{"work":{"slug":"rilke","title":{"source":"Neue Gedichte","translated":"New Poems"},"author":"Rainer Maria Rilke","language":"German","languageCode":"de","url":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke"},"unit":{"kind":"poem","number":null,"id":"maedchenklage","title":{"source":"Mädchenklage","translated":"A Girl's Lament"},"section":"New Poems","summary":null,"url":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/maedchenklage","lines":19},"previous":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/frueher-apollo","next":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/liebeslied","license":"Source text: public domain (Rainer Maria Rilke, died 1926; Neue Gedichte published 1907 and 1908), from Wikisource. English translation and notes: © 2026 1732 Studios, LLC. Narration: synthesized for this edition.","audioBase":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/","lines":[{"number":1,"label":"1","id":"maedchenklage-s1-l1","source":"Diese Neigung, in den Jahren,","translation":"This inclination, in the years","stanza":1,"audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s1-l1.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"Neigung","title":"A leaning turned into a trait","body":"die Neigung comes from neigen, 'to incline, to bend', and literally means a leaning or slope. Used figuratively, as here, it means a tendency or inclination, the speaker's early pull toward being alone."}],"words":[{"surface":"Diese","lemma":"dieser","morphology":"determiner, nominative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Neigung","gloss":"This"},{"surface":"Neigung","lemma":"Neigung","morphology":"noun, nominative, feminine, singular","role":"subject of war (s1-l3)","gloss":"inclination"},{"surface":"in","lemma":"in","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on Neigung","gloss":"in"},{"surface":"den","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, dative, neuter, plural","role":"depends on Jahren","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"Jahren","lemma":"Jahr","morphology":"noun, dative, neuter, plural","role":"depends on in","gloss":"years"}]},{"number":2,"label":"2","id":"maedchenklage-s1-l2","source":"da wir alle Kinder waren,","translation":"when we were all children,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s1-l2.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"da","title":"A conjunction meaning when","body":"da here is a subordinating conjunction meaning 'when' or 'as', used to set a past time, not its more common senses 'there' or 'because'. Since it opens a subordinate clause, its verb, waren, is sent to the end."}],"words":[{"surface":"da","lemma":"da","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on waren","gloss":"when"},{"surface":"wir","lemma":"wir","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, plural","role":"depends on waren","gloss":"we"},{"surface":"alle","lemma":"aller","morphology":"determiner, nominative, neuter, plural","role":"depends on Kinder","gloss":"all"},{"surface":"Kinder","lemma":"Kind","morphology":"noun, nominative, neuter, plural","role":"depends on waren","gloss":"children"},{"surface":"waren","lemma":"sein","morphology":"auxiliary verb, past, indicative, third-person, plural","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"were"}]},{"number":3,"label":"3","id":"maedchenklage-s1-l3","source":"viel allein zu sein, war mild;","translation":"to be much alone, was mild;","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s1-l3.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"zu sein","title":"An infinitive phrase as subject","body":"zu sein, 'to be', combines with viel allein, 'much alone', to form an infinitive phrase. That whole phrase acts as the subject of war mild, 'was mild'. German can use a full zu-infinitive clause the way English uses a gerund."}],"words":[{"surface":"viel","lemma":"viel","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on allein","gloss":"much"},{"surface":"allein","lemma":"allein","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on sein","gloss":"alone"},{"surface":"zu","lemma":"zu","morphology":"particle","role":"depends on sein","gloss":"to"},{"surface":"sein","lemma":"sein","morphology":"auxiliary verb, infinitive","role":"subject of war (infinitive clause)","gloss":"be"},{"surface":"war","lemma":"sein","morphology":"auxiliary verb, past, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"was"},{"surface":"mild","lemma":"mild","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on war","gloss":"mild"}]},{"number":4,"label":"4","id":"maedchenklage-s1-l4","source":"andern ging die Zeit im Streite,","translation":"for others the time went by in quarrel,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s1-l4.