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The Picture of Dorian Gray | Progressive Translation Books for Italian A1 Learners

The Picture of Dorian Gray | Progressive Translation Books for Italian A1 Learners

Unlock the potential of this modern translation approach, designed to enhance your language learning experience. By allowing you to choose your difficulty level, it guarantees a personalized challenge that's suited to your progress. This method promotes comprehension by encouraging you to infer the meaning of new words from context, rather than relying heavily on direct translations. Though some translations are obscured to stimulate guessing, it's perfectly fine to consult a dictionary when needed. This technique combines challenge and support, making language learning fun and effective. Explore these translated classics to enjoy literature while advancing your language skills.

THEPREFACE
Theartistis
il
thecreatorofbeautifulthings.
Torevealart
e
andconcealtheartistisart’saim.
Thecriticishe
che
whocantranslateintoanothermanner
o
oranewmaterialhisimpressionofbeautifulthings.
La
Thehighestasthelowestformofcriticismis
un
amodeofautobiography.
Those
che
whofinduglymeaningsinbeautifulthingsarecorrupt
senza
withoutbeingcharming.
Thisis
un
afault.
Thosewhofindbeautifulmeaningsinbeautifulthingsare
i
thecultivated.
Forthesethereis
speranza
hope.
Theyaretheelecttowhombeautifulthings
significano
meanonlybeauty.
Thereis
non
nosuchthingasamoral
o
oranimmoralbook.
Booksarewellwritten,
o
orbadlywritten.
Thatis
tutto
all.
ThenineteenthcenturydislikeofrealismistherageofCaliban
vede
seeinghisownfaceinaglass.
ThenineteenthcenturydislikeofromanticismistherageofCalibannot
visto
seeinghisownfaceinaglass.
La
Themorallifeofmanforms
parte
partofthesubject-matterof
la
theartist,butthemoralityofartconsistsin
la
theperfectuseofanimperfectmedium.
Nessun
Noartistdesirestoprove
qualcosa
anything.
Eventhingsthataretruecanbeproved.
Nessun
Noartisthasethicalsympathies.
Anethicalsympathyinanartistisanunpardonablemannerismofstyle.
Nessun
Noartistisevermorbid.
Theartistcanexpress
tutto
everything.
Thoughtandlanguageareto
il
theartistinstrumentsofanart.
Vice
e
andvirtuearetotheartistmaterialsfor
un
anart.
Fromthepointofviewofform,thetypeof
tutte
alltheartsistheartofthemusician.
From
il
thepointofviewoffeeling,
il
theactor’scraftisthetype.
Allartisatoncesurface
e
andsymbol.
Thosewhogobeneath
la
thesurfacedosoattheirperil.
Those
che
whoreadthesymboldosoattheirperil.
Itisthespectator,
e
andnotlife,thatartreallymirrors.
Diversityofopinion
su
aboutaworkofart
mostra
showsthattheworkisnew,complex,
e
andvital.
Whencriticsdisagree,
i
theartistisinaccordwithhimself.
Wecanforgivea
uomo
manformakingauseful
cosa
thingaslongashe
fatto
doesnotadmireit.
Theonly
scusa
excuseformakingauseless
cosa
thingisthatoneadmiresitintensely.
Tutto
Allartisquiteuseless.
CHAPTERI.
Il
Thestudiowasfilledwith
il
therichodourofroses,
e
andwhenthelightsummerwindstirredamidst
il
thetreesofthegarden,therecamethrough
il
theopendoortheheavyscentof
il
thelilac,orthemoredelicateperfumeof
il
thepink-floweringthorn.
FromthecornerofthedivanofPersiansaddle-bagson
cui
whichhewaslying,smoking,aswashiscustom,innumerablecigarettes,LordHenryWottoncouldjustcatchthegleamofthehoney-sweet
e
andhoney-colouredblossomsofalaburnum,whosetremulousbranchesseemedhardlyabletobeartheburdenofabeautysoflamelikeastheirs;
e
andnowandthenthefantasticshadowsofbirdsinflightflittedacrossthelongtussore-silkcurtainsthatwerestretchedin
davanti
frontofthehugewindow,producingakindofmomentaryJapaneseeffect,
e
andmakinghimthinkofthosepallid,jade-facedpaintersofTokyowho,throughthemediumofanartthatisnecessarilyimmobile,seektoconveythesenseofswiftness
e
andmotion.
