BRUEGHEL’S TWO MONKEYS
This is what I see in my dreams about final exams:
two monkeys, chained to the floor, sit on the windowsill,
the sky behind them flutters,
the sea is taking its bath.
The exam is History of Mankind.
I stammer and hedge.
One monkey stares and listens with mocking disdain,
the other seems to be dreaming away–
but when it’s clear I don’t know what to say
he prompts me with a gentle
clinking of his chain.
Ti segnalo un blog collettivo a cui collaboro, dove troverai una lettura e un dipinto di Roberto Matarazzo dedicato a Wisława Szymborska
http://viadellebelledonne.wordpress.com/2008/03/09/wislawa-szymborska-il-mondo-e-stupefacente/
Un saluto
Mapi
… dimenticavo, la lettura è di A. Fiori 🙂
This is not a very good translation.
Thanks Sarah. Why do you say that?
I would disagree, although of course poems always lose something in translation, this one seems pretty good to me. It gives the same vibe as the original.