Reading T.S. Eliot’s translation of St.-John Perse’s Anabasis. The original is often easier to understand—even for a reader with limited French like myself. I understand “délice” more immediately than Eliot’s “pleasance,” for example. The French word“absence” is more transparent to me than the English“vacance.” (Why not just “absence”?) I am not saying that translations need to be absolutely transparent, but why muddy the water to no particular end? It cannot be justified either in reference to the French text or to the English-speaking reader.

“First, do no harm...” That is a good starting point for translation. Just as a physician’s first responsibility is not to actively kill the patient, the translator’s first task is not to blow it too badly. This is not to say that this is the exclusive or ultimate task, but that it has a certain logical priority. Only after looking for a minimum level of responsibility can we look to other great things the translator might have accomplished.