One Hundred and One Poems by Paul Verlaine: A Bilingual Edition [Paperback]

Paul Verlaine (Author), Norman R. Shapiro (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2000

French poet Paul Verlaine, a major representative of the Symbolist Movement during the latter half of the nineteenth century, was one of the most gifted and prolific poets of his time. Norman Shapiro's superb translations display Verlaine's ability to transform into timeless verse the essence of everyday life and make evident the reasons for his renown in France and throughout the Western world.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Above The Roof The Sky Is Fair
Accompanying A Sketch
Allegory
Allegory
Among The Trees
Another Drink Song
Ars Poetica
Autumn Song
Awakening
Beauty Of Women, Weakness, Pale Soft Skin
Blonde? Brown? Which Is Your Hair?
Bright In The Evening's Gray And Pinkish Blur
Charleroi
Circumspection
'the City!' Gaudy Cluster Of White Stones
Colombine
Cortege
Covering The Land
A Dahlia
Death
Dream
A Drink Song
False Impression
The Faun
Fog!
For Arthur Rimbaud
For Bibi-puree
For Charles Baudelaire
For Clymene
For Edmond Lepelletier
For Georges Verlaine
For Mademoiselle
Green
The Hedges Billow Like The Sea's
The Horn's Sound In The Wood Sobs Dolefully
I Dreamed Of You Last Night; And You
I Used To Wander Aimlessly
I'm Poorer Than I've Ever Been
In Mary's Humble Ear
In Muted Tone
In The Style Of Paul Verlaine
Innocents We
It's Thanks To You I See How I
It's The Languorous Ecstasy
The Lane
Languor
The Last 'fete Galante'
Last Hope
The Last Stanza
Like City's Rain, My Heart
Limbo
Loins
Love Cast Down
Lover, When You Look For Lice
Lovers' Chat
Mandolin
Moonlight
Morning Star, Before You Pale
My Familiar Dream
Mystical Evening Twilight
Nevermore
Night Scene
On A Copy Of Les Fleurs Du Mal
On The Grass
Other
Pantomime
Pierrot
Prologue
Puppets
Quatrain
Recollection Of Manchester
Reflections In The Fogbound Rivulet
Sailing
A Saint Set In Her Stained-glass Glow
Seascape
Seashells
Sentimental Stroll
The Shepherd's Hour
The Skeleton
So Sad My Heart, So Sad It Was
Song For The Ladies
Sonnet To Weep Over
Spleen
Spring
Streets: 1
Streets: 2
Strolling
Summer
Sunsets
Tantalized
That Firm-fleshed Belly That Has Never Borne
True, We Don't Know When To Quit
A Vast, Black Lethargy
Walcourt
When We Go - If I See Her Yet Again
The Wind Whips Through The Bushes, Green
Woman And Cat
Yes, Despite Your Cruel Excess
You Believe In Superstitions
You've Often Been Unkind
Your Voice Was Deep And Low
-- Table of Poems from Poem Finder® --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Language Notes

Text: English, French (translation)
Original Language: French --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 309 pages
• Publisher: University Of Chicago Press; 1 edition (November 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0226853454
• ISBN-13: 978-0226853451
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #485,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Too Much Poetic License, June 2, 2003

By 

ValT26 "theartofhr" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: One Hundred and One Poems by Paul Verlaine: A Bilingual Edition (Hardcover)

A literal translation of Verlaine from the French would be leaden. (But if you want one that approaches just that, see the Oxford Classics version .) All the same, Shapiro strays too far for me from what Verlaine wrote. These translations are often gorgeous, and sometimes a tad florid. I would have liked to see Shapiro translate more closely to the orginal while maintaining the grace he attempts, and even frequently reaches, here. (Is this possible in translations?) However beautiful, this is not Verlaine.

The notes at book's end , expaining some of the translator's decitions and choices, are quite interesting and worth reading, even though I don't always agree with his approach. ...

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good, May 13, 2010

By 

N. Yang "Serious reader" (SF, CA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: One Hundred and One Poems by Paul Verlaine: A Bilingual Edition (Paperback)

Very good book. I encourage reading it becuase it is an excursion from today's busy life.

1.0 out of 5 stars Not a translation of the original, December 27, 2011

By 

Whatever - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: One Hundred and One Poems by Paul Verlaine: A Bilingual Edition (Paperback)

I wanted a book that would provide decent, close translations of the original French, since there are too few of these out there with respect to Verlaine. As a poet, I recognize the difficulty in translating poetry, but even so, and with an incredibly limited knowledge of French, it's clear that these translations are not at all accurate, but mostly just based on the whimsical wishes of the translator, who seems to have intentionally disregarded many straightforward French words and phrases that could have easily be put into English, without damaging the poem as a whole.

I felt scammed, and would return this if it weren't for my laziness. I never expected to complain about poetry translations because the process really is an art form and one that is very difficult, but this is simply too much.

Go to A. S. Kline's FREE Poetry Archive instead.