La belle dame sans merci | Was mag dich plagen, Rittersmann?

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by John Keats (1795 - 1821), as Caviare

Translation © by Bertram Kottmann

La belle dame sans merci

(Sung text for setting by W. Mayer)

See base text

Language: English

Our translations: GER ITA

O what can ail thee, knight-at-arms,
   Alone and palely loitering?
The sedge has wither'd from the lake,
   And no birds sing.

 ... 

I met a lady in the meads,
   Full beautiful -- a faery's child,
Her hair was long, her foot was light,
   And her eyes were wild.

I see a lily on thy brow
   With anguish moist and fever dew,
And on thy cheeks a fading rose
   Fast withereth too.

 ... 

I made a garland for her head,
   And bracelets too, and fragrant zone;
She look'd at me as she did love,
   And made sweet moan.

 ... 

She found me roots of relish sweet,
   And honey wild, and manna dew,
And sure in language strange she said --
   "I love thee true."

 ... 

There she lull'd me asleep,
   There I dream'd --  ...  woe betide!
The latest dream I ever dream'd
   On the cold hillside.

I saw pale kings and princes too,
   Pale warriors, death-pale were they all;
Who cried -- "La Belle Dame sans Merci
   Hath thee in thrall!"

 ... 
And I awoke and found me here,
   On the cold hillside.

And this is why I sojourn here,
   Alone and palely loitering,
Though the sedge is wither'd from the lake,
   And no birds sing.

Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1,4,3,5,7,9-12 of the original text.

Note: in the published form of this poem, each stanza has a Roman numeral. We have removed them. First published in Indicator, May 1820.

Composition:

William Mayer

Text Authorship:

by John Keats (1795 - 1821), as Caviare, "La belle dame sans merci", appears in Life, Letters, and Literary Remains, of John Keats, first published 1820

See other settings of this text.

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

CZE Czech (Čeština) (Jaroslav Vrchlický) , "La belle dame sans merci"
GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "La belle dame sans merci", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
HUN Hungarian (Magyar) (Mihály Babits) , "La belle dame sans merci"
ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , "La belle dame sans merci", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Ted Perry , Garrett Medlock [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 48
Word count: 297

La belle dame sans merci

(Sung text translation for setting by W. Mayer)

See original

Language: German (Deutsch) after the English

Was mag dich plagen, Rittersmann?
Schweifst so allein und fahl umher.
Das Ried verdorrt am See, es singt 
kein Vöglein mehr.

 ... 

Ich traf ein Fräulein in der Au,
berückend schön, ein Feenbild;
ihr Haar war lang, ihr Gang war leicht,
ihr Blick war wild.

Trägst eine Lilie  auf der Stirn,
von Schmerzen feucht und Fieberhauch;
die Rose, deiner Wangen Zier,
rasch welkt sie auch.

 ... 

Ich flocht ein Kränzlein um ihr Haupt,
um Arm und Leib duftigen Kreis;
sie sah mich an, tat ganz verliebt
und seufzte leis.

 ... 

Wohl wilden Honig, Wurzeln süß 
und Mannatau fand sie für mich,
in fremdem Ton sprach sie gewiss:
'Treu lieb ich dich.'

 ... 

Daselbst sang sie mich in den Schlaf,
dann träumte ich, weh mir, oh weh,
den letzten Traum, den je ich träumt
auf kalter Höh:

Könige fahl, Prinzen zugleich,
Krieger todbleich starrten mich an;
sie schrie'n, 'La belle dame sans merci
hält dich in Bann!'

Ich sah die schmalen Münder weit
im Dämmer warnend offen steh'n -
erwachte dann und fand mich hier
auf kalten Höhn.

So schweife ich an diesem Ort
allein und fahl, ziellos umher;
singt auch im dorren Ried am See 
kein Vöglein mehr.

Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1,4,3,5,7,9-12 of the original text.

Text Authorship:

Translation from English to German (Deutsch) copyright © 2008 by Bertram Kottmann, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you must ask the copyright-holder(s) directly for permission. If you receive no response, you must consider it a refusal.
Bertram Kottmann. Contact: BKottmann (AT) t-online.de
If you wish to commission a new translation, please contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in English by John Keats (1795 - 1821), as Caviare, "La belle dame sans merci", appears in Life, Letters, and Literary Remains, of John Keats, first published 1820
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This text was added to the website: 2008-05-19
Line count: 48
Word count: 250