Lavengro: the Scholar - the Gypsy - the PriestBorrow, George
General
Lavengro: the Scholar - the Gypsy - the Priest
Borrow, George
England -- Fiction; Romanies -- Fiction
I compiled the Chronicles of Newgate; I reviewed books for the Review
established on an entirely new principle; and I occasionally tried my
best to translate into German portions of the publisher’s philosophy. In
this last task I experienced more than one difficulty. I was a tolerable
German scholar, it is true, and I had long been able to translate German
into English with considerable facility; but to translate from a foreign
language into your own, is a widely different thing from translating from
your own into a foreign language; and, in my first attempt to render the
publisher into German, I was conscious of making miserable failures, from
pure ignorance of German grammar; however, by the assistance of grammars
and dictionaries, and by extreme perseverance, I at length overcame all
the difficulties connected with the German language. But, alas! another
difficulty remained, far greater than any connected with German—a
difficulty connected with the language of the publisher—the language
which the great man employed in his writings was very hard to understand;
I say in his writings—for his colloquial English was plain enough.
Though not professing to be a scholar, he was much addicted, when
writing, to the use of Greek and Latin terms, not as other people used
them, but in a manner of his own, which set the authority of dictionaries
at defiance; the consequence was, that I was sometimes utterly at a loss
to understand the meaning of the publisher. Many a quarter of an hour
did I pass at this period, staring at periods of the publisher, and
wondering what he could mean, but in vain, till at last, with a shake of
the head, I would snatch up the pen, and render the publisher literally
into German. Sometimes I was almost tempted to substitute something of
my own for what the publisher had written, but my conscience interposed;
the awful words, Traduttore traditore, commenced ringing in my ears, and
I asked myself whether I should be acting honourably towards the
publisher, who had committed to me the delicate task of translating him
into German; should I be acting honourably towards him, in making him
speak in German in a manner different from that in which he expressed
himself in English? No, I could not reconcile such conduct with any
principle of honour; by substituting something of my own in lieu of these
mysterious passages of the publisher, I might be giving a fatal blow to
his whole system of philosophy. Besides, when translating into English,
had I treated foreign authors in this manner? Had I treated the
minstrels of the Kæmpe Viser in this manner?—No. Had I treated Ab Gwilym
in this manner? Even when translating his Ode to the Mist, in which he
is misty enough, had I attempted to make Ab Gwilym less misty? No; on
referring to my translation, I found that Ab Gwilym in my hands was quite
as misty as in his own. Then, seeing that I had not ventured to take
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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