{"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":"roemische-campagna","title":{"source":"Römische Campagna","translated":"The Roman Campagna"},"section":"New Poems: The Other Part","summary":null,"url":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/roemische-campagna","lines":14},"previous":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/landschaft","next":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/lied-vom-meer","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":"roemische-campagna-s1-l1","source":"Aus der vollgestellten Stadt, die lieber","translation":"Out of the crowded city, which would rather","stanza":1,"audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s1-l1.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"vollgestellt","title":"Past participle of vollstellen","body":"vollgestellt is the past participle of vollstellen, 'to fill up, clutter a space with things', from voll, 'full', plus stellen, 'to place'. die vollgestellte Stadt is Rome jammed full of buildings. lieber completes with schliefe next line."}],"words":[{"surface":"Aus","lemma":"aus","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on geht (line 3)","gloss":"out of"},{"surface":"der","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, dative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Stadt","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"vollgestellten","lemma":"vollgestellt","morphology":"adjective, dative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Stadt","gloss":"crowded"},{"surface":"Stadt","lemma":"Stadt","morphology":"noun, dative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Aus","gloss":"city"},{"surface":"die","lemma":"der","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on schliefe (next line)","gloss":"which"},{"surface":"lieber","lemma":"lieber","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on schliefe (next line)","gloss":"rather"}]},{"number":2,"label":"2","id":"roemische-campagna-s1-l2","source":"schliefe, träumend von den hohen Thermen,","translation":"sleep, dreaming of the high baths,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s1-l2.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"schliefe","title":"Subjunctive expressing a wish","body":"schliefe is Konjunktiv II of schlafen, 'to sleep'. With lieber from the line above it forms a wish contrary to fact, die lieber schliefe, 'which would rather sleep'. Thermen are the Roman bath complexes, whose ruins still stand."}],"words":[{"surface":"schliefe","lemma":"schlafen","morphology":"verb, past, subjunctive, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the relative clause (die...schliefe); subject is die (previous line)","gloss":"would sleep"},{"surface":"träumend","lemma":"träumend","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on schliefe","gloss":"dreaming"},{"surface":"von","lemma":"von","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on träumend","gloss":"of"},{"surface":"den","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, dative, feminine, plural","role":"depends on Thermen","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"hohen","lemma":"hoch","morphology":"adjective, dative, feminine, plural","role":"depends on Thermen","gloss":"high"},{"surface":"Thermen","lemma":"Therme","morphology":"noun, dative, feminine, plural","role":"depends on von","gloss":"baths"}]},{"number":3,"label":"3","id":"roemische-campagna-s1-l3","source":"geht der grade Gräberweg ins Fieber;","translation":"the straight road of tombs goes out into the fever;","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s1-l3.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"Gräberweg","title":"Compound naming a road of tombs","body":"Gräberweg joins Gräber, plural of Grab, 'grave, tomb', to Weg, 'road, way': a road lined with tombs. grade is the clipped form of gerade, 'straight'. ins Fieber names the malaria long associated with the Roman Campagna."}],"words":[{"surface":"geht","lemma":"gehen","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"goes"},{"surface":"der","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, nominative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on Gräberweg","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"grade","lemma":"gerade","morphology":"adjective, nominative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on Gräberweg","gloss":"straight"},{"surface":"Gräberweg","lemma":"Gräberweg","morphology":"noun, nominative, masculine, singular","role":"subject of geht","gloss":"road of tombs"},{"surface":"ins","lemma":"in","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on geht","gloss":"into"},{"surface":"Fieber","lemma":"Fieber","morphology":"noun, accusative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on ins","gloss":"fever"}]},{"number":4,"label":"4","id":"roemische-campagna-s1-l4","source":"und die Fenster in den letzten Fermen","translation":"and the windows in the last farmhouses","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s1-l4.