HAMLET'S MONOLOGUE. ORIGINAL AND TRANSLATIONS

1. Original English version

To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether "tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of ​​troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heartache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, "tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished. To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there"s the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause: there's the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
The oppressor"s wrong, the proud man"s contumely,
The pangs of despised love, the law's delay,
The insolence of office and the spurns
That patient merit of the unworthy takes,
When he himself might his quietus make
With a bare bodkin? who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscover"d country from whose bourn
No traveler returns, puzzles the will
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o"er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pith and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry,
And lose the name of action.-Soft you now!
The fair Ophelia! Nymph, in your orisons
Be all my sins remember"d.

2. Russian translation options

Translation: Vladimir Nabokov

To be or not to be - that is the question;
What is better for the soul - to endure the slings and arrows of furious doom
or, in a sea of ​​disasters, take up arms to end them?
To die: to fall asleep no more, and if sleep ends the melancholy of the soul and a thousand anxieties,
characteristic of us - one cannot help but yearn for such completion.
Die, fall asleep; fall asleep: perhaps dream;
Yes, that’s where the jam is, what dreams will visit us when we free ourselves from the husk of vanities?
Here's the stop. This is why adversity is so tenacious;
After all, who would bear the scourges and mockery of times, the contempt of the proud, the oppression of the strong,
vain pain of love, laziness of the law, and arrogance of rulers,
and everything that a worthy person suffers from the unworthy,
When could he, with a thin dagger, achieve peace for himself?
Who would groan and sweat under the weight of life?
- but fear inspired by something beyond death - an undiscovered country,
from whose borders no traveler has ever returned,
- it confuses the will and makes us prefer earthly torments to others, unknown ones.
So consciousness makes us all cowards, in the bright color of natural determination
the pallor of weak thoughts falls, and important, deep undertakings
change direction and lose the name of the actions.
But now - silence... Ophelia...
In your prayers, nymph, remember my sins.

Translation: Boris Pasternak

To be or not to be, that is the question. Is it worthy
Resign yourself to the blows of fate,
Or must we resist
And in mortal combat with a whole sea of ​​troubles
End them? Die. Forget yourself.
And know that this breaks the chain
Heartache and thousands of hardships,
Inherent in the body. Isn't this the goal?
Desired? Die. Lose yourself in sleep.
Fall asleep... and dream? Here is the answer.
What dreams will you have in that mortal sleep?
When is the veil of earthly feelings removed?
That's the solution. That's what lengthens
Our misfortunes last for so many years.
Otherwise, who would bear the humiliation of the century,
The lies of the oppressors, the nobles
Arrogance, feeling of rejection,
A slow trial and most of all -
The mockery of the unworthy at the worthy,
When it's so easy to make ends meet
Dagger strike! Who would agree
Groaning, trudge along under the burden of life,
Whenever the unknown after death,
Fear of a country from which none
Didn't come back, didn't bend my will
It is better to put up with familiar evil,
Instead of trying to escape to the unfamiliar!
This is how thought turns us all into cowards,
And our resolve withers like a flower
In the sterility of a mental dead end,
This is how plans die on a grand scale,
Those who promised success at the beginning,
From long delays. But enough!
Ophelia! O joy! Remember
My sins in my prayers, nymph.

