How the Translation Affects the Meaning of Pushkin's "The Captain's Daughter"

by benboy55 (student)

International Baccalaureate World Literature

Zelkin

Final Essay: The Captain’s Daughter

The work of a translator is forever held in question. The French refer to it as “les belles infidèles”, meaning that a woman, or translation, is either beautiful or faithful, never both. In Italy, the similarity between the word translator, “traduttore”, and traitor, “traditore” is often noted. Even the esteemed poet Robert Frost once said “Poetry is what gets lost in translation.” These viewpoints are harsh and unyielding and are woefully unfair to those who dare to undertake the task of translating the work of a world-renowned writer. As faithful to the original as they try to be, they undeniably leave their own mark on the text. As such, a translator’s version of the work is a testament to their interpretation of the author’s intentions and style. This is extremely evident in Robert Chandler’s translation of A.S. Pushkin’s The Captain’s Daughter. Chandler’s translation of the subtle verbal nuances of the characters’ speech illustrates their traits and place within the novel. This characterization is the largest impact that Chandler had on Pushkin’s great work.

The abundance of colloquial expressions the Pushkin has scattered throughout the novel is an important tool used by the author and the translator in the characterization of several major personages. One of the most language-specific remarks is constantly made by Ivan Kuzmich Mironov, the commandant of the Belogorsky Fortress, to his wife. The literal translation of the phrase is “you hear?” or “listen here.” However, the harshness of this conversion does not fit with Ivan Kuzmich’s jovial and warm character. Chandler recognized this discrepancy, and decided that “yes indeed” (Pushkin 35) would be more fitting to Ivan Kuzmich’s persona. Like the original, this suggests that the captain feels that his wife may not be taking in what he says and he must struggle to make himself heard. It fits easily into the comedy of the earlier chapters and is appropriately incongruous in the darker chapters at the heart of the novel, after the outbreak of the rebellion.

The unique flow of Ivan Kuzmich’s wife’s speech also reveals much about her character. Vasilisa Yegorovna speaks a folksy Russian saturated with biblical phrases and popular sayings. This poses a problem for a translator wishing to accurately convey the subtleties of her discourse. At the end of her interrogation of Pyotr Grinev, she remarks that because of her inability to provide a sizable dowry, her daughter Masha will remain a “bride of an old age” or “age-old bride”. The connotation of this saying is somewhat confusing. In Russian, this idiom is associated with old ladies complaining about their daughter’s or granddaughter’s lack of suitors. Most English speakers would not see this distinction and just assume Masha is old. To combat this potential error, Chandler changed the saying to “she’ll remain an old maid till kingdom come” (27). This approach offers a statement of hyperbole that is more familiar to those foreign to the original tongue. Another important aspect of Vasilisa Yegorovna’s character is her ability to take charge of the events of the fort, sometimes even more than the de jure commander, her husband. Pushkin shows this through her speech, which is frequently a veritable barrage of words. In her questioning of Pyotr during a dinner she “…showered [him] with questions: Who were [his] parents? Were they still alive? Where did they live? What were their circumstances?” (24). The choice of the words “showered him with”, over the literal translation, “would not stop asking”, gives a sense of non-stop probing. Chandler made this situation analogous to a situation many experience in this day and age: meeting a girlfriend’s or boyfriend’s parents.

This is a preview of the whole essay

The speech of the rebel Emelyan Pugachyev offers a different sort of dilemma to the translator. Pugachyev’s dialogue with other characters in the novel is filled with delicate literary techniques, so prominent in Pushkin’s writing, which must be kept whole. This is eminently evident in the scene where he allows Pyotr to leave with Masha, his love interest. Many of his minions and underlings protest this action; they urge him to execute the couple. But, Pugachyev stalls them by saying “When I hang a man, I hang him; when I pardon a man, I pardon him…Take your sweetheart…and God grant you love and concord!” (98). The repetition here is twofold. The parallelism, and consequent juxtaposition, serves to emphasize Pugachyev’s unyielding character. This stubborn demeanor is shared between him and Ivan Kuzmich. The iron core at the center of both their souls hints at a connection between the two men and supports Chandler’s decision to alter the literal translation of Pushkin’s words. He deliberately mistranslates Ivan Kuzmich’s last words to Masha. He tells her, shortly before his death, to “Pray to God: he will not forsake you; He will grant you love and concord.” (42). In the original Russian, “love and concord” might better be written as “peace and happiness.” In preserving the spirit of Pushkin’s work, if not the language, Chandler establishes the duality of Pugachyev character; both as the executioner of Masha’s father, and ironically, the filing of that role as a surrogate parent.

