On the Extinction of the Venetian Republic
On the Extinction of the Venetian Republic
by William Wordsworth
On the Extinction of the Venetian RepublicOnce did She hold the gorgeous east in fee;
And was the safeguard of the west: the worth
Of Venice did not fall below her birth,
Venice, the eldest Child of Liberty.
She was a maiden City, bright and free;
No guile seduced, no force could violate;
And, when she took unto herself a Mate,
She must espouse the everlasting Sea.
And what if she had seen those glories fade,
Those titles vanish, and that strength decay;
Yet shall some tribute of regret be paid
When her long life hath reached its final day:
Men are we, and must grieve when even the Shade
Of that which once was great, is passed away.
威尼斯共和國的滅亡
威廉·華茲華斯
當年她曾掌握豪華的東方的命脈，
又是屏障西方的門戶：威尼斯呀！
她誕生以來從未貶低高貴的身價。
自由之神的長女，綽約處子的形態，
威尼斯這光輝燦爛、崇尚自由的古城，
不受任何詭計誘騙，不許任何暴力侵犯
而當她為自己尋找一個終身侶伴，
只有永恒的大海才配得上她的名聲，
假如她看到種種的光榮竟然蕭疏，
假如她坐視那些頭銜消失，民力凋零，
在她悠久的生命面臨末日時必須付出
畢生飲恨的代價，那該是多么不幸！
我們是人啊，怎能不悲痛，當我們目睹
一度偉大的事物消逝竟然不留蹤影。
（黃宏煦 譯）
詩人簡介威廉·華茲華斯簡介
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