Subject
Fw Russian ADA translations--continued: the inym / inymi confusion
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MessageEDNOTE. Some days ago NABOKV-L presented parallel Russian translations of ADA by three translators. There were four passages. Dmitri Nabokov kindly commented on the variant versions of the first passage and plans to comment on the remaining three. Alex(ei) Sklyarenko, translator of the newest (and as yet unpublished) version, responded Dmitri N.'s comments. The exchange continues below.
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----- Original Message -----
From: alex
To: D. Barton Johnson
Sent: Saturday, June 14, 2003 6:40 AM
Subject: Re: (the inym / inymi confusion)
Dear Don,
I understood perfectly what he had meant in his previous e-mail. I agree, ne kem inym is grammatically more correct than ne kem inymi, but I chose the second variant, because it sounded to me somehow better. Probably it is wrong and I must correct it. Yes, kem and inymi don't quite agree, but, on the other hand, inym is singular and clashes, or at least seems to clash, with zlobnymi chudovishchami which is plural. I also agree that the whole sentence sounds rather awkward in translation, but I tried to avoid paraphrases where possible. May be, my translation is a little too literal here and there.
I acknowledged several of DN's personal preferences regarding this excerpt ("Potustoronniy mir," "novovery" and "zmeinyi") and introduced the subsequent changes into my text. I confess that I missed the fact that starovery would be "Old Believers" in English, as Brian Boyd points out in his Notes; so my variant Novye Veruyushchie is incorrect.
Please give my utmost respect to Dmitry Nabokov!
respectfully,
Alexey
----- Original Message -----
----- Original Message -----
From: nabokov
To: don barton johnson
Sent: Friday, June 13, 2003 8:51 AM
Subject: URGENT
Dear Don,
Very sorry to belabor this point, but I am afraid that either I was unclear in my last e-mail or that Alex misread it. What I said was that my double-check confirmed that Alex was absolutely right about ne. Using ni is an error that it is easy to make by force of habit, as Alex also suggests occured in his earlier drafts. I did raise another detail: it seems the pluralization inymi (as it appears in the original excerpt) is incorrect, while inym (as in Alexey's subsequent e-mail) is right.
Best greetings to all,
Dmitri
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----- Original Message -----
From: alex
To: D. Barton Johnson
Sent: Saturday, June 14, 2003 6:40 AM
Subject: Re: (the inym / inymi confusion)
Dear Don,
I understood perfectly what he had meant in his previous e-mail. I agree, ne kem inym is grammatically more correct than ne kem inymi, but I chose the second variant, because it sounded to me somehow better. Probably it is wrong and I must correct it. Yes, kem and inymi don't quite agree, but, on the other hand, inym is singular and clashes, or at least seems to clash, with zlobnymi chudovishchami which is plural. I also agree that the whole sentence sounds rather awkward in translation, but I tried to avoid paraphrases where possible. May be, my translation is a little too literal here and there.
I acknowledged several of DN's personal preferences regarding this excerpt ("Potustoronniy mir," "novovery" and "zmeinyi") and introduced the subsequent changes into my text. I confess that I missed the fact that starovery would be "Old Believers" in English, as Brian Boyd points out in his Notes; so my variant Novye Veruyushchie is incorrect.
Please give my utmost respect to Dmitry Nabokov!
respectfully,
Alexey
----- Original Message -----
----- Original Message -----
From: nabokov
To: don barton johnson
Sent: Friday, June 13, 2003 8:51 AM
Subject: URGENT
Dear Don,
Very sorry to belabor this point, but I am afraid that either I was unclear in my last e-mail or that Alex misread it. What I said was that my double-check confirmed that Alex was absolutely right about ne. Using ni is an error that it is easy to make by force of habit, as Alex also suggests occured in his earlier drafts. I did raise another detail: it seems the pluralization inymi (as it appears in the original excerpt) is incorrect, while inym (as in Alexey's subsequent e-mail) is right.
Best greetings to all,
Dmitri