May one see the original poem? I find it quite easy to read this, though
I'm usually stumped if I hear Low Franconian spoken. It comes over as
quite a laugh in a gory sort of way - brrr! I say no more... ;-)
mjay
Richard Jeffrey Newman wrote:
>I wonder if this has happened to anyone else: Yesterday, I was, just for the
>hell of it, googling the title of my new book of poetry, The Silence Of Men,
>and I discovered a site on which someone--I don't know who--had translated
>the title poem of the book into a language I do not recognize and posted it
>to a website that seems to be an international collection of poetry in
>translation. This person did not take the poem from the book itself, but
>rather, complete with the author's photo I had used, from an online literary
>journal that had published it a couple of years ago. No one ever contacted
>me about this and, as far as I know, no one ever contacted the editor of the
>literary magazine either. On the one hand, I am quite flattered; on the
>other, it's a little disturbing to me that someone would publish the
>translation without even contacting me. I am curious what other people's
>reactions are. Also, I am hoping someone can tell me what the language of
>the translation is and, if it�s not too much trouble, where on the website I
>can find the email of the person who translated it so that I can contact him
>or her. I am, of course, also curious to know if the translation is any
>good.
>
>Here's the translation, which you can find at
>http://www.hetprieeltje.net/oogvanderoos/gednewman.html:
>
>DE STILTE VAN MANNEN
>
>Een man waarvan ik nooit eerder had gedroomd wandelt
>mijn appartement binnen en neemt plaats in de groene
>fauteuil waarin ik altijd zit om te schrijven. Hij houdt
>in zijn linker hand een grote stijve penis vast
>die hij stilletjes neerzet op de vloer.
>De fallus begint te walsen op muziek
>die ik niet kan horen. Met zijn scrotum,
>testikels en benen afgesneden tot aan de knieën.
>wil ik weten waarom dit misvormd
>manswezen naar mij werd gebracht. Ik kijk op
>maar mijn gast is verdwenen. Zijn orgaan, schokkend
>met korte spasmen zoals een hoestende oude man,
>spreidt zich uit in een plas van dun bloed.
>De stilte tussen ons is de stilte van mannen.
>
>(The silence of men)
>
>Bron: The Pedestal Magazine
>
>(geplaatst op 25-04-2005)
>
>*************************************
>
>Here's the original:
>
>The Silence Of Men
>
>
>A man I�ve never dreamed before walks
>into my apartment and sits in the green
>chair where I do my writing. He carries
>in his left hand a large erect penis
>which he places silently on the floor.
>The phallus begins to waltz to music
>I cannot hear, its scrotum a skirt;
>its testicles, legs cut off at the knees.
>I want to know why this disfigured
>manhood has been brought to me. I look up,
>but my guest is gone. His organ, deflating
>in short spasms like an old man coughing,
>spreads itself in a pool of shallow blood.
>The silence between us is the silence of men.
>
>Thanks--
>
>Rich Newman
>www.richardjnewman.com <http://www.richardjnewman.com/>
>
>
>
>
>
--
"I was crazy to come to this country, because I was liked a free country." - Sacco
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