For life is tendency, and the essence of a tendency is to develop in the form of a sheaf, creating, by its very growth, divergent directions among which its impetus is divided.
Henri BergsonRead
All the translations of a poem in all possible languages may add nuance to nuance and, by a kind of mutual retouching, by correcting one another, may give an increasingly faithful picture of the poem they translate, yet they will never give the inner meaning of the original.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Translations can enhance understanding but cannot fully capture the essence of the original poem.
This quote by Henri Bergson emphasizes the idea that while translations of a poem in various languages can illuminate different nuances and perspectives, they ultimately fall short of conveying the poem's true inner meaning. Each translation may correct and enrich others, yet the unique emotional and cultural context embedded in the original remains untranslatable, highlighting the limitations of language in capturing deeper artistic sentiments.
Themes
TranslationPoetryMeaningNuanceLanguageArt
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture on the challenges of translating poetry.
More from Henri Bergson
All quotes →To exist is to change, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly.
Henri BergsonRead
Laughter is the corrective force which prevents us from becoming cranks.
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I believe that the time given to refutation in philosophy is usually time lost. Of the many attacks directed by many thinkers against each other, what now remains? Nothing, or assuredly very little. That which counts and endures is the modicum of positive truth which each contributes. The true statement is, of itself, able to displace the erroneous idea, and becomes, without our having taken the trouble of refuting anyone, the best of refutations.
Henri BergsonRead
Religion is to mysticism what popularization is to science
Henri BergsonRead
And I also see how this body influences external images: it gives back movement to them.
Henri BergsonRead
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