The work of a translator is never easy. It is not enough to be fluent in multiple languages, but they must also possess the skills of an analyst of literature and the talent of a novelist. They interpret the author’s choices and intentions and select words and structures that have connotations reflecting the ideas of the writer. A translator’s challenge is to choose whether to preserve the style and spirit of a piece, or to stay true to a literal translation. Robert Chandler does the former. Chandler’s interpretation of the speech patterns of Ivan Mironov, Vasilisa Yegorovna, and Emelyan Pugachyev are integral to the translation. He may have strayed from the specificity of Pushkin’s word choice, but preserved the linguistic beauty and flow that gave rise to the most famous poet in Russia.

Final Essay Outline

Thesis: The work of a translator is forever held in question. The French say “les belles infidèles”, meaning that a woman (read: translation) is either beautiful or faithful, never both. In Italy, the similarity between the word translator, “traduttore”, and traitor, “traditore” is oft quoted. Even the esteemed poet Robert Frost once said “Poetry is what gets lost in translation.” These viewpoints are somewhat harsh and unyielding and are woefully unfair to the poor soul who undertakes the task of translating the work of a world renowned writer. As faithful as they try to be, they undeniably leave their mark on the text. This is unavoidable, as the translator’s version of the work is a testament to their interpretation of the author’s intentions and style. This is extremely evident in Robert Chandler’s translation of A.S. Pushkin’s The Captain’s Daughter. Chandler’s translation of the subtle verbal nuances of the characters’ speech does much to illustrate their traits and place within the novel. This is the greatest impact that Chandler had on Pushkin’s great work.

The colloquial Russian expressions used by Ivan Kuzmich make him seem _________

“Slysh ty”/hear you (yes indeed)

The above phrase is a colloquialism oft used by the fortress commandant, Ivan Kuzmich. Literally, it means “hear me” or “listen”. However, the harshness of that translation does not fit with his jovial and warm character. Chandler recognized this, and decided that yes indeed would be more fitting to Ivan Kuzmich’s persona. However, this was entirely Chandler’s choice. If he kept it as “hear me”, then thousands of English speaking readers would have potentially formed a very different image of the commander of the fortress.

The folksy quick Russian that Vasilisa Yegorovna speaks characterize her as an old babushka

Vekovechnoy hevestyu/ age-old bride (maid to kingdom come)

Vasilisa Yegorovna, the wife of the fortress commandant, speaks a folksy Russian saturated with biblical phrases and popular sayings. This poses another problem for a translator wishing to accurately convey her speech. At the end of her interrogation of Pyetr Grinev, she remarks that because of her inability to provide a sizable dowry, her daughter will remain an age-old bride. Again, the connotation of this saying could have possibly stymied the translator. In Russian, that idiom is associated with old babushkas complaining about their daughter’s or granddaughter’s lack of suitors. Obviously, most English speakers would not see this distinction and just assume Masha is old. To combat this potential error, Chandler changed the saying to “Maid to kingdom come”, thus offering a statement of hyperbole that is more familiar.

“…showered [him] with questions: Who were my parents? Were they still alive? Where did they live? What were their circumstances?” (Pushkin 24)

A important aspect of Vasilisa Yegorovna’s character was her ability to take charge of the events of the fort, sometimes even more than her commanding husband. Pushkin shows this through her speech which is sometimes a veritable barrage of words. In her interrogation of Pyotr during a dinner she “…showered [him] with questions: Who were [his] parents? Were they still alive? Where did they live? What were their circumstances?” (Pushkin 24). The choice of the word “showered”, over the more accurate, “would not stop asking”, gives a sense of non-stop probing. Chandler made this situation analogous to a situation many have experienced in this day and age: meeting a girlfriend’s or boyfriend’s parents.

Pugachyev’s verbal register serves to make him a unique character.

“So be it! When I hang a man, I hang him; when I pardon a man, I pardon him. That’s the way I am. Take your sweetheart, go with her wherever you wish and God grant you love and concord!”

The repetition in this statement by Pugachyev is twofold. There is the overt parallelism and juxtaposition of the acts of hanging and pardoning, but closer reading reveals that a similar phrase was said to Pyetr by Ivan Kuzmich before he died. In Chandler’s version, the phrase is exactly the same, “love and concord.” However, this was a liberty taken by the translator; a departure from the original text. There, there a too different phrases, one meaning literally meaning “love and concord” and the other “peace.” However, Chandler is well within his rights to take this liberty as it emphasizes how Pugachyev acts as Pyetr’s and Masha’s protector after he kills the real father, Ivan Kuzmich.

Conclusion: The work of a translator is never easy. They not only have to have an almost complete fluency in at least two languages, but they also must have the skills of an analyst of literature. They interpret the author’s choices and intentions and must choose words and structures that have connotations that fit the ideas of the writer. In addition to these difficulties, a translator must choose whether to preserve the style and beauty of a piece and thus keeps its spirit, or to offer a version that stays true to the specificity of the author’s choice. Robert Chandler does the former; he may have strayed from the specific word choice of Pushkin, but the beauty and flow that gave rise to the most famous poet in Russian is unchanged. Chandler’s interpretation of the speech patterns of Ivan Mironov, Vasilisa Yegorovna, and Pugachyev are integral to the translation.