Thesullenmurmurofthebeesshoulderingtheir
strada
waythroughthelongunmowngrass,
o
orcirclingwithmonotonousinsistenceroundthedustygilthornsofthestragglingwoodbine,seemedto
rendere
makethestillnessmoreoppressive.
ThedimroarofLondonwas
come
likethebourdonnoteof
un
adistantorgan.
Inthecentreoftheroom,clampedtoanuprighteasel,stoodthefull-lengthportraitofa
giovane
youngmanofextraordinarypersonalbeauty,
e
andinfrontofit,
qualche
somelittledistanceaway,was
seduto
sittingtheartisthimself,BasilHallward,whosesuddendisappearance
qualche
someyearsagocaused,atthetime,
tale
suchpublicexcitementandgaverisetosomanystrangeconjectures.
Asthepainter
guardava
lookedatthegraciousandcomelyformhe
aveva
hadsoskilfullymirroredinhisart,
un
asmileofpleasurepassedacrosshis
viso
face,andseemedabouttolingerthere.
Ma
Buthesuddenlystartedup,
e
andclosinghiseyes,placedhisfingersupon
le
thelids,asthoughhesoughttoimprisonwithinhisbrainsomecurious
sogno
dreamfromwhichhefearedhemightawake.
“Itisyour
migliore
bestwork,Basil,thebest
cosa
thingyouhaveeverdone,”
disse
saidLordHenrylanguidly.
“You
dovrai
mustcertainlysenditnextyeartotheGrosvenor.
TheAcademyistoolarge
e
andtoovulgar.
WheneverIhave
andato
gonethere,therehavebeeneithersomany
persone
peoplethatIhavenotbeenableto
vedere
seethepictures,whichwasdreadful,orsomanypicturesthatIhavenotbeenableto
vedere
seethepeople,whichwasworse.
Il
TheGrosvenorisreallytheonlyplace.”
“Idon’tthinkIshallsenditanywhere,”he
rispose
answered,tossinghisheadbackin
che
thatoddwaythatusedto
faceva
makehisfriendslaughathimatOxford.
“No,Iwon’tsenditanywhere.”
LordHenryelevatedhiseyebrows
e
andlookedathiminamazement
attraverso
throughthethinbluewreathsofsmoke
che
thatcurledupinsuchfancifulwhorlsfromhisheavy,opium-taintedcigarette.
“Notsenditanywhere?
My
caro
dearfellow,why?
Haveyouany
motivo
reason?
Whatoddchapsyoupainters
siete
are!
Youdoanythinginthe
mondo
worldtogainareputation.
As
appena
soonasyouhaveone,youseemtowanttothrowitaway.
Itissillyofyou,forthereis
solo
onlyonethinginthe
mondo
worldworsethanbeingtalkedabout,
e
andthatisnotbeing
parlato
talkedabout.
Aportraitlike
questo
thiswouldsetyoufarabove
tutti
alltheyoungmeninEngland,
e
andmaketheoldmenquitejealous,
se
ifoldmenareevercapableofanyemotion.”
“Iknowyouwilllaughatme,”hereplied,“butI
davvero
reallycan’texhibitit.
I
ho
haveputtoomuchofmyselfintoit.”
LordHenrystretchedhimselfoutonthedivan
e
andlaughed.
“Yes,Iknewyouwould;
ma
butitisquitetrue,
tutto
allthesame.”
“Toomuchofyourselfin
esso
it!
Uponmyword,Basil,Ididn’t
sapevo
knowyouweresovain;
e
andIreallycan’tseeanyresemblance
tra
betweenyou,withyourruggedstrong
faccia
faceandyourcoal-blackhair,
e
andthisyoungAdonis,wholooksasifhewasmadeoutofivory
e
androse-leaves.
