May 1939
Translating a Heartbreaking Poem
May 1939. These two words say it all: the spring before the war, the calm before the storm. They form the title of a poem written by the brilliant and ill-fated Zuzanna Ginczanka when she was only 22 years old.
May is the month of love — especially when you’re 22. But history doesn’t care about the seasons, and troubling rumors from across the German border disturbed the poet’s romantic reveries. Throughout the piece, three forces — spring, love, and war — are locked in a perfectly balanced dance. For Ginczanka, it is a dance of uncertainty. For us, it is a dance of death.
I’d like to tell you how I translated May 1939 from Polish into English. I want you to understand what it takes to transpose such a delicately balanced creation. I suppose I am proud — but I also want you to understand that poetry is as much a delicious riddle as it is a weighty revelation. Translating poems is no different than solving crosswords — only more satisfying. Maybe if I show you my methods, you’ll be inspired to try it too.
So how do I crack a puzzle like May 1939? I start by finding its heart: the part which can’t be removed without murdering the…
