Is translated poetry worth reading? If so, what are some general examples of well translated poetry
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Is translated poetry worth reading? If so, what are some general examples of well translated poetry
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No.
translation is also an art so they can be good but not necessarily 1:1 in regards to the aesthetic but the ideas can definitely be conveyed
>Is translated poetry worth reading?
Sometimes.
>If so, what are some general examples of well translated poetry
What exactly do you mean by this? A translation might be poor as a translation (i.e. as a reproduction of the original) but good in itself (i.e. as a new poem). I like most of Pound's stuff. Fitzgerald's Rubaiyat & Hughes' Ovid are good.
The best Martial, Catullus & Dante translations are by me. Sadly they're unpublished, but here's a bit of Martial to be going on with, anyway:
>Nil mihi das vivus; dicis post fata daturum.
>Si non es stultus, scis, Maro, quid cupiam.
You never give me money. I'm in your will, you say.
Well, Maro, just imagine what I ask for when I pray.
Well get them published already. I'd buy.
anon, i always had faith in your dante but i'm beginning to doubt it... publish
>Is translated poetry worth reading?
Yes, basically. There is a poetry of "sense", but in which there is a lot of sense and there is a poetic form. Many poems, epic poetry end up here. If the poetry is "sounding", which is associated with the sounds of the original language and the translation does not make sense. In general: it is somewhere in between, then it depends on the skill of the translator.
>If so, what are some general examples of well translated poetry
To appreciate the elegance of a translation, you must know the original language.
I recently read a translation of "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" (+Pearl, Orfeo, Purity) from Middle English into Russian. I honestly do not speak Middle English, but judging by the modern English translation, our translator coped with the task. But this is just the kind of poetry that makes a lot of sense.
It is better to read translated poetry than no poetry at all. Believe it or not, but translators put a lot of effort into their job. Sure, linguistics won’t translate, but the tone, themes, symbolism, etc can be translated perfectly fine and they are generally what elevate a poem to greatness beyond mere wordplay
yes
proof: you posted a guy who read and was inspired by a lot of translated poetry, and translated stuff himself, and is considered the best and most important poet of his nation
what's a good translation depends on your reading needs - someone will be bored by Homer's formulae, but will love Pope's translation of the Iliad since he has a completely different style than Homer; an another reader will prefer a relatively literal translation such as Lattimore's, which can preserve some peculiarities of the original that would be otherwise lost
>linguistics won’t translate, but the tone, themes, symbolism, etc can be translated perfectly fine
I don't think you're using "linguistics" in any meaningful sense here.
You know what is meant
No I don't. Linguistics is a scholarly field that studies language. Poetry is not concerned with such trifling matters.
Goethe said he preferred Nerval's translation of Faust to his own, so go figure. Personally, I find that truly good poetry can only be measured in it's translateability. Of course, you loose the style and cadence, but not the motifs, characters, atmosphere and themes; it is like a great soul incarnated to a different body
It can be worth reading, but it's not the original and shouldn't be confused with such.
Translated reading taught me that prose is a meme. A good book doesn't need to try to impress you with silly word games, it impresses you with a good story instead.
I’d look for labour of love for example Robert Lowell’s bordelaire
It's sooooooo worth it. I've found and enjoyed so many poets I would have never been able to without a translator, because how many languages can a person really learn anyway? It can be difficult to find translators who walk that delicate line between being true to the literal text and capturing the poetic sentiment, but when you do, OHH MAMA, it can be sublime!
>Sappho: One Hundred Lyrics; Bliss Carmen
>translations of Oshikochi no Mitsune, Issa, Basho, and Otomo Yakamochi (with Yakamochi I like Paula Doe)
>Selected Poems of Catullus; Carl Sesar
>David H. Greene's, "An Anthology of Irish Literature," has ancient Gaelic poetry translated which I enjoyed
>Ancient Chinese Poetry; Kenneth Rexroth (Rexroth was an influential American poet himself in certain circles, and a deep lover of Chinese poetry.)
>Ashberry's translations of Rimbaud
>Loeb Classical Library translations are often good
Idk, man. There's lots.
I read it in the original language no matter what. I’ve read French, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian and English poetry. I can only speak and read English
I’ve wondered the same thing. Thank you anons
Depends, sometimes too much is lost, probably
You just accept that you're (hopefully) getting a translator's best effort