by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861)
Translation by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926)
What can I give thee back, O liberal
Language: English
What can I give thee back, O liberal And princely giver, who hast brought the gold And purple of thine heart, unstained, untold, And laid them on the outside of the wall For such as I to take or leave withal, In unexpected largesse? am I cold, Ungrateful, that for these most manifold High gifts, I render nothing back at all? Not so; not cold, -- but very poor instead. Ask God who knows. For frequent tears have run The colours from my life, and left so dead And pale a stuff, it were not fitly done To give the same as pillow to thy head. Go farther! let it serve to trample on.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861), no title, appears in Poems, in Sonnets from the Portuguese, no. 8, first published 1847 [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 Eleanor Everest Freer (1864 - 1942), "What can I give thee back, O liberal", published 1907 [ mezzo-soprano and piano ], from Sonnets from the Portuguese, no. 8 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Bernard James Naylor (1907 - 1986), "What can I give thee back, O liberal", 1948, first performed 1955 [ mezzo-soprano and string quartet ], from Sonnets from the Portuguese [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- GER German (Deutsch) (Rainer Maria Rilke) , appears in Sonette aus dem Portugiesischen, no. 8, first published 1908
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-07-23
Line count: 14
Word count: 113
Was kann ich dir denn wiedergeben, du
Language: German (Deutsch) after the English
Was kann ich dir denn wiedergeben, du freigebiger, fürstlicher Geber, der aus seinem Innern Gold und Purpur, mehr als Großmut jemals gab, mir immerzu draußen vor seinem Herzen hinlegt? Mir: von der es plötzlich abhängt, sie zu haben. Und ist es Undank, ist es Kälte, dir nichts hinzugeben für so hohe Gaben? Bin ich nicht kalt, so bin ich arm dafür. Gott weiß wie sehr. Mein Leben ist im steten Regen der Tränen nicht wie neu geblieben: die Farbe schwand. Es ist nicht nach Gebühr, dir so Verblichnes unters Haupt zu schieben. Geh weiter. Es ist gut, um drauf zu treten.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926), appears in Sonette aus dem Portugiesischen, no. 8, first published 1908 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861), no title, appears in Poems, in Sonnets from the Portuguese, no. 8, first published 1847
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: 2009-02-19
Line count: 14
Word count: 101