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Lo, as a careful housewife runs to catch
One of her feather'd creatures broke away,
Sets down her babe, and makes all swift dispatch
In pursuit of the thing she would have stay;
Whilst her neglected child holds her in chase,
Cries to catch her whose busy care is bent
To follow that which flies before her face,
Not prizing her poor infant's discontent;
So runn'st thou after that which flies from thee,
Whilst I thy babe chase thee afar behind;
But if thou catch thy hope, turn back to me,
And play the mother's part, kiss me, be kind;
So will I pray that thou mayst have thy 'Will,'
If thou turn back and my loud crying still.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), no title, appears in Sonnets, no. 143 [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 Richard Simpson (1820 - 1876), "Sonnet CXLIII", 1866 [ high voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (François-Victor Hugo) , no title, appears in Sonnets de Shakespeare, no. 143, first published 1857
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-08-13
Line count: 14
Word count: 119
Come una massaia solerte corre per acchiappare una de delle sue piumate creature che si è allontanata, posa, allora, il suo bimbo e si affretta a inseguire l’animale veloce che sta per fuggire, Mentre il bimbo, ignorato, l’insegue strillando per raggiungere la madre che è tutta impegnata a rincorrere, a sua volta, chi le vola sotto il naso, non curandosi del bimbo che piange disperato; Così chi da te sta fuggendo tu insegui, mentre io, come il bimbo, dietro ti corro; ma se riesci a raggiungere quello che speri, volgiti indietro e, premurosa, dammi un bacio materno. Io pregherò perché tu il tuo “Voglio” tu possa accontentare, se ti volgerai un momento il mio pianto a placare.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translator's note for line 13: see Sonnet 136.
Text Authorship:
- 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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Based on:
- a text in English by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), no title, appears in Sonnets, no. 143
This text was added to the website: 2025-07-16
Line count: 14
Word count: 117