Alas, poor Dido, you rage against love

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by Anonymous / Unidentified Author and sometimes misattributed to Pierre de Ronsard (1524 - 1585)

Translation © by David Wyatt

Las! ô pauvré Didon

Language: French (Français)

Our translations: ENG

Las! ô pauvre Didon contre amour qui fostine,
Furieux dans ton coeur ne scauroit on trouver
Quelque piteux secours qui te puisse sauver
Des assaus de la mort ja preste à ta ruine:

Laisse laisse forcer les flotz de la marine
A ce traistre cruel. Ha, te veux je priver
Encore de tout espoir, et toy-mesme grever
D’un fort glaive enfonçant ton indigne poitrine.

S’il te laisse pourtant il n’eschapera pas
La vengeance des dieux qui talonne ses pas.
He voy avec ta seur, ta tumbante Cartage.

Ne croy helas ne croy cest amour desraiglé
Qui te force le sens car il est aveuglé
Et ne trompe ton mal par un plus grand dommage.

Text Authorship:

by Anonymous / Unidentified Author [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
sometimes misattributed to Pierre de Ronsard (1524 - 1585)

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

by Anthoine de Bertrand (1540? - 1581?), "Las! ô pauvré Didon", published 1578 [ vocal quartet a cappella ], from 25 Chansons à 4 parties, Livre 3, no. 18 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (David Wyatt) , copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this page: David Wyatt

This text was added to the website: 2019-10-30
Line count: 14
Word count: 114

Alas, poor Dido, you rage against love

Language: English after the French (Français)

Alas, poor Dido, you rage against love
Furiously; no-one could hope to find in your heart
Any pity to assist in saving you
From the attacks of death, now ready to ruin you.

Leave, yes leave that cruel traitor to storm
The waves of the sea! Yes, I would take away from you
All hope, and burden you
With a strong sword driven into your unworthy heart.

If he leaves you, yet he won’t escape
The vengeance of the gods who hound his steps.
Watch with your sister as your Carthage falls.

But do not believe that love goes unpunished 
Which overwhelms your senses, for he too is blinded,
And do not betray your wrongs with a greater sin.

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Text Authorship:

Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2019 by David Wyatt, (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 French (Français) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist and misattributed to Pierre de Ronsard (1524 - 1585)
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2019-10-30
Line count: 14
Word count: 119