הם גיבורים שלי! --Yehuda & Ibsen

Hi! I have been reading many your posts about how the original text loses some of its essence when it is being translated, and I agree with you all. In fact, I want to share with you one of my favorite scenes in A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen (my favorite play). The original play was written in German but I have read the Spanish and English versions of it, and it is just so interesting to look back and relate what I thought to most of your posts about the translation of certain things:

A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, English Version Act III

Nora. No, I have never been happy. I thought I was, but it has

never really been so.

Helmer. Not--not happy!

Nora. No, only merry. And you have always been so kind to me.

But our home has been nothing but a playroom.

Spanish Version Act II Same Scene

Nora. No. Creía serlo, pero no lo he sido jamás.

Helmer. Que no.., que no has sido feliz!

Nora. No, estaba alegre y nada más. Eres amable conmigo…pero nuestra casa solo era un salón de recreo. He sido una muñeca grande en tu casa, como fui muñeca en casa de papa. Y nuestros hijos, a su vez, han sido mis muñecas. A mí me hacia gracias verte jugar conmigo, como a los niños les divertía verme jugar con ellos. Esto es lo que ha sido nuestra unión, Torvaldo.

-In this scene, Nora tells her husband that she wants to leave him forever because she is not happy and does not love him anymore. Ibsen, through this play, criticizes the women’s social role and lack of liberty in his society and Nora is the representation of women. It is in this very scene when she finally expresses all of her feelings inside.

What still to this day keeps getting my attention is how she explains the fact of being alegre pero no feliz/merry but not happy. However, the English version that I read years ago, did not use the word merry it used the word gay instead. What do you think of that?!!! I think that was one of the motivations to read the play in both languages.

Also, here is more information on Eliezer Ben Yehuda

http://www.jafi.org.il/education/100/PEOPLE/BIOS/beliezer.html

Thanks to him we can speak Hebrew nowadays!!!