To live or not - that is the main question:
Isn't it more noble to endure - by blood,
The slings and arrows of the ugly lot,
Or rise against the oceans of troubles,
With weapons, ending them?
Sleep, die;
No more;
By the word “sleep” I mean completion
Heartache, thousands of shocks -
They are the inheritance of the flesh. This is death
What should we earnestly desire?
Oh, to die and sleep;
Don't dream in a dream: a mysterious question -
In my post-mortem dream will I see the light,
When I leave the old dress of life -
This riddle torments my mind: nuance,
What makes misfortune last;
Who among the living could endure forever
The scourge of fate, the mockery of the proud,
The pain of trampled love, delayed justice,
Office power, liar's contempt,
What do simple-minded people get?
Whenever the lot could have been fulfilled
Just with a knife?
Who would endure hardships,
Groaned, sweated under the terrible burden of life,
Whenever he cultivates horror before death,
Of an unknown country, from whose borders
Has anyone ever returned?
He would not confuse the will,
He would force us to endure certain hardships,
Why run away to others, unknown in nature!
So reason instills cowardice in us,
And such excitement that is given by heaven,
Withers away in the pale plaster of thought,
And enterprises of enormous scope
They lose their passion from fear.
Their names are gone. Hey, be quiet!
Ophelia! O nymph! Remember
In my prayer all my sins are mine.

Reviews

In general, I liked it, but I liked it not as a translation, but as an independent work. It’s not like Shakespeare here somehow, but rather like Russian. Still, the spirit of an Englishman of that era should be heard in the translation. You have your own experience of the situation. This is good for you as an author, but for Shakespeare it is bad: his worldview is distorted, especially since he puts this worldview into the mouth of Hamlet - after all, people of royal blood with their predilection for some pompous statements. Your pomposity has been reduced, and with it, by the way, all metaphysics has been removed. By changing “to be or not to be” to “to live or not to live” (with the corresponding continuation of this attitude throughout the entire passage) in the eyes of the philistine majority, you did not do anything special criminal, but only expressed yourself as if more clearly. But this is only “as if”. In fact, you imperceptibly shifted the emphasis from the metaphysical level, where being is an endless mystery and the goal of all thoughts, and theological, where God is being itself as it is (the idea of ​​being in its pure form), to the mundane everyday level. As follows from my entire analysis of Hamlet, this approach is fundamentally wrong, although it will most likely find support among the masses who are not accustomed to thinking about serious things.
I think you are much more interesting as an independent author, rather than as a translator. All the best to you.

To be or not to be - that is the question- the first phrase of Hamlet’s monologue (episode 3, 1) from the tragedy “Hamlet, Prince of Denmark” (1601) by the English playwright (1564 - 1616): To be or not to be, that is the question (English).

One of the first translations into Russian of the tragedy “Hamlet, Prince of Denmark” (including Hamlet’s monologue) was made in 1837 by the Russian writer and translator Nikolai Alekseevich Polev (1796-1846). The translator translated the first phrase of Hamlet's soliloquy as "To be or not to be - that is the question."

Currently, there are many translations into Russian, but most translators translated the first phrase of the monologue as “To be or not to be - that is the question.”

Hamlet, having learned that his father was killed by his uncle, who took possession of the crown and married Hamlet’s mother, is tormented by doubts whether to take revenge on him for the death of his father or not, and also talks about life (Hamlet’s monologue translated by N.A. Polevoy):

"To be or not to be - that is the question!

What is more valiant for the soul: to demolish

The blows of an insulting fate,

Or take up arms against a sea of ​​evils

And defeat him, exhausting him at once

To die is to fall asleep, no more, and end in sleep

Heartaches, thousands of torments -

Inheritance of the body: how not to wish it

Such an ending!... To die, to fall asleep...

Fall asleep - maybe dream? That's the problem!

Yes, in this mortal sleep what dreams

Will we be when the storm of life passes?

This is the stop, this is what we want

It's better to drag out a long life...

And who would bear the insults, the malice of the world,

Tyrants' pride, strong insults,

The longing of rejected love, the futility of laws,

Judges are shameless, and this is contempt

Merits of patient honor for deeds,

When it can give us peace

One hit! And who would bear this yoke,

With curse, tears, hard life...

But fear: what will happen there, there,

In that unknown side where

There are no aliens... The will trembles

And makes us suffer greatly

But do not run to what is so unknown.

The terrible consciousness of a timid thought!

And the bright color of a mighty decision

Turns pale before the darkness of reflection,

And the courage of a quick impulse dies,

And the thought does not turn into action... Hush!

