Poetry Translating as Expert Action
I 1 Otkuda
Whenceznam
do I knowda
that [conj.]je
istu
therešuma
[a] forestkad
whensama
itself/aloneje
istmina,
darkness,
= [a] forest is there = it itself is darkness/darkness is alone
I 1 tolikaso much [adj.]dathat [conj.] suare jeof it pune–full– iand/evenpraznethe empty dupljehollows vidaof sight
= that they are full of it–
I 3 do
todna
the bottommi
to mepamćenja,
of memory,sužnja
of a/the prisoneršto
whotraži
is seekingprovid
the seeing-throughzida.
of a/the wall.
= my depths
I 4 Da li
[question particle]to
that [pronoun]pipam
I’m feeling/touchingstabla,
trees,il
ormene
medira
is touchingtamnina?
darkness?
= Is what I’m feeling/touching = is darkness touching me?II 5 OtkudaWhence znamdo I know dathat [conj.] je[past aux. vb.] uin šumithe forest tothat [pronoun obj.] kriknulascreamed pticaa bird
= a bird screamed that in the forest
II 6 kadwhen samaitself/alone jeis tišina,silence/quietness, bezvučnothe soundless naličjereverse zvuka,of sound,
= it itself is silence/quietness, / silence/quietness is alone,
II 7 kad
wheni
evenšum
the noise/rustlemoga
of mydaha
breathprah
the dustmrklog
of dark/gloomypostane
becomesmuka,
silence,
= becomes the dust of dark/gloomy silence,
II 8 i
andšuplje
[a] dull/hollowbezvučje
soundlessnessuđe
entersu
intokorijen
the rootglasnih
of the vocalžica.
chords.III 9 Tajat krik – scream – tminadarknesstothat otesnatched li[question particle] dangiven [agrees
with ‘krik’]pticito a/the
birdizout of drijema?dozing?
= did darkness snatch that
III 10Il
Orkriknu
screamed [past verb]ljubav,
love,il
orrazbojstvo –
robbery –i
and/evenveć
alreadyih nema.
they aren’t here/there.
= did love scream, / did it scream love,
III 11Kud
Whitherpadam
am I fallingkucaj
beat/tickpo
bykucaj
beat/ticksa
fromsrca-časovnika?
the heart-clock?IV 12Gdje
Whereslijepcu
of/for the blind manvida
of sightda
that [conj.]nađem
I ndžižu
the
focussunčevog
of the sun’soka?
eye?
= am I to nd
IV 13 Tminu
Darknessda
that [conj.]zovem
I callza
forsudiju,
a/the judge,tajac
silenceza
forsvjedoka?
a/the witness?
= Am I to call darkness as
IV 14 KakoHow taj that [adj.]mukhush [noun] dathat [conj.]nadglušimI out-deafen predbefore mukomthe hush mrtvogof a/the dead krika?cry?
= am I to out-deafen that hushFigure 43. Krik: BCS source text + English interlinear