Imagery in Translation

made by M. Zenkevich in1936. It is one of those poems that have a dual, if not more sophisticated, structure. You can find everything in this laconic text with a clear-cut metre, regular rhyme and almost traditional metaphors. Some say that this poem re­veals "his troubled and at times destructive spirit," some look for expression of a vision of the coming catastrophe, some claim to feel the irony which shows itself in many Frost's poems.

The other poem by Frost included here for translation comes from one of his best collections, New Hampshire (\923), when he experimented with the so -called "gnomic poetry," that is, poetic maxims where lyrics and philosophy join to produce an image of both ethic and emotive power. The main translation problem with such poetry is to combine the laconism of the language with the simpliaty of the imagery wrapped in a clear form. In Nothing Gold Can Stay the consecutive pairs of rhymes connect words that are miniature maxims in themselves, which makes the task for translation still more complicated to reconstruct this function in the target text in Russian. To compare, in the translation by G. Kruzhkov the rhymes are not quite adequate, for example, the first intra-maxim gold — hold is represented in Russian by лист — золотист, which has less associative power than the source rhyme. Translating the poem, you should keep it in mind that the initial pattern of the poem included three stanzas, eight lines each. The resultant version numbers only eight lines altogether, but it is much more rich and expressive.

Task for comparison: Fire and Ice

FIRE AND ICE

Some say the world will end in fire,

Some say in ice.

From what I've tasted of desire

I hold with those who favor fire.

But if it had to perish twice,

I think I know enough of hate

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Практикум по художествен ному переводу

То say that for destruction ice

Is also great

And would suffice.

Перевод М. Зенкевича:

ОГОНЬ И ЛЕД

Кто говорит, мир от огня

Погибнет, кто от льда.

А что касается меня,

Я за огонь стою всегда.

Но если дважды гибель ждет

Наш мир земной, — ну что ж,

Тогда для разрушенья лед

Хорош,

И тоже подойдет.

Перевод В. Васильева:

ОГОНЬ И ЛЕД

Как мир погибнет? От огня Или от льда погибель ждет? Сомнений нету у меня: Огонь опаснее, чем лед. Но если мировой пожар Земной наш не погубит шар, То даст достаточно нам льда Холодная вражда.

Перевод И. Каш кипа:

ОГОНЬ И ЛЕД

Одни огня пророчат пасть. Другие льда покров. Я ко всему готов.

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Imagery in Translation

Поскольку мне знакома страсть,Я предпочту в огне пропасть. Но если миру суждено Два раза смерть принять, То ненависти лед давно Мне довелось узнать. И, в сущности, не все ль равно, Как пропадать.

Перевод С. Степанова:

ОГОНЬ И ЛЕД

Твердят, мол, сгинет мир в огне Или во льду. По опыту, пожалуй, мне Приятней погибать в огне.

Но если дважды на роду Написано нам погибать, Я силу и во зле найду — Уничтожать Дано и льду.

Перевод Т. Казаковой:

ЛЕД И ПЛАМЯ

Кто ждет, что мир погубит пламя,

Кто ждет — что лед.

Мы так снедаемы страстями,

Что я поставил бы на пламя.

Но если дважды гибель ждет,

То ненависть — все та же страсть,

Хотя в ней не огонь, а лед,

Но как напасть

И он сойдет.

3Зак. №50

Практикум по художественному переводу

EXERCISES FOR COMPARISON

• Read about Robert Frost and his poetry. Read some other ms by Frost and compare them with this one.

• Read the poem thoroughly and study the meanings of the ■ds to reconstruct their symbolic value.

• Study the metric pattern of the poem, its rhymes and phon- rrangement

• Study the stylistic devices and imagery of the poem.

• Which words may or may not be omitted in the text?

• Comment upon the mood and poetic logic of the poem. iat does it make you think about?

• Transform the text into prose and analyse the difference he impression it produces.

• Think of any parallel to the poem with a similar or same icept.

• Translate the poem word for word with special attention ilternative lexical and grammatical equivalents.

• Reconstruct the rhyme scheme of the poem in Russian.

• Fill in the lines with suitable words within the rhyming me.

• Check the stylistic equivalence of the translation to the irce text.

• Work on the metric and rhythmic equivalence.

• Read the result aloud to make sure that the Russian text iduces the proper rhythmic effect and creates a similar mood.

• Compare your version with the other translation variants I comment on them.

sk for translation: tthing Gold Can Stay

NOTHING GOLD CAN STAY

Nature's first green is gold, Her hardest hue to hold.