Dear Ophelia! O nymph!

Remember my sins in prayers!"

Examples

(1925 - 1991), (1933 - 2012)

“It’s hard to be God” (1963): “Rumata argued a little with him about the merits of Tsuren’s poems, listened to an interesting commentary on the line “Like a withered leaf falls on the soul...”, asked him to read something new and sighed with the author over the inexpressibly in sad stanzas, he recited before leaving “ To be or not to be?"in its Irukan translation."

(1844 - 1930)

" (): "What does this mean, Vladimir Vasilyevich? Are you overcome by some fatal question? To be or not to be?- I creep in"

(1860 - 1904)

(1892) - a member of the bank reads the address for the anniversary: ​​- “True, in the first time of its existence, the small amount of fixed capital, the absence of any serious operations, as well as the uncertainty of goals posed Hamlet’s question squarely: “ to be or not to be?", and at one time there were even voices in favor of closing the bank."

(1821 - 1881)

"Idiot" - "Remember from Hamlet: " to be or not to be?"Modern theme, sir, modern! Questions and answers..."

(1812 - 1891)

"" (1855-1857)

Part 2, Ch. 1: “Their turn has come to practically decide the question: to let in or not to let in the Europeans, and for the Japanese it’s all the same to be or not to be."

Part 2, Ch. “IN TWENTY YEARS”: “And there is nothing to say, except to ask: “Will the anchor chains and ropes withstand the pressure of the wind or not?” A question similar to Gogol’s question: “Will the wheel reach Kazan or not?” But for us it is were Hamlet's question: to be or not to be?"

The famous monologue of Hamlet from the tragedy of the same name by William (William) Shakespeare (1564-1616) in English and in five translations into Russian.

Hamlet has been translated in its entirety into Russian more than twenty times, including several times in prose in an effort to achieve maximum accuracy. However, one cannot be precise outside of poetry. It is best if the poet and philologist come together in one person. At the turn of our century, a three-volume edition of the tragedy appeared - with the original text, commentary, and numerous materials. This was the first Russian translation made by the famous poet, Grand Duke Konstantin Romanov, who signed with the initials K.R.
Thirty years later, almost simultaneously, A. Radlova, B. Pasternak and M. Lozinsky make three new attempts to combine the accuracy of translation with modern poetry. What struck me most at that time was Anna Radlova's translation with its modernity of intonation and vocabulary; once published, it was never published again.

Shakespeare W. “Hamlet” in Russian translations of the 19th – 20th centuries. M.: Interbook, 1994

To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of ​​troubles
And by opposing end them. To die-to sleep,
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heartache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to: 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished. To die, to sleep;
To sleep, perchance to dream-ay, there’s the rub:
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause-there’s the respect
That makes calamity of so long life.
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
Th'oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely,
The pangs of dispriz’d love, the law’s delay,
The insolence of office, and the spurns
That patient merit of th’unworthy takes,
When he himself might his quietus make
With a bare bodkin? Who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscovere’d country, from whose bourn
No traveler returns, puzzles the will,
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus conscience does make cowards of us all,
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pitch and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry
And lose the name of action.-Soft you now!
The fair Ophelia! Nymph, in your orisons
Be all my sins remember’d.

To be or not to be, that is the question...

