degli altri uccelletti che cinguettavano sul verde del prato o nell’azzurro del cielo, li seguiva con uno sguardo che avrebbe potuto dirsi pieno di lagrime. Ma non osava ribellarsi, non osava tentare di rompere il fil di ferro che la teneva carcerata, la povera prigioniera. Eppure i suoi custodi, le volevano bene, cari bambini che si trastullavano col suo dolore e le pagavano la sua malinconia con miche di pane e con parole gentili. La povera capinera cercava rassegnarsi, la meschinella; non era cattiva; non voleva rimproverarli neanche col suo dolore, poiché tentava di beccare tristamente quel miglio e quelle miche di pane; ma non poteva inghiottirle. Dopo due giorni chinò la testa sotto l’ala e l’indomani fu trovata stecchita nella sua prigione.

Era morta, povera capinera! Eppure il suo scodellino era pieno. Era morta perché in quel corpicino c’era qualche cosa che non si nutriva soltanto di miglio, e che soffriva qualche cosa oltre la fame e la sete.

Allorché la madre dei due bimbi, innocenti e spietati carnefici del povero uccelletto, mi narrò la storia di un’infelice di cui mura del chiostro avevano imprigionato il corpo, e la superstizione e l’amore avevano torturato lo spirito: una di quelle intime storie, che passano inosservate tutti i giorni, storia di un cuore tenero, timido, che aveva amato e pianto e pregato senza osare di far scorgere le sue lagrime o di far sentire la sua preghiera; che infine si era chiuso nel suo dolore ed era morto; io pensai alla povera capinera che guardava il cielo attraverso le gretole della prigione; che non cantava; . . . 

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Today’s new word

cantava (verb: imperfect) = he/she/it used to sing; he/she/it would sing; he/she/it was singing; he/she/it sang

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A little bit of grammar

cantava is the 3rd personal singular imperfect indicative (3° persona singolare dell’indicativo imperfetto) of the verb cantare (to sing)

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Example of use in a sentence

Nel cielo cantava una cinciallegra.

      =

A great tit was singing in the sky.

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My Translation

Story of a blackcap

By Giovanni Verga
(translated by Eddie Bosticco)

I had seen a poor blackcap locked in a cage: shy, sad and sickly, she watched us with terrified eyes. She cowered in the corner of her cage and on hearing the joyful singing of the other small birds in the green meadow and in the blue sky, her gaze followed the sound with an expression that one would say was full of tears. But she dared not rebel, she dared not try to break the iron wire that held her captive, the poor prisoner. And yet her wardens, dear children, loved her. They amused themselves with her suffering and rewarded her for her distress with crumbs of bread and kind words. The poor blackcap was trying to adapt, pathetic little wretch; she was not bad; she did not want to reproach them not even with her distress, after all she was desperately trying to peck at the millet and the bread crumbs, but she could not to swallow them. After two days she tucked her head under her wing and the following day she was found cold and stiff in her prison.

She was dead! Poor little blackcap! Yet, her little bowl was full. She was dead because there was something in that tiny body that did not feed on millet alone, and that was suffering something more than hunger and thirst.

When the mother of the two children, the innocent and cruel torturers of the poor little bird, told me the story of an unfortunate whose body had been imprisoned by cloister walls and whose spirit had been tortured by superstition and love: one of those personal dramas that take place, unobserved, every day; the story of a tender, timid heart that had loved and cried and prayed without daring to let her tears be seen or her prayer be heard; and that; finally; she had locked herself in her suffering and had died; I thought of the poor blackcap that was staring at the sky through the bars of her prison; that was not singing . . . 

___________

Translator’s Notes

The current sentence is long and obscure when translated word by word (and word for word). It will become clearer as more words are translated and rearranged into a more recognizable English structure.

___________

Navigation

	Previous Italian Word of the Day: della	Next Italian Word of the Day: beccava

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If you would like to follow this story from the first word, please click here:

 

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___________

My Italian word of the day: della

I have set myself the challenge of translating ‘Storia di una Capinera’ by Giovanni Verga into English at the rate of one word a day.

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; . . .

