I <3 Books

1963

I tried, with this book, something that I thought would be fun. I bought two different translations of the sames book. The original book was Russian. I bought the Bantam translation by Max Hayward and Ronald Hingley and the Signet translation by Ralph Parker. I wanted to see if there was a difference. Books that have been translated are so often said to be no where near as good as the original. I mean, some people learn ancient Greek just to read Homer, because apparently it is like nothing ever written when read in the original Greek. And, when I think of some of the writing I love, Kurt Vonnegut or John Steinbeck, I can't imagine it being as good in another language. On the other hand, Tolstoy, Hugo, and Gabriel Garcia Marquez were some of the most beautiful writing I've ever read, and they were all translated.

The two books were different. And, apparently Solzhenitsyn turned out to be a good choice because his colloquial language is a challenge to translators, and there are different ways to approach it. The Bantam book tried to mimic a lot of the informality, and used English slang and relaxed language. It didn't really work, but I think it was more of a direct translation. The Parker translation was a bit more of a rewrite and tried to use well written English. I abandoned the Bantam one after a few chapters, and stuck to the Signet. It was a neat experiment, and I think I'll take a look at the various translations before diving into something huge like another Tolstoy or Hugo, or Proust.

The book was apparently a shock to the west when it documented the conditions in the Soviet post WW work camps. The camps were harsh, no doubt, and the reasons that could end someone up there often even harsher. Soldiers during the war were forbidden from surrendering. If they did, they would end up in a horrible German prison, and then, upon their release at the end of the war, would be sent to work camps as punishment for surrendering. Harsh. Although, this policy has been credited with compelling the Russians to fight to the death against the Germans, and ultimately, win. The character in this story, Ivan Denisovich, called Shukov throughout, was sent to prison for writing a letter to a friend about a different government. Or, maybe that was Solzhenitsyn himself, I can't remember. Solzhenitsyn spent time in a camp himself, which is why the book had such an impact, it was real. It was also a bit boring. It just sort of documented the guys day, he ate, got yelled at, shuffled around in line, and laid some brick in extreme cold. I don't completely see how the book was shocking. Maybe hindsight gives me a broader perspective, but I have heard many way harsher stories from the war, and other camps, that this one seems, still extremely inhumane, but a bit tame. A good book, an informative read, not totally gripping, but real.