To be or not to be, that is the question. Is it worthy
Resign yourself to the blows of fate,
Or must we resist
And in mortal combat with a whole sea of ​​troubles
End them? Die. Forget yourself.
And know that this breaks the chain
Heartache and thousands of hardships,
Inherent in the body. Isn't this the goal?
Desired? Die. Lose yourself in sleep.
Fall asleep... and dream? Here is the answer.
What dreams will you have in that mortal sleep?
When is the veil of earthly feelings removed?
That's the solution. That's what lengthens
Our misfortunes last for so many years.
Otherwise, who would bear the humiliation of the century,
The lies of the oppressors, the nobles
Arrogance, feeling of rejection,
Slow trial and most of all
The mockery of the unworthy at the worthy,
When it's so easy to make ends meet
Dagger strike! Who would agree
Groaning, trudge along under the burden of life,
Whenever the unknown after death,
Fear of a country from which none
Didn't come back, didn't bend my will
It is better to put up with familiar evil,
Instead of trying to escape to the unfamiliar!
This is how thought turns us all into cowards,
And our resolve withers like a flower
In the sterility of a mental dead end,
This is how plans die on a grand scale,
Those who promised success at the beginning,
From long delays. But enough!
Ophelia! O joy! Remember
My sins in my prayers, nymph.

William Shakespeare
Translation by Boris Pasternak

To be or not to be, that is the question...

To be or not to be, that is the question;
What is nobler in spirit - to submit
To the slings and arrows of furious fate
Or, taking up arms in the sea of ​​turmoil, defeat them
Confrontation? To die, to fall asleep, -
But only; and say that you end up sleeping
Melancholy and a thousand natural torments,
The legacy of the flesh - how such a denouement
Not thirsty? Die, sleep. - Fall asleep!
And dream, perhaps? That's the difficulty;
What dreams will you have in your death sleep?
When we shed this mortal noise,
This is what throws us off; that's the reason
That disasters are so long-lasting;
Who would bear the lashes and mockery of the century,
The oppression of the strong, the mockery of the proud,
The pain of despised love, untruthful judges,
The arrogance of the authorities and insults,
Performed by uncomplaining merit,
If only he could give himself a reckoning
With a simple dagger? Who would trudge along with the burden,
To groan and sweat under a boring life,
Whenever the fear of something after death -
An unknown land from where there is no return
To earthly wanderers, - did not confuse the will,
Inspiring us to endure our adversities
And not to rush to others hidden from us?
So thinking makes us cowards,
And so determined natural color
Withers under the pale patina of thought,
And beginnings that rose powerfully,
Turning aside your move,
Lose the action name. But be quiet!
Ophelia? - In your prayers, nymph,
May my sins be remembered.

William Shakespeare
Translation by Mikhail Lozinsky

To be or not to be - that is the question

To be or not to be - that's it
Question; what is better for the soul - to endure
Slings and arrows of furious doom
Or, on a sea of ​​disasters, taking up arms
End them? Die: fall asleep
No more, and if the dream ends
The melancholy of the soul and a thousand anxieties,
characteristic of us - such completion
You can't help but thirst. Die, fall asleep;
Fall asleep: perhaps dream; Yes,
That's where the traffic jam is, what dreams
We will be visited when we are free
From the husk of vanities? Here's the stop.
This is why adversity is so tenacious;
After all, who would bear the scourges and mockery of times,
Contempt of the proud, oppression of the strong,
Vain pain of love, laziness of the law,
And the arrogance of rulers, and everything that endures
A worthy person from the unworthy,
If only he could use a thin dagger himself
Find peace? Who would become under the weight of life
Groaning, sweating, but fear inspired by something
Beyond death is an undiscovered country,
From whose borders no traveler
Didn't come back - he confuses the will
And makes us suffer on earth
Prefer others, unknown ones. So
Consciousness makes us all cowards,
To the bright color of natural determination
The pallor of weak thoughts lies down,
And important, deep ideas
Change direction and get lost
Name of actions. But now - silence...
Ophelia…
In your prayers, nymph,
Remember my sins.

