book question

[the_reverand]

I've started reading Dostoevsky's The Idiot. Unfortunately, I didn't think to research translations before choosing one. But reading a few things here and there, it seems I picked one of the worst translations imaginable. This one. Translated by Constance Garnett. The complaint about her is that "she is notoriously inaccurate" and "infuses her

Comments

[mrkinch]

Wow. That's, uh, bright. And abstract. What is it made from?

I'm no help with Dostoevsky.

[the_reverand]

It's digital. I started out drawing funny people and cars and all kinds of things, like the snake I saw on my ride home. Then I said fuck it and started coloring.

[the_reverand]

Are you familiar with Tokyo at night? *is prepared to be jealous*

[creedysgirl]

Ew, sorry about the book. But WOW, I like that abstract. I hope this doesn't upset you, but it looks like hanging laundry to me, you know, like they do in the cities when they hang them between buildings? This would be a great picture to do a psych evaluation with (lol). I like it though! And wait a minute, you saw a SNAKE?? *meep!*

[the_reverand]

Cool! LAundry. Doesn't upset me at all. I'm glad you see anything! :)

Yeah, I live in a pretty rural area and we've been getting crazy rain. Last night when I got home I started to check the mail, but before I got out of my car I noticed a snake crawling across the road. I watched him crawl into our driveway, headed vaguely in the direction of the rain-filled ditch.

"You could be my main man"

[ofnaivete]

D'oh! It looks like I have the same translation. (Except mine was published in 1971). I don't really know much about translations, although I've taken a class on Dostoyevsky. I mean, it's pretty important, but I probably couldn't tell you what's good or not. I did notice that the translation seemed rather dull but I didn't actually know if it was the translation, or just me. All I can recommend are the translators that I've had to read in class. (But we didn't read The Idiot, Pevear sounds familiar though)

I really like the upper right hand corner.

Re: "You could be my main man"

[the_reverand]

Well I noticed last night that mine says it's a "rendition" of Garnett's translation. Correcting and de-anglicanized.

I dunno. I was at a Dostoevsky comm and someone said she was terrible. THose guys seem to know what they're talking about. But then maybe it's just opinions.

[ribby]

You know, I managed to never read *any* of Dostoyevsky... bad English major! Of course, I pride myself on having an English major without having read 2/3 of what was on the syllabus, so there you go.

What a fantastic piece--*very* trippy, and yet coherent and gorgeous. I love it when you experiment!

~Kris

[the_reverand]

THank you!

I've never read Dostoevsky either. And someone on the Dostoevsky comm theorized that people either get into Dostoevsky or Tolstoy. Never both.

I've never read Tolstoy, either. :)