by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616)
Translation © by Ferdinando Albeggiani

The expense of spirit in a waste of...
Language: English 
Our translations:  ITA
The expense of spirit in a waste of shame
Is lust in action: and till action, lust
Is perjur'd, murderous, bloody, full of blame,
Savage, extreme, rude, cruel, not to trust;
Enjoy'd no sooner but despised straight;
Past reason hunted; and no sooner had,
Past reason hated, as a swallow'd bait,
On purpose laid to make the taker mad:
Mad in pursuit and in possession so;
Had, having, and in quest, to have extreme;
A bliss in proof, -- and prov'd, a very woe;
Before, a joy propos'd; behind a dream.
    All this the world well knows; yet none knows well
    To shun the heaven that leads men to this hell.

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This text was added to the website: 2010-08-11
Line count: 14
Word count: 110

Spreco di spirito e vergognosa rovina
Language: Italian (Italiano)  after the English 
Spreco di spirito e vergognosa rovina
è la lussuria in azione: e, finché questa dura,
essa è spergiura, assassina, cruenta, d’ogni colpa piena,
selvaggia, estrema, brutale, crudele, e pure traditora;
Quando è appena goduta, subito è disprezzata;
Fuor di ragione cercata; e non appena trovata
fuor di ragione odiata, come un’esca gettata,
per render folle quello che  l’ha ingoiata:
Con rabbia voluta e  con rabbia posseduta;
intensamente cercata, ottenuta, ricordata;
deliziosa alla prova ma poi seguita da afflizione;
prima, una gioia, dopo, solo un’illusione.
Questo tutti lo sanno ma nessuno è capace
di evitare quel paradiso che all’inferno conduce.

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  • Translation from English to Italian (Italiano) copyright © 2025 by Ferdinando Albeggiani, (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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This text was added to the website: 2025-07-16
Line count: 14
Word count: 99