INVICTUS - Ernest Henley

William Ernest Henley - 1849-1903

Invictus 

Out of the night that covers me,

      Black as the pit from pole to pole,

I thank whatever gods may be

      For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance

      I have not winced nor cried aloud.

Under the bludgeonings of chance

      My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears

      Looms but the Horror of the shade,

And yet the menace of the years

      Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,

      How charged with punishments the scroll,

I am the master of my fate,

      I am the captain of my soul.

VOCABULARY:

-pit: hole in the ground, hoyo

-in the fell  clutch  of circumstance' means 'in the evil grip of events beyond my control'.

-fell (adj.)- malo

-clutch (noun) (fig.) zarpazo

-to wince: hacer un gesto de dolor

-bludgeonings- apaleamientos

-wrath: ira

-to loom- cernirse

-strait- estrecho

-scroll,- pergamino, documento (rollo)

• 

-Listen to it recited here:

Click here to read an analyisis of the poem

And now watch this extract from the film: 

-CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE FILM. (Do not pay any attention to the subtitles, the translation is really bad in this version)

ACTIVITIES ON THE FILM

  "Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire, the power to unite people that little else has ... It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers.   NELSON MANDELA

1- Click here and answer the questions about the film

2- Click here to do the activity

3- Click here to read some quotes in the film. Let´s reflect upon their meaning