S. Averintsev
The question, one must think, is rhetorical. Of course, there remains a place for freedom, and now I will try to give an example of this. The occasion was a discussion of the newest translation of Pride and Prejudice. As the conversation progressed, it became clear that the two previous translations had passionate fans and equally passionate haters.
I have long wanted to compare them, and now, thanks to the help of several people who searched, scanned and recognized the text of “Pride and Pride”, which is not on the Internet, it can finally be done. So far I like both, in some ways more one, in others the other. And, honestly, I don’t see any distilled water from Marshak, or any special (well, maybe a little and only at first) heaviness from Gurova!
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife. However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering a neighborhood, this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families, that he is considered the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters. "My dear Mr. Bennet," said his lady to him one day, "have you heard that Netherfield Park is let at last?" Mr. Bennet replied that he had not.
"Pride and Prejudice", trans. I. Marshak
Everyone knows that a young man who has the means must look for a wife.
No matter how little the intentions and views of such a person are known after he has settled in a new place, this truth so firmly takes hold of the minds of families living nearby that they immediately begin to look at him as the legitimate prey of one or another neighbor’s daughter.
“Dear Mr. Bennet,” Mrs. Bennet said to her husband one day, “have you heard that Netherfield Park will finally no longer be empty?”
Mr. Bennett replied that he had not heard that.
“Nevertheless it is so,” she continued. - Mrs. Long just came in and told me this news!
Mr. Bennet said nothing.
- Would you like to know who our new neighbor will be? - his wife asked impatiently.
- I’m ready to listen to you if you really want to tell me about it.
Nothing more was required of him.
“Well, listen, my dear,” Mrs. Bennet continued. - Netherfield, according to Mrs. Long, was taken by a very rich young man from the North of England. On Monday he arrived there in a carriage drawn by four horses, examined the estate and was so delighted that he immediately agreed on everything with Mr. Morris. He is moving in time for Michaelmas, and some of his servants will arrive there at the end of next week.
- And what is his name?
- Bingley.
- Is he married or single?
- Single, dear, that’s the point, he’s single! A young bachelor with an income of four or five thousand a year! Isn't it a good opportunity for our girls?
- How so? Does this have anything to do with them?
“Dear Mr. Bennet,” replied his wife, “you are simply unbearable today.” Of course you understand that I mean his marriage to one of them.
- Hm, these are his plans?
- Plans! My God, you will say sometimes! But it may well happen that he falls in love with one of them. Therefore, as soon as he arrives, you will need to pay him a visit.
- I admit, I don’t see sufficient grounds for this. Go yourself and the girls. Or send them alone - that might be even better. Otherwise, he will suddenly decide to fall in love with you - after all, you are no less attractive than any of our daughters.
- You flatter me, dear. Once upon a time I was indeed not unattractive. But now, alas, I no longer pretend to be known as a beauty. A woman who has five grown daughters should not think too much about her own beauty.
“Under these circumstances, a woman does not often have so much beauty left that she has to think much about it.”
“But, my friend, you should certainly visit Mr. Bingley as soon as he appears.”
- I’m unlikely to take it up.
- But think about our girls. Just imagine how well one of them will be built. You will see that Sir William and Lady Lucas will immediately hurry to Netherfield. And for what, do you think? Certainly, for the sake of their Charlotte - you know, they don’t really like visiting strangers. You should definitely go - after all, we ourselves can’t visit him without it.
- You are too scrupulous. I think Mr. Bingley will be glad to see you. Do you want me to give you a note for him with a promise to marry him to whichever of my daughters he likes best? Perhaps I'll just have to put in a good word for my little Lizzie.
- I hope you don't do this. Lizzie is no better than your other daughters. I am sure she is not half as beautiful as Jane, and much less good-natured than Lydia. But for some reason you always give preference to her!
“None of my daughters are particularly remarkable,” he replied. “They are just as stupid and ignorant as all the other girls at that age.” It's just that Lizzie is a little more useful than her sisters.
- Mr. Bennet, how dare you insult your own children like that? You take pleasure in tormenting me. Of course, you have nothing to do with my frayed nerves.