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"andern","title":"Dative marking who is affected","body":"andern is a dative plural meaning 'to others' or 'for others'. In andern ging die Zeit, the dative names the people time passed for. Streite is an older dative form of Streit, 'quarrel', its final -e kept for rhyme."}],"words":[{"surface":"andern","lemma":"anderer","morphology":"pronoun, dative, plural","role":"depends on ging","gloss":"for others","note":"Contracted dative plural of 'anderen' (others), used substantively."},{"surface":"ging","lemma":"gehen","morphology":"verb, past, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"went"},{"surface":"die","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, nominative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Zeit","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"Zeit","lemma":"Zeit","morphology":"noun, nominative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on ging","gloss":"time"},{"surface":"im","lemma":"in","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on ging","gloss":"in"},{"surface":"Streite","lemma":"Streit","morphology":"noun, dative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on im","gloss":"quarrel"}]},{"number":5,"label":"5","id":"maedchenklage-s1-l5","source":"und man hatte seine Seite,","translation":"and one had one's own side,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s1-l5.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"man","title":"The impersonal pronoun one","body":"man means 'one', 'you', or 'people in general', and takes a third-person singular verb, here hatte. Its possessive form is sein-, so seine Seite means 'one's own side'. The poem later shifts from this general man to the personal ich."}],"words":[{"surface":"und","lemma":"und","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on hatte","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"man","lemma":"man","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, singular","role":"depends on hatte","gloss":"one"},{"surface":"hatte","lemma":"haben","morphology":"auxiliary verb, past, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"had"},{"surface":"seine","lemma":"sein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Seite","gloss":"one's"},{"surface":"Seite","lemma":"Seite","morphology":"noun, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on hatte","gloss":"side"}]},{"number":6,"label":"6","id":"maedchenklage-s1-l6","source":"seine Nähe, seine Weite,","translation":"one's nearness, one's distance,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s1-l6.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"Nähe / Weite","title":"A paired pair of opposites","body":"die Nähe means 'nearness, closeness' and die Weite means 'expanse, distance'. Both are abstract nouns built from the adjectives nah and weit. The poem lists them as things the self once possessed, alongside a path, an animal, an image."}],"words":[{"surface":"seine","lemma":"sein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Nähe","gloss":"one's"},{"surface":"Nähe","lemma":"Nähe","morphology":"noun, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on hatte (s1-l5)","gloss":"nearness"},{"surface":"seine","lemma":"sein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Weite","gloss":"one's"},{"surface":"Weite","lemma":"Weite","morphology":"noun, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on hatte (s1-l5)","gloss":"distance"}]},{"number":7,"label":"7","id":"maedchenklage-s1-l7","source":"einen Weg, ein Tier, ein Bild.","translation":"a path, an animal, an image.","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s1-l7.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"einen Weg","title":"Accusative case shown by one noun","body":"Weg, Tier, and Bild are all accusative objects of hatte in the line before. Masculine einen Weg shows the accusative ending -en, while neuter ein Tier and ein Bild look the same as their nominative forms. Only the masculine form reveals the case here."}],"words":[{"surface":"einen","lemma":"ein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on Weg","gloss":"a"},{"surface":"Weg","lemma":"Weg","morphology":"noun, accusative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on hatte (s1-l5)","gloss":"path"},{"surface":"ein","lemma":"ein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on Tier","gloss":"an"},{"surface":"Tier","lemma":"Tier","morphology":"noun, accusative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on hatte (s1-l5)","gloss":"animal"},{"surface":"ein","lemma":"ein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on Bild","gloss":"an"},{"surface":"Bild","lemma":"Bild","morphology":"noun, accusative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on hatte (s1-l5)","gloss":"image"}]},{"number":8,"label":"8","id":"maedchenklage-s2-l1","source":"Und ich dachte noch, das Leben","translation":"And I still thought that