This paper will allow those with an interest in modern (Twentieth Century and beyond)  German poetry to  be exposed to a wide variety of voices and kinds of writing, from the classical to the experimental as well as a variety of translation strategies. We will discuss the various issues raised specifically in translating  from German to English and look at examples from some of the key poets of the German tradition as well as lesser known contemporary poets and by some of the key practitioners who translate German poetry into English.

Sessions will offer the chance:

to compare multiple translations of a single author (e.g. Rainer Maria Rilke, Paul Celan, Ingeborg Bachmann, Uljana Wolf)

to analyse the different approaches in different periods and to translating different kinds of German (e.g. dialect, multilingual poetry etc)

to think about approaches to formal constraints, experimental poetry, or e.g. poetry set to music

to write critical commentaries on other translations of the group’s own  choice

to translate poems of their own choice

to explore the pros and cons of adaptation and versioning   

Submission for this paper will be EITHER a critical commentary on two or more translations of the same poem or poems; OR  translations of a sample of poems with a piece of self-reflective prose setting our your approach choices; OR an essay on a specific issue pertaining to this paper.