- You are mistaken, my dear. I have long been accustomed to taking them into account. After all, they are my old friends. It’s not for nothing that you’ve been talking to me about them for at least twenty years.
- Oh, you can’t even imagine how much I suffer.
“I hope you will still live to see the time when many young people with an income of at least four thousand a year will appear in the surrounding area.”
- Even if there are twenty of them, what good are they, since you still refuse to go to them?
- Well, if there are twenty of them, my dear, then, of course, I’ll get together right away and go around them all.
Mr. Bennet's character so intricately combined liveliness of mind and a penchant for irony, isolation and eccentricity that after twenty-three years of marriage, his wife still could not adapt to him. It was much easier to understand her nature. She was an ignorant woman with insufficient intelligence and an unstable mood. When she was dissatisfied with something, she believed that her nerves were not in order. Her goal in life was to get her daughters married. Her only entertainment was visits and news.
"Pride and Arrogance", trans. I. Gurova
A bachelor, if he has a substantial fortune, must urgently need a wife, this is a generally accepted truth.
And however little is known of the feelings and intentions of such a man when he changes his place of residence, the above-mentioned truth is so firmly lodged in the minds of his new neighbors that from the first moment they look upon him as the lawful property of one or another of their daughters.
“My dear Mr. Bennet,” the said gentleman’s wife announced one fine day, “have you heard that Netherfield Park has finally been rented?”
Mr. Bennett replied that he had heard nothing about it.
- But yes, yes! Mrs. Long just visited us and told me everything.
Mr. Bennet remained silent.
“Don’t you really want to find out who settled there?” – his better half inquired impatiently.
“But you want to tell me this news, and I’m ready to listen to it.”
“Well, my friend, Mrs. Long says that Netherfield Park was rented by a young man with a very large fortune, living in the north of England. On Monday he came in a carriage of four to inspect the estate and was so delighted that he immediately agreed to all Mr. Morris’s conditions, and he would move there before Michaelmas, and would send some servants at the end of next week.
- What is his last name?
- Bingley.
– Married or single?
- Oh, my friend, of course, is single. A single young man with a large fortune. Four to five thousand annual income. What happiness our girls had!
- How? What do they have to do with it?
“My dear Mr. Bennet,” exclaimed his wife, “as if you don’t know!” Of course, you understood that I imagined him marrying one of them.
– Is it for this purpose that he decided to settle here?
- Goals? Nonsense! Well, what are you saying? However, it is very, very possible that he will fall in love with someone, and therefore you should pay him a visit as soon as he moves.
- I don’t see why. Why don't you visit it with the girls? Or better yet, send them to him alone. After all, you are so avant-garde that Mr. Bingley may prefer you to all of them.
- My friend, you flatter me. Yes, of course, I was very pretty, but now I no longer think about captivating. Women with five adult daughters should not think about their own beauty.
“Women in such a position rarely retain so much beauty that it would be worth thinking about.”
“Nevertheless, my friend, you must certainly visit Mr. Bingley immediately upon his arrival.”
“It shouldn’t be at all, I assure you.”
“But think about your daughters.” Just imagine what a party it will be for one of them! Sir William and Lady Lucas would not hesitate to pay him a visit for this reason alone. You know, they are never the first to visit new neighbors. No, no, you must visit him, otherwise there will be no way for me and the girls to go to visit him.
- Really, you observe etiquette too strictly. I have no doubt that Mr. Bingley will be very pleased to make such an acquaintance. And I will give you a note for him with assurances of my full consent to his marriage with whichever daughter of mine he chooses. Though I guess I'll put in a good word for my little Lizzie.
- I ask you not to do anything like that. Lizzie is no better than her sisters. In my opinion, she is not half as beautiful as Jane, and not half as charming as Lydia. Well, yes, you always give preference to her.
“None of them shines with anything special,” her husband objected. - Stupid and ignorant, as young ladies should be. However, Lizzie has more mental alertness than her sisters.
- Mr. Bennet, how can you denigrate your own daughters like that? You like to tease me. No compassion for my poor nerves.
“You are mistaken, my soul.” I have the deepest respect for your nerves. After all, they are my old friends. It has been at least twenty years since you mentioned them with such solicitude.
- Oh, you don’t understand my suffering.
