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[dodge]

Excerpts from the ongoing work of my life: NOTES ON THE ART OF TRANSLATION.

1) 'Draw hard on the doormouse for a storm-tossed surprise!'
Now, this line is familiar to all classical scholars, coming as it does from the only surviving works of Naftonian Literature. The Naftonians, as you know, were neighbors of the Babylonians and their greatest author was Nirozzi--widely regarded as being as being the most eloquent and learned of all Naftonian authors. Though all of his 500 plays have been lost, history has handed down a mere six of his Poems for Children. These seem to have been scorned by his contemporaries but to do this day children simply love to sing the only English translation, set to music in 1912 by Emerald Z. Browne. There are seven verses, each masterfully written in language so simple a child might understand--except for this utterly baffling line, which children seem to adore as a nonsense line worthy of Lewis Carroll. The word translated by Browne as 'doormouse' was 'bilbo.'

Hold on to your seats, though, bubbaloos. Last year, a scholar in Portland, unearthed artifacts--including a dictionary--from the nearby Zebeebees. They spoke the same language as the Naftonians, by and large. So it was something of a shock to find a version of Nirozzi's poem containing the word 'balbo' instead of 'bilbo'. Could the surviving Naftonian text have been corrupted? 'Balbo', to the scholar's horror,meant not a doormouse but an obscene-looking fruit resembling a phallus with two gigantic...I'm sorry everybody...gonads. Furthermore, the word translated by Brown as 'draw hard' had a secondary meaning of 'suck with great force'. And the word translated as 'storm-tossed' meant...Oh, God!--'splashing.' Putting all this together, it would seem that Nirozzi had written a song for children with each innocent verse ending in a most filthy refrain. The scholar moved on to song two...

2) 'When the viper's in my porridge bowl', I hear the heavens sing!'
Once again, the Zebeebee dictionary dropped the scholar's jaw. 'Harmschlex', the word Browne translated as porridge bowl, was found to be a corrupted version of 'farnschtex', which means 'back door'--with a crude secondary meaning of 'anus'.

So the songs that innocent children sang while skipping rope or smoking dope were the sinister, twisted jokes of an evil mind!

3) 'Extricatus!' 'Convolutus!' Caesar wrote in a simple, clear, direct style. The whole trick of translating Caesar is to remember: he spoke Latin...but not really LATIN. The language consisted of many three and four-syllable words, it's true, but these fell as naturally on Roman ears as Anglo-Saxon short words do on ours. So, scholastic ninnies who translate Caesar as writing 'Caesar gave the word to extricate the troops immediately from the convoluted predicament in which they had arrived' are simply way off base. Unless Caesar was using a loan word--say, from Greek--or a high-fallutin' Latin word, we're better off translating thus: "Caesar ordered that the troops be moved, at once, from the maze they were in.'

4) Jesus Christ spoke American too. The reason Peterson's 'rendition', not translation, works so well for me is this: for the first time we hear Christ speak in words that really live. He was no Thee or Thou guy. There couldn't have been anything literary or stilted about his style. Most of the apostles were simple, unschooled men. JC preached to drunks and whores, the down and out, the losers. Like all great leaders and speakers, he had to speak their language. And we don't connect with that language through translations that pretend to pay homage to the original. Like Caesar, Christ also spoke American. In other words, a simple, clear, direct style--the living language of his day.

5) Well, I'd simply love to tell you all about Nirozzi's third song, with the once-baffling refrain 'May your lovely lips be filled with precious, priceless nectar! The word translated as 'nectar', it seems, meant something really else. But it's Saturday and so...Cheers.

[Harmsway]

STANLEY KUBRICK: A BIOGRAPHY by John Baxter.

Kubrick is my all-time favorite film director, and so I thought I'd check out a biography from the library. This was the most comprehensive of the ones available, though it's not quite complete (it was finished before EYES WIDE SHUT's release).

It's essentially a capable surface look at the director. There are plenty of interesting anecdotes and it always remains an easy read. Baxter paints Kubrick as a fascinating obsessive, absolutely dedicated to getting his vision at the expense of practically anyone around him. Baxter takes a very negative reading of the director (though such a view is hardly unwarranted, given how inhuman he sometimes seemed to be).

When Baxter goes into inferences of his own, however, he strikes me as rather off-base and as uncharitable as possible, and his analysis of Kubrick's cinematic offerings strikes me as fairly unsatisfactory and sometimes unfounded. I note that the other major Kubrick biography available by Vincent LoBrutto has been criticized for being too kind in its portrayal of Kubrick; I wonder if Baxter could be criticized for being too mean.

Since finishing it, I've looked around for another Kubrick biographies. There doesn't seem to be many available, and the ones that are haven't been too well received. Shame. An individual as bizarre and brilliant as Stanley Kubrick surely merits some real attention.