Why,mydearBasil,heisaNarcissus,
e
andyou—well,ofcourseyou
hai
haveanintellectualexpressionand
tutto
allthat.
Butbeauty,realbeauty,ends
dove
whereanintellectualexpressionbegins.
Intellectisinitself
un
amodeofexaggeration,anddestroystheharmonyof
qualsiasi
anyface.
Themomentone
siede
sitsdowntothink,one
diventa
becomesallnose,orallforehead,
o
orsomethinghorrid.
Lookatthesuccessfulmenin
qualsiasi
anyofthelearnedprofessions.
Come
Howperfectlyhideoustheyare!
Except,ofcourse,intheChurch.
Ma
ButthenintheChurchtheydon’t
pensano
think.
Abishopkeepsonsayingattheageofeightywhathewastoldtosay
quando
whenhewasaboyofeighteen,
e
andasanaturalconsequencehe
sempre
alwayslooksabsolutelydelightful.
Yourmysterious
giovane
youngfriend,whosenameyou
hai
havenevertoldme,butwhosepicture
davvero
reallyfascinatesme,neverthinks.
Ifeel
abbastanza
quitesureofthat.
Heissomebrainlessbeautifulcreature
che
whoshouldbealwayshereinwinter
quando
whenwehavenoflowersto
guardare
lookat,andalwayshereinsummer
quando
whenwewantsomethingtochillourintelligence.
Don’tflatteryourself,Basil:
youarenotintheleast
come
likehim.”
“Youdon’tunderstand
mi
me,Harry,”answeredtheartist.
“OfcourseIamnot
come
likehim.
Iknowthatperfectly
bene
well.
Indeed,Ishouldbesorrytolooklike
lui
him.
Youshrugyourshoulders?
Iam
dicendo
tellingyouthetruth.
Thereis
una
afatalityaboutallphysical
e
andintellectualdistinction,thesortoffatality
che
thatseemstodogthroughhistorythefalteringstepsofkings.
Itis
meglio
betternottobedifferentfromone’sfellows.
Theugly
e
andthestupidhavethe
meglio
bestofitinthis
mondo
world.
Theycansitattheirease
e
andgapeattheplay.
Se
Iftheyknownothingofvictory,theyareat
almeno
leastsparedtheknowledgeofdefeat.
They
vivere
liveasweallshouldlive—undisturbed,indifferent,
e
andwithoutdisquiet.
Theyneither
portano
bringruinuponothers,noreverreceiveitfromalienhands.
Yourrank
e
andwealth,Harry;
mybrains,suchastheyare—myart,
qualunque
whateveritmaybeworth;
DorianGray’sgoodlooks—weshall
tutti
allsufferforwhatthegods
hanno
havegivenus,sufferterribly.”
“DorianGray?
Isthathisname?”
chiese
askedLordHenry,walkingacrossthestudiotowardsBasilHallward.
“Yes,thatishis
nome
name.
Ididn’tintendtotellittoyou.”
“But
perché
whynot?”
“Oh,Ican’texplain.
Quando
WhenIlikepeopleimmensely,Inever
dico
telltheirnamestoanyone.
Itis
come
likesurrenderingapartof
loro
them.
Ihavegrownto
amare
lovesecrecy.
Itseemstobetheone
cosa
thingthatcanmakemodern
vita
lifemysteriousormarvelloustous.
Thecommonest
cosa
thingisdelightfulifone
solo
onlyhidesit.
WhenI
lascio
leavetownnowInever
dico
tellmypeoplewhereIam
vado
going.
IfIdid,Iwould
perderei
loseallmypleasure.
Itisasillyhabit,Idare
dire
say,butsomehowitseemsto
portare
bringagreatdealofromanceintoone’s
vita
life.
Isupposeyouthinkmeawfullyfoolishaboutit?”
“Notatall,”
rispose
answeredLordHenry,“notatall,my
caro
dearBasil.
