In a unique project at the Centre for Ibsen Studies at the University of Oslo, an interdisciplinary team of eight translators met regularly over ten years to translate the prose plays of Ibsen directly into Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Modern Standard Arabic and Colloquial Egyptian, Hindi, Japanese and Farsi.
The plays translated are The Pillars of Society, A Doll’s House, Ghosts, An Enemy of the People, The Wild Duck, Rosmersholm, The Lady from the Sea, Hedda Gabler, The Master Builder, Little Eyolf, John Gabriel Borkman, and When We Dead Awaken.
Over the past 150 years, most of Ibsen’s prose plays have been translated into many languages, the first dating from the 1870s and 80s. However, most of these are secondary translations, where linguistic and cultural references of the primary version sometimes prevent the translator from getting a grasp on the original source text in terms of content, style and function.
The translators come from different backgrounds: some are literary translators; others have acted or translated plays for specific productions. The versatile backgrounds proved a valuable pool of knowledge, of language, of Ibsen’s quirks and peculiarities, and of the language of theatre.
Before publication, an advisory panel of theatre and translation experts in each country works with the texts.
The challenge in moving Ibsen’s phrases and thinking to the foreign habitats of Russia, Spain, Egypt, Iran, India, China and Japan, is to find the best words to match subtle nuances of thought and to covey shades of meaning. Each country has variations in forms of address and markers of hierarchy. Translating expletives can be difficult, as swearing in Norwegian is related to Christian values and blasphemy while swearing in Hindi, Arabic or Farsi often has sexual overtones. How are swear words referring to God and the devil translated? It is not just about finding the right nuances in words. In Japanese, the translator must opt for references to unclean things to shock the audience. In a culture where beauty and cleanliness are paramount like the Buddhist and Shinto cultures of Japan, dirt offends.
Ironically, our effort to make better translations of Ibsen’s plays goes against Ibsen’s own wishes. In a letter to Victor Barrucand on March 6, 1891, he said
“Jeg vil dessuten uttale at enhver oversættelse, der fremkommer gennem samarbejde mellem to eller flere er mig prinsipielt imod.” (Ibsen 2010:107)
“I would like to state, as well, that I am in principle against any translation, which is the result of the cooperation of two or more (people).”
Our aim has primarily been to work creatively with differences. We were mainly interested in producing translations of literary quality that would preserve the complexity of style and retain the original imagery and metaphors of Henrik Ibsen’s drama.
We trust that had the old master realized the importance of his work 113 years after his death, he would have given our project a small nod of approval.
The project has been funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and NORLA.
Experience the four translators in a panel discussion on Friday, 18.10. at 11.30 on stage 2 in Norway's Guest of Honour pavilon! Further information about the events can be found here.