William Shakespeare
Translation by Vladimir Nabokov

To be or not to be? - that is the question!
What is nobler for the soul - to endure
Fate-offenders blows, arrows
Or, armed against the sea of ​​troubles,
End them? Die, sleep,
And that’s it... And to say that I’m done with sleep
With heartache, with a thousand sufferings,
The legacy of the body. After all, this is the end
How can we not wish? Die, sleep,
Fall asleep... And maybe dream...
Ah, that's the whole point. Which
We may have dreams in the sleep of death,
When will we stop this earthly noise?
This is where you need to think... That’s why
Our sorrows have such a long life.
Who would bear the blows of time, mockery?
And the oppression of the masters? The ridicule of insolent people?
The suffering of rejected love?
Slowness of ships? And the arrogance of the authorities?
Pinky, who is patient and worthy
Receives from the unworthy - if
He could achieve peace with a knife
Simple? Who would carry this load?
Sweating and grumbling under a hard life?
No, the horror of something after death,
That undiscovered country from where
The traveler did not return to us,
It knocks down our will, forces
To endure the sorrows we know
And don’t run from them to those we don’t know.
This is how consciousness turns us into cowards,
And so the natural color of the decision fades,
The shadow of a pale thought will fall slightly on him,
And so are the affairs of high, bold strength,
Stopping on the way, they lose
The name of the "action". But be quiet! Here
Beautiful Ophelia.

Ophelia enters.

Remember
My sins in my prayers, nymph!

William Shakespeare
Translation by Anna Radlova

To be or not to be - that is the question...

To be or not to be - that is the question.
What is nobler: taking blows
Furious fate - or against the sea
Adversity to arm yourself and join the battle
And end it all at once... Die...
To fall asleep - no more - and realize that it is sleep
We will drown out all these heartaches,
Which are the inheritance of poor flesh
Got it: oh yes, this is so desired
The end... Yes, to die - to fall asleep... To fall asleep.
Living in a dream world may be the obstacle. —
What dreams in this dead sleep
Before the disembodied spirit they will hover...
This is the obstacle - and this is the reason,
That sorrows are long lasting on earth...
Otherwise, who would bear the reproach?
Ridicule of neighbors, impudent insults
Tyrants, the insolence of vulgar proud people,
The pain of rejected love
Slowness of laws, willfulness
The authorities... the kicks they give
To the deserved scoundrels who suffer, -
Whenever possible
Find peace and quiet in one fell swoop
Simple sewing. Who on earth
Carrying this life's burden, exhausted
Under heavy oppression, if only involuntary fear
Something after death, that country
Unknown, from where never
Nobody came back, didn't bother
Our decisions... Oh, we rather
Let us endure all the sorrows of those torments,
What is near us, what, leaving everything behind,
Let's go to other, unknown troubles...
And this thought turns us into cowards...
Mighty resolve cools
Upon reflection, and our deeds
They become insignificant... But quieter, quieter.
Lovely Ophelia, oh nymph -
In your holy prayers remember
My sins...

William Shakespeare
Translation by P. Gnedich

To understand Shakespeare's intentions in tragedies, the monologues of the heroes pronounced at the climax of the action are especially important. The most important for understanding the tragedy is Hamlet’s monologue “To be or not to be” in the first scene of the third act. We learn about Hamlet's goals long before this monologue, after Hamlet heard from the ghost about Claudius' crime. For Hamlet, the duty of revenge for his murdered father immediately turns into the task of correcting his age: for this purpose, he erases all other desires and feelings from the tablets of his memory. Putting on the mask of a madman, he influences those around him in such a way that it causes fear and remorse in the criminal king, and awakens in Gertrude a consciousness of guilt and inner anxiety. But Hamlet promised the ghost to immediately fly on wings to take revenge on the murderer - but he does not fulfill this promise. He himself does not understand what is preventing him from immediately fulfilling his duty and killing Claudius. The answer to this question is given in the monologue “To be or not to be.”

V.P Komarova "Shakespeare and Montaigne" Chapter III

To be, or not to be: that is the question: Whether "tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of ​​troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep; No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks That flesh is heir to, "tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished.

This monologue has been translated into all languages ​​of the world!

