By Douglas R. Hofstadter
Basic Books, 1997. 632 pgs. Nonfiction
This is one of the most unique and interesting books I've ever read. It is a playful and intelligent look at the vagaries, difficulties, and joys of translating even the simplest literary work from one language to another. Hofstadter takes up Clement Marot's "A une Damoyselle malade"--a French poem of 28 3-syllable lines--and attempts to translate it into English. There are over 80 (very) different translations of this poem in this book, each displaying different qualities of the original, but none capturing all the qualities of the original.
Several translations of the poem with accompanying discussion appear in every other chapter of the tome. The alternating chapters are filled with autobiographical anecdotes and a variety personal tidbits on literature, linguistics, computer science, music, and creativity. Hofstadter's education is in mathematics and physics and he's a professor of cognitive science. Although I know virtually no French whatsoever (you don't need to at all)--this book was thoroughly engaging and entertaining.
SML
1 comment:
I really liked his Godel, Escher, and Bach . . . but haven't read this one. Looks good.
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