___________

The story so far

(Original text)

Storia di una capinera

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; si rifuggiava in un angolo della sua gabbia, e allorché udiva il canto allegro degli altri uccelletti che cinguettavano sul verde del prato o nell’azzurro del cielo, li seguiva con uno sguardo che avrebbe potuto dirsi pieno di lagrime. Ma non osava ribellarsi, non osava tentare di rompere il fil di ferro che la teneva carcerata, la povera prigioniera. Eppure i suoi custodi, le volevano bene, cari bambini che si trastullavano col suo dolore e le pagavano la sua malinconia con miche di pane e con parole gentili. La povera capinera cercava rassegnarsi, la meschinella; non era cattiva; non voleva rimproverarli neanche col suo dolore, poiché tentava di beccare tristamente quel miglio e quelle miche di pane; ma non poteva inghiottirle. Dopo due giorni chinò la testa sotto l’ala e l’indomani fu trovata stecchita nella sua prigione.

Era morta, povera capinera! Eppure il suo scodellino era pieno. Era morta perché in quel corpicino c’era qualche cosa che non si nutriva soltanto di miglio, e che soffriva qualche cosa oltre la fame e la sete.

Allorché la madre dei due bimbi, innocenti e spietati carnefici del povero uccelletto, mi narrò la storia di un’infelice di cui mura del chiostro avevano imprigionato il corpo, e la superstizione e l’amore avevano torturato lo spirito: una di quelle intime storie, che passano inosservate tutti i giorni, storia di un cuore tenero, timido, che aveva amato e pianto e pregato senza osare di far scorgere le sue lagrime o di far sentire la sua preghiera; che infine si era chiuso nel suo dolore ed era morto; io pensai alla povera capinera che guardava il cielo attraverso le gretole della . . . 

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Today’s new word

della (preposition + definite article: feminine, singular) = of the

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A little bit of grammar

Possession

Often in English we use ‘ -‘s ‘ to denote possession. For example, in English we say, ‘Jack‘s house’. In Italian we use ‘ di ‘ + the possessor: ‘la casa di Jack‘. If the possessor takes a definite article, the ‘ di ‘ combines with it. This is called an articulated preposition.

Articulated Prepositions (le preposizioni articolate) – ‘ di ‘

We’ve learned about prepositions like ‘a‘; ‘di‘; and ‘da‘, but we’ve also been seeing others such as: ‘al‘; ‘del‘; and ‘dal‘. Are these the same prepositions and, if so, do we know when to use them?

These prepositions are called articulated prepositions and they are formed when the simple preposition (such as ‘su‘) combines with a definite article (such as ‘lo‘) to form one word, in this case ‘sullo‘).

The preposition ‘ di ‘ in combination with the definite article

The definite article combines with ‘ di ‘ to form a single word meaning ‘ in the ‘.

masculine singular:

     del    (di + il)    before nouns that start with a consonant.

    dello  (di + lo)    before nouns that start with a s + consonant; z; y; ps; pn; gn.

    dell’   (di + l’)     before nouns that start with a vowel.

feminine singular:

    della  (di + la)    before nouns that start with a consonant.

    dell’   (di + l’)     before nouns that start with a vowel.

masculine plural:

     dei     (di + i)    before nouns that start with a consonant.

    degli  (di + gli)  before nouns that start with a vowel or s + consonant; z; y; ps; pn; gn.

feminine plural:

    delle  (di + le)    before nouns that start with a consonant or a vowel.

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Example of use in a sentence

L’asfalto corre veloce sotto le ruote della macchina.

      =

The asphalt runs fast under the wheels of the car.

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My Translation

Story of a blackcap

By Giovanni Verga
(translated by Eddie Bosticco)

I had seen a poor blackcap locked in a cage: shy, sad and sickly, she watched us with terrified eyes. She cowered in the corner of her cage and on hearing the joyful singing of the other small birds in the green meadow and in the blue sky, her gaze followed the sound with an expression that one would say was full of tears. But she dared not rebel, she dared not try to break the iron wire that held her captive, the poor prisoner. And yet her wardens, dear children, loved her. They amused themselves with her suffering and rewarded her for her distress with crumbs of bread and kind words. The poor blackcap was trying to adapt, pathetic little wretch; she was not bad; she did not want to reproach them not even with her distress, after all she was desperately trying to peck at the millet and the bread crumbs, but she could not to swallow them. After two days she tucked her head under her wing and the following day she was found cold and stiff in her prison.

She was dead! Poor little blackcap! Yet, her little bowl was full. She was dead because there was something in that tiny body that did not feed on millet alone, and that was suffering something more than hunger and thirst.

When the mother of the two children, the innocent and cruel torturers of the poor little bird, told me the story of an unfortunate whose body had been imprisoned by cloister walls and whose spirit had been tortured by superstition and love: one of those personal dramas that take place, unobserved, every day; the story of a tender, timid heart that had loved and cried and prayed without daring to let her tears be seen or her prayer be heard; and that; finally; she had locked herself in her suffering and had died; I thought of the poor blackcap that was staring at the sky through the bars of the . . . 

