Rhythm and modernity in the translations of Nuit Rhénane

Abstract

Abstract: This article aims to comparatively analyze two translations of the poem “Nuit rhénane”, by Guillaume Apollinaire, from the perspective of rhythm as the organization of language in discourse, proposed by the French linguist Henri Meschonnic. Published in 1913, in the collection Alcools, the poem was translated over the years by several renowned translators who approached the poet's work from particular practices that are revealed by the rewriting of this text. Concomitantly, over the course of the 20th century, Translation Studies gained strength, impelling us to reflect more deeply on these different ways of translating, and no longer to simplistically label them as faithful or unfaithful to the original. In this way, we will bring some reflections on two translations made in an interval of almost 30 years – one from 1984, by Paulo Hecker Filho, and another from 1913, by Mario Laranjeira – observing their similarities and differences, without losing sight of what Meschonnic proposed. in his considerations on the translational act, since, for him, Apollinaire's work is an exemplary model of modern writing from which it is possible to apprehend rhythm as an organizing instance of discourse.

Keywords: translation, poem, rhythm, modernity, Guillaume Apollinaire.