“But I hope you will cope with them and live to see many more young people with an annual income of four thousand pounds settling in the area.”
“What good is it to us if even twenty of them settle here if you don’t want to pay them visits?”
“I assure you, my soul, when there are twenty of them, I will visit each of them.”
Mr. Bennet's nature was composed of so many contradictory qualities, such as a sarcastic mind, reserve and eccentricity, that twenty-three years of living with him were not enough for his wife to learn to understand him. But its essence was much easier to comprehend. She was a very narrow-minded woman, ignorant, with an absurd character. If something annoyed her, she fell into a nervous breakdown. The goal of her life was to marry off all her daughters, and her joys were visits and gossip.
© Gurova I., translation into Russian, 2016
© Veche Publishing House LLC, 2016
© Veche Publishing House LLC, electronic version, 2017
Publishing house website www.veche.ru
Jane Austen
Girls' best friends are books
If only because books are incomparably more affordable than diamonds. But the main thing is that they are also better than those jewelry that are designed to adorn the body and dazzle with a cold shine. Books enlighten, encourage and warm souls, being a consolation prize for girls and women who have not forgotten how to dream. And as Chekhov, a great expert on female psychology and the creator of a whole gallery of unforgettable female characters, noted, it is women readers who provide fame to writers.
There are novels written by women for women, and the real diamond among them is the novel “Pride and Prejudice” written two hundred years ago by Jane Austen (1775–1817).
Jane was born in the English province into a large family of a parish priest. She received her education at home, but of a quality that a rare school can provide. Her lively mind and cheerful disposition, sociability and observation, mocking character and evil tongue helped her mature as a writer by the age of twenty. All that remained was to gain experience, hone the style and taste. The original version of the novel “Pride and Prejudice” was composed by Jane at the age of twenty-one or twenty-two, which is not just a rarity for any serious prose, but almost an exception in the history of world literature. A decade and a half later, she rewrote and published this masterpiece of novelism under a pseudonym (it is extremely interesting, by the way, to compare chapter three of Pride and Prejudice with the third chapter of Eugene Onegin, in which the main characters meet). Her books were read not only by the public, but also by royalty, but she received literary recognition only a year before her death thanks to an article by the famous Walter Scott, who admired the originality of her talent. Austen was truly recognized as the “first lady of English literature” already in the twentieth century.
The reason for this was the novelty of her letter. The then “Gothic” novelists, romantic poets and Walter Scott himself wrote about events that were extraordinary and distant, heroic or frightening. And Jane Austen began to write about the most ordinary things, close, familiar to everyone, but with such observation, depth of penetration and irony that the ordinary ceased to look boring and familiar - which is the mechanism of every miracle. Her predecessors in English prose were Henry Fielding and Laurence Sterne, but in her artistic exploration of the human world, Jane sought to get rid of satirical poster techniques and move on to depicting “mixed characters.” Characters with one or another proportion of good and bad in them, with the flow of advantages into disadvantages and vice versa (which was already known to the ancient Chinese authors of the Book of Changes), with the inherent ability of all living things to develop and change. This was not fully appreciated by everyone and not immediately.
Jane Austen had to pay for it in full. Her creative life turned out to be successful, but her personal life was not. Fortunately, Jane was interested in observing and describing the vicissitudes of the destinies of people she knew well, conducting lively correspondence with relatives and visiting their families, caring for loved ones and visiting London, where her books began to be published. Her strong point was the ongoing hunt for brides and grooms from time immemorial in conditions of property inequality and class prejudices, which were all-powerful in her time. It was they who buried the possibility of the future writer marrying either a future lawyer or a future priest. She rejected a couple more marriage proposals, putting on an old maid’s cap at the age of thirty, and died at forty-one.
Oh, how the filmmakers of recent decades have attacked this plot - how many spectators cried at their films and how many spectators became passionate readers of Jane Austen’s books and stories about herself!
Suffice it to recall Helen Fielding’s novel “Bridget Jones’s Diary” and its film adaptation, in which “Pride and Prejudice” was transplanted onto modern soil and gained tremendous success throughout the world. There is incomparably more irony in them, the surroundings are modern, but the essence has not changed.
