An article titled “If This Be Magic: The Unlikely Art of Shakespeare in Translation,” written by Daniel Hahnit and reviewed by Steven Poole for The Guardian, explores the challenges inherent in translating literary masterpieces. The discussion centers on the formidable translator Jorge Luis Borges, a writer renowned for his work translating authors such as William Faulkner, André Gide, Franz Kafka, and Virginia Woolf. Despite his extensive accomplishments in bridging linguistic divides, Borges reportedly drew a line when it came to translating Shakespeare.
According to accounts, when discussing a passage from Hamlet where the character questions the nature of “the glimpses of the moon,” Borges made a definitive statement. He suggested that while individual words might be translatable, the essence of the play itself was beyond linguistic capture. Borges famously asserted, “I do not believe that this can be translated.
Perhaps the words can be translated. Certainly, Shakespeare cannot be translated. The glimpses of the moon mean exactly the glimpses of the moon.”
This anecdote highlights the profound difficulty of rendering poetic genius across cultural and linguistic boundaries.
The discussion prompts readers to consider how deeply embedded literary works, such as those by William Shakespeare, are within their original cultural context, making a perfect translation an almost impossible feat. It raises complex questions about the nature of art itself—whether it is merely language, or something deeper that resists any systematic analysis of how it should be rendered in another tongue.
Topics: #shakespeare #william #how
Daniel Hahnit’s article, “If This Be Magic: The Unlikely Art of Shakespeare in Translation,” and a review by Steven Poole for The Guardian, explore the inherent challenges in translating literary mast
What specific challenges does the article suggest are involved in translating Shakespeare?