"Poetry is of so subtle a spirit, that in the pouring out of one language into another it will evaporate"
- John Denham
About this Quote
John Denham's quote, "Poetry is of so subtle a spirit, that in the putting out of one language into another it will vaporize," uses an extensive reflection on the intrinsic challenge of translating poetry. Through this statement, Denham highlights the fragile and complex nature of poetry, recommending that its essence is so nuanced and delicate that it risks being lost or diminished when equated from one language to another.
The metaphor of evaporation highlights how poetry's deeper layers and significances-- its emotional resonance, cultural contexts, and visual qualities-- are naturally tied to the specific linguistic and cultural context in which it was produced. Simply as water changes form when it vaporizes, the important qualities of poetry can dissipate when subjected to the procedure of translation. This improvement can lead to the loss of rhythm, noise, and the particular undertones or idiomatic expressions that offer a poem its unique character in its initial language.
Denham's reflection invites readers and translators to value the complexity of poetry and to acknowledge that it is more than simply actual significances. It has to do with the interplay of words, emotions, cultural impacts, and acoustic elements. The subtle "spirit" of poetry he describes can involve the choice of words, meter, rhyme, and importance, all of which can be deeply interwoven with the poet's cultural and linguistic background. Translation, by its fundamental nature, includes analysis, and while it aims to convey significance, it might accidentally remove away some layers of the initial.
Therefore, Denham's insight is a pointer of the requirement for level of sensitivity and imagination in translation. Translators need to stabilize fidelity to the initial text with the capability to catch its spirit and psychological weight in a new linguistic and cultural context. Although some components might undoubtedly be lost, the job of the translator is to evoke a similar experience in the reader of the translated poem, appreciating both the source and target languages. The quote underscores poetry's special obstacle in crossing linguistic borders and encourages a much deeper appreciation for its detailed appeal.
"We don't attempt to have any theme for a number of the anthology, or to have any particular sequence. We just put in things that we like, and then we try to alternate the prose and the poetry"
"Concrete poets continue to turn out beautiful things, but to me they're more visual than oral, and they almost really belong on the wall rather than in a book. I haven't the least idea of where poetry is going"
"Deals are my art form. Other people paint beautifully on canvas or write wonderful poetry. I like making deals, preferably big deals. That's how I get my kicks"
"I think Ginsberg has done more harm to the craft that I honor and live by than anybody else by reducing it to a kind of mean that enables the most dubious practitioners to claim they are poets because they think, If the kind of thing Ginsberg does is poetry, I can do that"
