Great Works I: Remixing Memory

All the different translations were very interesting to read and I was hoping I would discover some sort of pattern amongst them. I am not sure what kind of pattern I was looking for but all these different translations made it seem like it was a puzzle to be solved. However, after reading all the variations, I did sum up three key differences. One thing I noticed about the poems is that some are more vague while others are more descriptive. For example, in Amy Lowell’s version, “Ch’ang Kan” she translates one of the lines as “Seeing them, my heart is bitter with grief, they wound the heart of the Unworthy One.” So much is going on here. The reading feels the wife’s pain and it is emphasized by her devaluing her since she is without him. On the other hand, if one takes note of the same thought translated by Ezra Pound (“The River-Merchant’s Wife: A Letter”) he states “They hurt me.” Okay. It is rather direct.
Another difference I took note of was how some translations of the poem were almost romanticized whereas others were simply recited. Again, I feel like Amy Lowell’s translation romanticized the poem by how it just flowed nicely. “Ch’ang-an Memories” by Wai-Lim Yip is the one that one would just simple recite, which could be due to it’s format. The last difference is how some translations are a lot more dramatic than others. For example, W.J.B. Fletcher states in “That Parting at Ch’ang Kan”, “Yet ah! the modest shyness that I felt!” and because of the way he worded it and the punctuation adds a flare to his version of the poem. One can compare that to Wai-Lim Yip’s version, as he states, “I seldom laughed, being bashful.” Both are descriptive but one is more dramatic than the other.
My favorite translation of “The Song of Ch’ang Kan” is by Amy Lowell. I like that she is very descriptive and I can feel the wife’s sorrow. And also, she romanticizes the story. As one reads along, they can feel the smooth rhythm.