Vladimir Nabokov

NABOKV-L post 0013931, Tue, 7 Nov 2006 18:41:49 -0500

Subject
Word-wars in Arabic traditions and elsewhere
From
Date
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AB: These word-wars are certainly renowned in the Celtic tradition. I'm
trying hard to recall an unforgettable [sic] film where two rival
Highlanders exchange ever-lengthening 'poetic' curses -- they also chuck
a
pebble in the ground to signal the end of each tiradical unit -- a
sortof
exclamation mark meaning 'your turn -- follow THAT!"

Sergei: it's certainly a challenge to understand any art forms from
distant
cultures. We do our best with Homer, Virgil and even Shakespeare. The
latter
possibly trickier in many ways since we ASSUME we know what those
ENGLISH
words mean! We still find Julliet on stage looking & searching to the
line
"Wherefore art thou Romeo?" (I'll explain the error if you insist.)

PS: Devout Muslims insist that the Koran can NOT be translated. Allah
spoke
in Arabic.

skb

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