Here is an interview with Eirin Mouré
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/harriet/2010/02/poetries-languages-and-selves-the-being-of-erin-moure/
In the light of this and any other factors, namely the preface to Sheep's Vigil by a Fervent Person (anthology, pp. 160-165), comment on text II's "transelation" by Erin Mouré (p. 165)
In the preface we learn that to Erin Mouré, translating Fernando Pessoa's heteronym Alberto Caeiro's poetry wasn't merely done with the intent to bring to life Pessoa's literary inheritance to an English speaking community, but instead to establish a sort of dialogue. As Mouré explains in her preface, as she read one or two lines of Pessoa, she would follow with a line and translation of her own as a form of response. This dynamic is clearly seen for instance in the II text, "Transelation" (p.165).
ReplyDeleteThroughout the poem there's a clear interplay, a relation between Caeiro's poems and her own all throughout the body of the text. A few poignant examples of this is seen where instead of staying literal she applies the original framework to encompass her own personal reality, like in verse 2, "I walk up Winnett to Vaughan Road all the time" or in the last stanza "To love is to abide in innocence, hey, I'm still amazed... And I'm 45, just pulling my T-Shirt on..." In sum, Mouré's "Transelation" is not based on fidelity in the original sense, but instead on creative engagement, thus becoming a hybrid space where Pessoa's poetry and her subjectivity can clearly coexist thus displaying how translation can also be an interpritive act.