(It is very evident reading over Ungaretti’s poetry that he is a man touched by war. Many of his works glorify such a disturbing practice and recall the personal instances of death and despair that Ungaretti can do little else other than accept.)
Veglia
Un’intera nottata
buttato vicino
a un compagno
massacrato
con la sua bocca
digrignata
volta al plenilunio,
con la congestione
delle sue mani
penetrata
nel mio silenzio
ho scritto
lettere piene d’amore.
Non sono mai stato
tanto
attaccato alla vita.
- Commentary
In his poem, “Veglia”, Ungaretti recounts the death of a fellow comrade and the rushed, informal mourning that commences. He describes briefly the man’s corpse and the eeriness and stillness of the night around him. Not surprisingly, the soldier’s death sparks a sudden love for life in Ungaretti. Stylistically, it is written in such a way that specific and meaningful words, like “massacarto” or “digrignata,” stand out. Ungaretti uses metaphors and imagery well here, especially in portraying the corpse as less than human, almost animal-like. Perhaps the most relevant feature of the poem, is the romantic metaphor in which he compares the outpouring of emotion in “letters filled with love” to describe the overall experience.
- Literal Translation
Vigil
An entire night
Thrown nearby
To a fellow
Slaughtered
With a mouth
Clenched
Once a full moon
With the congestion
Of his hands
Penetrated
In my silence
I wrote
Letters full of love.
I have never been
As
Attached to life.
- Communicative Translation
Vigil
An entire night long
Crouched close
To a companion
Slaughtered
Mouth
Clenched
Up at the full moon
With the congestion
Of his hands
Thrust
Into my silence
I have written
Letters full of love.
I have never held
So
Hard to life
- Explanation
As a translator, there were a few interjections I made so that the poem would make more sense grammatically. I also modified the word choice here and there because, in order to preserve what Ungaretti meant, I had to abandon some of the original Italian. For instance, whereas “buttato vicino,” translates directly to “thrown nearby,” Ungaretti instead intended this line to portray the soldier’s positioning over the dead comrade.
Soldati
Si sta come
D’autunno
sugli alberi
le foglie.
- Commentary
In his poem, “Soldati” Ungaretti likens soldiers to the death and decay of leaves during the fall season. Life on the battlefield is fleeting, and many of Ungaretti’s comrades are being shed. Like leaves, the soldiers fall. Stylistically, the poem is written in anticipation of the last line, which also serves as the most relevant feature of the poem. When Ungaretti draws the final metaphor of the soldiers being akin to leaves, the references to autumn and the trees become distinctly relevant. Impressively, in the short four-lined poem, he is able to employ three separate metaphors.
- Literal Translation
Soldiers
We are
Of autumn
On trees
The leaves.
- Communicative Translation
Soldiers
We are
Autumnal
On the trees,
As the leaves.
- Explanation
As a translator, I only modified the literal translation slightly in order to make the overall meaning a little more clear. By changing “of autumn” to “autumnal” Ungaretti’s interpretation of the soldiers as being homogeneous to the decay of the fall season is better understood. I also interjected the words “the” and “on” for clarity.