tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010170380967519230.post925033204482329043..comments2024-03-23T20:37:37.891-07:00Comments on First Known When Lost: On A Boat At NightStephen Pentzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14882220887712092005noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010170380967519230.post-16164663894278338002012-06-25T20:40:58.516-07:002012-06-25T20:40:58.516-07:00Shelley: thank you for stopping by again, and for ...Shelley: thank you for stopping by again, and for your thoughts. I agree with your comment on the poem being "a good cure for a workaholic." I think that this is true of traditional Chinese poetry as a whole. The grounding in Taoism, Confucianism, and/or Buddhism seems to bring a sense of perspective to things, doesn't it?Stephen Pentzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14882220887712092005noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010170380967519230.post-81103234235441380212012-06-25T20:37:14.683-07:002012-06-25T20:37:14.683-07:00alice c: thank you very much for visiting, and for...alice c: thank you very much for visiting, and for your thoughts on the two translations. I think that I prefer Seth's version as well, and for the same reason as you.<br /><br />Given Watson's long-time status as one of the best and most reliable translators of Chinese poetry into English, I suspect that his version is more faithful to the original, but that is just a guess on my part.<br /><br />In one of my anthologies of translations, the editors supply the Chinese characters for the poems, together with a literal translation of each of the characters. However, I didn't have a chance to look at it before making this post. I seem to recall that this poem is in the anthology, so I intend to track it down. I, like you, am interested in the variations in the translations -- "bobs" and "boils up" do seem at odds. As do "sky and earth and one sandy gull" and "a gull between earth and sky."<br /><br />Thank you again.Stephen Pentzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14882220887712092005noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010170380967519230.post-86674471686092085822012-06-25T16:00:35.392-07:002012-06-25T16:00:35.392-07:00I like the first translation best.
That poem woul...I like the first translation best.<br /><br />That poem would be a good cure for a workaholic.Shelleyhttp://dustbowlpoetry.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5010170380967519230.post-11879861870910051752012-06-25T12:29:58.922-07:002012-06-25T12:29:58.922-07:00I am struck by the significant differences in thes...I am struck by the significant differences in these two translations. I prefer the Vikram Seth version which feels more poetic but I cannot understand how the moon can 'bob' in one translation and 'boil up' in the other. Is it a function of the complexity of Chinese characters or is the Vikram Seth version an interpretation rather than a translation?alice chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16969805206040091585noreply@blogger.com