An unknown Voltaire and Maya Kvyatkovskaya’s other French translations

Abstract

Kvyatkovskaya has published an anthology of her poetic translations from French: her book covers works by 23 authors written in the period from the 16th to 20th cc. The collection is divided into three different genres: ‘Poems,’ ‘Fables,’ and the first ever Russian translation of Voltaire’s tragedy Les Guêbres. The latter is supplied with texts related to the play’s reception and the polemic it incited (Voisenon’s remark in verse). Voltaire’s play is devoted to the ever-relevant topic of tolerance and castigation of hate-mongering against cultural or religious diversity. In her anthology, Kvyatkovskaya demonstrates a profound understanding of the original, and a poetic skill in perfect keeping with the principles of the Leningrad school of poetic translation. The choice of authors and their works is guided by the translator’s personal taste and the strategy of discovery: the book features relatively unknown pursuits of renowned authors, such as Racine’s epigrams and Les Cantiques Spirituels, Perrault’s fables, and Artaud’s Sonnets Mystique.