AN OLD MAN.... UM VELHO...

AN OLD MAN
by Constantine P. Cavafy

At the noisy end of the café, head bent
over the table, an old man sits alone,
a newspaper in front of him.

And in the miserable banality of old age
he thinks how little he enjoyed the years
when he had strength, eloquence, and looks.

He knows he’s aged a lot: he sees it, feels it.
Yet it seems he was young just yesterday.
So brief an interval, so very brief.

And he thinks of Prudence, how it fooled him,
how he always believed—what madness—
that cheat who said: “Tomorrow. You have plenty of time.”

He remembers impulses bridled, the joy
he sacrificed. Every chance he lost
now mocks his senseless caution.

But so much thinking, so much remembering
makes the old man dizzy. He falls asleep,
his head resting on the café table.

(C.P. Cavafy, Collected Poems. Translated by Edmund Keeley and Philip Sherrard. Edited by George Savidis. Revised Edition. Princeton University Press, 1992)


Constantine P. Cavafy, (29 April 1863 – 29 April 1933 / Alexandria, Egypt) also known as Konstantin or Konstantinos Petrou Kavafis, or Kavaphes was a renowned Greek poet who lived in Alexandria and worked as a journalist and civil servant. He published 154 poems; dozens more remained incomplete or in sketch form. His most important poetry was written after his fortieth birthday. You can read his poems on his site Here 

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE:
"I am from Constantinople by descent, but I was born in Alexandria—at a house on Seriph Street; I left very young, and spent much of my childhood in England. Subsequently I visited this country as an adult, but for a short period of time. I have also lived in France. During my adolescence I lived over two years in Constantinople. It has been many years since I last visited Greece. My last employment was as a clerk at a government office under the Ministry of Public Works of Egypt. I know English, French, and a little Italian.”



Portrait of Cavafy II, 1966, by David Hockney

Constantine Cavafi is considered one of the finest European and modern Greek poets. His poetry is taught at schools in mainland Greece and Cyprus, and across universities around the world. E.M. Forster knew him personally and wrote a memoir of him, contained in his book "Alexandria". Forster, Arnold Toynbee, and T.S. Eliot were among the earliest promoters of Cavafy in the English-speaking world before the Second World War. In 1966, David Hockney made a series of prints to illustrate a selection of Cavafy’s poems, including In the dull village.

 
(These photos are for illustrations purpose only. As fotos são apenas ilustrativas)

Photo by suripawar

Photo by Captain H


UM VELHO
de Constantine P. Cavafy

No meio do café ruidoso, sem ninguém,
por companhia, está sentado um velho. Tem
à frente um jornal e se inclina sobre a mesa.

Imerso na velhice aviltada e sombria,
pensa quão pouco desfrutou as alegrias
dos anos de vigor, eloqüência, beleza.

Sabe que envelheceu bastante. Vê, conhece.
No entanto, o seu tempo de moço lhe parece
ser ainda ontem: faz tão pouco, faz tão pouco...

Medita no quanto a Prudência dele rira;
em como acreditara sempre na mentira
do “Deixa para amanhã. Há tempo.” Que louco!

Pensa nos ímpetos que teve de conter,
nas alegrias frustras por seu tolo saber,
que cada ocasião perdida agora escarnece.

Porém, tanto pensar, tanta recordação,
põem o velho confuso, e sobre a mesa, então,
daquele café, debruçado, ele adormece.

Poemas Seleção, estudo crítico,notas e tradução de José Paulo Paes
José Olympio Editora – edição 2006.

Constantine P. Cavafy ( 29 de abril de 1863- 29 de abril de 1933 / Alexandria, Egito) também conhecido como Konstantínos Kaváfis, foi um renomado poeta grego, que viveu em Alexandria e trabalhou como jornalista e funcionário público. É considerado um dos maiores nomes da poesia em idioma grego moderno. Cavafy publicou 154 poemas reelaborados durante a vida inteira, unindo citações eruditas à fala cotidiana. Suas mais importantes poesias foram escritas depois dos seus quarenta anos. (Ler mais sobre Cavafy Aqui)