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"Fermen","title":"A borrowed word for farmhouses","body":"Fermen is the plural of Ferme, a borrowing from French ferme, 'farm', naming outlying farmhouses at the city's edge. Everyday German would say Höfe. in den letzten Fermen is dative after in, 'in the last farmsteads'."}],"words":[{"surface":"und","lemma":"und","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on sehn (next line)","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"die","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, nominative, neuter, plural","role":"depends on Fenster","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"Fenster","lemma":"Fenster","morphology":"noun, nominative, neuter, plural","role":"subject of sehn (next line)","gloss":"windows"},{"surface":"in","lemma":"in","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on Fenster","gloss":"in"},{"surface":"den","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, dative, feminine, plural","role":"depends on Fermen","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"letzten","lemma":"letzter","morphology":"adjective, dative, feminine, plural","role":"depends on Fermen","gloss":"last"},{"surface":"Fermen","lemma":"Ferme","morphology":"noun, dative, feminine, plural","role":"depends on in","gloss":"farmhouses"}]},{"number":5,"label":"5","id":"roemische-campagna-s2-l1","source":"sehn ihm nach mit einem bösen Blick.","translation":"watch after it with an evil look.","stanza":2,"audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s2-l1.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"sehn ... nach","title":"Separable verb, dative object","body":"nachsehen, 'to gaze after someone leaving', is separable: the prefix nach- splits off to the end of the clause, sehn ihm nach, 'gaze after it'. sehn is the poetic short form of sehen, and it takes a dative object, ihm."}],"words":[{"surface":"sehn","lemma":"sehen","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, plural","role":"main verb of the sentence; subject is die Fenster (previous line)","gloss":"watch"},{"surface":"ihm","lemma":"er","morphology":"pronoun, dative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on sehn","gloss":"it"},{"surface":"nach","lemma":"nach","morphology":"particle","role":"depends on sehn, forms nachsehen","gloss":"after"},{"surface":"mit","lemma":"mit","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on sehn","gloss":"with"},{"surface":"einem","lemma":"ein","morphology":"determiner, dative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on Blick","gloss":"a"},{"surface":"bösen","lemma":"böse","morphology":"adjective, dative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on Blick","gloss":"evil"},{"surface":"Blick","lemma":"Blick","morphology":"noun, dative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on mit","gloss":"look"}]},{"number":6,"label":"6","id":"roemische-campagna-s2-l2","source":"Und er hat sie immer im Genick,","translation":"And it feels them always at the back of its neck,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s2-l2.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"im Genick","title":"Idiom for feeling pursued","body":"Genick is the nape, the back of the neck. The idiom jemanden im Genick haben means to have someone right behind you. Here er, the road, feels the windows' stares immer im Genick, 'always at its back'."}],"words":[{"surface":"Und","lemma":"und","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on hat","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"er","lemma":"er","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on hat","gloss":"it"},{"surface":"hat","lemma":"haben","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"has","note":"'jemanden im Genick haben' is an idiom: 'to feel someone breathing down one's neck.'"},{"surface":"sie","lemma":"sie","morphology":"pronoun, accusative, plural","role":"depends on hat","gloss":"them"},{"surface":"immer","lemma":"immer","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on hat","gloss":"always"},{"surface":"im","lemma":"in","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on hat","gloss":"at"},{"surface":"Genick","lemma":"Genick","morphology":"noun, dative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on im","gloss":"neck"}]},{"number":7,"label":"7","id":"roemische-campagna-s2-l3","source":"wenn er hingeht, rechts und links zerstörend,","translation":"as it goes on, destroying right and left,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s2-l3.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"zerstörend","title":"Present participle used as adverb","body":"zerstörend is the present participle of zerstören, 'to destroy', used adverbially, 'destroying'. The prefix zer- carries the sense of breaking to pieces. hingehen is a separable verb, 'to go on'."