Comments on: "and even when there's nowhere left, no refuge for their pain, they turn to the illusion of travelling" - Kajal Ahmad, translated by Mimi Khalvati

"and even when there's nowhere left, no refuge for their pain, they turn to the illusion of travelling" - Kajal Ahmad, translated by Mimi Khalvati

Kattullus — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 15:30:55 -0800

The Poetry Translation Centre pairs living poets from Asia, Africa and Latin America with English-language translators and then puts the resulting translations online. You can browse the poetry by country, language, translator or poet. Besides the hundreds of individual poems, all presented in the original and both literal and poetic translations, many have been recorded in dual readings by translator and poet, and put online as videos or mp3s (look for the microphone or camera icon). There are also podcasts to download, articles to read, and chapbooks to purchase. It is absurd to single out a few poems as favorites, but nonetheless, here are a few that struck me hard, Birds by Kajal Ahmad, translated by Mimi Khalvati, Cataclysm and Songs by Conceição Lima, translated in a workshop, and Survivors by Choe Young-mi, translated by Kyoo Lee and Sarah Maguire (who is the founder and director of the Poetry Translation Centre). If these poems do not hit you, no need to worry as there are literally hundreds more to read. [via The Guardian]

By: iamkimiam

iamkimiam — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 16:31:51 -0800

Oh this is super neat! I'm rifling through the Zapotec poems and am enjoying the notes and backstories that go along with some of the translations.

By: iamkimiam

iamkimiam — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 16:41:27 -0800

There are two translations of Survivors...somebody left a comment with an alternate version (in addition to the literal translation, so technically three translations so far). Would love to hear more interpretations or insights about the translation of this short and beautiful poem...any native Korean speakers want to take a look?

By: Pseudoephedrine

Pseudoephedrine — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 19:27:22 -0800

Very cool.

By: daisystomper

daisystomper — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 19:53:21 -0800

These are great, I'm glad to know about this resource.

By: threeants

threeants — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 21:38:25 -0800

cooooooool.