| S' I' FOSSE FOCO, ARDEREI ‘L MONDO ... |
IF I WERE FIRE, I’D BURN UP THE WORLD ... |
| Cecco Angiolieri | tr. Leonard Cottrell |
|
S' i' fosse foco, arderei ‘l mondo; S' i' fosse vento, lo tempesterei; S' i' fosse acqua, i' l'annegherei; S' i' fosse Dio, manderei l' in profondo; S' i' fosse papa, sare' allor giocondo, Che tutt' i cristiani imbrighierei: S' i' fosse ‘mperator, sa' che farei? A tutti mozzarei lo capo a tondo. S' i' fosse morte, andarei da mio padre; S' i' fosse vita, fuggirei da lui: Similmente faria da mi' madre. S' i' fosse Cecco, com' i' sono e fui, Torre le donne giovan' e leggiadre E vecchi' e laide lasserei altrui. |
If I were fire, I’d burn up the world; if I were storm, I’d raise a giant swell and drown it all; if I were God I’d hurl this rat’s-ass circus all the way to hell. If I were pope, how happy I would be! I’d cheat the Christians blind and suck their blood. To serve as emperor I might agree, so I could chop off everybody's head. If I were death, I’d go to see my dad - of course with mother I would do the same. If I were life, I’d run from them like mad. If I were Cecco, as I was and am, I’d take the lovely and the lively dames and leave for you the ugly and the sad. |
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For more of this translator's work see: http://planck.com/rhymedtranslations/versetrans.htm
Trans. Copyright © Leonard Cottrell 2001