The organ sounds - Sebastian Bach

To be or not to be, that is the question. Is it worthy
Resign yourself to the blows of fate,
Or must we resist
And in mortal combat with a whole sea of ​​troubles
End them? Die. Forget yourself.
And know that this breaks the chain
Heartache and thousands of hardships,
Inherent in the body. Isn't this the goal?
Desired? Die. Lose yourself in sleep.
Fall asleep... and dream? Here is the answer.
What dreams will you have in that mortal sleep?
When is the veil of earthly feelings removed?
This is the solution. That's what lengthens
Our misfortunes last for so many years.
And the one who would endure the humiliation of the century,
The lies of the oppressors, the nobles
Arrogance, feeling of rejection,
Slow trial and most of all
The mockery of the unworthy at the worthy,
When it's so easy to make ends meet
Dagger strike! Who would agree
Groaning, trudge along under the burden of life,
Whenever the unknown after death,
Fear of a country from which none
Didn't come back, didn't bend my will
It is better to put up with familiar evil,
Instead of trying to escape to the unfamiliar!
This is how thought turns us all into cowards,
And our resolve withers like a flower
In the sterility of a mental dead end,
This is how plans die on a grand scale,
Those who promised success at the beginning,
From long delays. But enough!
Ophelia! O joy! Remember
My sins in my prayers, nymph.

Translation by B.L. Pasternak

The monologue “To be, or not to be” is perhaps one of the most famous fragments of Shakespeare’s legacy. Even a person who has not read Hamlet has probably heard the words “To be or not to be - that is the question?” - this expression is constantly repeated in our speech. At the same time, the text of the famous monologue itself is one of the most difficult passages of Shakespeare’s work to translate and still attracts the attention of many Russian translators.

Plan
I. Introduction.
II. Two translations of the monologue.
1. B. Pasternak’s translation.
2. M. Lozinsky’s translation.
III. Conclusion.
IV. List of the used literature.

There are many translations of “Hamlet”. Among them the translations of M. Vronchenko, N. Polevoy, A. Sokolovsky, P. Gnedich, A. Radlova. But the translations by B. Pasternak and M. Lozinsky are the most famous ones.

What does the monologue represent? It is a struggle between good and evil, it is a story about a strong person who wants to love, but who has to hate, who is alone and who worries about the misunderstanding and mercilessness of life.

We shall consider here only two translations: by B. Pasternak and M. Lozinsky.

To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of ​​troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heartache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished. To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause: there’s the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
The oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely,
The pangs of despised love, the law’s delay,
The insolence of office and the spurns
That patient merit of the unworthy takes,
When he himself might his quietus make
With a bare bodkin? who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscover'd country from whose bourn
No traveler returns, puzzles the will
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;
And thus the native hue of resolution



And lose the name of action.

Now let us consider the translation of this monologue made by B. Pasternak. Hereitis:

To be or not to be, that is the question. Is it worthy
Resign yourself to the blows of fate,
Or must we resist
And in mortal combat with a whole sea of ​​troubles
End them? Die. Forget yourself.
And know that this breaks the chain
Heartache and thousands of hardships,
Inherent in the body. Isn't this the goal?
Desired? Die. Lose yourself in sleep.
Fall asleep... and dream? Here is the answer.
What dreams will you have in that mortal sleep?
When is the veil of earthly feelings removed?
That's the solution. That's what lengthens
Our misfortunes last for so many years.
Otherwise, who would bear the humiliation of the century,
The lies of the oppressors, the nobles
Arrogance, feeling of rejection,
Slow trial and most of all
The mockery of the unworthy at the worthy,
When it's so easy to make ends meet
Dagger strike! Who would agree
Groaning, trudge along under the burden of life,
Whenever the unknown after death,
Fear of a country from which none
Didn't come back, didn't bend my will
It is better to put up with familiar evil,
Instead of trying to escape to the unfamiliar!
This is how thought turns us all into cowards,
And our resolve withers like a flower


Those who promised success at the beginning,
From long delays.

