The latest installment in the Contemporary Writers Reading Series featured poetry that charms in two languages.
Last night, in the McCormack Family Theater, poet Jan Wagner read a selection of his works in the original German. He shared the stage with Forrest Gander, professor of literary arts and interim director of the program, who read English versions of the same poems by a number of translators, including himself.
Wagner's naturalistic works often mined the details of day-to-day existence for poetic material, touching on subjects ranging from hair cuts to jellyfish. Many pieces, including "Fish and Chips" and "Champignons," explored the significance of particular foods. Others focused on the stories of relatively obscure historical figures like pirate Klaus Stoertebecker and 17th-century scientist Otto von Guericke. The artful translations succeeded in echoing Wagner's playful approach to sound, replicating the German rhymes and alliteration in English.
Wagner's work includes poetry collections "A Trial Drill in the Sky," "Guericke's Sparrow" and "Eighteen Pies." He has also worked as a translator and editor, and is currently a writer-in-residence at Oberlin College.
After last night's event, Wagner - who speaks English as well as German - told The Herald that he had never heard English translations of his work read out loud before.
"I had the strange feeling of listening to somebody else's poetry." he laughed.