[dodge]

STANLEY KUBRICK: A BIOGRAPHY by John Baxter.

Kubrick is my all-time favorite film director, and so I thought I'd check out a biography from the library. This was the most comprehensive of the ones available, though it's not quite complete (it was finished before EYES WIDE SHUT's release).

It's essentially a capable surface look at the director. There are plenty of interesting anecdotes and it always remains an easy read. Baxter paints Kubrick as a fascinating obsessive, absolutely dedicated to getting his vision at the expense of practically anyone around him. Baxter takes a very negative reading of the director (though such a view is hardly unwarranted, given how inhuman he sometimes seemed to be).

When Baxter goes into inferences of his own, however, he strikes me as rather off-base and as uncharitable as possible, and his analysis of Kubrick's cinematic offerings strikes me as fairly unsatisfactory and sometimes unfounded. I note that the other major Kubrick biography available by Vincent LoBrutto has been criticized for being too kind in its portrayal of Kubrick; I wonder if Baxter could be criticized for being too mean.

Since finishing it, I've looked around for another Kubrick biographies. There doesn't seem to be many available, and the ones that are haven't been too well received. Shame. An individual as bizarre and brilliant as Stanley Kubrick surely merits some real attention.

You might want to check www.amazon.com. I spotted a bio by Vincent Lobrutto there for $22.50, plus a memoir by Fredric Raphael.

[Harmsway]

You might want to check www.amazon.com. I spotted a bio by Vincent Lobrutto there for $22.50, plus a memoir by Fredric Raphael.

Thanks, dodge.

I might pick up the Lobrutto book, but it doesn't seem any more "definitive" a biography than Baxters (and apparently, some find Lobrutto's writing very amateur). Still, it would provide a different perspective.

The Raphael memoir, however, has been dragged over the coals over at Amazon for being a poor cash-in. Sounds like my time might be spent better elsewhere.

[dodge]

You might want to check www.amazon.com. I spotted a bio by Vincent Lobrutto there for $22.50, plus a memoir by Fredric Raphael.

Thanks, dodge.

I might pick up the Lobrutto book, but it doesn't seem any more "definitive" a biography than Baxters (and apparently, some find Lobrutto's writing very amateur). Still, it would provide a different perspective.

The Raphael memoir, however, has been dragged over the coals over at Amazon for being a poor cash-in. Sounds like my time might be spent better elsewhere.

If you do give the Lobrutto book a try, let me know your final decision. I'd like to know more about Kubrick myself. Might any of the critical studies you've read make for a good introduction?

[bond 16.05.72]

Slash's Autobiography

Excessive is not the word, it's a wonder he's still alive and I'm only just half way through but it's a riveting read and Slash's story is a fascinating plus he's way cooler than Axl Rose will ever be!

A shame really at one point it seemed they were very together and a formidable unit but Axl's ego bears it's head even before Appetite was released and you can kind of guess it won't end in a good way. The drug taking of the rest of the band doesn't help but Axl's ego was easily the most destructive part of the end of Gun'n'Roses.

Appetite is still one of the greatest rock albums ever and that awful forgery released towards the end of last year (yes I did buy it much to my dismay) proves that the band was more than just Mr Rose despite some of the drivel I've been reading on MI6 recently about Chinese Democracy being better than the The Use Your Illusion albums.

[Kilroy6644]

I finally finished Kushiel's Scion. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed Jacqueline Carey's books. I really wish I'd re-read the first three, because there were a lot of referrences I couldn't remember, or remembered only vaguely.

Now I'm starting on Stephen Hunter's Tapestry Of Spies.

[The Ghost Who Walks]

Reading Moonraker for the first time. It's excellent.

[Banco]

I'm reading "The Discarded Image," a scholarly non-fiction work by CS Lewis. It addresses what the medieval man knew, how the medieval man thought, what the medieval man read, what the medieval intellectual model was, and finally, how those things effected what the medieval writer wrote. Fascinating, really.

[Harmsway]

PERFUME: THE STORY OF A MURDERER by Patrick Süskind.

A deeply flawed novel, but with some fascinating ideas and concepts.

[Single-O-Seven]

"Final Theory" by Mark Alpert.

Alpert is a science journalist first and foremost, and he's attempted to blend science (mainly theoretical physics) with a Ludlum-esque spy thriller novel. Not a bad read for his first novel; certainly keeps the pages turning. And the science is good, too!

[Shadow Syndicate]

Im reading a collection of short stories that i checked out from my school library. It's called "The Oxford book of English Ghost Stories". It's bad . I love ghost stories, and Victorian English...everything, and that book definitley quenches my thirst.

[mrsbonds_ppk]

Just finished reading Iron Man: Extremis. Very good .

That's a damn good book man. When you thought Tony could not possibly get any cooler right.