Youseemto
dimentichi
forgetthatIammarried,
e
andtheonecharmofmarriageis
che
thatitmakesalifeofdeceptionabsolutelynecessaryfor
entrambe
bothparties.
Ineverknow
dove
wheremywifeis,andmy
moglie
wifeneverknowswhatIam
facendo
doing.
Whenwemeet—wedo
incontriamo
meetoccasionally,whenwedineout
insieme
together,orgodownto
le
theDuke’s—wetelleachother
le
themostabsurdstorieswith
le
themostseriousfaces.
My
moglie
wifeisverygoodatit—much
meglio
better,infact,thanIam.
Shenevergetsconfusedoverherdates,
e
andIalwaysdo.
But
quando
whenshedoesfindmeout,she
fa
makesnorowatall.
I
a volte
sometimeswishshewould;
butshemerelylaughsatme.”
“Ihatethe
modo
wayyoutalkaboutyourmarried
vita
life,Harry,”saidBasilHallward,strollingtowardsthe
porta
doorthatledintothegarden.
“I
credo
believethatyouarereally
un
averygoodhusband,but
che
thatyouarethoroughlyashamedofyourownvirtues.
Youare
un
anextraordinaryfellow.
Younever
dici
sayamoralthing,andyounever
fai
doawrongthing.
Yourcynicismissimply
una
apose.”
“Beingnaturalissimply
una
apose,andthemostirritatingposeIknow,”criedLordHenry,laughing;
e
andthetwoyoungmenwent
uscirono
outintothegardentogether
e
andensconcedthemselvesona
lungo
longbambooseatthatstoodin
i
theshadeofatalllaurelbush.
La
Thesunlightslippedoverthepolishedleaves.
In
le
thegrass,whitedaisiesweretremulous.
Dopo
Afterapause,LordHenrypulled
fuori
outhiswatch.
“IamafraidImustbe
andare
going,Basil,”hemurmured,“andbeforeI
andare
go,Iinsistonyour
risponda
answeringaquestionIputtoyou
qualche
sometimeago.”
“Whatisthat?”
disse
saidthepainter,keepinghiseyesfixedon
il
theground.
“Youknowquitewell.”
“Idonot,Harry.”
“Well,Iwill
dirò
tellyouwhatitis.
Iwantyoutoexplaintomewhyyouwon’texhibitDorianGray’spicture.
Iwant
la
therealreason.”
“Itoldyou
il
therealreason.”
“No,you
fatto
didnot.
Yousaiditwasbecausetherewastoomuchofyourselfin
esso
it.
Now,thatischildish.”
“Harry,”
disse
saidBasilHallward,lookinghimstraightinthe
faccia
face,“everyportraitthatispaintedwithfeelingis
un
aportraitoftheartist,notofthesitter.
La
Thesitterismerelytheaccident,
la
theoccasion.
Itisnothe
che
whoisrevealedbythepainter;
itisrather
il
thepainterwho,onthecolouredcanvas,revealshimself.
The
ragione
reasonIwillnotexhibit
questo
thispictureisthatIamafraid
che
thatIhaveshowninitthesecretofmyownsoul.”
LordHenrylaughed.
“Andwhatisthat?”
he
chiesto
asked.
“Iwilltellyou,”
disse
saidHallward;
butanexpressionofperplexitycameoverhis
faccia
face.
“Iamallexpectation,Basil,”continuedhiscompanion,glancingathim.
“Oh,thereis
davvero
reallyverylittletotell,Harry,”
rispose
answeredthepainter;
“andIamafraidyouwillhardlyunderstandit.
Forse
Perhapsyouwillhardlybelieveit.”
LordHenrysmiled,
e
andleaningdown,pluckedapink-petalleddaisyfromthegrass
e
andexaminedit.
“Iam
abbastanza
quitesureIshallunderstandit,”hereplied,gazingintentlyatthe
piccolo
littlegolden,white-feathereddisk,“andasfor
credere
believingthings,Icanbelieve
qualsiasi cosa
anything,providedthatitis
abbastanza
quiteincredible.”
