A moving translation

Julius Caesar - Translation by Tony Ranasinghe:

Reviewed by Dr. Lakshmi DE SILVA

"Each man in his time plays many parts" but few with as much distinction and such a firm grasp of technique as Tony Ranasinghe. As the conscience-haunted protagonist in Delovak Atara and the aged romantic lead in Pavuru Walalu he proved his powers as a film actor, while his bitter and dignified Shylock showed his understanding of the demands of the stage and Shakespeare. His experience as a script writer must have developed skills which have served him well in his translation of Julius Caesar.

A long acquaintance with the text, which I studied as a schoolgirl and gave lectures on, to undergraduates at Kelaniya in the late 90s, sharpened my urge to read the Sinhala version. My impressions of the original perhaps coloured by vivid memories of Marlon Brando as Mark Antony and Haig Karunaratne's riveting modern dress production, which featured Winston Serasinghe as Caesar, K. K. Breckenridge as Brutus and Richard de Zoysa as an electrifying Antony and as a translator familiar with the limitations imposed by our craft, I wondered how the version would match my expectations. I feared errors induced by reverence: would the towering stature of the original, the aura of Roman grandeur clog it with ponderous words and freeze the tension and turbulence of this ironic drama of political manipulation?

Now I am happy to concur with D. C. Ranatunga's verdict "Tony's language is lucid. His choice of words is just correct to fit the different situations and moods." Sensitive and sinewy, straightforward enough to reach the mind with no delay over meaning, the language reflects the rapid pulsing of life, conflicting agendas and beliefs and the clash of temperaments; it catches the individual accents of the different characters - contrast Casca and Caesar, Calpurnia and Portia. Ranasinghe has found a vigorous and flexible equivalent for the iambic pentameter. This particular play is marked by accessibility, making it a good choice for translation; it also calls for rapidity and force of movement in the lines, and this is deftly achieved.

What first strikes the reader is the absence of literary Sinhala: with the exception of 'saerada', a few 'ahos' 'vijjulata' and 'ehev' the translator sticks firmly to familiar words and phrases. It is evident that it is with the intention of bringing the reader or listener emotionally close to the text that Ranasinghe uses not only colloquial Sinhala but adheres to the Sinhala of today - using for instance 'thaththala-ammala' rather than 'piyavarun-mavuvarun'. Cassius long speech to Casca is excellent rendered in all its forcefulness. More strikingly Mark Antony's key speeches over the corpse - "O mighty Caesar" and "O pardon me, thou bleeding piece of earth" are given their full value and that ultimate test, the two funeral orations are brought off triumphantly, since the translator conveys the individual tone of each speaker; he admirably captures the antithetic structure of Brutus speech, with its rhetorical balanced and opposed concepts and its marked contrast with the living energy and manipulative force of Antony's eloquence. Both are rendered with a fine understanding of Shakespeare's characterisation of the speakers and their motivation.

This is the kind of transparent translation that illuminates and reveals the original text through a different languages, in this instance colloquial Sinhala. There may be unrealistic critics who demand a more high-flown idiom: euphonic, rich and expressive as it is that idiom is a barrier to communication.

If the language of Sarachchandra's dramas was used, flexible, poignant and richly expressive as it is for the few who know it, it might have made Julius Caesar inaccessible to many readers longing to know Shakespeare's drama.

Instantaneous understanding of dialogue ensures a strong impact on an audience. Ranasinghe's familiarity with the stage has resulted in a bold approach beneficial to the translation. It is evident that it was a conscious choice, from the erudite terms such as "bhavika prathikampanaya" "uthkrushta" and "Vishayathikranthaya" which Ranasinghe employs in the illustrated and richly informative 167 page preface packed with biographical data on the playwright, his historical background with the conflict between the Catholic faith and the Church of England set up by Henry VIII which exposed secret believers in the old religion such as Shakespeare's parents to the threat of martyrdom. There is much theatre and literary history studded with colourful episodes involving figures such as Richard Burbage, Marlowe, Kyd and Jonson.

It concludes with a detailed analysis of the play. This introduction which opens new horizons to the monolingual reader will prove useful to students who study Drama for the A-levels.

Tony Ranasinghe should be congratulated for a moving translation of Julius Caesar, and a worthwhile contribution to the cultural resources of the Sinhala reader.