Rhyme scheme is ABAB CDCD EEF GGF, the first Sonett with this rhyme scheme in the sestets. Prevailing dactylic meter with the exception of verse 4 and 7 which begin with an iambic foot. There are several commands: the first in verse 5 is second person familiar; the second in verse 7 is a third person Konjunktiv I command; the next two in verses 11 and 14 are similar. Also distant alliteration of "rühme" and "Fingerring" in verse 14.
Ist er ein Hiesiger? [1] Nein, aus beiden
Is he from this place? No, from both
Reichen [2] erwuchs [3] seine weite Natur.
realms originated his expansive nature.
Kundiger [4] böge [5] die Zweige der Weiden, [6]
More knowingly does one bend the twigs of the willow,
wer die Wurzeln der Weiden [7] erfuhr.
whosoever has experienced the roots of the willow.
Geht ihr zu Bette, [8] so laßt auf dem Tische
When you go to bed, then do not leave
Brot nicht und Milch nicht; die Toten ziehts--. [9]
bread and milk on the table; it draws the dead--.
Aber er, der Beschwörende, [10] mische [11]
But he, the conjurer, let him
unter der Milde des Augenlids
beneath the gentleness of his eyelids
ihre [12] Erscheinung in alles Geschaute; [13]
configure their appearance into everything viewed;
und der Zauber von Erdrauch und Raute [14]
and the magic of earthsmoke and rue (herb of grace)
sei [15] ihm so wahr wie der karste Bezug.
be so true to him as the clearest relation.
Nichts kann das gültige Bild ihm verschlimmern;
Nothing can worsern for him the valid image;
sei es aus Gräbern, sei es aus Zimmern, [16]
be it from graves, be it from rooms,
rühme [17] er Fingerring, Spange und Krug.
let him celebrate fingerring, hair clip and urn.
Ist er ein Hiesiger? Nein, aus beiden
Is he from hereabouts" No, he did grow
Reichen erwuchs seine weite Natur.
out of both realms his expansive presence.
Kundiger böge die Zweige der Weiden,
More knowingly bends the branch of the willow,
wer die Wurzeln der Weiden erfuhr.
he who experienced the willow roots essence.
Geht ihr zu Bette, so laßt auf dem Tische
Go you to bed, so then leave on the table
Brot nicht und Milch nicht; die Toten ziehts--.
bread not and milk not. It draws the dead--.
Aber er, der Beschwörende, mische
But he, the apt summoner, let him enable
unter der Milde des Augenlids
under the eyelids' softneness to wed
ihre Erscheinung in alles Geschaute;
their appearance into all that we view;
und der Zauber von Erdrauch und Raute
and the magic of earthsmoke and rue
sei ihm so wahr wie der karste Bezug.
be to him true as the clearest concern.
Nichts kann das gültige Bild ihm verschlimmern;
Nothing be there that the valid image waive;
sei es aus Gräbern, sie es aus Zimmern,
be it from chambers, be it from the grave,
rühme er Fingerring, Spange und Krug.
extol he finger ring, hair clip and urn.
[1] ein Hiesiger: A somewhat unusual word with the meaning of "local" or "indigenous." Unpreceded noun formed from adverb "hiesig" with stong "er" ending.
[2] aus beiden Reichen: You are probably accustumed to the meaning of "Reich" to be "kingdom" as infamously in "das dritte Reich." In this context it means "realm" and the two "realms" are those of "life" and "death."
[3] erwuchs: Imperfekt of the verb "erwachsen," another of those "er-words" which in this case means "to originate" The second meaning in Sprach-Brockhaus is "entstammen" and the third "entstehen."
[4] kundiger:You may wonder why there is no umlaut on this word, since you normally umlaut the vowel of a comparative or a superlative. According to Duden: "Der Komparativ wird durch Anhängen von -er an die Grundstufe gebildet, wobei bei den umlautsfähigen Wörtern überwiegend Umlaut eintritt (ebebso beun Superlativ)..." However, one of the exceptions is words ending in "ig." Another reason is that the word "kündig" has a different meaning from "kundig." The former means according to Sprach-Brockhaus "bekannt," while the latter means "erfahren, sachverständig."
[5] böge: Konjunktiv ii of the verb "biegen." (Take Imperfekt "bog," umlaut it and add the subjunctive ending "e.")
