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The Picture of Dorian Gray | Gradually Hardening Italian A1-B2 Translation Books

The Picture of Dorian Gray | Gradually Hardening Italian A1-B2 Translation Books

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.
To
rivelare
revealartandconcealtheartistisart’s
scopo
aim.
Thecriticishe
che
whocantranslateintoanother
modo
manneroranewmaterialhis
impressione
impressionofbeautifulthings.
Thehighestas
la
thelowestformofcriticismis
un
amodeofautobiography.
Those
che
whofinduglymeaningsinbeautifulthingsarecorrupt
senza
withoutbeingcharming.
Thisis
un
afault.
Thosewhofindbeautifulmeaningsinbeautifulthingsare
i
thecultivated.
Forthesethereis
speranza
hope.
Theyaretheelecttowhombeautifulthings
significano
meanonlybeauty.
Thereis
non
nosuchthingasa
morale
moraloranimmoralbook.
Booksarewellwritten,
o
orbadlywritten.
Thatis
tutto
all.
Thenineteenthcenturydislikeofrealismisthe
rabbia
rageofCalibanseeinghisown
faccia
faceinaglass.
Thenineteenth
secolo
centurydislikeofromanticismisthe
rabbia
rageofCalibannotseeinghisown
faccia
faceinaglass.
The
morale
morallifeofmanforms
parte
partofthesubject-matterof
la
theartist,butthemoralityofartconsistsin
la
theperfectuseofan
imperfetto
imperfectmedium.
Noartistdesiresto
dimostrare
proveanything.
Eventhingsthataretruecanbe
dimostrate
proved.
Noartisthasethicalsympathies.
Anethical
simpatia
sympathyinanartistisanunpardonablemannerismof
stile
style.
Noartistisever
morboso
morbid.
Theartistcanexpress
tutto
everything.
Thoughtandlanguageareto
il
theartistinstrumentsofanart.
Vizio
Viceandvirtuearetotheartistmaterialsfor
un
anart.
Fromthepointof
vista
viewofform,thetypeof
tutte
alltheartsistheartofthe
musicista
musician.
Fromthepointof
vista
viewoffeeling,theactor’scraftis
il
thetype.
Allartisatonce
superficie
surfaceandsymbol.
Thosewho
vanno
gobeneaththesurfacedosoattheirperil.
Those
che
whoreadthesymboldosoattheirperil.
Itisthespectator,
e
andnotlife,thatartreallymirrors.
Diversità
Diversityofopinionaboutaworkofart
mostra
showsthattheworkisnew,complex,
e
andvital.
Whencriticsdisagree,
i
theartistisinaccordwithhimself.
Wecan
perdonare
forgiveamanformakinga
utile
usefulthingaslongashe
fatto
doesnotadmireit.
Theonly
scusa
excuseformakingauseless
cosa
thingisthatoneadmiresit
intensamente
intensely.
Allartisquite
inutile
useless.
CHAPTERI.
Thestudiowasfilledwith
il
therichodourofroses,
e
andwhenthelightsummer
vento
windstirredamidstthetreesof
il
thegarden,therecamethrough
il
theopendoortheheavyscentof
il
thelilac,orthemore
delicato
delicateperfumeofthepink-flowering
spina
thorn.
FromthecornerofthedivanofPersiansaddle-bagson
cui
whichhewaslying,smoking,aswashiscustom,innumerablecigarettes,LordHenryWottoncouldjustcatchthegleamofthehoney-sweet
e
andhoney-colouredblossomsofalaburnum,whosetremulousbranches
sembravano
seemedhardlyabletobearthe
peso
burdenofabeautysoflamelikeastheirs;
e
andnowandthenthefantasticshadowsofbirdsinflightflittedacrossthelongtussore-silkcurtainsthatwerestretchedin
davanti
frontofthehugewindow,producingakindofmomentaryJapanese
effetto
effect,andmakinghimthinkofthosepallid,jade-facedpaintersofTokyowho,throughthe
mezzo
mediumofanartthatis
necessariamente
necessarilyimmobile,seektoconveythe
senso
senseofswiftnessandmotion.