___________

Translator’s Notes

The current sentence is long and obscure when translated word by word (and word for word). It will become clearer as more words are translated and rearranged into a more recognizable English structure.

___________

Navigation

	Previous Italian Word of the Day: gretole	Next Italian Word of the Day: cantava

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If you would like to follow this story from the first word, please click here:

 

If you would like to take a peep at the vocabulary so far, please click here:

___________

My Italian word of the day: gretole

I have set myself the challenge of translating ‘Storia di una Capinera’ by Giovanni Verga into English at the rate of one word a day.

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; . . .

___________

The story so far

(Original text)

Storia di una capinera

Avevo visto una povera capinera chiusa in gabbia: era timide, triste, malaticcia ci guardava con occhio spaventato; si rifuggiava in un angolo della sua gabbia, e allorché udiva il canto allegro degli altri uccelletti che cinguettavano sul verde del prato o nell’azzurro del cielo, li seguiva con uno sguardo che avrebbe potuto dirsi pieno di lagrime. Ma non osava ribellarsi, non osava tentare di rompere il fil di ferro che la teneva carcerata, la povera prigioniera. Eppure i suoi custodi, le volevano bene, cari bambini che si trastullavano col suo dolore e le pagavano la sua malinconia con miche di pane e con parole gentili. La povera capinera cercava rassegnarsi, la meschinella; non era cattiva; non voleva rimproverarli neanche col suo dolore, poiché tentava di beccare tristamente quel miglio e quelle miche di pane; ma non poteva inghiottirle. Dopo due giorni chinò la testa sotto l’ala e l’indomani fu trovata stecchita nella sua prigione.

Era morta, povera capinera! Eppure il suo scodellino era pieno. Era morta perché in quel corpicino c’era qualche cosa che non si nutriva soltanto di miglio, e che soffriva qualche cosa oltre la fame e la sete.

Allorché la madre dei due bimbi, innocenti e spietati carnefici del povero uccelletto, mi narrò la storia di un’infelice di cui mura del chiostro avevano imprigionato il corpo, e la superstizione e l’amore avevano torturato lo spirito: una di quelle intime storie, che passano inosservate tutti i giorni, storia di un cuore tenero, timido, che aveva amato e pianto e pregato senza osare di far scorgere le sue lagrime o di far sentire la sua preghiera; che infine si era chiuso nel suo dolore ed era morto; io pensai alla povera capinera che guardava il cielo attraverso le gretole . . . 

___________

Today’s new word

gretole (noun: feminine, plural) = wooden or metal rods that form the walls of a cage, bars

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Example of use in a sentence

S’arrampicano squittendo su per le gretole; cacciano il musetto aguzzo tra una gretola e l’altra.

      =

They scramble, squeaking, up the bars and trap their pointed noses between one bar and another.

___________

My Translation

Story of a blackcap

By Giovanni Verga
(translated by Eddie Bosticco)

I had seen a poor blackcap locked in a cage: shy, sad and sickly, she watched us with terrified eyes. She cowered in the corner of her cage and on hearing the joyful singing of the other small birds in the green meadow and in the blue sky, her gaze followed the sound with an expression that one would say was full of tears. But she dared not rebel, she dared not try to break the iron wire that held her captive, the poor prisoner. And yet her wardens, dear children, loved her. They amused themselves with her suffering and rewarded her for her distress with crumbs of bread and kind words. The poor blackcap was trying to adapt, pathetic little wretch; she was not bad; she did not want to reproach them not even with her distress, after all she was desperately trying to peck at the millet and the bread crumbs, but she could not to swallow them. After two days she tucked her head under her wing and the following day she was found cold and stiff in her prison.

She was dead! Poor little blackcap! Yet, her little bowl was full. She was dead because there was something in that tiny body that did not feed on millet alone, and that was suffering something more than hunger and thirst.

When the mother of the two children, the innocent and cruel torturers of the poor little bird, told me the story of an unfortunate whose body had been imprisoned by cloister walls and whose spirit had been tortured by superstition and love: one of those personal dramas that take place, unobserved, every day; the story of a tender, timid heart that had loved and cried and prayed without daring to let her tears be seen or her prayer be heard; and that; finally; she had locked herself in her suffering and had died; I thought of the poor blackcap that was staring at the sky through the bars . . . 

___________

Translator’s Notes

The current sentence is long and obscure when translated word by word (and word for word). It will become clearer as more words are translated and rearranged into a more recognizable English structure.

___________

Navigation

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___________