Abstract
I present an updated version of my translation of the poem The Raven, by Edgar Allan Poe, into Brazilian Portuguese, followed by a study on the concepts that guided the practice and comments regarding the creative choices of the process. I open the discussion with the question of untranslatability in poetry; then, I explore the concepts of “transcreation” and “paramorphy”, as proposed by the Brazilian translator Haroldo de Campos; finally, I return to the concepts to address them in the poems The Raven and O Corvo, especially with regard to how the rhythmic, rhymic and alliterative patterns are decisive for the construction of the poem’s meanings. I comment on specific choices made in the process of translation, with extra attention to the paronomastic effects between “Lenore - nevermore” and “Raven - never”, also considering the choices of some previous translations. I argue that the creative attitude on translation of poetry is decisive for the potentiation of effects that are beyond the semantic surface of poetic texts.
Keywords
The Raven; Edgar Allan Poe; Transcreation; Nevermore