by Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475 - 1564)
Translation by John Addington Symonds (1840 - 1893)
Quante dirne si de' non si può dire
Language: Italian (Italiano)
Quante dirne si de' non si può dire, chè troppo agli orbi il suo splendor s'accese: Biasmar si può più 'l popol che 'l offese, c'al suo men pregio ogni maggior salire. Questo discese a' merti del fallire, per l'util nostro, e poi a Dio ascese: E le porte che 'l ciel non gli contese, la patria chiuse al suo guisto desire. Ingrata, dico, e della suo fortuna a suo danno nutrice; ond' è ben segnio, c' a' più perfetti abonda di più guai. Fra mille altre ragion sol ha quest' una: Se par non ebbe il suo esilio indegnio, simil uom nè maggior non naqque mai.
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Text Authorship:
- by Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475 - 1564), appears in Rime, no. 250 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich (1906 - 1975), "Quante dirne si de' non si può dire", op. 145 no. 7, from Suite on verses by Michelangelo Buonarroti, no. 7, also set in Russian (Русский) [sung text checked 1 time]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in Russian (Русский), a translation by Abram Markovich Efros (1888 - 1954) ; composed by Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (John Addington Symonds) , "On Dante Alighieri", appears in The Sonnets of Michael Angelo Buonarroti and Tommaso Campanella now for the first time translated into rhymed English, first published 1878
- FRE French (Français) (Ernest Lafond) (Edmond Lafond) , "Rime no. 250", appears in Dante, Pétrarque, Michel-Ange, Tasse, Sonnets choisis, first published 1948
- GER German (Deutsch) (Hermann Friedrich Grimm) , "Dante", from Michelangelo: Gedichte und Briefe, first published 1907
- LIT Lithuanian (Lietuvių kalba) (Giedrius Prunskus) , subtitle: "Tarytum gerbiam, bet garbės tos maža", copyright © 2023, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Caroline Diehl
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 14
Word count: 107
On Dante Alighieri
Language: English after the Italian (Italiano)
No tongue can tell of him what should be told,
For on blind eyes his splendour shines too strong;
'Twere easier to blame those who wrought him wrong,
Than sound his least praise with a mouth of gold.
He to explore the place of pain was bold,
Then soared to God, to teach our souls by song;
The gates heaven oped to bear his feet along,
Against his just desire his country rolled.
Thankless I call her, and to her own pain
The nurse of fell mischance; for sign take this,
That ever to the best she deals more scorn:
Among a thousand proofs let one remain;
Though ne'er was fortune more unjust than his,
His equal or his better ne'er was born.
Text Authorship:
- by John Addington Symonds (1840 - 1893), "On Dante Alighieri", appears in The Sonnets of Michael Angelo Buonarroti and Tommaso Campanella now for the first time translated into rhymed English, first published 1878 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Italian (Italiano) by Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475 - 1564), appears in Rime, no. 250
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- [ None yet in the database ]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-08-11
Line count: 14
Word count: 123