\u2018A Little Body Are Many Parts \/ Un Cuerpecito Son Muchas Partes\u2019 is one of those rare and lovely things: a poetry book with the original language and the English translation side by side. Poems from Legna Rodr\u00edguez Iglesias\u2019 eight collections, written in Spanish, sit beside Abigail Parry and Seraphina Vick\u2019s English translations. During the Q and A, an enthusiastic audience member comments: \u201cI don\u2019t know why this isn\u2019t done more often\u201d and Parry quips back \u201cBecause it\u2019s very exposing; translation is the most thankless task\u201d, but she says it with a grin.<\/p>\n
Whether or not you speak the original language, it is fascinating to see the two texts side by side and to hear Rodr\u00edguez Iglesias and Parry read alternately. Rodr\u00edguez Iglesias speaks slowly for an hispanophone, clearly and well-enunciated; perhaps for the benefit of the second language speakers in the room, of which I am not one. During her reading I try to experience Robert Frost’s\u00a0 concept of poetry still conveying meaning without full understanding, just as a conversation does if heard through a wall. I do appreciate the timbre of her voice and the adaptability of the Spanish language\u2019s character, which can be soft and melodious or harsh and proclamatory.<\/p>\n
Unusually, for what is essentially a \u2018Selected\u2019, the poems are not arranged chronologically but in relation to a \u2018playful\u2019 theme, according to the poet. The poems are good for a performance: straightforward enough to grasp instantly, resonating in the mind when you leave the room. Later in the discussion Rodr\u00edguez Iglesias says she likes to turn objects into concepts. Playful is a good descriptor of her poetry: often satirical and absurd, she uses simple language to set up situations, pulling the rug out from under the reader\u2019s feet. She makes use of lists and an easy vernacular scattered with localisms from Camag\u00fcey, Cuba (although she now lives in Miami). Seraphina Vick, who acted as the \u2018bridge translator\u2019 for Parry, speaks about being as much of a cultural translator as a linguistic one. The poems are scattered with references to Cuban history and politics; one poem is a farewell to the pizza cheese used in the communist era. This throws up an interesting choice in the written translations: Parry often choosing to deviate from strict translation and to include definitions of things that would be obvious to a Cuban reader, such as the naming of years following the revolution.<\/p>\n
Another translation dilemma was the use of Spanglish. For example, the English word \u2018money\u2019 is actually used as slang by Cubans. To simply translate this back into Spanish in the English poem would make no sense to anglophones. So after long discussion Vick and Parry used \u2018money\u2019 in English but italicised it to estrange it. This is the benefit of having the original on the opposite page; the reader is able to judge the original intention themselves. No wonder \u2018long discussions\u2019 were commonplace! The book took an \u2018intense\u2019 year to produce, with Parry visiting Cuba.<\/p>\n
One of the consequences of that time together is the close relationship that grew up between the poet and her two translators. And it\u2019s evident in the easy dynamic between them, even in the artificial format of a Q and A panel. There was \u2018a lot of going back and forth\u2019, often due to translating words non-literally to better convey meaning. Rodr\u00edguez Iglesias explains that this closeness is not only due to time together but also to the close attention paid to the poet\u2019s words and intention. \u2018Really they know me better than my close friends do, than my parents even,\u2019 says Rodr\u00edguez Iglesias, \u2018you feel loved\u2019. Parry agrees, saying, \u2018translating is an intimate act\u2019.<\/p>\n
It is always a salutary and humbling experience to attend a translation event as a monolinguist, refreshing to remind yourself about the existence of the rest of the poetry world(s). This book was supported by the Poetry Translation Centre where enthusiasts collaborate in translation workshops. This event sent me to their website, eager to discover more about the rest of the world. Even if you\u2019re not an hispanophone, I heartily recommend \u2018A Little Body Are Many Parts \/ Un Cuerpecito Son Muchas Partes\u2019. Treat yourself to a refreshing mental holiday beyond our shores.<\/p>\n
Charlotte Wetton<\/p>\n
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\u2018A Little Body Are Many Parts \/ Un Cuerpecito Son Muchas Partes\u2019 is one of those rare and lovely things: a poetry book with the original language and the English translation side by side. Poems from Legna Rodr\u00edguez Iglesias\u2019 eight collections, written in Spanish, sit beside Abigail Parry and Seraphina Vick\u2019s English translations. During the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":[]},"categories":[13,16,283,18],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n