I spent part of yesterday at a poetry workshop run by Alice Willetts as part of the Cambridge Poetry Festival. She was discussing writing for the future.
Whilst there, I met Veronica Scmalz, who describes herself as La jaune Schreibmaschine. That means The Yellow Typewriter, but it mixes French and German.
She writes poems for people, on the spot. She asked what concerns me. We had a brief conversation, and she wrote this:
The translation is this, and I admit I had to use AI to achieve it:
Banks controlling society
Banks controlling society
make people
spiral down into
a vicious circle
between needing money and
having none.
It is astonishing how far
we have become
unimpressed by
the birds and the sky.
But for me,
that is what keeps me
awake at night,
eating away at my soul.
This comes from writing in seven languages:
- English – “spiral down into”, “how far”, “the birds”, “awake at night”.
- Spanish – “Banks controlando la sociedad” (Banks controlling society).
- Dutch – “mensen” (people), “tussen” (between), “geen” (none), “mijn” (my), “dat” (that).
- German – “Geld” (money), “und” (and), “für” (for), “Schreibmaschine” (typewriter).
- Italian – “un circolo vizioso” (a vicious circle), “es impresionante” is Spanish rather than Italian.
- French – “mais pour moi” (but for me), “la jaune” (the yellow).
- Portuguese – “impressionante” (impressive or astonishing).
Some deliberate linguistic ambiguity arises because several words are shared between languages.
I am a little in awe.
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Do you know that poems and songs in more than one language are called Macaronic?
So what about seven?
Also Macaronic
I’d love to read more about that, but it’s pasta my bedtime.
🙂
Life is a macaronic
Served up in language cheese
🙂
So few words to describe a truth.
Because perhaps maybe it’s about ‘feeling’ the problem.
Very impressive multilingularity.
me as well
she’s obviously a fan
of e e cummings
id lilke to see
some iambic
pentameter
on same subject
or maybe
an italian sonnet
she may have started
something
on this blog
I too am in awe. Thank you for sharing!
Two thoughts: it’s interesting how one can very nearly understand it without translation. And what a shame there’s no Welsh in it. Mae’r banciau wir yn rheoli cymdethas, ysywaith.
I think seven is impressive enough.
And I gather that means, “The banks really do control society, unfortunately.”
I know a few words in Welsh; not enough.
It is not the banks controlling society. It is the people behind the banks. Banks are just a form of organisation.
But the institutions are created to perpetuate their control.
Polish?
I can say ‘Oh Dear this does not work’ in Polish
Moving
Embracing language, truth, our beautiful planet and spiritual pain.
Astonishing how she ‘got’ you, Richard—right down to the bird-watching. Impressive indeed. And her multilingual approach just underscores how universal this situation is.
Agreed
Lovely… and impressive writen on the spot! Can I suggest a small change in your translatuon of the second verse:
It is astonishing
like for the birds
and the sky we have become
unimpressed by that
Thank you.