The hero may perish his country to save, And he lives in the records of fame; The sage may the dungeons of tyranny brave -- Ever honour'd and blest be his name! But virtue, that silently toils [or]1 expires, No wreath for the brow to [entwine]2, That asks but a smile -- but a fond sigh requires -- O woman! that virtue is thine!
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)Confirmed with The Edinburgh Review: Or Critical Journal for Oct 1823 ... Jan. 1824, Vol. XXXIX, Edinburh, 1824, page 81.
Note: in the score of Beethoven's "The hero may perish", the words "hero", "sage", "virtue", and "woman" are capitalized.
1 Beethoven (WoO. 156): "and"2 Beethoven (WoO. 156): "adorn"
Text Authorship:
- by William Smyth (1765 - 1849), "The fox's sleep" [author's text checked 1 time 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 Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827), "Womankind", WoO. 156 (12 Scottish Songs) no. 8, G. 227 no. 8, published 1817/8 [ vocal trio, piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827), "The hero may perish", WoO. 154 (12 Irische Lieder) no. 10, G. 225 no. 10, published 1812/3 [ vocal duet for two voices with piano, violin, violoncello ] [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) [singable] (Georg Pertz)
Researcher for this page: Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2005-01-16
Line count: 8
Word count: 64
Der Held mag erliegen im streit für sein Land, Und ihn feiert der Nachwelt Gesang; Den Weisen mag knebeln tyrannische Hand, Und sein Ruhm trägt unsterblichen Klang! Doch Tugend, die schweigend sich müht und vergeht Nicht um Kränze von ewigem Schein, Die ein Lächeln, sein zärtliches "Ach" nur erfleht: O Weib, solche Tugend ist dein!
About the headline (FAQ)
Title "Womankind = "Das Weib"Text Authorship:
- Singable translation by Georg Pertz (1830 - 1870) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by William Smyth (1765 - 1849), "The fox's sleep"
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 page: Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2005-01-20
Line count: 8
Word count: 55