日本人を真似て -- イェーツ

イェーツさんは「日本人のいう古稀」を迎えたらしい。中国の人がどういうか知らないが、餃子とラーメンは日本食、いちばん好きな日本食は炒飯だと答える人が居るから、仕方がないか。それに、この詩非常にシンプルである。彼は俳句の英訳を読んだかもしれない。

Imitated From The Japanese

A most astonishing thing --
Seventy years have I lived;

(Hurrah for the flowers of Spring,
For Spring is here again.)

Seventy years have I lived
No ragged beggar-man,
Seventy years have I lived,
Seventy years man and boy,
And never have I danced for joy.

William Butler Yeats

日本人を真似て

驚くべきことに −
７０年間僕は生きてきた。

（春の花万歳
春がまたやってきた）

７０年間は生きてきた
老いぼれ乞食にもならずに
７０年間生きてきた
ガキの頃から７０年経つが
喜んで踊ったことは一度もない。

イェーツ

写真はあと２年で７０才を迎えるイェーツである。外国人としては若い風貌である。

良寛にこういう詩があるそうです。

首（こうべ）をめぐらせば七十有余年
人間の是非 看破に飽きたり
往来の跡はかすかなり 深夜の雪
一炷（いっしゅ）の線香
古窓の下

私は好きですが、あまりにも侘しく寂しくて・・・といったところでしょうか。

[fminorop34]

良寛の詩の語彙は今すぐには読解不能です。古語辞典もありますし、勉強させていただきます。宿題が増える一方です。それにしても博学な方ですね。

[francophile762004]

I know William Butler Yeats's poems like I Am Of Ireland, A Dringking Song.

His another poem <Imitated From The Japanese> is very interesting. Thank you for letting me know this poem.
This poem is impressive for me :)

[francophile762004]

I think that "nationality" is not important, because it is not our choice. "Nationality" is just like a passport, I think.
For exemple, I'm a south-korean, but I am familiar mentally to France. I prefer French culture, French food, French way of thinking. I try to live and think like French people in my life. For exemple, I cannot live without espresso coffee, French bread, French cheese, French language, French culture...

[francophile762004]

Sometimes I am sad, because I'm not a French or an European. I love also another european culture.
So even if I'm an Asian, I am more familiar to european culture and european way of thinking. :)

Sorry for my long comment...

Thank you~
Have a nice day!

[fminorop34]

Good morning! Thank you for your generous comments, giving the best of flavors to my frugal brunch! I have no idea of ‘I Am Of Ireland’ by Yeats. I will find out it.

[fminorop34]

Your devotion to the French culture is genuine. As far as painting is concerned, I am Francophile. I admire Monet. I made a pilgrimage to le jardin de Monet in the Paris suburbs of Giverny some 10 years ago. I am not very fond of French wine to which. I prefer beer. Though expensive, I ordered one “Heineken” in vain. Then I tried to say“Eineken” and was relieved from thirsty.

[fminorop34]

I was majored in neither English nor German. The second foreign language is compulsory. I selected German because it sounds masculine as many male students of the time did. German and English share linguistically the same ancestral root. I believed German is full brother with French to my regret. But I was fortunately instructed by Jiro Kawamura, an authority on German literature, especially Hugo von Hofmannstahl. He was elected a member of the Japan Art Academy.