by
Georg Trakl (1887 - 1914)
Die Ratten
Language: German (Deutsch)
Available translation(s): ENG FRE ITA
In Hof scheint weiß der herbstliche Mond.
Vom Dachrand fallen phantastische Schatten.
Ein Schweigen in leeren Fenstern wohnt;
Da tauchen leise herauf die Ratten
Und huschen pfeifend hier und dort
Und ein gräulicher Dunsthauch wittert
Ihnen nach aus dem Abort,
Den geisterhaft der Mondschein durchzittert
Und sie keifen vor Gier wie toll
Und erfüllen Haus und Scheunen,
Die von Korn und Früchten voll.
Eisige Winde im Dunkel greinen.
Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Bertram Kottmann) , "The rats", copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Les rats", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , "I topi", copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-10-29
Line count: 12
Word count: 68
The rats
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch)
The autumn moon shines milk-white in the yard.
Chimeric shadows fall from eaves and crests.
A silence dwells in empty windows;
then furtively the rats appear
and scurry whistling here and there
and a grayish vapour scents them
following them from the latrine,
on which the moonlight quivers eerily
and they shriek as if mad from greed
and crowd barns and houses,
full of grain and fruit.
Icy winds whine in the darkness.
Authorship:
Based on:
This text was added to the website: 2018-11-28
Line count: 12
Word count: 73