}],"words":[{"surface":"wenn","lemma":"wenn","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on hingeht","gloss":"as"},{"surface":"er","lemma":"er","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on hingeht","gloss":"it"},{"surface":"hingeht","lemma":"hingehen","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the wenn-clause","gloss":"goes on"},{"surface":"rechts","lemma":"rechts","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on zerstörend","gloss":"right"},{"surface":"und","lemma":"und","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on rechts","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"links","lemma":"links","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on und","gloss":"left"},{"surface":"zerstörend","lemma":"zerstörend","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on hingeht","gloss":"destroying"}]},{"number":8,"label":"8","id":"roemische-campagna-s2-l4","source":"bis er draußen atemlos beschwörend","translation":"until, breathless out there, imploring,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s2-l4.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"beschwörend","title":"One word, two senses at once","body":"beschwörend is the present participle of beschwören, which means both 'to implore, entreat' and 'to conjure up, invoke'. atemlos means 'breathless'; draußen means 'out there'. The participle reaches forward to hebt, 'lifts', in the next stanza."}],"words":[{"surface":"bis","lemma":"bis","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on hebt (line s3-l1)","gloss":"until"},{"surface":"er","lemma":"er","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, masculine, singular","role":"subject of hebt (line s3-l1)","gloss":"it"},{"surface":"draußen","lemma":"draußen","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on beschwörend","gloss":"out there"},{"surface":"atemlos","lemma":"atemlos","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on beschwörend","gloss":"breathless"},{"surface":"beschwörend","lemma":"beschwörend","morphology":"adverb","role":"modifies er, depends on hebt (line s3-l1)","gloss":"imploring"}]},{"number":9,"label":"9","id":"roemische-campagna-s3-l1","source":"seine Leere zu den Himmeln hebt,","translation":"lifts its emptiness up to the skies,","stanza":3,"audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s3-l1.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"Leere","title":"Noun formed from an adjective","body":"die Leere is the noun 'emptiness, void', from leer, 'empty'. It is the accusative object of hebt, 'lifts', seine Leere hebt, 'lifts its emptiness'. zu den Himmeln uses the plural Himmel, 'the skies'."}],"words":[{"surface":"seine","lemma":"sein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Leere","gloss":"its"},{"surface":"Leere","lemma":"Leere","morphology":"noun, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on hebt","gloss":"emptiness"},{"surface":"zu","lemma":"zu","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on hebt","gloss":"to"},{"surface":"den","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, dative, masculine, plural","role":"depends on Himmeln","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"Himmeln","lemma":"Himmel","morphology":"noun, dative, masculine, plural","role":"depends on zu","gloss":"heavens"},{"surface":"hebt","lemma":"heben","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the bis-clause (bis er...hebt)","gloss":"lifts"}]},{"number":10,"label":"10","id":"roemische-campagna-s3-l2","source":"hastig um sich schauend, ob ihn keine","translation":"looking hastily about itself, whether no","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s3-l2.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"um sich schauend","title":"Reflexive phrase, verb held back","body":"um sich schauen means 'to look around oneself'; as a present participle, um sich schauend means 'looking about itself'. ob, 'whether', opens an indirect question whose object ihn is held back until treffen on the next line."}],"words":[{"surface":"hastig","lemma":"hastig","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on schauend","gloss":"hastily"},{"surface":"um","lemma":"um","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on schauend","gloss":"around"},{"surface":"sich","lemma":"sich","morphology":"pronoun, accusative, singular, reflexive","role":"depends on um","gloss":"itself"},{"surface":"schauend","lemma":"schauend","morphology":"adverb","role":"modifies er (line s2-l4), coordinate with beschwörend","gloss":"looking"},{"surface":"ob","lemma":"ob","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on treffen (next line)","gloss":"whether"},{"surface":"ihn","lemma":"er","morphology":"pronoun, accusative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on treffen (next line)","gloss":"it"},{"surface":"keine","lemma":"kein","morphology":"determiner, nominative, plural","role":"depends on Fenster (next line)","gloss":"no"}]},{"number":11,"label":"11","id":"roemische-campagna-s3-l3","source":"Fenster treffen. Während er den weiten","translation":"windows strike it. While it, to the distant","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s3-l3.