In life it’s one thing, but in creativity it’s another. In its honeycombs remains pure honey, collected by the writer in the plots of life. For example, a story about how love breaks the ice of pride and prejudice - class arrogance and retaliatory grievances. With an exemplary happy ending.
Igor Klekh
Book one
A bachelor, if he has a substantial fortune, must urgently need a wife, this is a generally accepted truth.
And however little is known of the feelings and intentions of such a man when he changes his place of residence, the above-mentioned truth is so firmly lodged in the minds of his new neighbors that from the first moment they look upon him as the lawful property of one or another of their daughters.
“My dear Mr. Bennet,” the said gentleman’s wife announced one fine day, “have you heard that Netherfield Park has finally been rented?”
Mr. Bennett replied that he had heard nothing about it.
- But yes, yes! Mrs. Long just visited us and told me everything.
Mr. Bennet remained silent.
“Don’t you really want to find out who settled there?” – his better half inquired impatiently.
“But you want to tell me this news, and I’m ready to listen to it.”
“Well, my friend, Mrs. Long says that Netherfield Park was rented by a young man with a very large fortune, living in the north of England. On Monday he came in a carriage of four to inspect the estate and was so delighted that he immediately agreed to all Mr. Morris’s conditions and he would move there before Michaelmas, and would send some servants at the end of next week.
- What is his last name?
- Bingley.
– Married or single?
- Oh, my friend, of course, is single. A single young man with a large fortune. Four to five thousand annual income. What happiness our girls had!
- How? What do they have to do with it?
“My dear Mr. Bennet,” exclaimed his wife, “as if you don’t know!” Of course, you understood that I imagined him marrying one of them.
– Is it for this purpose that he decided to settle here?
- Goals? Nonsense! Well, what are you saying? However, it is very, very possible that he will fall in love with someone, and therefore you should pay him a visit as soon as he moves.
- I don’t see why. Why don't you visit it with the girls? Or better yet, send them to him alone. After all, you are so avant-garde that Mr. Bingley may prefer you to all of them.
- My friend, you flatter me. Yes, of course, I was very pretty, but now I no longer think about captivating. Women with five adult daughters should not think about their own beauty.
“Women in such a position rarely retain so much beauty that it would be worth thinking about.”
“Nevertheless, my friend, you must certainly visit Mr. Bingley immediately upon his arrival.”
“It shouldn’t be at all, I assure you.”
“But think about your daughters.” Just imagine what a party it will be for one of them! Sir William and Lady Lucas would not hesitate to pay him a visit for this reason alone. You know, they are never the first to visit new neighbors. No, no, you must visit him, otherwise there will be no way for me and the girls to go to visit him.
- Really, you observe etiquette too strictly. I have no doubt that Mr. Bingley will be very pleased to make such an acquaintance. And I will give you a note for him with assurances of my full consent to his marriage with whichever daughter of mine he chooses. Though I guess I'll put in a good word for my little Lizzie.
Remember this scene? It is not dubbed and was not included in the dubbed version of the film. I can't find any footage of this scene anywhere on the internet. Question: why did this few-minute scene bother the distributors? Why wasn't it included in the theatrical dubbed version of the film?
Here are three stills from the scene:
Dialogue:
- How was your evening, dear?
- Fabulous! But don't call me "my darling."
- Why?
- Because that’s what my dad calls my mom when he’s angry.
- What should I call you?
- Lizzie, every day. My gem is on Sundays. My Goddess - only in the most special cases.
- What should I call you when I’m angry? Mrs Darcy?
- No. No. Call me Mrs. Darcy when you are absolutely, completely and utterly happy.
- Mrs. Darcy. Mrs Darcy. Mrs Darcy.
Actually, that’s all the text, which for some unknown reason was not included in the dubbed version of the film.
And this morning, while watching this film, I caught an image: Elizabeth completely moved into Mr. Darcy’s family, abandoned her past self, became part of the monad, she gave herself to her husband in service. And this might well not please the feminist-minded part of society. What versions and thoughts do you have on this matter?
And how much wisdom Elizabeth has in this phrase: “Call me Mrs. Darcy when you are absolutely, completely and recklessly happy”! Every time he is happy, he will call her Mrs. Darcy - that is, a part of himself.