It is a wonderful translation, but I think that it is a very ponderous. It is rather exact, but it is not devoid of shortcomings.

Excluding from the text all the auxiliary words I counted 116 words in the text. Among them 33 words are translated into Russian with the help of lexical equivalents.

In some cases the application of full lexical equivalents is accompanied by grammatical transformations.

English nouns are replaced by Russian adjectives:

“in that sleep of death" - "in mortal dream";

“under a wear life” - “under the burden vital”.

English infinitives are replaced by Russian verbal adverbs:

“to grunt” – “groaning”.

The English Present Indefinite Tense is replaced by the Russian Past Tense:

“notraveller returns” - “from where none was returning”,

“puzzles thewill” – “not inclined will."

Here full lexical equivalents are:

“to be, or not to be” – “to be or not to be”;

“that is the question” - “that’s the question”;

“a sea of ​​troubles” - “with a sea of ​​troubles”;

“endthem” - “end them”;

“to die” - “to die”;

“thousand” – “thousands”;

“to be wished” – “desired”;

“to sleep” - “to forget yourself in sleep”;

“to dream” – “to dream”;

“who would bear” - “who would demolish”;

“oppressor’s wrong” - “untruth of the oppressor”;

“the law’s delay” - “slow judgment”;

“unworthy” - “unworthy”;

“bodkin” – “dagger”;

“after death” - “after death”;

“dread” – “fear”;

“country” – “countries”;

“cowards” - “in the panties”;

“resolution” - “determination”.

Partial lexical equivalents make up 25 words. They are:

“Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” – “ Worthy l

Humble under blows fate."

“to sleep” - “to forget”;

“heartache” - “heartache”;

“that flesh is heir to” – “inherent in the body”;

“a consummation” – “goal”;

“have shuffled off” - “removed”;

“‘coil” – “cover”;

“scorns of time” - “humiliation of the century”;

“insolence of office” – “nobles’ arrogance”;

“pangs of disprized love” - “rejected feeling”;

“And makes us rather bear those ills we have” - “It’s better to put up with familiar evil”;

“conscience” – “thought”;

“is sicklied” - “withers”;

“enterprises of great pitch” - “plans on a grand scale.”

Pasternak also could omit, add or substitute words.

Omissions of words:

“The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” – “under the blows of fate”

But Hamlet considers fortune to be outrageous, cruel, vicious, and Pasternak omits this fact.

“the proud man’s contumely” - the proud man’s contempt. The phrase is omitted to reduce a wordy filling of the strophes.

Pasternak ennobles Hamlet omitting the word “to sweat” (to sweat).

“the dread of something after death, the undiscovered country from whose bourne no traveler returns” - “fear of a country from which no one has returned.”

Here Pasternak omits the traveler’s image which is very striking for that time, the time of travelers and pilgrims, and Hamlet considers himself to be a wanderer who roams about the country, sees all the injustice of the world and worries that he cannot reform anything.

Then, Pasternak’s loses the strength of the final words of the monologue:

And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pith and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry,
And lose the name of action.

And our resolve withers like a flower
In the sterility of a mental dead end,
This is how plans die on a grand scale,
Those who promised success at the beginning,
From long delays.

On the whole, B. Pasternak preserves the structure of the sentences of the monologue. In Pasternak’s translation there are many impersonal sentences as in the original. The difference is that some of them form compound and complex sentences. For example, “Die. Forget yourself.” – “To die, - to sleep, - no more.”

