Tuesday, April 19, 2016

THIS LITTLE POEM

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Found Poetry Review's Day 19 prompt is from Michael Leong and goes like this: 

"When we speak of “translation” we usually refer to the process of turning a text that is written in one language into another language. But if we think about translation more broadly, we can imagine a diverse range of experimental processes that can spark new writing. All you need is to find a source text and invent a method of transforming, altering, or changing it." 

I love this idea as it differs from other translation exercises I've tried in that it allows much more in the way of inventiveness. 

As evidenced in my other blogpost of the day, I ought to be packing, so I'm going to take a short source text, one of my own poems, and I'm going to translate it by substituting all the nouns with (she looks nervously around the room) ... a euphemism for penises.

In this way, this little poem

I used to wonder
if Lorna Crozier would be sorry
to be remembered mostly
but now I know the main thing
is to be remembered

becomes this little poem

I used to wonder
if John Thomas would be sorry
to be remembered mostly
for the one-eyed trouser snakes fucking the willy pricks
but now I know the main schlong

is to be remembered

Lorna Crozier is a fabulous poet, by the way. Smart, funny, and deeply thoughtful. The poem I refer to is from her 1985 collection, The Garden Going On Without Us

So, sue me. The carrots were on the other side of the display!
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