Vergiftet sind meine Lieder
German source:
Heinrich Heine
Wie könnte es anders sein?
Du hast mir ja Gift gegossen
Ins blühende Leben hinein.
Vergiftet sind meine Lieder; -
Wie könnte es anders sein?
Ich trage im Herzen viel Schlangen,
Und dich, Geliebte mein.
My songs are filled with poison
English translation ©
Hal Draper
Why. shouldn’t that be true?
Into my budding manhood
You poured your poison through.
My songs are filled with poison –
Why shouldn’t that be true?
My heart bears a nest of serpents
And also, darling, you.
Translations by Hal Draper published by Oxford University Press and Suhrkamp/Insel Verlag (1984)
Vergiftet sind meine Lieder
German source:
Heinrich Heine
My songs are filled with poison
English source:
Hal Draper
Vergiftet sind meine Lieder; -
My songs are filled with poison –
Wie könnte es anders sein?
Why. shouldn’t that be true?
Du hast mir ja Gift gegossen
Into my budding manhood
Ins blühende Leben hinein.
You poured your poison through.
Vergiftet sind meine Lieder; -
My songs are filled with poison –
Wie könnte es anders sein?
Why shouldn’t that be true?
Ich trage im Herzen viel Schlangen,
My heart bears a nest of serpents
Und dich, Geliebte mein.
And also, darling, you.
Composer
Poet
Heinrich Heine
Heine was born of Jewish parents. Much of his early life was influenced by the financial power of his uncle Salomon Heine, a millionaire Hamburg banker, with whom he remained on an awkward footing for many years. After he had been educated in the…