Thesullenmurmurofthebeesshoulderingtheir
strada
waythroughthelongunmown
erba
grass,orcirclingwithmonotonousinsistenceroundthedustygilthornsofthestragglingwoodbine,
sembrava
seemedtomakethestillness
più
moreoppressive.
ThedimroarofLondonwas
come
likethebourdonnoteof
un
adistantorgan.
Inthe
centro
centreoftheroom,clampedtoan
verticale
uprighteasel,stoodthefull-length
ritratto
portraitofayoungmanofextraordinary
personale
personalbeauty,andinfrontofit,
qualche
somelittledistanceaway,was
seduto
sittingtheartisthimself,BasilHallward,whosesudden
scomparsa
disappearancesomeyearsagocaused,atthetime,
tale
suchpublicexcitementandgaverisetosomanystrangeconjectures.
Asthe
pittore
painterlookedatthegracious
e
andcomelyformhehadsoskilfullymirroredinhis
arte
art,asmileofpleasurepassed
attraversò
acrosshisface,andseemedabouttolingerthere.
Ma
Buthesuddenlystartedup,
e
andclosinghiseyes,placedhisfingersupon
le
thelids,asthoughhe
cercato
soughttoimprisonwithinhis
cervello
brainsomecuriousdreamfrom
quale
whichhefearedhemightawake.
“Itisyour
migliore
bestwork,Basil,thebest
cosa
thingyouhaveeverdone,”
disse
saidLordHenrylanguidly.
“You
dovrai
mustcertainlysenditnextyeartotheGrosvenor.
TheAcademyistoo
grande
largeandtoovulgar.
WheneverIhave
andato
gonethere,therehavebeeneithersomany
persone
peoplethatIhavenotbeenableto
vedere
seethepictures,whichwas
terribile
dreadful,orsomanypicturesthatIhavenotbeenableto
vedere
seethepeople,whichwas
peggio
worse.
TheGrosvenorisreally
il
theonlyplace.”
“Idon’tthinkIshallsenditanywhere,”he
rispose
answered,tossinghisheadbackin
che
thatoddwaythatusedto
faceva
makehisfriendslaughathimatOxford.
“No,Iwon’tsenditanywhere.”
LordHenryelevatedhiseyebrows
e
andlookedathiminamazement
attraverso
throughthethinbluewreathsof
fumo
smokethatcurledupinsuchfancifulwhorlsfromhis
pesante
heavy,opium-taintedcigarette.
“Notsendit
da nessuna parte
anywhere?
Mydearfellow,why?
Hai
Haveyouanyreason?
Whatoddchapsyoupainters
siete
are!
Youdoanythinginthe
mondo
worldtogainareputation.
As
appena
soonasyouhaveone,you
sembra
seemtowanttothrowitaway.
Itissillyofyou,forthereis
solo
onlyonethinginthe
mondo
worldworsethanbeingtalkedabout,
e
andthatisnotbeing
parlato
talkedabout.
Aportraitlike
questo
thiswouldsetyoufar
sopra
abovealltheyoungmeninEngland,
e
andmaketheoldmenquitejealous,
se
ifoldmenareevercapableofanyemotion.”
“Iknowyouwill
riderete
laughatme,”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’tseeany
somiglianza
resemblancebetweenyou,withyourrugged
forte
strongfaceandyourcoal-black
capelli
hair,andthisyoungAdonis,
che
wholooksasifhewasmadeoutof
avorio
ivoryandrose-leaves.
Why,my
caro
dearBasil,heisaNarcissus,
e
andyou—well,ofcourseyou
hai
haveanintellectualexpressionand
tutto
allthat.
Butbeauty,real
bellezza
beauty,endswhereanintellectualexpression
inizia
begins.
Intellectisinitself
un
amodeofexaggeration,and
distrugge
destroystheharmonyofanyface.
The
momento
momentonesitsdownto
pensare
think,onebecomesallnose,
o
orallforehead,orsomething
orribile
horrid.
Lookatthesuccessfulmenin
qualsiasi
anyofthelearnedprofessions.
Come
Howperfectlyhideoustheyare!
Tranne
Except,ofcourse,inthe
Chiesa
Church.