Tony is the coolest and I thought I was more of a DC fan. I don't know now...I've become a true Iron Man fan. I still love Batman and Superman! It's so funny how I have gotten into comics in my 20's.

[Safari Suit]

Neuromancer-William Gibson

Generally considered the definitive work by the "godfather of cyberpunk". Believed to contain the earliest uses of the term "cyberspace", among other notable innovations. I suspected that this might have been a novel that had been acclaimed merely for its originality, something which would be difficult to appreciate after so much of what originated from the book has become quite commonplace. So far my suspicions have proved wrong. An exciting, imaginative and engaging tale.

[Double-0-7]

I just finished reading the British release of By Royal Command by Charlie Higson. It was my favorite of the Young Bond novels and is well-worth the effort to track-down and read.

[RedKelly]

1984 by George Orwell. Had to read it for an english project and loved it., the movie was decent.....

[Single-O-Seven]

1984 by George Orwell. Had to read it for an english project and loved it., the movie was decent.....

Always one of my favourites. The film was good, too, as long as you're talking about the version filmed in 1984, and not the 1950's version which was fairly cheesy, but understandably so given its time.

I'm currently reading "Billions and Billions" by Carl Sagan. As with all of his work, it's thought-provoking and bursting with knowledge. Appropriately it also appears to be his most insightful book as it was the last book he completed before his untimely death.

[MkB]

Rude Tales and Glorious: a Bawdy retelling of the Arthurian Tales, by "Nicholas Seare" a.k.a. Trevanian. I had enjoyed his Shibumi spy novel, and wanted to give a try to his very different opus. It's so far an enjoyable and irreverent book!

[RedKelly]

1984 by George Orwell. Had to read it for an english project and loved it., the movie was decent.....

Always one of my favourites. The film was good, too, as long as you're talking about the version filmed in 1984, and not the 1950's version which was fairly cheesy, but understandably so given its time.

I'm currently reading "Billions and Billions" by Carl Sagan. As with all of his work, it's thought-provoking and bursting with knowledge. Appropriately it also appears to be his most insightful book as it was the last book he completed before his untimely death.

Yes that was the version I as talking about. I just felt it could have been much better. Possibly because It was nothing how I pictured the book. My favorite scene played out just as I pictured it in the book. "You Are The Dead!" "Now we can see you" "The house IS surronded." "Here comes a candle to light you to bed here comes a chopper to chop off your head!"

[Safari Suit]

I saw the 1984 film version of, erm, 1984 a couple of times last year and thought it was excellent. Possibly the best distopian vision I've seen portrayed on screen.

Must get around to reading Anthony Burgess' 1985 sometime.

[RedKelly]

I saw the 1984 film version of, erm, 1984 a couple of times last year and thought it was excellent. Possibly the best distopian vision I've seen portrayed on screen.

Must get around to reading Anthony Burgess' 1985 sometime.

Did you read the book?

[Safari Suit]

Yes. I read it once when I was about 12 or so and unsurprisingly didn't really get it. I read it again last year, when I had a unit on my University course dedicated to Utopias and Dystopias, and "got it" that time.

[RedKelly]

Cool

[danielcraigisjamesbond007]

With school winding down for me, I haven't really had time to sit down and enjoy a good book (papers, tests, etc. ). I'm currently on Part One of The Union Trilogy (HTTK) that I got for X-mas last year. It's very well written!

[Johnboy007]

Plodding through John le Carre's The Little Drummer Girl. It has a few moments of charm, but otherwise it's not particularly exciting or gripping.

[AgentBentley]

Re-reading Tarantino's 'Jackie Brown' script. Very much a shooting script, with all the camera angles mentioned.

[Manticore]

Red Fox.

[Safari Suit]

Neuromancer-William Gibson

Generally considered the definitive work by the "godfather of cyberpunk". Believed to contain the earliest uses of the term "cyberspace", among other notable innovations. I suspected that this might have been a novel that had been acclaimed merely for its originality, something which would be difficult to appreciate after so much of what originated from the book has become quite commonplace. So far my suspicions have proved wrong. An exciting, imaginative and engaging tale.

Sadly, Neuromancer became really tiresome pretty soon after I made this post. As a result I gave up before reaching the novel's halfway mark. I've switched to Tom Wolfe's A Man In Full. Not quite as good as The Bonfire of the Vainties, but a bitter delight nonetheless.

[Kilroy6644]

Rudyard Kipling - The Jungle Books

[RedKelly]

Also now believe it or not I am finally starting to read Devil May Care. I bought it in February but had to read so many other books for school. It moves rather quickly which is the type of book I like. I got a kick out of the fact a dog was run over, although I shouldn't I would hate that if it happened to my dog

A FANTASTIC book is Night by elie wiesel.

Edited by RedKelly, 13 April 2009 - 10:34 PM.