Octavio Paz said: "Translation is an art of analogy, the art of finding correspondences. An art of shadows and echoes…" Charles Baudelaire said that poetry is essentially analogy. The idea of universal correspondence comes from the idea that language is a micro cosmos, a double of the universe. Between the language of the universe and the universe of language, there is a bridge, a link: poetry. The poet, says Baudelaire, is the translator."
In this class we will study multiple translations of single poems, examine the choices and strategies of translation. In addition, each student in the class will also provide weekly contributions of their own translation of given poems. These translations will serve as focal points for the larger subject of translation, that of the poet and writer as translator.
This class is co-taught by Professor, Claudia Desblaches at the University of Rennes 2 in Rennes, France. We will virtually collaborate with her class during shared weekly meetings. For this class, knowledge of a second language is welcome but not at all necessary.