Sonnet XXIV | Esprit bien né, en qui est réfléchi et vu

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by Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475 - 1564)

Translation © by Guy Laffaille

Sonetto XXIV

Language: Italian (Italiano)

Our translations: ENG FRE LIT SPA

Spirto ben nato, in cui si specchia e vede
Nelle tuo belle membra oneste e care
Quante natura e 'l ciel tra no' puo' fare,
Quand'a null'altra suo bell'opra cede;
Spirto leggiadro, in cui si spera e crede
Dentro, come di fuor nel viso appare,
Amor, pietà, mercè, cose sì rare
Che mà furn'in beltà con tanta fede;
L'amor mi prende, e la beltà mi lega;
La pietà, la mercè con dolci sguardi
Ferma speranz'al cor par che ne doni.
Qual uso o qual governo al mondo niega,
Qual crudeltà per tempo, o qual più tardi,
C'a sì bel viso morte non perdoni?

Text Authorship:

by Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475 - 1564), appears in Rime, no. 41 [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 (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976), "Sonetto XXIV", op. 22 no. 7 (1940), published 1943 [ voice and piano ], from Seven Sonnets of Michelangelo, no. 7 [sung text checked 1 time]

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

Also set in English, a translation by John Addington Symonds (1840 - 1893) , appears in The Sonnets of Michael Angelo Buonarroti and Tommaso Campanella now for the first time translated into rhymed English ; composed by John Mitchell.
- Go to the text.

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

ENG English (Carl Johengen) , "Sonnet XXIV", copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Sonnet XXIV", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
LIT Lithuanian (Lietuvių kalba) (Giedrius Prunskus) , "Sonetas XXIV", copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
SPA Spanish (Español) (Juan Henríquez Concepción) , copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 14
Word count: 103

Sonnet XXIV

Language: French (Français) after the Italian (Italiano)

Esprit bien né, en qui est réfléchi et vu
Dans tes beaux membres, honnête et cher,
Tout ce que la nature et le ciel peuvent créer,
Surpassant toute autre œuvre de beauté ;
Esprit gracieux, en qui on espère et on croit,
Demeurent, comme ils apparaissent sur ton visage,
Amour, pitié, miséricorde, choses si rares
Et jamais trouvées dans la beauté avec une telle foi ;
L'amour me prend, et la beauté me lie ;
La pitié, la miséricorde avec de doux regards
Avec une ferme espoir remplissent mon cœur.
Quelle règle ou quel gouvernement du monde,
Quelle cruauté de ce temps ou de plus tard,
Pourrait empêcher la mort d'épargner un si beau visage ?

Text Authorship:

Translation from Italian (Italiano) to French (Français) copyright © 2015 by Guy Laffaille, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in Italian (Italiano) by Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475 - 1564), appears in Rime, no. 41
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This text was added to the website: 2015-08-29
Line count: 14
Word count: 112