Volta: A Multilingual Anthology

This unusual anthology contains seventy-five poems in seventy-five languages. Seventy-four of these poems are translations of one poem, the seventy-fifth. As Richard Berengarten writes in his introduction, this project is ���Ĵ�ý�a celebration of multiculturalism and diversity���Ĵ�ý�. Apart from invoking the pleasure of learning about different languages, the anthology opens up many questions. For example: How many languages could this project extend to? Is translatability a universal feature of language itself? What does ���Ĵ�ý�originality���Ĵ�ý� actually mean? What difference is there between writing and translating a poem? And could the fact that these poems come from all over the world bear out Octavio Paz���Ĵ�ý�s claim: ���Ĵ�ý�For the first time in our history, we are contemporaries of all humanity���Ĵ�ý�?

The project itself is really interesting, as is Definitely worth checking out if for no other reason than to see the myriad languages this poem is translated into . . .

Peter Robertson is the founding editor, and describes the quarterly in his opening letter:

We strive to publish the best in contemporary literature while shunning all ideological affiliations. Indeed, the driving force behind The International Literary Quarterly is that it be a broad church in the world of letters, a forum for outstanding poetry and prose, whether in its original version or in translation, and for criticism that is trenchant and thought-provoking.

Definitely worth a look . . . and a return visit in three months.