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Andrzej Jagodzińskiis another resident at theTROJICA AIR residency in Banská Štiavnica.He is translating the bookDonbass. The Wedding Suite in Hotel War.
During the course of each residency an event takes place in Banská Štiavnica at which the translator –author tandem is introduced. On Friday, September 4th, Andrzej Jagodziński andTomáš Forró will talk about literature, translation and journalisminܳíԲ(Horná ružová 1, Banská Štiavnica). The event starts at 6:30PM and you can find more information.
Andrzej Jagodziński is a Polish philologist, journalist, translator and ex-dissident. He studied Czecho- philology at the university in Warsaw between 1973 and 1978. During his studies, he cooperated with the democratic opposition and mediated the first contacts betweenKSS-KOR and Charta77. In the 1970s and 80s, he worked together with independent Polish periodicals and publishers and with Czechoslovak exile magazines:Svědectví (Paris), Rozmluvy (London) and Obrys (Munich).
Since 1978, he has been translating Czech and literature into Polish. He had translated books ofVáclavHavel, MilanKundera, BohumilHrabal, VáclavKohout, JozefŠkvorecký, ViktorFischl, JířiGruš, EgonHostovský, KarolSidon, DušanMitana, RudolfSloboda, MartinM. Šimečkaand others.
Why did you decide to translate Donbass. The Wedding Suite in Hotel War? How can this book be interesting for Polish readers?
In Poland, the war in Donbass is being closely watched– we share a longborder with Ukraine, and, perhaps more importantly, a long mutual history that isfull of good and very bad, dramatic and even cruel chapters. Moreover, Ukraine separates us from Russia– a country Polad has had mostly bad experience with in the past. For these and other reasons mostPolish people root for a free and democratic Ukraine.
Naturally, we also have many publications on the war in Donbass but Tomáš Forró's book is, I think, unique because it offers its readers the points of view from both sides of the front. The author had lived and collected material there formonths. It is a "complete book"– there is sound political analysis, reporting, elements of investigative journalism, and above all, it is a touching account of the fates of ordinary people, desperate and mostly completely innocent, whose lives had been destroyed by war.
I wish that Tomáš' book gets the responsethat it deserves in Poland. I will try to be of help.
What was the biggest translation challenge here?
Non-fiction is very popular in Poland. I, too, love to read it when I have the time. However: even though I had translated more than 50 books, I have never,until now, worked within the genre of literary reportage. So in a sense, it will be my debut as well. That in itself is a challenge. Aside from that, I have to make sure to carefully adapt the language of the translation to the unique chapters of the book– the language (and style) of a scientific interpretation is completely different from the language of themoment in whichthe narrator feels an M-16 gun pressed againsthis back. These are, however, questions a translator commonlysolves.I believe I can manage.
Does the residency suit your working style? Are you able to better concentrate here?
Yes, I am able to work really well when I'm not in myoffice because life has forced me to adapt (although the adaptation took years). When I first started translating and writing, my wife and I had lived in Warsaw in a studio of 23 square meters with ourtwo children and yetwe were happy to have our own apartment. Of course it wasimpossible to work there so I made use ofinvitations of friends and neighbors or I applied for residencies that various artistic organizations offered. It was not easy in the beginning since a translator needs to have a lot of different, often unexpected, tools at hand– at least I do. But today, the internet makes it all easier. Besides, being away from my private library means less temptation.
What else are you working on these days– other translations, your own texts and such?
It is a habit of mine that when I leave for a longer time, I always bring at least two things to translate plus something to read. So aside from Tomáš' book, I am also translating a play by Viliam Klimáčekon my "breaks." I also brought a couple of older Polish magazines that I didn't have time to read; however, I have found so many interesting books in the studyhere that the magazine articles will have to wait for another opportunity.
