Beatrice and the Ineffable Smile: Canto XXIII of Paradise by Dante Alighieri, Translated by Stephen Binns The Society May 24, 2023 Beauty, Dante, Epic, Poetry, Translation 6 Comments . Beatrice and the Ineffable Smile: Canto XXIII of Paradise by Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) translated by Stephen Binns Just as a bird that stands watch to ensure __the safety of her brood, beside the...
Poems from ‘The Still Beloved’ by Amado Nervo, Translated by Alan Steinle The Society May 21, 2023 Beauty, Love Poems, Poetry, Translation 20 Comments . Poems from 'The Still Beloved' ('La Amada Inmóvil') by Amado Nervo (1870-1919) translated from the Spanish by Alan Steinle The poems below are selections from the book La Amada Inmóvil: Versos a Una...
Book Review: Seven Poems by Jacob Balde, Translated by Karl Maurer The Society May 20, 2023 Poetry, Reviews, Translation 5 Comments . Reviewed Book: Seven Poems by Jacob Balde (Translated by Karl Maurer) Cooper and Posey, 2023 by Monika Cooper In 2022, a small and brand-new press launched a paper ship, full of herbs and poppies from...
‘On the Divine Mercy’: A Poem by Eustache Deschamps, Translated by Margaret Coats The Society May 11, 2023 Beauty, Culture, Poetry, Translation 29 Comments . On the Divine Mercy Seven times the just man falls, and rises again. ---Proverbs 24:16 by Eustache Deschamps (1346-1406) translated by Margaret Coats The just man seven times a day offends, Says Solomon’s...
Beatrice Does Not Smile: Canto XXI of Paradise by Dante Alighieri, Translated by Stephen Binns The Society April 24, 2023 Beauty, Dante, Epic, Poetry, Translation 6 Comments . Beatrice Does Not Smile: Canto XXI of Paradise by Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) translated by Stephen Binns And now my eyes were fastened once again __upon my lady’s face, and all the while __Beatrice __my...
Three Sonnets by Vittorio Alfieri, Translated by Adam Sedia The Society April 12, 2023 Beauty, Poetry, Translation 9 Comments . Three Sonnets by Vittorio Alfieri (1749-1803) translated by Adam Sedia . LXXIV Melancholy, why take your only seat On this, my miserable heart---oh, why? A trembling supplicant, I yet entreat: Oh,...
Beatrice Smiles: Canto XXXI of Purgatory by Dante Alighieri, Translated by Stephen Binns The Society March 15, 2023 Beauty, Dante, Epic, Poetry, Translation 7 Comments . Beatrice Smiles: Canto XXXI of Purgatory by Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) translated by Stephen Binns “You, on the other side of the sacred river,” __Lethe __she called to me, and sharply to the point,...
Dante Meets Paolo and Francesca: Canto V of Inferno by Dante Alighieri, Translated by Stephen Binns The Society February 15, 2023 Dante, Epic, Poetry, Translation 12 Comments . Dante Meets Paolo and Francesca: Canto V of Inferno by Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) translated by Stephen Binns And so from that first circle I went down __into the second, where there is less space __and...
Double Ballade by Conon de Béthune, Translated by Margaret Coats The Society February 9, 2023 Beauty, Poetry, Translation 33 Comments . Double Ballade of a Crusader by Conon de Béthune (c.1155–1219) translate by Margaret Coats It would be well to fight this zeal For making songs and penning poetry, Since I should conquer faults I...
Sonnet XVIII of the Sacred Rhymes by Lope de Vega, Translated by Martin Rizley The Society February 8, 2023 Beauty, Culture, Poetry, Readings, Translation, Video 16 Comments . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDSWs61Ye0E . Sonnet XVIII of the Sacred Rhymes by Lope de Vega (1562-1635) translated by Martin Rizley What have I, that you’d seek me as a friend? What interest draws...
‘The City’ by Hans Theodor Woldsen Storm, Translated by Dusty Grein The Society February 5, 2023 Beauty, Poetry, Translation 7 Comments . The City, 1852 by Hans Theodor Woldsen Storm (1817-1888) translated by Dusty Grein Past the gray beach, beside the gray sea, lies a wondrous gray city of old. Heavy fog blankets the roofs all around and in...
‘Castile’ by Miguel de Unamuno, Translated by Cheryl Corey The Society February 2, 2023 Beauty, Poetry, Translation 8 Comments . Castile by Miguel de Unamuno (Spain, 1864-1936)translated by Cheryl A. Corey O Castile! You raise me up in the rugged palm of your hand;To the sky that burns, that cools, that holds you under its...
‘I Met a Shepherdess’ by Guido Cavalcanti, Translated by Joseph S. Salemi The Society January 8, 2023 Essays, Love Poems, Poetry, Translation 22 Comments . I Met a Shepherdess by Guido Cavalcanti (c. 1250-1300) translated by Joseph S. Salemi I met a shepherdess in a small copse. More beautiful than starlight, the girl seemed. Her hair was blonde-ish, with a...
