Title inspired by the phrase “Un coup de dé jamais n’abolira le hasard” (A Throw of Dice Will Never Abolish Chance), from the eponymous poem by the French poet Stéphane Mallarmé (1842-1898). It is an emblematic expression of symbolism and poetic experimentation beyond 19th and early 20th-century symbolism.
Prof. Dr. Eduardo de Campos Valadares, Dep. de Física, UFMG
Translating poetry has always been a great challenge. The poet’s vision often reaches us as a faint echo after traversing the nebulous territory of words. However, it is these very limitations that the poets seek to overcome. Their entire art lies in translating a unique perception of the world using the tools at their disposal. Their mission is to breathe new life into worn-out words. By shaping, polishing, and integrating them into their poetic discourse, they unveil other possible worlds for us. In doing so, they contribute to liberating us from the lethargy of routine.
Walter Benjamin took on the seminal task of conceiving a new framework for poetic recreation. According to him, it falls upon the translator to reinvent poetry originally conceived with the aesthetic vision of another era, based on the vocabulary then in use, and reflecting the scientific and technical advancements of the time, among other attributes. In extreme cases, this involves recovering fragments of writing engraved in clay or chiseled in stone, or even deciphering hastily scribbled notes fading under the relentless march of time. Such a project demands an immense effort, potentially consuming years or decades. In their quest for the Holy Grail, translators risk erasing the few clues within their reach or even consigning the message to the sea of oblivion and indifference.
Before and after Benjamin, the idea of recreation was not always a consensus. Reconstructing poetic edifices in the imagination, with their intricate and elaborate designs, is not only challenging but also risky. Hence, many tread cautiously in this forest of printed symbols, now converted into digital archives stored in the cloud.
The advent of artificial intelligence (AI), including machine learning and neural networks, has revived Walter Benjamin’s framework with new tools of invention set to revolutionize writing. By providing easy and virtually unrestricted access to information, much of the effort described above has been automated. Online dictionaries, syllable separators, rhyme dictionaries, machine translation, among various other resources, offer desired information in fractions of seconds. It is legitimate to question the translator’s role in this new scenario.
In the early 19th century, the destruction of machines introduced into factory environments, known as Luddism, was a natural reaction. Repetitive work was delegated to machines, leaving more noble tasks to laborers. We are on the threshold of a technological revolution far more impactful, capable of elevating us to new heights or potentially extinguishing humanity altogether—a prospect not entirely new, given that nuclear arsenals have existed for over half a century and continue to expand.
In Benjamin’s framework, translating poetry means translating time itself. This involves making poetry of the past congenial with the Zeitgeist of today’s readers. A literal translation, though crude, can be quickly obtained through AI platforms. However, these platforms lack emotion, an inherently human attribute, hence they are useful as ancillary tools.
Comparing the translator’s work to gold mining and diamond panning illustrates their operation. “For every ton of earth turned, a gram of gold.” After much sifting, the experienced eye of the prospector identifies a rough diamond among the gravel, which, when polished, becomes a jewel.
The task of sifting through millions of data stored in the cloud falls to AI algorithms. In this new scenario, the translator must be both prospector and polisher of words, imprinting their sensitivity and intuition into the new poetry. The translator engages in dialogue with the poet, and from this dialogue emerges poetry reborn for the present time. Thus, Benjamin’s proposition—that translating poetry is to perpetuate it, dressing it in new attire—becomes more achievable.
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1 Paul Valéry, O Azul e o Mar, trad. Eduardo de Campos Valadares, coedição Editora UFMG/Ateliê Editorial, 2019, p.11.
2 Walter Benjamin, A Tarefa do Tradutor. Veja, por exemplo, https://traduagindo.com/2023/09/30/walter-benjamin-a-tarefa-do-tradutor/
The Author: Prof. Eduardo de Campos Valadares holds a bachelor’s degree in Physics from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (1977), a master’s degree in Physics from the State University of Campinas (1981), and a Ph.D. in Physics from the Brazilian Center for Physics Research (1987). Currently, he is a full professor in the Department of Physics at the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG). He has experience in the field of Physics, focusing on innovation, simple and low-cost experiments, applied projects, physics education, and creativity. Additionally, he has translated works by renowned poets into Portuguese, including the German poet Stefan George (published by Ed. Iluminuras) and the French poets Paul Valéry (published by Editora UFMG/Ateliê Editorial) and Arthur Rimbaud (unpublished). Recently, he has used artificial intelligence to translate the Russian poet Osip Mandelstam (unpublished).
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