life","stanza":2,"audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s2-l1.m4a","notes":[],"words":[{"surface":"Und","lemma":"und","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on dachte","gloss":"And"},{"surface":"ich","lemma":"ich","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, singular","role":"depends on dachte","gloss":"I"},{"surface":"dachte","lemma":"denken","morphology":"verb, past, indicative, first-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"thought"},{"surface":"noch","lemma":"noch","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on dachte","gloss":"still"},{"surface":"das","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, nominative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on Leben","gloss":"that"},{"surface":"Leben","lemma":"Leben","morphology":"noun, nominative, neuter, singular","role":"subject of hörte (s2-l2)","gloss":"life"}]},{"number":9,"label":"9","id":"maedchenklage-s2-l2","source":"hörte niemals auf zu geben,","translation":"would never cease to grant","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s2-l2.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"hörte … auf","title":"Separable prefix splits off","body":"aufhören, 'to stop, to cease', is a separable verb. In a main clause its prefix auf splits from the stem and moves to the end, giving hörte … auf niemals. The pattern aufhören zu geben means 'to stop giving' or 'never cease to give'."}],"words":[{"surface":"hörte","lemma":"aufhören","morphology":"verb, past, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"ceased","note":"Separable verb 'aufhören' (to cease) — its prefix 'auf' appears later in the line."},{"surface":"niemals","lemma":"niemals","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on hörte","gloss":"never"},{"surface":"auf","lemma":"auf","morphology":"particle","role":"depends on hörte (separable prefix)","gloss":"cease"},{"surface":"zu","lemma":"zu","morphology":"particle","role":"depends on geben","gloss":"to"},{"surface":"geben","lemma":"geben","morphology":"verb, infinitive","role":"depends on hörte","gloss":"grant"}]},{"number":10,"label":"10","id":"maedchenklage-s2-l3","source":"daß man sich in sich besinnt.","translation":"that one finds oneself within oneself.","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s2-l3.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"sich besinnen","title":"A reflexive verb doubled","body":"sich besinnen means 'to reflect, to collect oneself, to come to one's senses'. The line doubles it as sich in sich besinnt, 'reflects itself within itself', turning the reflexive verb fully onto the self. daß is the older spelling of dass, 'that'."}],"words":[{"surface":"daß","lemma":"daß","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on besinnt","gloss":"that"},{"surface":"man","lemma":"man","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, singular","role":"depends on besinnt","gloss":"one"},{"surface":"sich","lemma":"sich","morphology":"pronoun, accusative, singular, reflexive","role":"depends on besinnt","gloss":"oneself"},{"surface":"in","lemma":"in","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on besinnt","gloss":"within"},{"surface":"sich","lemma":"sich","morphology":"pronoun, dative, singular, reflexive","role":"depends on in","gloss":"oneself"},{"surface":"besinnt","lemma":"besinnen","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"finds"}]},{"number":11,"label":"11","id":"maedchenklage-s2-l4","source":"Bin ich in mir nicht im Größten?","translation":"Am I not, within myself, at my greatest?","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s2-l4.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"im Größten","title":"Superlative used as a noun","body":"im Größten uses the superlative of groß, 'great', as a noun after the dative preposition in, giving 'in the greatest'. Bin ich …? is an inverted question, formed by placing the verb before the subject."}],"words":[{"surface":"Bin","lemma":"sein","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, first-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"Am"},{"surface":"ich","lemma":"ich","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, singular","role":"depends on Bin","gloss":"I"},{"surface":"in","lemma":"in","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on Bin","gloss":"within"},{"surface":"mir","lemma":"mir","morphology":"pronoun, dative, singular","role":"depends on in","gloss":"myself"},{"surface":"nicht","lemma":"nicht","morphology":"particle","role":"depends on Bin","gloss":"not"},{"surface":"im","lemma":"in","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on Bin","gloss":"at"},{"surface":"Größten","lemma":"groß","morphology":"adjective, dative, neuter, singular, superlative","role":"depends on im","gloss":"greatest"}]},{"number":12,"label":"12","id":"maedchenklage-s2-l5","source":"Will mich meines nicht mehr trösten","translation":"Will what is mine no longer console me","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s2-l5.