Split the Lark

Disseca a Cotovia - e a Música acharás—	Split the Lark - and you'll find the Music—
Bulbo após Bulbo, a flutuar em Prata—	Bulb after Bulb, in Silver rolled—
Escassos dados a Manhã de Estio	Scantily dealt to the Summer Morning
Prontos ao teu Ouvir, quando mudos os Alaúdes.	Saved for your Ear when Lutes be old.
Liberta o Fluxo—achá—lo—ás patente—	Loose the Flood—you shall find it patent—
Jato após Jato, totalmente a ti—	Gush after Gush, reserved for you—
Rubra ExperiΠncia! Incrédulo Tomé!	Scarlet Experiment! Sceptic Thomas!
Inda negas que o Pássaro era sincero?	Now, do you doubt that your Bird was true?

Split the Lark" is probably one of the poems by Emily Dickinson which most evinces the poet's work on the sound material of words by means of phonetic effects such as consonances, assonances, and alliterations, including those considered as cacophonous: "Apparently Dickinson means to reinforce the irony of the lines by the reliance on the cacophony of the sibilants" (Lair 130), so as to match the idea of sacrifice and of the music destruction. In this translation (in collaboration with Rogerio Chociay), we attempted to preserve or recreate the same effects in Portuguese, although not always with the same sounds. Such devices mark the insistence with which she makes assertions in the text, mainly to stress the clash between faith and doubt, as it is a conative text in which she addresses somebody.

In the translation [r] "replaces" the [s] of the original. The first line combines cacophony with euphony; the second is as euphonic as the original, preserving the aliteration of the [b] and the assonance of the [u]. In the third line of both the original and the translation dentals and sibilants are found. The fourth presents an almost inner rhyme (Estio / Ouvir) plus an insistence in [u]. In the fifth and sixth lines, while in the original both palatal and sibilant consonants can be found, the translation keeps the palatal, but the dental prevail as there is an insistence on [t]. In the seventh [r], instead of the original [s], prevails in the translation, which preserves the professorial tone of admonition found in the two halves of the line. And, finally, the sybilants reinforce the idea expressed in the last line. Thus the lyric's advice to those "who will not believe without sensory evidence" (Lair 129) is accordingly presented as far as the sound effects are concerned.