On the Typology of Translations of R. M. Rilke's Poetry into English
The article deals with the different-time translations of the XXI sonnet of the first part of “Sonnets to Orpheus” by R. M. Rilke made by British and American translators. The study of the typology of poetic translation with examples drawn fromRilke’s lyric cycle is based on the classification of poetic translation developed by R. R. Tchaikovsky. The analyzed translations of the XXI sonnet of the first part in the interpretations of the American translators R. Bly and L. Norris (co-authored with A. Keel) are presented by prosaic and adequate translations, respectively. Inspired by Rilke’s original, the British poet and translator D. Paterson uses Rilke’s sonnets as a basis for creating his poetic version (i. e. interpretation based on the original) of the German sonnets. Comparing three English translations of the XXI sonnet allows us to make a choice in favor of the adequate translation made by L. Norris and A. Keel, in which not only the images of the original but also its unique poetic form are thoroughly recreated. In the prosaic interpretation of R. Bly’s sonnet, neither the genre characteristics of the original sonnet nor Rilke’s individual style are taken into account.