Translating Poetry - Kohki

 I completely agree with Beichman's argument that small changes in rhythm, punctuation, or word choice can completely alter meaning and emotional tone. Although it's possible to translate poetry, I think it's impossible to preserve every aspect of the original text, like form, rhythm, emotional intensity, etc., and it's up to translators to choose which aspects to preserve and which aspects to give up on. Especially when reading the haiku or tanka translation, I felt like some important aspects of the original poetry was missing. The structure of haiku/tanka (5-7-5 or 5-7-5-7-7) creates a rhythm and atmosphere that are really unique and nostalgic in a way. I think that uniqueness is impossible to preserve when translating haiku/tanka to any other language. Even if the rhythm was completely the same, it sounds right only when it's read in Japanese. In my opinion, learning the original language is the only possible way to fully appreciate and experience the original poetry. However, it's still possible to create a really good translation with the same meaning and that is poetic. 

 I agree with Pulvers too, and I don't think poetry is untranslatable. I really liked his translation of "Ame nimo makezu", where he shifted the negatives ("Ame nimo makezu, kaze nimo makezu") to positives ("strong in the rain, strong in the wind"). Kenji Miyazawa didn't use the negatives to depict negativity, but the opposite, and I think this version of translation preservers the spirit of original poetry. It made me think again that translators are poets themselves, since they need to be as creative as the original poet to recreate the poetry.