Now let us consider the translation of the monologue made by M. Lozinskey. Hereitis:

...To be or not to be - that is the question;
What is nobler in spirit - to submit
To the slings and arrows of furious fate
Or, taking up arms in the sea of ​​turmoil, defeat them
Confrontation? Die, sleep -
But only; and say that you end up sleeping
Melancholy and a thousand natural torments,
The legacy of the flesh - how is such a denouement
Not thirsty? Die, sleep. - Fall asleep!
And dream, perhaps? That's the difficulty;
What dreams will you have in your death sleep?
When we throw off this mortal noise, -
This is what throws us off; that's the reason
That disasters are so long-lasting;
Who would bear the lashes and mockery of the century,
The oppression of the strong, the mockery of the proud,
The pain of despised love, the slowness of judges,
The arrogance of the authorities and insults,
Performed by uncomplaining merit,
If only he could give himself a reckoning
With a simple dagger? Who would trudge along with the burden,
To groan and sweat under a boring life,
Whenever the fear of something after death -
An unknown land from where there is no return
To earthly wanderers, - did not confuse the will,
Inspiring us to endure our adversities
And not to rush to others hidden from us?
So thinking makes us cowards,
And so determined natural color
Withers under the pale patina of thought,

Turning aside your move,
Lose the action name.

Excluding from the text all the auxiliary words I counted 116 words in the text. Among them 47 words are translated into Russian with the help of lexical equivalents.

In some cases application of the full lexical equivalents is accompanied by the grammatical transformations.

The English noun is replaced by the Russian adjective:

“in that sleep of death" - "in mortal dream";

the English verb is replaced by the Russian noun:

“notraveller returns" - "No return to earthly wanderers”;

the English Present Indefinite Tense is replaced by the Russian Past Indefinite Tense:

“puzzles the will” - “will not” embarrassed”

Partial lexical equivalents make up 36 words. Among them:

“in the mind to suffer” – “to submit”;

“outrageous fortune” – “ furious fate";

“to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing end them?” – “ up in arms on the sea troubles, defeat their confrontation”;

“and by a sleep to say we end the heartache” - “ and say that you end up sleeping
melancholy”.

But “heart-ache” is not depression. Hamlet is not depressed, he suffers from the injustice, imperfection of the world, from his own weakness to change everything.

“’tis a consummation” – “such a denouement”;

“this mortal coil” - “mortal noise”;

“scorns of time” - “mockery of the century”;

“oppressor’s wrong” - “oppression of the strong”;

“the proud man's contumely” – “ridicule proud";

“the pangs of dispraised love” – “pain despicable love”;

“the insolence of office” - “the arrogance of the authorities”;

“undiscover’d country” - “unknown land”;

“traveller” - “wanderers”;

“puzzles” – “confused”;

“And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?” –

“Inspiring us endure hardships our
And not hurry to others hidden from us?”

Like B. Pasternak M. Lozinskey has additions of words and omissions.

“’tis a consummation devoutly to be wished” – “how can one not crave such a solution?”

Here the word “devoutly” (seriously, sincerely) is omitted but the strength of the phrase does not weaken.M. Lozinskey achieves that using the word “thirst”.

And enterprises of great pith and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry
And beginnings that rose powerfully,
Turning aside your move

“Withthisregard” (because of this, regarding this) is superfluous in the translation as its meaning is clear from the context.

“Notravellerreturns” - “no return earthly wanderers."

Here we have an addition. It is justified because, for one thing, in “Hamlet” we have a traveler from the other world, and for another Lozinskey’s Hamlet using the word “earthly” opposes the short life to the eternal sleep, to the death.

List of the used literature:

1. Barkhudarov L. S. On lexical correspondences in poetic translation // Translator’s Notebooks, No. 2 - M.: International Relations, 1964. - pp. 41-60
2. Dranov A. Hamlet’s monologue “To be or not to be.” Russian translations of the 19th century // Translator’s Notebooks No. 6 - M.: International Relations, 1969.- p. 32-51
3. Mauler F.I. Some ways to achieve equilinearity // Translator’s Notebooks, No. 13 - M.: International Relations, 1976. - pp. 13-21
4. Fedorov A.V. Introduction to translation theory. – M.: Publishing house of literature in foreign languages, 1953. – 335 p.