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When I have ceased to break my wings Against the faultiness of things, And learned that compromises wait Behind each hardly opened gate, When I can look Life in the eyes, Grown calm and very coldly wise, Life will have given me the Truth, And taken in exchange -- my youth.
Confirmed with Sara Teasdale, Love Songs, New York, The Macmillan Company, 1917, page 50.
Authorship:
- by Sara Teasdale (1884 - 1933), "Wisdom", appears in Love Songs, in 2. Interlude: Songs out of Sorrow, no. 4, first published 1917 [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 Daron Aric Hagen (b. 1961), "Wisdom" [voice and piano], from Songs of Experience, no. 3. [text not verified]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , title 1: "Sagesse", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-10-24
Line count: 8
Word count: 50
Quand j'aurai cessé de me briser les ailes Sur l'imperfection des choses, Et appris que les compromis attendent Derrière chaque porte à peine ouverte, Quand je pourrai regarder la Vie dans les yeux, Devenir calme et très froidement sage, La vie m'aura offert la Vérité, Et pris en échange ma jeunesse.
Authorship:
- Translation from English to French (Français) copyright © 2015 by Pierre Mathé, (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.
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Based on:
- a text in English by Sara Teasdale (1884 - 1933), "Wisdom", appears in Love Songs, in 2. Interlude: Songs out of Sorrow, no. 4, first published 1917
This text was added to the website: 2015-10-13
Line count: 8
Word count: 51