Thewindshook
alcuni
someblossomsfromthetrees,
e
andtheheavylilac-blooms,withtheirclusteringstars,movedto
e
andfrointhelanguidair.
Agrasshopperbegantochirrupbythewall,
e
andlikeabluethreadalongthindragon-flyfloatedpastonitsbrowngauzewings.
LordHenryfeltas
se
ifhecouldhearBasilHallward’s
cuore
heartbeating,andwonderedwhatwascoming.
“The
storia
storyissimplythis,”said
il
thepainteraftersometime.
“Twomonths
fa
agoIwenttoacrushatLadyBrandon’s.
You
sai
knowwepoorartistshavetoshowourselvesinsocietyfromtimetotime,
solo
justtoremindthepublic
che
thatwearenotsavages.
Di
Withaneveningcoatandawhitetie,asyou
detto
toldmeonce,anybody,evenastock-broker,cangainareputationforbeingcivilized.
Well,
dopo
afterIhadbeenintheroom
circa
abouttenminutes,talkingtohugeoverdresseddowagers
e
andtediousacademicians,Isuddenlybecameconscious
che
thatsomeonewaslookingatme.
I
girato
turnedhalf-wayroundandsawDorianGrayfor
la
thefirsttime.
Whenoureyes
incontrarono
met,IfeltthatIwasgrowingpale.
Una
Acurioussensationofterrorcameover
mi
me.
IknewthatI
avrebbe
hadcomefacetofacewithsomeonewhosemerepersonalitywassofascinating
che
that,ifIalloweditto
faccia
doso,itwouldabsorbmywholenature,mywholesoul,myveryartitself.
Ididnotwantanyexternalinfluenceinmy
vita
life.
Youknowyourself,Harry,
quanto
howindependentIambynature.
Ihave
sempre
alwaysbeenmyownmaster;
ho
hadatleastalwaysbeenso,tillI
incontrato
metDorianGray.
Then—butIdon’t
so
knowhowtoexplainittoyou.
Qualcosa
Somethingseemedtotellme
che
thatIwasonthevergeof
una
aterriblecrisisinmy
vita
life.
Ihadastrangefeeling
che
thatfatehadinstoreformeexquisitejoys
e
andexquisitesorrows.
Igrewafraid
e
andturnedtoquittheroom.
Itwasnotconsciencethatmademedoso:
itwas
una
asortofcowardice.
I
prendo
takenocredittomyselffortryingtoescape.”
“Conscience
e
andcowardicearereallythesamethings,Basil.
Conscienceisthetrade-nameofthefirm.
Thatisall.”
“Idon’tbelieve
che
that,Harry,andIdon’tbelieveyoudoeither.
However,
qualunque
whateverwasmymotive—anditmay
ho
havebeenpride,forIusedtobeveryproud—Icertainlystruggledtothe
porta
door.
There,ofcourse,IstumbledagainstLadyBrandon.
‘Youarenotgoingtorunawayso
presto
soon,Mr.Hallward?’shescreamedout.
Youknowhercuriouslyshrillvoice?”
“Yes;
sheis
un
apeacockineverythingbutbeauty,”
disse
saidLordHenry,pullingthedaisytobitswithhislongnervousfingers.
“Icouldnotgetridof
lei
her.
Shebroughtmeuptoroyalties,
e
andpeoplewithstarsandgarters,
e
andelderlyladieswithgigantictiaras
e
andparrotnoses.
Shespokeofmeasherdearestfriend.
Ihad
solo
onlymetheroncebefore,
ma
butshetookitintoherheadtolionizeme.
I
credo
believesomepictureofminehadmade
un
agreatsuccessatthetime,at
almeno
leasthadbeenchatteredaboutinthepennynewspapers,
che
whichisthenineteenth-centurystandardofimmortality.
SuddenlyIfoundmyself
faccia
facetofacewiththe
giovane
youngmanwhosepersonalityhadsostrangelystirredme.