Day 12: A Eulogy for Kajtek
After lessons in the biology lab of a primary school in Opole, Lenka (A), ten, asks her form teacher, Mrs Dorota (B), to hear the speech she has written for tomorrow's burial of Kajtek, the hamster who lived in the lab, under the chestnut tree in the school garden.
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense. Point at (or tap) a Polish word to see what it means.
- Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Polish, for example from the Resources page. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.
Dialogue
Audio recordings are on the way. For now, each lesson is the dialogue with its English translation.
Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day · point at a word to see its meaning
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A
Proszę pani, napisałam przemówienie na pogrzeb Kajtka. Mogę przeczytać, zanim go jutro pochowamy?
Miss, I've written a speech for Kajtek's funeral. Can I read it to you before we bury him tomorrow?
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B
Czytaj śmiało, Lenko. Mowa pogrzebowa to trudny gatunek: ma wzruszać, a nie przynudzać.
Go ahead, Lenka. A eulogy is a tricky genre: it's meant to move people, not bore them.
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A
„Kajtek był najlepszym chomikiem na świecie. Przespał trzy czwarte lekcji, a i tak wiedział więcej niż Antek”.
'Kajtek was the best hamster in the world. He slept through three-quarters of our lessons and still knew more than Antek.'
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B
Pięknie, tylko Antka wykreśl. O zmarłych dobrze albo wcale, a o żywych na pogrzebie najlepiej wcale.
Lovely, just cross out Antek. Of the dead, speak well or not at all, and of the living, at a funeral, preferably not at all.
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A
Dobrze. Ale dopiszę, że pobił rekord świata: był z nami od pierwszej klasy, a chomiki żyją zwykle dwa lata.
OK. But I'm going to add that he broke the world record: he was with us from Year One, and hamsters usually live two years.
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B
Z rekordem byłabym ostrożna. Pierwszy Kajtek odszedł w drugiej klasie, w ferie, a oboje z panem woźnym przysięgliśmy milczeć.
I'd be careful with that record. The first Kajtek passed away when you were in Year Two, over the winter holidays, and the caretaker and I both swore to keep quiet.
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A
Jak to odszedł? To kogo ja przez dwa lata karmiłam pestkami słonecznika?
What do you mean, passed away? Then who have I been feeding sunflower seeds to for two years?
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B
Kajtka Drugiego: łudząco podobnego, tylko bardziej towarzyskiego. Uciekł na pierwszym apelu i dyrektor przemawiał, stojąc na krześle.
Kajtek the Second: the spitting image of him, only more sociable. He escaped at his very first assembly, and the head gave his speech standing on a chair.
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A
Pamiętam, wszyscy piszczeli! To dopiszę, że miał dwa życia, jak kot, tylko o siedem mniej.
I remember, everyone was squealing! Then I'll add that he had two lives, like a cat, only seven fewer.
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B
Idealnie. Tylko o Kajtku Pierwszym ani słowa: tę tajemnicę znamy we troje, czyli o dwie osoby za dużo.
Perfect. Just not a word about Kajtek the First: three of us know the secret now, which is two too many.
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