[6] Zweige der Weiden: Assonance of the "ei" sound. Assonance: Resemblance of sound, especially of the vowel sounds in words.
[7] wer die Wurzeln der Weiden: Alliteration of the "w." Alliteration: The repetition of the sound of an initial consonant or consonant cluster in stressed syllables close enough to each other for the ear to be affected. The term is also used for the repetition of an initial consonant in unstressed syllables.
[8] Geht ihr zu Bette: When a main clause begins with the verb and it is neither a question nor a command nor coming after a subordinate clause, this indicates an elliptical "wenn." The normal sentence would be "Wenn ihr zu Bette geht,. . ." Also note the pleonastic "e" on "Bette" to continue the prevailing dactylic meter. Ellipsis, plural ellipses: 1.a. The omission of a word or phrase necessary for a complete syntactical construction, but not necessary for understanding. Pleonastic: A superfluous word, phrase or letter. Dactyl: A metrical foot consisting of one long syllable followed by two short ones.
[9] ziehts: Synaloepha of "ihr" and "es." Without the contraction the clause would be "Es zieht die Toten." The "es" referring to the action of leaving bread and milk. Synaloepha: Omission of a vowel to contract two words into one such as "don't," "it's."
[10] der Beschwörende: In apposition to "er." Apposition An explanatory noun or phrase normally placed after the noun explicated. In German it must be in the same case and set off with commas.
[11] mische: Wunsch- und Begehrungssatz using Konjunktiv I (take the infinitive of all verbs, weak or strong, drop the "en" or "n" and add the subjunctive endings. Only with "sei" do you not add the "e" in the third person. Normally expressed by "Let" in English as in "Let there be Light," or "Let the good times roll!" In some instances with the infinitive in the third person as in "Long live the king!" Wunsch und Begehrungssatz: A use of Konjunktiv I to express a wish or desire, normally in the third person as commands. They are found mainly in Biblical and poetic expressions such as "Der Herr segne dich und behüte dich!," "Es lebe hoch!," "Es lebe die Freiheit!," "Es werde Licht," "Es lebe die Freiheit," Es komme die bessere Zeit," etc. According to Duden: "Unter dem Wunsch- und Begehrungssatz sind solche Sätze zu verstehen, die ein Geschehen oder Sein nennen, das [noch] nicht verwirklicht ist, dessen Verwirklichung jedoch gewünscht, gewollt, gefordert, erstrebt wird.
[12] ihre: Contextually refers to "die Toten," even though the singular feminine word "die Milde" precedes it.
[13] alles Geschaute: The word "alles" when modifying adjectives or adjectivial nouns takes the weak endings as in "alles Gute." Also "Geschaute" is an example of Nominalisierung, since it is formed from the past participle of "schauen," capitalized and given the appropriate ending. Nominalisierung: The creation of an abstract noun from any part of speech. In German, all that is needed is to capitalize the word, be it verb, adverb, pronoun, past or present participle or conjunjction, and add the requisite case endings, if any. All such constructions are in the neuter gender.
[14] Zauber von Erdrauch und Raute: Triple Assonance of the "au" sound also in assonance with the same "au" sound in "Geschaute" of the previous verse. Assonance: Resemblance of sound, especially of the vowel sounds in words.
[15] sei: The first of three uses of "sei," which is the only irregular Konjunktiv I form. This time it is used in a Wunsch- und Begehrungssatz. It can be simply translated with "be," as in "Be it so!" Wunsch-- und Begehrungssatz: A use of Konjunktiv I to express a wish or desire, normally in the third person as commands. They are found mainly in Biblical and poetic expressions such as "Der Herr segne dich und behüte dich!," "Es lebe hoch!," "Es lebe die Freiheit!," "Es werde Licht," "Es lebe die Freiheit," Es komme die bessere Zeit," etc.
[16] sei es aus Gräbern, sei es aus Zimmern: This is another use of "sei" as a compound conjunction: "sei es" followed with "sei es." Other such compound conjuctions are: "sowohl--als auch," "entweder--oder," "nicht nur--sondern auch," "weder--noch," "einmal--ebenso" and "einerseits--anderseits." Also note the subtle Binnenreim of "Gräbern" and "Zimmern." Binnenreim: Reim innerhalb der Verszeile.
[17] rühme: Another example of Wunsch- und Begehrungssatz which can simply be translated by "praise" or "extol." The absence of the "s" is the English indication of a third person command.