Thursday, July 27, 2006

From Miguel Batista: Translation

13: To You:

STRANGER! if you, passing, meet me, and desire to speak to me, why
should you not speak to me?

And why should I not speak to you?

13: A Ti:

ESTRANGEIRO! se, de passagem, me encontrares e desejares falar comigo, porque
não hás-de falar comigo?

E porque não hei-de eu falar contigo?

the one thing i had trouble with was "stranger", which meant something different in the context in which the bard used it. in the 19th century, it meant someone who was either from another nation or from another state, city, etc. now it means something else, of course.

i think whitman didn't use it to refer to someone from a foreign country, but to someone who simply was not from his dwelling place. in portugal, however, we don't have that notion: the word "estrangeiro" means somebody from another country only.

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