"L'infinito" (; ) is a poem written by Giacomo Leopardi probably in the autumn of 1819. The poem is a product of Leopardi's yearning to travel beyond his restrictive home town of Recanati and experience more of the world which he had studied. It is widely known within Italy.
Themes
The poem, though vague and ethereal in its composition, conveys elements of the philosophical and classical worlds, the latter visible in the selection of the word , from ancient Greek rather than using a more conventional to convey the isolatedness of this hill. This personification of natural environment is prominent throughout the poem and is typical of another theme or movement often associated with Leopardi; romanticism. There is also a keen sense of mortality throughout the poem, conveyed in the dying of seasons and drowning of thoughts, akin to Leopardi's belief that he would not live long, a belief affirmed when he died aged only 38.
Original text
Literal English translation
Always dear to me was this solitary hill, and this hedge, which from a large part of the farthest horizon excludes the sight. But sitting and gazing, I frame within my thought endless spaces beyond that [hedge], and beyond-human silences, and the deepest quiet, so that my heart almost takes fright. And when I hear the wind rustling through these plants, I compare that infinite silence to this voice: and there come to mind eternity, and the dead seasons, and the present and living one, and the sound of it. Thus in this immensity my thinking drowns: and it is sweet to be shipwrecked in this sea.
Alternate translation
This lonely hill was always dear to me, and this hedgerow, which cuts off the view of so much of the last horizon. But sitting here and gazing, I can see beyond, in my mind’s eye, unending spaces, and superhuman silences, and depthless calm, till what I feel is almost fear. And when I hear the wind stir in these branches, I begin comparing that endless stillness with this noise: and the eternal comes to mind, and the dead seasons, and the present living one, and how it sounds. So my mind sinks in this immensity: and foundering is sweet in such a sea.
(translated by Jonathan Galassi)
Sonnet translation
I’ve always loved this solitary hill, I’ve always loved this hedge that hides from me So much of what my earthly eyes can see. For as I sit and gaze, all calm and still, I conjure up my thoughts; my mind I fill With distances that stretch out boundlessly And silences that somehow cannot be Heard by my heart, which feels a sudden chill. It seems these rustling leaves, this silence vast Blend into one. Eternity draws nigh. The present sounds and seasons, those long past Become one sea of endless lives and deaths. My thought is drowned, and yet it does not die: It plunges into sweet, refreshing depths.
(translated by Z.G., with the title "Boundless Depths")
Modern usage
The poem is recited in the film One Hundred Steps (2000) by the protagonist Impastato, with which the film draws a parallel between Impastato and Leopardi.
See also
Monte Tabor (Recanati), the described mountain in the poem.