The Magic Mirror of Literary Translation - by Eric Sellin (Paperback)

About the Book

"In "The Magic Mirror of Literary Translation," Sellin examines and dissects a number of his translations in a detailed series of ten essays that consider the importance of the various elements involved in the practice of literary translation, especially when it comes to dealing with potential roadblocks that can frustrate a translator of highly structured formal poetry"--

Book Synopsis

Sellin invites readers to explore the daunting and often unsung work of literary translators. With wry humor and an engaging conversational style, Sellin shares his insight on the art and science of translation, including the many nuanced solutions he's developed for some of the more sensitive problems that frustrate translators of formal poetry. The essays offer a balance of commentary on structural challenges as well as linguistic and aesthetic issues, giving readers practical and theoretical advice gained from a long career as a professor, poet, editor, and translator.

Review Quotes

"The Magic Mirror of Literary Translation is beautifully written and full of interesting ideas and observations. It contains precisely the kind of material that leading scholars of translation have recently begun to study in order to glean a deeper understanding of the many facets of the translation process and the contexts in which it takes place. This book serves as a reassuring reminder of how much revision all good translation (and writing) entails.

-- "Julie Hansen, Uppsala University, Sweden"

Accessible and entertaining.-- "Reading in Translation"

Accomplished translator Eric Sellin has distilled the wisdom gained over six decades of translating poetry into this informative and entertaining collection of essays. Always instructive, thought-provoking and illuminating, personal and practical, at times self-ironic, humorous, irreverent, this book will resonate with and please everyone who cares about language. For aspiring translators, it's a must read!-- "Thalia Pandiri, Smith College"

Engaging, stimulating, entertaining, and highly readable.-- "Hédi Abdel-Jaouad, author of Browning upon Arabia: A Moveable East"

For the doubters and the hesitant, the Dark Ones who say great literature can't be translated, The Magic Mirror of Literary Translation is the essential initiation.-- "Peter Thompson, Roger Williams University"

About the Author

Eric Sellin is emeritus professor of French at Tulane University. He is the author and translator of numerous books, including the co-translation of Arabs and the Art of Storytelling: A Strange Familiarity.