I'm rewatching my favorite films. First I watched Pride and Prejudice (1995), directed by Simon Langton, with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ealy. 
I love this movie! Just a perfect fit of all the performers into the characters! Perfect Elizabeth, perfect Mister Darcy. Although...I think Elizabeth is more beautiful than Jane, but according to the book and the film it should be the other way around. But this is the only exception. Every time I watch this film, I relax and cleanse my soul, this film gives me so much joy!
Then I watched Pride and Prejudice (2005), directed by Joe Wright, with Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen. 
From the first frames I began to feel some discomfort. Then I was able to catch him! I didn’t like that the heroines there were so disheveled, so... completely without polish. They walk down the street with their hair down and without a hat. Previously, this was unthinkable. And I began to think what the director’s goal was when he made the Bennet sisters exactly like that. And it dawned on me! He deliberately made them disheveled without gloss to emphasize their poverty, to increase social inequality. When in Cyman Langton's film Elizabeth says to Mr. Darcy, "You are a gentleman. I am a gentleman's daughter," that's exactly what it is. They are not poor, they dress perhaps not as richly as Mr. Bingley's sisters. But very worthy. Their father is truly a gentleman. And in Joe Wright's film, Mr. Bennet... is far from such a gentleman. And their house is no longer so rich. And the boar is driven past the kitchen along the corridor into the annex. And Mr. Bennett HIMSELF manages both this haul and the farm in general. And geese and chickens walk around their yard. And if in Simon Langton's film it is not very clear why Mr. Bennet suffered so much because of Elizabeth's origin and social inequality. This is very obvious in Joe Wright's film. Elizabeth is no match for Darcy at all.
Otherwise, I really liked this movie! There are beautiful, moody shots like this: the sunrise at the very beginning. Elizabeth on a spinning swing. Shower. Elizabeth on the rock. Early morning in haze and dew, the meeting of Elizabeth and Darcy and the almost final shot with the rising sun between them. This is not the case in the first film. And again, Keira Knightley’s intensity of emotions is brighter than Jennifer Ealy’s. Although Jennifer Ealy is very much in the spirit of that restrained era! But Keira Knightley - no, she is more modern. But that’s why it’s more emotional.
In short, I love the book. I love both of these films! I can watch them endlessly! The men do not share my enthusiasm. which is not surprising at all. These are such women's books and films. :-)
Next up are all the versions of “Sense and Sensibility”, there seems to be one more version of “Pride and Prejudice”, several more films based on the novels of Jane Austen, Jane Eyre in different versions, “Wuthering Heights” in several versions. :-) And also “Gone with the Wind” and “Scarlett”! And "The Kinglet is a songbird." So many interesting things!!! :-)
I just can’t come to my senses, but I still want to write a short review about this translation.
First of all, it should be stated up front that I do not believe that this translation cannot be judged without reading it in full. In my opinion, even a single glance is enough to understand that it is a mockery and a distortion of the beloved novel by many, because the first phrase of “Pride and Prejudice” has been memorized by many fans of Austen’s work, both in Russian (in Marshak’s translation) and in English. This phrase is well known to me, but after reading this:
I immediately fell into a state of mild suspended animation caused by a shock reaction, and remained in it for several more minutes, unable to utter a word. Returning to translation.
I believe that the passages posted are sufficient to make a fair and informed judgment about this translation. What's wrong with it? Yes all! I am not a philologist, but I have been (and am) involved in translations, although mostly from French, but in principle, the idea is the same for any language: translate the text as close as possible to the original (and changes are possible and necessary, because all languages are different , and sometimes there is simply no verbal equivalent to a particular word, in such cases one should resort to some other phrase), preserving its atmosphere, trying to convey it in accordance with the author’s vision. This is a difficult task, and it is impossible to accomplish it without having a proper sense of both languages, as well as the work being translated itself. You should not translate a work that you hate or whose author you cannot stand. I believe that this translation is just an example of how a translator took up work on a novel that he hates for some reason, and therefore decided to make fun of a text beloved by many, citing the fact that
novel from 1813 - there can be any number of versions. Nothing, not even the Berne Convention, prevents this person from translating the novel himself. like - get busy.
