2005-07-08

Orgon son of Ubu

The original French:

Ondoyons un poupon, dit Orgon, fils d'Ubu. Bouffons choux, bijoux, poux, puis du mou, du confit ; buvons, non point un grog : un punch. Il but du vin itout, du rhum, du whisky, du coco, puis il dormit sur un roc. L'infini bruit du ru couvrit son son. Nous irons sous un pont où nous pourrons promouvoir un dodo, dodo du poupon du fils d'Orgon fils d'Ubu.

Un condor prit son vol. Un lion riquiqui sortit pour voir un dingo. Un loup fuit. Un opossum court. Où vont-ils? L'ours rompit son cou. Il souffrit. Un lis croût sur un mur : voici qu'il couvrit orillons ou goulots du cruchon ou du pot pur stuc.

Ubu pond son poids d'or.

In English translation:

"I'm going to rock this child in his cot," sighs Orgon, son of Ubu. "I'm going to wolf down mutton, broccoli, dumplings, rich plum pudding. I'm going to drink, not grog, but punch." Orgon drinks hock, too, rum, Scotch, plus two hot brimming mugs of Bovril to finish up with, which soon prompts him to nod off. Running brooks drown out his snoring. I stroll to rocks on which I too will nod off, with Orgon's dozing son, with Orgon, son of Ubu.

Condors swoop down on us. Poor scrofulous lions slink out, scrutinizing dingos with scornful looks. Chipmunks run wild. Opossums run, too, without stopping. North or south? I wouldn't know. Plunging off clifftops, bison splits limb in two. It hurts. Ivy grows on brick, rising up from stucco pots to shroud windows or roofs.

From Ubu's bottom drops his own bulk in gold.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I thought the googletranslate was funny;
Ondoyons a baby in-arms, known as Orgon, wire of Ubu. Buffoons cabbages, jewels, lice, then slackness, the crystallized one; let us drink, not not a grog: a punch. It drank wine itout, rum, whisky, coconut, then it slept on a rock. The infinite noise of Ru covered its sound. We will go under a bridge where we will be able to promote a dodo, dodo of the baby in-arms of the son of Orgon wire of Ubu.