Essay on Comparing Two Translations of Heine's Poem

Introduction

Both narratives, about a young man who loves a maiden, by Heinrich and Ernst, talk about a young fellow who is in love with a lady who belongs to another man. The lady's man has another woman on the side whom he eventually marries. After the man leaves the lady for the other woman, she hurriedly marries the first guy she comes across leaving the young man heartbroken. Additionally, both stories portray how heartbreak manifests in two dimensions, for people in a relationship and for single youths who seek a partner.

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In Ernest's translation of a young man loves a maiden, the language used is simple and easy to understand yet compelling enough to bring out the emotion in the narrative. Also, the author uses personification as a technique to enhance the readers understanding. In the poem, Ernest writes about the heart sighing for another. As such, he portrays the heart as an individual being who can make independent choices. Likewise, by personifying the heart, Ernest, expertly depicts how the man betrays the maiden by loving another woman. Lastly, the phrasing in the last paragraph of Ernest's narrative efficiently apportions the reader an open mind, without effort, that heartbreak can occur to anyone who loses a lover.

In Heinrich's version, the language used is somewhat complicated and leads to repetition in the author's effort to further explain a point to ensure proper understanding of the user. For instance, in the second paragraph of Heinrich's story, he repeats himself by saying that the maiden marries the first man she runs into yet he had stated that the maiden married out of anger. Also, in the last paragraph, the author portrays a single dimension view as he put it that it's only the young lad who experiences the old story and is heartbroken.

As such, I would prefer Ernest's Version of a young man loves a maiden, as it is more efficient than Heinrich's narrative yet it uses a simple language. Additionally, it uses the personification technique that allows the reader to understand how a person betrays their lover. Unlike Heinrich's story which only reveals the detail that the maiden's initial lover had another person in mind but does not efficiently capture the emotion in the event. Further, the simple grammar utilized in Ernest's translation gives the poem a better flow. A fact indicated in the second paragraph where Ernest uses the word just to emphasize the unfortunate decision of the maiden. Contrastingly, Heinrich's narrative, in the same section, shows repetition where the author mentions that the maiden marries out of anger, explaining her disregard to other essential qualities, yet he repeats the point when he says that she married with no regard.

Similarly, Ernest's version delivers the message more efficiently, using a simple language that gives the narrative a consistent flow and ensures the reader gets the message. Moreover, the personification technique helps to portray the act of betrayal by a lover, unlike Heinrich's version which highlights the disloyalty but lacks an emotional feel in the definition. Further, the intended message of the poem is that heartbreaks in relationships are a common thing that existed since the past and that anyone can experience a heartbreak by losing a lover. Nevertheless, in Heinrich's version, it seems as if the young lad is the only one who suffers the heartbreak, although, it acknowledges that the latter is a trend from the past. Even so, Heinrich's story distorts the intended message making it less efficient than Ernest's account.