A Translation of Martin Luther’s Christmas Hymn Vom Himmel Hoch by James A. Tweedie The Society December 23, 2022 Culture, Music, Poetry, Translation 20 Comments . Vom Himmel Hoch by Martin Luther (1483-1546) translation by James A. Tweedie 1. From highest heaven I here befall To bring a good news tale to all. So much I want this tale to bring To tell it I will gladly...
Two Poems by Victor Hugo, Translated by Joshua C. Frank The Society November 5, 2022 Love Poems, Music, Poetry, Translation 10 Comments . Guitar by Victor Hugo (1802-1885) Translated by Joshua C. Frank Gastibelza, the rifleman coming to town, Sang loud and clear: “Has someone seen Doña Sabina around, Someone from here? O villagers, sing...
‘A Conversation Between the Poor and the Poorer’ by Okura, Translated by Seiji Hakui The Society October 23, 2022 Culture, Poetry, Translation 8 Comments . A Conversation Between the Poor and the Poorer, followed by an Envoi From the book five of the Man'yōshū, this poem is believed to be based on what the author witnessed while working as a provincial...
‘Leisure’: A Meditation on Horace’s Carmen I.IX, by Jonathan Shoulta The Society October 13, 2022 Beauty, Culture, Poetry, Translation 3 Comments . Σχολή (Leisure) A Meditation on Horace’s Carmen I.IX You see the glist’ning peak of Mount Soracte, which towers, high with snow, its straining forests bent low and cracking under their wintry...
‘Bergerette’ by Marguerite de Navarre, translated by Margaret Coats The Society September 30, 2022 Beauty, Love Poems, Poetry, Translation 21 Comments . Bergerette by Marguerite de Navarre (1492–1549), translated by Margaret Coats O shepherdess, my friend,On love alone I live.True love is life’s true end,My heart can comprehend,And therefore I intend_My...
‘Carcassonne’ and Other Poetry by Gustave Nadaud, Translated by Joshua C. Frank The Society September 21, 2022 Beauty, Culture, Humor, Music, Poetry, Translation 18 Comments . Carcassonne by Gustave Nadaud (1820-1893) Translated by Joshua C. Frank “At sixty years, I’m getting old, And I’ve been working all my days Not being able to behold Fulfillment of my wishing gaze. I...
Athena Emboldens Telemachus: Book 1 of The Odyssey Complete Text, Translated by Mike Solot The Society September 15, 2022 Culture, Epic, Poetry, Translation 6 Comments . The Odyssey Translator's Note: The Odyssey, Book 1, which exemplifies an essential feature of Homer's art as a storyteller, the way he composes the books of his epics as wholes, each with its own beginning,...
‘Obedience’ by Giuseppe Gioachino Belli, Translated by Joseph S. Salemi (with a Long Note) The Society September 13, 2022 Culture, Essays, Humor, Poetry, Translation 16 Comments . Obedience by Giuseppe Gioachino Belli (1791-1863) translated from Romanesco by Joseph S. Salemi It’s not true, Christians, what you have been told— That you need endless patience to obey. Obedience...
‘Lament of the Little White Horse’ by Paul Fort, Translated by Joshua C. Frank The Society August 13, 2022 Beauty, Music, Poetry, Translation 11 Comments . Lament of the Little White Horse by Paul Fort (1872-1960) Translated by Joshua C. Frank The little horse in the weather so dread, What courage he had inside! A little horse as white as white bread, All...
Poems by Théodore de Banville (1823-1891), Translated by Margaret Coats The Society August 7, 2022 Beauty, Humor, Poetry, Rondel, Translation, Triolet 21 Comments . Poems by Théodore de Banville (1823-1891) translated by Margaret Coats The Velocipede Half brain, and half a pair of wheels, Transcending anthropology, Calf poised on manufactured heels, Half brain, and...
‘For Then’ by Manuel Gutiérrez Nájera, Translated by Cheryl Corey The Society July 12, 2022 Beauty, Poetry, Translation 14 Comments . For Then by Manuel Gutiérrez Nájera (Mexico, 1859-1895) translated by Cheryl Corey O, to die upon the open sea At sunset, facing heaven, where agony Is but a dream; and soul, the essence of me, Is like a...
A Translation of Horace’s Barine Ode, by Joseph S. Salemi The Society July 11, 2022 Culture, Love Poems, Poetry, Sapphic Verse, Translation 20 Comments . Quintus Horatius Flaccus, Odes, II.8 “The first thing we learn about Barine is that she is in the habit of making and breaking promises (of love and fidelity, presumably) and that she is never punished...
‘Life Is a Dream’ by Pedro Calderón de la Barca, Translated by Elwin Wirkala The Society June 28, 2022 Beauty, Poetry, Translation 5 Comments . Life Is a Dream by Pedro Calderón de la Barca (1600-1681) Translated by Elwin Wirkala The king dreams he is king, and lives with this deception ordering, disposing of and governing, and all the applauses...
‘Canzone to the Virgin’ by Petrarch, Translated by Margaret Coats The Society June 10, 2022 Beauty, Culture, Poetry, Translation 20 Comments . Canzone to the Virgin by Francesco Petrarca (1304-1374) Translated by Margaret Coats Virgin beautiful, vested with the sun And crowned with stars, who pleased the Sun supreme So much that within you He hid...
