Translation Studies Diary of 26 August, 2024

I would like to write a case study from my experience on ‘Abusive fidelity’
I sometimes translate poetry, and translating poetry is difficult.
For example, if you want to translate the famous lines from Shakespeare's Hamlet into Japanese, it is almost impossible to reflect all aspects of the lines, such as meaning, rhythm and sound.
In particular, in Shakespeare's plays, rhythm is a conscious consideration.
I have tried to translate them as follows.

To be, or not to be:
といは、そこに
that is the question:
いるか、きえるのか

My translation is not a literal translation in terms of order.
The first line (といはそこに) is translated from the second line of Hamlet (that is the question).
This is because I wanted the translation to sound close to the original, and I believe I am following Lewis's ‘abusive fidelity’.