by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616)
Translation by François-Victor Hugo (1828 - 1873)
So shall I live, supposing thou art true
Language: English
Our translations: ITA
So shall I live, supposing thou art true,
Like a deceived husband; so love's face
May still seem love to me, though alter'd new;
Thy looks with me, thy heart in other place:
For there can live no hatred in thine eye,
Therefore in that I cannot know thy change.
In many's looks, the false heart's history
Is writ in moods, and frowns, and wrinkles strange.
But heaven in thy creation did decree
That in thy face sweet love should ever dwell;
Whate'er thy thoughts, or thy heart's workings be,
Thy looks should nothing thence, but sweetness tell.
How like Eve's apple doth thy beauty grow,
If thy sweet virtue answer not thy show!
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), no title, appears in Sonnets, no. 93 [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 Richard Simpson (1820 - 1876), "Sonnet XCIII", 1866 [ medium voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in Russian (Русский), a translation by Samuil Yakovlevich Marschak (1887 - 1964) , no title, appears in Шекспир Уильям - сонеты (Shekspir Uil'jam - sonety) = Sonnets of William Shakespeare, no. 93 ; composed by Mikael Leonovich Tariverdiyev.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (François-Victor Hugo) , no title, appears in Sonnets de Shakespeare, no. 93, first published 1857
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-08-12
Line count: 14
Word count: 114
Ainsi je pourrai vivre en te supposant...
Language: French (Français) after the English
Ainsi je pourrai vivre en te supposant fidèle, comme un mari trompé ; ainsi, le visage de l'amour pourra me sembler encore l'amour, malgré ton inconstance, et ton regard être avec moi, et ton cœur être ailleurs. Car, la haine ne pouvant vivre dans tes yeux, je ne pourrai pas lire en eux ton changement. Chez beaucoup, l'histoire des trahisons du cœur est écrite dans un regard, une moue, un froncement, une ride étrange ; Mais le ciel a décrété, en te créant, qu'une douce sympathie respirerait toujours sur ta face ; quelles que soient tes pensées ou les émotions de ton cœur, ton regard ne peut jamais exprimer que la douceur. Oh ! comme ta beauté serait pareille à la pomme d'Ève, si ta suave vertu ne répondait pas à ton apparence !
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by François-Victor Hugo (1828 - 1873), no title, appears in Sonnets de Shakespeare, no. 93, first published 1857 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), no title, appears in Sonnets, no. 93
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: 2010-08-18
Line count: 14
Word count: 129