1779 poem written by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Der Fischer" (English: "The Fisher") is a ballad by Goethe, written in 1779. Goethe's poem describes an exchange between a fisher and a mermaid who accuses him of luring her brood. As revenge, she enchants him with her song and pulls him into the water.[1]
You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in German. (May 2016) Click [show] for important translation instructions.
Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia.
Consider adding a topic to this template: there are already 1,817 articles in the main category, and specifying|topic= will aid in categorization.
Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article.
You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing German Wikipedia article at [[:de:Der Fischer (Goethe)]]; see its history for attribution.
You may also add the template {{Translated|de|Der Fischer (Goethe)}} to the talk page.
Das Wasser rauscht', das Wasser schwoll, Ein Fischer saß daran, Sah nach dem Angel ruhevoll, Kühl bis ans Herz hinan. Und wie er sitzt und wie er lauscht, Teilt sich die Flut empor: Aus dem bewegten Wasser rauscht Ein feuchtes Weib hervor.
Sie sang zu ihm, sie sprach zu ihm: »Was lockst du meine Brut Mit Menschenwitz und Menschenlist Hinauf in Todesglut? Ach wüßtest du, wie's Fischlein ist So wohlig auf dem Grund, Du stiegst herunter, wie du bist, Und würdest erst gesund.
Labt sich die liebe Sonne nicht, Der Mond sich nicht im Meer? Kehrt wellenatmend ihr Gesicht Nicht doppelt schöner her? Lockt dich der tiefe Himmel nicht, Das feuchtverklärte Blau? Lockt dich dein eigen Angesicht Nicht her in ew'gen Tau?«
Das Wasser rauscht', das Wasser schwoll, Netzt' ihm den nackten Fuß; Sein Herz wuchs ihm so sehnsuchtsvoll Wie bei der Liebsten Gruß. Sie sprach zu ihm, sie sang zu ihm; Da war's um ihn geschehn; Halb zog sie ihn, halb sank er hin Und ward nicht mehr gesehn.
The waters purled, the waters swelled,— A fisher sat near by, And earnestly his line beheld With tranquil heart and eye; And while he sits and watches there, He sees the waves divide, And, lo! a maid, with glistening hair, Springs from the troubled tide.
She sang to him, she spake to him,— "Why lur'st thou from below, In cruel mood, my tender brood, To die in day’s fierce glow? Ah! didst thou know how sweetly there The little fishes dwell, Thou wouldst come down their lot to share, And be forever well.
"Bathes not the smiling sun at night— The moon too—in the waves? Comes he not forth more fresh and bright From ocean's cooling caves? Canst thou unmoved that deep world see, That heaven of tranquil blue, Where thine own face is beckoning thee Down to the eternal dew?"
The waters purled, the waters swelled, They kissed his naked feet; His heart a nameless transport held, As if his love did greet. She spake to him, she sang to him; Then all with him was o'er,— Half drew she him, half sank he in,— He sank to rise no more.
Between 1856 and 1858, Frederic Leighton made the painting The Fisherman and the Syren, which is now on display in the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery, with explicit reference to Goethe's poem:
Half drew she him, Half sunk he in, And never more was seen.[3]
Brooks, Charles Timothy, trans. (1904). "The Fisher". In Carman, Bliss, et al. (eds.). The World’s Best Poetry. Vol. VI. Fancy. Philadelphia: John D. Morris & Co.
Hyner, Bernadette H. & Stearns, Precious McKenzie (2009). Forces of Nature: Natural(-Izing) Gender and Gender(-Ing) Nature in the Discourses of Western Culture. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.