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"Während","title":"Subordinator sends verb to the end","body":"während, 'while, as', is a subordinating conjunction, so its verb, zuwinkt, moves to the end of the clause. treffen here means 'to strike, to hit with a glance'."}],"words":[{"surface":"Fenster","lemma":"Fenster","morphology":"noun, nominative, neuter, plural","role":"depends on treffen","gloss":"windows"},{"surface":"treffen","lemma":"treffen","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, plural","role":"main verb of the ob-clause","gloss":"strike"},{"surface":"Während","lemma":"während","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on zuwinkt (line s4-l1)","gloss":"while"},{"surface":"er","lemma":"er","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on zuwinkt (line s4-l1)","gloss":"it"},{"surface":"den","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, dative, masculine, plural","role":"depends on Aquädukten (next line)","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"weiten","lemma":"weit","morphology":"adjective, dative, masculine, plural","role":"depends on Aquädukten (next line)","gloss":"distant"}]},{"number":12,"label":"12","id":"roemische-campagna-s4-l1","source":"Aquädukten zuwinkt herzuschreiten,","translation":"aqueducts waves, to come striding near,","stanza":4,"audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s4-l1.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"zuwinkt","title":"Dative-governing verb, waving","body":"zuwinken, 'to wave to someone', is separable and governs the dative, den weiten Aquädukten zuwinkt, 'waves to the distant aqueducts'. herzuschreiten fuses her-, 'this way', with the zu-infinitive of schreiten, 'to stride'."}],"words":[{"surface":"Aquädukten","lemma":"Aquädukt","morphology":"noun, dative, masculine, plural","role":"depends on zuwinkt","gloss":"aqueducts"},{"surface":"zuwinkt","lemma":"zuwinken","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the während-clause","gloss":"waves to"},{"surface":"herzuschreiten","lemma":"herschreiten","morphology":"verb, infinitive","role":"depends on zuwinkt","gloss":"to come striding near"}]},{"number":13,"label":"13","id":"roemische-campagna-s4-l2","source":"geben ihm die Himmel für die seine","translation":"the heavens give it, in exchange for its own,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s4-l2.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"für die seine","title":"Possessive pronoun standing alone","body":"die seine is the possessive pronoun 'its own', standing in for seine Leere, 'its emptiness', from the previous stanza; the feminine die agrees with Leere. für die seine means 'in exchange for its own'."}],"words":[{"surface":"geben","lemma":"geben","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, plural","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"give"},{"surface":"ihm","lemma":"er","morphology":"pronoun, dative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on geben","gloss":"it"},{"surface":"die","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, nominative, plural","role":"depends on Himmel","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"Himmel","lemma":"Himmel","morphology":"noun, nominative, masculine, plural","role":"subject of geben","gloss":"heavens"},{"surface":"für","lemma":"für","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on geben","gloss":"in exchange for"},{"surface":"die","lemma":"der","morphology":"determiner, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on seine","gloss":"the"},{"surface":"seine","lemma":"sein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on für","gloss":"its own"}]},{"number":14,"label":"14","id":"roemische-campagna-s4-l3","source":"ihre Leere, die ihn überlebt.","translation":"their emptiness, which outlives it.","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/roemische-campagna-s4-l3.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"überlebt","title":"Inseparable verb, no ge- prefix","body":"überleben, 'to survive, outlive', is inseparable, so its past participle takes no ge-, überlebt. die ihn überlebt is a relative clause, 'which outlives it', die referring to ihre Leere, 'their emptiness'."}],"words":[{"surface":"ihre","lemma":"ihr","morphology":"determiner, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Leere","gloss":"their"},{"surface":"Leere","lemma":"Leere","morphology":"noun, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"object of geben (previous line)","gloss":"emptiness"},{"surface":"die","lemma":"der","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on überlebt","gloss":"which"},{"surface":"ihn","lemma":"er","morphology":"pronoun, accusative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on überlebt","gloss":"it"},{"surface":"überlebt","lemma":"überleben","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, third-person, singular","role":"main verb of the relative clause (die...überlebt)","gloss":"outlives"}]}]}