A Translation and Musical Setting of Victor Hugo’s Poem, ‘Demain, dès l’Aube,’ by James A. Tweedie The Society May 9, 2022 Beauty, Music, Poetry, Translation 11 Comments . "Tomorrow, at Dawn" Sung in English . "Tomorrow, at Dawn" Sung in French . Tomorrow, at Dawn by Victor Hugo (1802-1885) Translation by James A. Tweedie Tomorrow, when the countryside is kissed by...
The Canterbury Tales General Prologue: Translation of Lines 1-18 The Society May 7, 2022 Beauty, Culture, Education, Poetry, Translation 16 Comments . The Canterbury Tales---General Prologue, Lines 1-18 by Geoffrey Chaucer (1343-1400) Translated by Evan Mantyk When April’s sweetest showers downward shoot, The drought of March is pierced right to the...
‘Tomorrow’s Poets’ by Enrique González Martínez, Translated by Cheryl Corey The Society April 11, 2022 Beauty, Poetry, Translation 5 Comments . Tomorrow’s Poets by Enrique González Martínez (1871-1952) translated by Cheryl Corey Tomorrow’s poets will sing beyond all praise In verse that’s out of tune with present day; New stars will bring...
The Flowers’ Easter Debate: A Translation by Margaret Coats The Society April 10, 2022 Beauty, Culture, Humor, Poetry, Translation 28 Comments . The Flowers' Easter Debate Palm Sunday is the Flowers’ Easter, the day when they honored Jesus Christ entering Jerusalem. As they did not need Good Friday’s bloody atonement for sin, the flowers were...
Comparing Translations of Charles d’Orleans, by Margaret Coats The Society March 9, 2022 Beauty, Essays, Poetry, Rondel, Translation 34 Comments . "I Heard Chapman Speak Out Loud and Bold" by Margaret Coats My title quotes “On First Looking into Chapman’s Homer,” a sonnet by John Keats. When Keats first read Homer, the voice he heard was not...
‘From the Tower’ by Francisco de Quevedo, Translated by Elwin Wirkala The Society February 25, 2022 Beauty, Poetry, Translation 6 Comments . From the Tower by Francisco de Quevedo (1580-1645) | translated from Spanish by Elwin Wirkala Retired to these deserts and at peace, and with but few, though learnèd, books beside, I live conversing now...
A Valentine from Geoffrey Chaucer, Margaret Coats, and James A. Tweedie The Society February 14, 2022 Beauty, Culture, Love Poems, Music, Poetry, Readings, Rondel, Translation, Video 21 Comments . https://youtu.be/3XWcnISYGSE . Rondel for Saint Valentine's Day by Geoffrey Chaucer (c.1340–1400) | modernized in the original lyric form by Margaret Coats Now welcome, springtime, with your gentle...
Winners of the 2022 SCP Poetry Translation Competition Announced The Society February 1, 2022 Poetry, Poetry Contests, Translation 4 Comments . Judges Margaret Coats Evan Mantyk . First Place ($100) Talbot Hook, Connecticut "Mourning the Dead" by Li Qingzhao; "Bamboo-Grove Pavilion" by Wang Wei . Second Place Joseph Greene, California "Solitude"...
‘Solitude’ by Müller and ‘Serenade’ by Rellstab, Translated by Joseph Greene The Society January 28, 2022 Beauty, Poetry, Translation 10 Comments . Solitude by Wilhelm Müller (1794-1827) | from German by Joseph Greene As when a cloud is darkened And drifts through sunlit sky, While through the many treetops An icy breeze does fly: As such I make my...
‘The Two Corteges’ by Soulary, Translated by Hadyn Adams The Society January 25, 2022 Beauty, Culture, Poetry, Translation 4 Comments . The Two Corteges by Joséphin Soulary (1815-1891) | translated from French by Hadyn Adams Within a church two groups of people met: An infant’s funeral cortege, the first: A woman followed, her heart fit...
Poems by Li Qingzhao, Wang Wei, and Du Mu, Translated by Talbot Hook The Society January 24, 2022 Beauty, Culture, Poetry, Translation 13 Comments . Mourning the Dead by Li Qingzhao, Southern Song (1084-1155) | from Chinese by Talbot Hook Above in the heavens the star-river flows; Down on the earth the curtains hang low. As the air grows chill, and my...
‘To Tchaikovsky’ by A.N. Apukhtin, Translated by Olga Dumer The Society January 22, 2022 Beauty, Culture, Music, Poetry, Translation 13 Comments . To Tchaikovsky by A.N. Apukhtin (1840-1893) | Translated from Russian by Olga Dumer With my musician friend’s departure A minor key pervades my lines. Yet, like a fugue’s evolving texture, Old...
Two Poems by Friedrich Hebbel, Translated by Sean Thompson The Society January 20, 2022 Beauty, Poetry, Translation 5 Comments . To Sleep, to Sleep by Friedrich Hebbel | translated from German by Sean Thompson To sleep, to sleep and only sleep And never wake and have no dreams! The bitter woes that made me weep but half-remembered...
