Falsembiante
«I' fo sì fintamente ogne mio fatto
Che Protëus[so], che già si solea
Mutare in tutto ciò ched e' volea,
Non sep[p]e unquanche il quarto di baratto
Come fo io, che non tenni ancor patto,
E nonn-è ancor nessun che se n'adea,
Tanto non stea commeco o mangi o bea
Che nella fine no·gli faccia un tratto.
Chéd i' so mia faz[z]on sì ben cambiare
Ched i' non fui unquanche conosciuto
In luogo, tanto vi potesse usare:
Ché chi mi crede più aver veduto,
Cogli atti miei gli so gli oc[c]hi fasciare,
Sì ch'e' m'à incontanente isconosciuto.
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False Seeming
"Everything I do, I do with deception,
such that Proteus, who was used
to changing into whatever he desired to be
did not know even a fourth of the deceptions
that I know. Never did I keep a promise,
and no one is aware of this,
not even the one who passes time or eats or drinks with me;
in the end I'll pull a dirty trick on him.
For I know how to change my appearance so well
that I've never been recognized
anywhere, even though I may have been there long;
for the one who thinks he's seen me many times,
with my tricks I know how to swathe his eyes,
so that he immediately unrecognizes me."
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Falsembiante
«I' sì so ben per cuor ogne linguag[g]io;
Le vite d'esto mondo i' ò provate:
Ch'un'or divento prete, un'altra frate,
Or prinze, or cavaliere, or fante, or pag[g]io,
Secondo ched i' veg[g]io mi' vantag[g]io;
Un'altr'or son prelato, un'altra abate;
Molto mi piaccion gente regolate,
Ché co·llor cuopr' i' meglio il mi' volpag[g]io.
Ancor mi fo romito e pellegrino,
Cherico e avocato e g[i]ustiziere
E monaco e calonaco e bighino;
E castellan mi fo e forestiere,
E giovane alcun' ora e vec[c]hio chino:
A brieve mott' i' son d'ogni mestiere.
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False Seeming
"I know every language by heart;
I have experienced the various ways of this world:
on one occasion I become a priest, on another a friar,
now a prince, now a knight, now a servant, now a page,
according to where I see my advantage.
Another time I'm a prelate, and then an abbot;
I really like those in religious orders,
because with them I can better hide my fox-like nature.
In addition I become a hermit and pilgrim,
clerk and lawyer and judge,
monk and parish priest and beguine.
I become keeper of the castle and forester,
and sometimes a youth and an old man hunched over:
in short, I am a jack of all trades."
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Falsembiante
«Sì prendo poi, per seguir mia compagna,
Cioè madon[n]a Costretta-Astinenza,
Altri dighisamenti a sua vogl[i]enza,
Perch'ella mi sollaz[z]a e m'acompagna;
E metto pena perch'ella rimagna
Comeco, perch'ell' è di gran sofrenza
E s[ì] amostra a·ttal gran benvoglienza
Ch'ella vor[r]eb[b]e che fosse in Ispagna.
Ella si fa pinzochera e badessa
E monaca e rinchiusa e serviziale,
E fassi sopriora e prioressa.
Idio sa ben sed ell' è spiritale!
Altr' or si fa noviz[z]a, altr' or professa;
Ma, che che faccia, non pensa c[h]'a male.
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False Seeming
"Thus, in order to accompany my lady-friend,
whose name is Forced Abstinence,
I assume other disguises at her wish,
because she gives me pleasure and companionship.
And I make an effort for her to stay
with me, because she's very tolerant
and knows how to show great compassion
toward someone whom she would want to be in Spain.
She becomes a mendicant and an abbess,
a nun --regular, cloistered and lay--
and she becomes a vice-prioress and prioress.
Only God knows if she is truly spiritual!
Sometimes she becomes a novice, sometimes a professed nun;
but, no matter what she does, she only thinks of doing evil."
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Falsembiante
«Ancor sì no·mi par nulla travaglia
Gir per lo mondo inn-ogne regïone
E ricercar ogne religïone;
Ma della religion, sa·nulla faglia,
I' lascio il grano e prendone la paglia,
Ch'i' non vo' che·ll'abito a lor faz[z]one
E predicar dolze predicazione:
Con questi due argomenti il mondo abaglia.
Così vo io mutando e suono e verso
E dicendo parole umili e piane,
Ma molt'è il fatto mio a·dir diverso:
Ché tutti que' c[h]'og[g]i manùcar pane
No·mi ter[r]ian ch'i' non gisse traverso,
Ch'i' ne son ghiotto più che d'unto il cane».
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False Seeming
"Moreover, it seems to me no work at all
to go around the regions of the world
seeking out every religious order;
but in matters of religion I unfailingly
leave the fruit behind and take the straw,
for I only want my habit to be like theirs
and to be able to preach sweet sermons:
with these two devices the world is blinded.
And thus I go about changing both tone and verse
and saying humble and simple words,
but my actions are quite different from my words;
for all those who today are eating bread
could not keep me from wandering off the straight path,
for I am more desirous of this than a dog is of fat."
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Amore e Falsembiante
Falso-Sembiante si volle sofrire
Sanza dir de' suo' fatti più in avante,
Ma 'l Die d'Amor non fece pa sembiante
Ched e' fosse anoiato dell'udire,
Anzi gli disse per lui ringioire:
«E' convien al postutto, Falsembiante,
C[h]'ogne tua tradigion tu sì·cci cante,
Sì che non vi rimanga nulla a dire,
Ché·ttu mi pari un uon di Gesocristo
E 'l portamento fai di santo ermito».
«Egli è ben vero, ma i' sono ipocristo».
«Predicar astinenza i' t'ò udito
«Ver è, ma, per ch'i' faccia il viso tristo,
I' son di buon' morsei dentro farsito.
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Love and False Seeming
False Seeming wanted to stop
without saying any more about his activities,
but the God of Love gave no sign
that he was bored by these words.
Indeed, to make him happy, he said:
"In the end it's best for you, False Seeming,
to tell us of your treachery,
so that you'll have no more to say,
for you seem to me a man of Jesus Christ,
and you behave like a holy hermit."
"That's very true, but I am a hypocrite."
"I heard you preach abstinence."
"It's true, but although I show a sad face,
inside I am stuffed with tasty morsels."
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