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"meines","title":"A possessive standing alone as noun","body":"meines is the possessive mein used by itself as a neuter nominative noun, meaning 'what is mine' or 'my own'. It is the subject of will trösten, 'wants to console', while mich, 'me', is the accusative object. Will fronted at the start again marks an inverted question."}],"words":[{"surface":"Will","lemma":"wollen","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"Will"},{"surface":"mich","lemma":"mich","morphology":"pronoun, accusative, singular","role":"depends on trösten","gloss":"me"},{"surface":"meines","lemma":"mein","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, neuter, singular","role":"subject of Will","gloss":"mine"},{"surface":"nicht","lemma":"nicht","morphology":"particle","role":"depends on trösten","gloss":"no"},{"surface":"mehr","lemma":"mehr","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on nicht","gloss":"longer"},{"surface":"trösten","lemma":"trösten","morphology":"verb, infinitive","role":"depends on Will","gloss":"console"}]},{"number":13,"label":"13","id":"maedchenklage-s2-l6","source":"und verstehen wie als Kind?","translation":"and understand me as it did when I was a child?","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s2-l6.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"wie als Kind","title":"A comparison with the verb left out","body":"wie als Kind compresses 'as it did when I was a child'. wie introduces the comparison, and als Kind is a fixed phrase meaning 'as a child'. The verb verstehen, from the line before, carries over and is not repeated."}],"words":[{"surface":"und","lemma":"und","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on Will (s2-l5, coordinates trösten and verstehen)","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"verstehen","lemma":"verstehen","morphology":"verb, infinitive","role":"depends on Will (coordinate with trösten)","gloss":"understand"},{"surface":"wie","lemma":"wie","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on als","gloss":"as"},{"surface":"als","lemma":"als","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on verstehen","gloss":"when"},{"surface":"Kind","lemma":"Kind","morphology":"noun, accusative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on als","gloss":"a child"}]},{"number":14,"label":"14","id":"maedchenklage-s3-l1","source":"Plötzlich bin ich wie verstoßen,","translation":"Suddenly I am as if cast out,","stanza":3,"audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s3-l1.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"verstoßen","title":"Cast out, but only in comparison","body":"verstoßen is the past participle of verstoßen, 'to expel, to disown', used of someone driven from home or family. Preceded by wie, wie verstoßen presents this only as a comparison, not a literal claim."}],"words":[{"surface":"Plötzlich","lemma":"plötzlich","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on bin","gloss":"Suddenly"},{"surface":"bin","lemma":"sein","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, first-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"am"},{"surface":"ich","lemma":"ich","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, singular","role":"depends on bin","gloss":"I"},{"surface":"wie","lemma":"wie","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on verstoßen","gloss":"as if"},{"surface":"verstoßen","lemma":"verstoßen","morphology":"verb, participle","role":"depends on bin","gloss":"cast out"}]},{"number":15,"label":"15","id":"maedchenklage-s3-l2","source":"und zu einem Übergroßen","translation":"and into something overgreat","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s3-l2.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"Übergroßen","title":"The prefix über- intensifies","body":"über-, 'over, beyond', intensifies groß, 'great', into übergroß, 'oversized, immense'. Used as a noun, ein Übergroßes means 'something immense'. The phrase zu einem Übergroßen depends on wird in the next line, giving 'becomes something immense'."}],"words":[{"surface":"und","lemma":"und","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on wird (s3-l3)","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"zu","lemma":"zu","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on wird (s3-l3)","gloss":"into"},{"surface":"einem","lemma":"ein","morphology":"determiner, dative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on Übergroßen","gloss":"a"},{"surface":"Übergroßen","lemma":"übergroß","morphology":"noun, dative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on zu","gloss":"overgreat"}]},{"number":16,"label":"16","id":"maedchenklage-s3-l3","source":"wird mir diese Einsamkeit,","translation":"this loneliness becomes for me,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s3-l3.