The Sunday Salon: On Reading a New Translation

Years ago, the summer after I graduated from high school I believe, I read Madame Bovary. I found it depressing and was unimpressed.

In October, I heard a review of a new translation of Madame Bovary on NPR and this review, and my subsequent reading of the first chapter on my Kindle, caught me on fire for Flaubert. I realized that, though the timing of reading it may have had some to do with it, the translation of a work is so very important. I immediately requested it from our local library.

Lydia Davis explains about Flaubert's precision in her introduction--about how he would write all day and only have a few sentences to show for it. He was a perfectionist, each word had to fit exactly right. He used underlining often, to emphases certain words (italicized in this edition, left out entirely in most or all others). How important an emphasis is, how important one word can be!

As I am reading Davis' translation, I am amazing with the way Flaubert is able to turn a phrase, with his descriptive powers, and with the story he is really telling. Madame Bovary is the poster child for my stance against romance novels!

Here are a few examples, taken from early chapters, that show the subtle and yet monumental changes to the prose that can come from a translation that is seeking to emulate the author, not just translate his words.

previous translation by Eleanor Marx-Aveling:
We were in class when the head-master came in, followed by a "new fellow," not wearing the school uniform, and a school servant carrying a large desk. Those who had been asleep woke up, and every one rose as if just surprised at his work.

new translation by Lydia Davis:
We were in Study Hall, when the Headmaster entered, followed by a new boy dressed in regular clothes and a school servant carrying a large desk. Those who were sleeping woke up, and everyone rose as though taken by surprise while at work.


previous translation by Eleanor Marx-Aveling:
Charles was surprised at the whiteness of her nails. They were shiny, delicate at the tips, more polished than the ivory of Dieppe, and almond-shaped. Yet her hand was not beautiful, perhaps not white enough, and a little hard at the knuckles; besides, it was too long, with no soft inflections in the outlines. Her real beauty was in her eyes. Although brown, they seemed black because of the lashes, and her look came at you frankly, with a candid boldness.

new translation by Lydia Davis:
Charles was surprised by the whiteness of her fingernails. They were glossy, delicate at the tips, more carefully cleaned than Dieppe ivories, and filed into almond shapes. Yet her hand was not beautiful, not pale enough, perhaps, and a little dry at the knuckles; it was also too long and without soft inflections in its contours. What was beautiful about her was her eyes; although they were brown, they seemed almost black because of the lashes, and her gaze fell upon you openly with, with a bold candor.


previous translation by Eleanor Marx-Aveling:
Her neck stood out from a white turned-down collar. Her hair, whose two black folds seemed each of a single piece, so smooth were they, was parted in the middle by a delicate line that curved slightly with the curve of the head; and, just showing the tip of the ear, it was joined behind in a thick chignon, with a wavy movement at the temples that the country doctor saw now for the first time in his life.

new translation by Lydia Davis:
Her neck rose out of a white, turned-down collar. Her hair, whose two black bands were so smooth they seemed each to be of a single piece, was divided in the middle of her head by a thin part that dipped slightly following the curve of her skull; and just barely revealing the lobes of her ears, it went on to merge in the back in an abundant chignon, with a wavy movement near the temples that the country doctor noticed for the first time in his life.


previous translation by Eleanor Marx-Aveling:
Before marriage she thought herself in love; but the happiness that should have followed this love not having come, she must, she thought, have been mistaken. And Emma tried to find out what one meant exactly in life by the words felicity, passion, rapture, that had seemed to her so beautiful in books.

new translation by Lydia Davis:
Before her marriage, she had believed that what she was experiencing was love; but since the happiness that should have resulted from that love had not come, she thought she must have been mistaken. And Emma tried to find out just what was meant, in life, by the words "bliss," "passion," and "intoxication," which had seemed so beautiful to her in books.

I'm reading this one very slowly, to enjoy all the nuances, so it may be a while before I review it. In the meantime, I encourage you to buy or borrow a copy yourself!