1796: When the Terror Ballad Came to Britain

Öz

In 1796, numerous English translations of the German writer Gottfried August Bürger’s poem “Lenore” were published. Critics have long seen this intense publication activity (within just one calendar year) as both remarkable and difficult to explain. The article examines the factors that made the poem such an immediate sensation. By analyzing prefaces and reviews related to the English translations of “Lenore,” it becomes clear that the poem offered something new: it was a Kunstballade that drew on vernacular poetic forms and thereby challenged existing verse genres. In order to understand the popularity of the ballad, the article revisits aspects of the theorist Itamar Even-Zohar’s polysystem theory, which provides a useful departure for a discussion of translations as the conduits through which a domestic repertoire of literary genres can be expanded and renewed. In this connection, it is important to look at how the various translations were aimed at different segments of the book market. However, as an innovation, Bürger’s poem was not universally welcomed. Conservative detractors and, remarkably, some of the translators themselves baulked at introducing Bürger’s superstitious ballad to an English reading public insofar as “Lenore” could be seen to contest British rationality and offend religious sensibilities.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Gottfried August Bürger,ballad,translation,romanticism,polysystem theory,book market

1796: Korku Baladı Britanya’ya Geldiğinde

Öz

1796’da Alman yazar Gottfried August Bürger’in “Lenore” şiirinin çok sayıda İngilizce çevirisi yayınlandı. Eleştirmenler (yalnızca bir takvim yılı içerisindeki) bu yoğun yayın etkinliğini hem kayda değer hem de açıklaması güç buldular. Bu makale, bu şiiri böylesine ani bir sansasyona dönüştüren etkenleri incelemektedir. “Lenore”un İngilizce çevirilerine yazılan önsöz ve değerlendirmeler analiz edildiğinde, şiirin yeni bir şey ortaya koyduğu açığa çıkar: bu şiir, anadilde yazılmış şiir biçimlerinden beslenen ve böylece yaygın olan nazım türlerine meydan okuyan bir Kunstballade’dır. Makale, bu baladın popülaritesini kavrayabilmek için, teorisyen Itamar Even-Zohar’ın, çeviri üzerine tartışmalarda yeni bir çıkış yolu sağlayan ve bu sayede yerel edebi türler repertuarında yenilenme ve genişlemeye olanak kılan çoğuldizge kuramının (polysystem theory) bazı yönlerini yeniden ele almaktadır. Bu bağlantı içinde, çeşitli çevirilerin kitap piyasasının farklı paydaşlarına nasıl odaklandığına bakmak önem taşır. Öte yandan, bir yenilik olarak Bürger’in şiiri, evrensel anlamda hoş karşılanmamıştır. Muhafazakâr muhalifler ve ilginçtir ki, bizatihi bazı çevirmenler, “Lenore”un İngiliz rasyonelliğine meydan okuyan ve dini hassasiyetleri rencide eden bir eser olarak algılanabileceğini düşünüp Bürger’in batıl inançlara dayanan baladını İngiliz okurlara tanıtmaktan kaçınmışlardır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Gottfried August Bürger,balad,çeviri,Romantisizm,çoğuldizge kuramı

Kaynakça

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