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"wird … zu","title":"werden zu plus a dative person","body":"werden zu etwas means 'to become, to turn into something'. Across two lines the clause reads diese Einsamkeit wird mir zu einem Übergroßen, 'this loneliness becomes, for me, something immense'. The dative mir marks the person the change affects."}],"words":[{"surface":"wird","lemma":"werden","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"becomes"},{"surface":"mir","lemma":"mir","morphology":"pronoun, dative, singular","role":"depends on wird","gloss":"for me"},{"surface":"diese","lemma":"dieser","morphology":"determiner, nominative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Einsamkeit","gloss":"this"},{"surface":"Einsamkeit","lemma":"Einsamkeit","morphology":"noun, nominative, feminine, singular","role":"subject of wird","gloss":"loneliness"}]},{"number":17,"label":"17","id":"maedchenklage-s3-l4","source":"wenn, auf meiner Brüste Hügeln","translation":"when, standing upon the hills of my breasts,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s3-l4.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"meiner Brüste Hügeln","title":"A genitive placed ahead of its noun","body":"The ordinary order would be auf den Hügeln meiner Brüste, 'on the hills of my breasts'. Rilke instead fronts the genitive meiner Brüste before its noun Hügeln. auf takes the dative Hügeln here because it names a location, not a motion toward it."}],"words":[{"surface":"wenn","lemma":"wenn","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on schreit (s3-l6)","gloss":"when"},{"surface":"auf","lemma":"auf","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on stehend (s3-l5)","gloss":"upon"},{"surface":"meiner","lemma":"mein","morphology":"determiner, genitive, feminine, plural","role":"depends on Brüste","gloss":"my"},{"surface":"Brüste","lemma":"Brust","morphology":"noun, genitive, feminine, plural","role":"depends on Hügeln","gloss":"breasts'"},{"surface":"Hügeln","lemma":"Hügel","morphology":"noun, dative, masculine, plural","role":"depends on auf","gloss":"hills"}]},{"number":18,"label":"18","id":"maedchenklage-s3-l5","source":"stehend, mein Gefühl nach Flügeln","translation":"my feeling cries out for wings","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s3-l5.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"stehend","title":"A present participle used adverbially","body":"stehend, 'standing', is the present participle of stehen, formed by adding -d to the infinitive. Used adverbially, it describes the posture behind mein Gefühl, the feeling named in the same line."},{"kind":"grammar","term":"nach Flügeln","title":"The idiom cry out for","body":"schreien nach etwas means 'to cry out for something', and nach takes the dative. That gives nach Flügeln, 'for wings', and nach einem Ende in the next line. The main verb, schreit, does not arrive until the end of that next line."}],"words":[{"surface":"stehend","lemma":"stehend","morphology":"adverb","role":"head of the phrase (participial: 'standing')","gloss":"standing"},{"surface":"mein","lemma":"mein","morphology":"determiner, nominative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on Gefühl","gloss":"my"},{"surface":"Gefühl","lemma":"Gefühl","morphology":"noun, nominative, neuter, singular","role":"subject of schreit (s3-l6)","gloss":"feeling"},{"surface":"nach","lemma":"nach","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on schreit (s3-l6); idiom 'schreien nach' (cry out for), coordinate with Ende","gloss":"for"},{"surface":"Flügeln","lemma":"Flügel","morphology":"noun, dative, masculine, plural","role":"depends on nach","gloss":"wings"}]},{"number":19,"label":"19","id":"maedchenklage-s3-l6","source":"oder einem Ende schreit.","translation":"or for an ending.","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/maedchenklage-s3-l6.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"Ende","title":"An indefinite ending left open","body":"das Ende means 'the end'. The indefinite form einem Ende, 'an ending', governed by nach from the line before, does not say what kind of ending is meant. The feeling cries für Flügeln oder einem Ende, 'for wings or for an ending'."}],"words":[{"surface":"oder","lemma":"oder","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on schreit","gloss":"or"},{"surface":"einem","lemma":"ein","morphology":"determiner, dative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on Ende","gloss":"an"},{"surface":"Ende","lemma":"Ende","morphology":"noun, dative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on nach (s3-l5, coordinate with Flügeln)","gloss":"ending"},{"surface":"schreit","lemma":"schreien","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"cries out"}]}]}