Austen fans faced approximately the same situation with the release of the film adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice” - 2005, but this is a transfer of text to the screen, visualization, and here, no matter how bad the film was, one cannot say that the discrepancy with the original is unjustified. This discrepancy would exist in any case, since one form of presenting information passes into another, and the same 1995 series differs from the book. And that's okay. But this is completely unacceptable in translation. What's wrong with it?
Inappropriate use of archaisms and archaic forms, excessive ornateness, unjustified inversions, etc. Take, for example, the notorious phrase:
A bachelor who has a decent fortune should have an inclination to get a wife - everyone in the world recognizes this as true.
There is an obvious abuse of archaic endings in words such as “state”, “establishment”, etc., which, even in Russian texts of that time, were not always used, and most often in poetry. In this translation they appear constantly. The phrase is so heavy that it is difficult to understand, perhaps for those who are not so familiar with Pride and Prejudice, it might be necessary to re-read it to understand the meaning. The words “inclination” and “establishment” are used completely unreasonably, because in the original we read:
It is truly acknowledged, that a singe man in possesin of a good fortune must be in want of wife.
With a stretch, the use of these words could be justified, but one can feel the hand of a bad translator and a very bad stylization (what, by the way, is unclear, if for the Russian speech of that time, which includes the use of “Mister” and “Mrs.” instead of “Mr. " and "Mrs.", then the translator clearly does not know Russian literature well). What do we see from Marshak?
Everyone knows that a young man who has the means must look for a wife.
It should be noted that Marshak fully reflects Austen’s style; we see a participle phrase that does not make the phrase primitive, but also does not burden it. We see a translation that is not literal (which, apparently, in some cases Ms. Gryzunova strives for, while not hesitating to change some words as she pleases), but reliable, conveying the meaning and intonation, which is what is required from the translation. Of course, Marshak’s translation cannot be called ideal, it has its shortcomings, but compared to this:
- Darling Mr. Bennett, - one fine day said his wife, - have you heard that Netherfield Park has finally been completed?
or with this:
Alternating between pleas and threats, she spoke to Elizabeth again and again. She tried to involve her in her stratagem Jane, however in the gentlest manner refused to interfere - and Elizabeth repelled her mother's attacks with genuine seriousness and playful fun
alternately.
he seems simply the height of perfection.
It should be noted that with measured eloquence, the translation does not create the proper impression: that is, the impression of stylization, albeit good. It creates the impression of mockery of the text. Mr. Collins's speeches, distinguished by their floridness, are simply lost in such a translation; they are simply no different from the rest of the story.
For example this tirade by Mr. Collins
Probably, to this I owe no less to doubts about my unconditional happiness, my irresistible niece honored me with her agreement, for I have more than once observed that humility is most perfect when the blessing that is denied us begins to partially lose its value.
no different from Mrs. Bennet
- Ah! Mr. Bennett, we need you this very second, we are all in turmoil. You should come and force Lizzie to marry Mr. Collins, otherwise she insists that she doesn’t want him as a husband, and if you don’t hurry up, he will change his mind and won’t want her as his wife.
and Mr. Bennet:
“I don’t have the pleasure of understanding you,” he said when she completed her race. - What are your speeches about?
Again the question arises: why was there an attempt to make stylization? For a medieval knightly romance? Under Russian written speech of the 19th century? This question remains open, as well as why in the comments to this post we read:
Lord, how wonderful, just some kind of holiday, here's another:
It’s simply incredible how quickly - instantly! - you fall into this manner. I can hardly resist not to start writing the same way :))) I think it’s very, very cool! At first it seems that all this is a little deliberate, but then you realize that there are a lot of layers and subtext. I think this is a definite success, congratulations!
and especially this:
wow!!! how amazing! Before, when reading Austen, my mouth burst with yawning, but this is simply read in one gulp!
and other similar opinions. But still, reasonable people appeared who paid tribute to the translation and called it “monstrous” and impossible to read, which is difficult to disagree with.
And finally, I would like to say that I sincerely feel sorry for those who will take on “Pride and Prejudice” in this translation for the first time. Because I would hardly be able to do justice to Austen’s humor, her wonderful, living language and living characters, having read the novel in this translation, which completely distorts the idea and atmosphere of the work.
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