Buttheninthe
Chiesa
Churchtheydon’tthink.
A
vescovo
bishopkeepsonsayingatthe
era
ageofeightywhathewastoldtosay
quando
whenhewasaboyofeighteen,
e
andasanaturalconsequencehe
sempre
alwayslooksabsolutelydelightful.
Your
misterioso
mysteriousyoungfriend,whosenameyou
hai
havenevertoldme,butwhose
foto
picturereallyfascinatesme,never
pensa
thinks.
Ifeelquitesureofthat.
Heissomebrainlessbeautiful
creatura
creaturewhoshouldbealways
qui
hereinwinterwhenwe
abbiamo
havenoflowerstolookat,
e
andalwayshereinsummer
quando
whenwewantsomethingtochillour
intelligenza
intelligence.
Don’tflatteryourself,Basil:
youarenotintheleast
come
likehim.”
“Youdon’tunderstand
mi
me,Harry,”answeredtheartist.
“OfcourseIamnot
come
likehim.
Iknowthat
perfettamente
perfectlywell.
Indeed,Ishouldbesorrytolooklike
lui
him.
Youshrugyourshoulders?
Iam
dicendo
tellingyouthetruth.
Thereis
una
afatalityaboutallphysical
e
andintellectualdistinction,thesortoffatality
che
thatseemstodogthrough
storia
historythefalteringstepsofkings.
Itis
meglio
betternottobedifferentfromone’sfellows.
Theugly
e
andthestupidhavethe
meglio
bestofitinthis
mondo
world.
Theycansitattheir
agio
easeandgapeattheplay.
Se
Iftheyknownothingof
vittoria
victory,theyareatleastsparedthe
conoscenza
knowledgeofdefeat.
Theyliveaswe
tutti
allshouldlive—undisturbed,indifferent,and
senza
withoutdisquiet.
Theyneitherbring
rovina
ruinuponothers,norever
ricevono
receiveitfromalienhands.
Your
rango
rankandwealth,Harry;
mybrains,suchastheyare—my
arte
art,whateveritmaybe
valore
worth;
DorianGray’sgoodlooks—weshall
tutti
allsufferforwhatthegods
hanno
havegivenus,sufferterribly.”
“DorianGray?
Isthathisname?”
chiese
askedLordHenry,walkingacrossthe
studio
studiotowardsBasilHallward.
“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,I
oserei
daresay,butsomehowit
sembra
seemstobringagreatdealof
romanticismo
romanceintoone’slife.
I
suppongo
supposeyouthinkmeawfully
sciocco
foolishaboutit?”
“Notatall,”
rispose
answeredLordHenry,“notatall,my
caro
dearBasil.
Youseemto
dimentichi
forgetthatIammarried,
e
andtheonecharmof
matrimonio
marriageisthatitmakesa
vita
lifeofdeceptionabsolutelynecessaryfor
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,strolling
verso
towardsthedoorthatledintothe
giardino
garden.
“Ibelievethatyouare
davvero
reallyaverygoodhusband,
ma
butthatyouarethoroughlyashamedofyourownvirtues.
Youare
un
anextraordinaryfellow.
Younever
dici
sayamoralthing,andyounever
fai
doawrongthing.
Yourcynicismis
semplicemente
simplyapose.”
“Beingnaturalis
semplicemente
simplyapose,andthe
più
mostirritatingposeIknow,”criedLordHenry,
ridendo
laughing;
andthetwoyoungmenwent
uscirono
outintothegardentogether
e
andensconcedthemselvesona
lungo
longbambooseatthatstoodin
i
theshadeofatall
alloro
laurelbush.
Thesunlightslippedover
la
thepolishedleaves.
Inthegrass,whitedaisiesweretremulous.
Dopo
Afterapause,LordHenry
tirò
pulledouthiswatch.
“IamafraidImustbe
andare
going,Basil,”hemurmured,“andbeforeI
andare
go,Iinsistonyour
risponda
answeringaquestionIputtoyou
qualche
sometimeago.”
“Whatisthat?”
disse
saidthepainter,keepinghiseyes
fissi
fixedontheground.
“You
sai
knowquitewell.”
