by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861)
Translation by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926)
Indeed this very love which is my boast
Language: English
Indeed this very love which is my boast, And which, when rising up from breast to brow, Doth crown me with a ruby large enow To draw men's eyes and prove the inner cost, -- This love even, all my worth, to the uttermost, I should not love withal, unless that thou Hadst set me an example, shown me how, When first thine earnest eyes with mine were crossed, And love called love. And thus, I cannot speak Of love even, as a good thing of my own: Thy soul hath snatched up mine all faint and weak, And placed it by thee on a golden throne, -- And that I love (O soul, we must be meek!) Is by thee only, whom I love alone.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861), no title, appears in Poems, in Sonnets from the Portuguese, no. 12, first published 1847 [author's text not yet checked 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 Louis Cheslock (1898 - 1981), "Indeed this very love which is my boast" [ mezzo-soprano or tenor and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Eleanor Everest Freer (1864 - 1942), "Indeed this very love which is my boast", published 1910 [ medium voice and piano ], from Sonnets from the Portuguese, no. 12 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Bernard James Naylor (1907 - 1986), "Indeed this very love which is my boast", 1948, first performed 1955 [ mezzo-soprano and string quartet ], from Sonnets from the Portuguese [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- GER German (Deutsch) (Rainer Maria Rilke) , no title, appears in Sonette aus dem Portugiesischen, no. 12, first published 1908
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-07-23
Line count: 14
Word count: 124
Doch die mein Stolz ist, diese Liebe,...
Language: German (Deutsch) after the English
Doch die mein Stolz ist, diese Liebe, die, aufsteigend aus der Brust zu meinen Brauen, die Menschen nötigt, nach mir her zu schauen, wie ein Rubin, dem man es ansieht, wie kostbar er ist, - mein Köstlichstes: auch sie hätt ich nicht lieben können, wäre nicht dein Beispiel vor mir: hätte dein Gesicht sich mir nicht zugekehrt, ernst wie noch nie Liebe begehrend. So daß ich die meine nicht nennen darf wie mir entstammt und mein. Denn deine Seele hob mich auf als eine Hinschwindende zu deinem Thron. Und daß ich liebe den ich liebe (Seele laß uns Demut lernen) kommt von dir allein.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926), no title, appears in Sonette aus dem Portugiesischen, no. 12, first published 1908 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861), no title, appears in Poems, in Sonnets from the Portuguese, no. 12, first published 1847
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- [ None yet in the database ]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-02-19
Line count: 14
Word count: 103