“Idonot,Harry.”
“Well,Iwill
dirò
tellyouwhatitis.
Iwantyouto
spieghi
explaintomewhyyouwon’t
esporre
exhibitDorianGray’spicture.
Iwant
la
therealreason.”
“Itoldyou
il
therealreason.”
“No,you
fatto
didnot.
Yousaiditwasbecausetherewastoomuchofyourselfin
esso
it.
Now,thatischildish.”
“Harry,”
disse
saidBasilHallward,lookinghim
dritto
straightintheface,“every
ritratto
portraitthatispaintedwithfeelingis
un
aportraitoftheartist,notofthesitter.
La
Thesitterismerelytheaccident,
la
theoccasion.
Itisnothe
che
whoisrevealedbythe
pittore
painter;
itisratherthe
pittore
painterwho,onthecoloured
tela
canvas,revealshimself.
ThereasonI
è
willnotexhibitthispictureis
che
thatIamafraidthatI
ho
haveshowninitthe
segreto
secretofmyownsoul.”
LordHenry
riso
laughed.
“Andwhatisthat?”
he
chiesto
asked.
“Iwilltellyou,”
disse
saidHallward;
butanexpressionofperplexitycameoverhis
faccia
face.
“Iamallexpectation,Basil,”
continuato
continuedhiscompanion,glancingathim.
“Oh,thereis
davvero
reallyverylittletotell,Harry,”
rispose
answeredthepainter;
“andIamafraidyouwillhardlyunderstandit.
Forse
Perhapsyouwillhardlybelieveit.”
LordHenry
sorrise
smiled,andleaningdown,plucked
una
apink-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.
Agrasshopper
cominciò
begantochirrupbythe
muro
wall,andlikeablue
filo
threadalongthindragon-fly
galleggiava
floatedpastonitsbrowngauzewings.
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
Withaneveningcoatandawhite
cravatta
tie,asyoutoldme
volta
once,anybody,evenastock-broker,can
guadagnare
gainareputationforbeingcivilized.
Well,
dopo
afterIhadbeenintheroom
circa
abouttenminutes,talkingtohugeoverdresseddowagers
e
andtediousacademicians,Isuddenlybecameconscious
che
thatsomeonewaslookingatme.
I
girato
turnedhalf-wayroundandsawDorianGrayfor
la
thefirsttime.
Whenoureyes
incontrarono
met,IfeltthatIwasgrowing
pallido
pale.
Acurioussensationof
terrore
terrorcameoverme.
I
sapevo
knewthatIhadcome
faccia
facetofacewithsomeonewhose
semplice
merepersonalitywassofascinating
che
that,ifIalloweditto
faccia
doso,itwouldabsorbmywhole
natura
nature,mywholesoul,myvery
arte
artitself.
Ididnotwantanyexternal
influenza
influenceinmylife.
You
sai
knowyourself,Harry,howindependentIamby
natura
nature.
Ihavealwaysbeenmyown
padrone
master;
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.
Itwasnot
coscienza
consciencethatmademedoso:
itwas
una
asortofcowardice.
I
prendo
takenocredittomyselffortryingtoescape.”
“Conscience
e
andcowardicearereallythesamethings,Basil.
Coscienza
Conscienceisthetrade-nameofthefirm.
Thatisall.”
“Idon’tbelieve
che
that,Harry,andIdon’tbelieveyoudoeither.
However,
qualunque
whateverwasmymotive—anditmay
ho
havebeenpride,forIusedtobeveryproud—I
sicuramente
certainlystruggledtothedoor.
There,ofcourse,IstumbledagainstLady
Brandon
Brandon.
‘Youarenotgoingtorunawayso
presto
soon,Mr.Hallward?’shescreamedout.
Youknowhercuriouslyshrillvoice?”
“Yes;
sheis
un
apeacockineverythingbutbeauty,”
disse
saidLordHenry,pullingthe
margherita
daisytobitswithhislongnervousfingers.
“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-centurystandardof
immortalità
immortality.
SuddenlyIfoundmyself
faccia
facetofacewiththe
giovane
youngmanwhosepersonalityhadso
stranamente
strangelystirredme.