Mar 06, 2018 michael hofmanns new translation now promises to awaken readers to the relevance of berlin alexanderplatz as an urgent, raw account of modernity. The images and scenes in berlin alexanderplatz move like a film before the reader. Many translated example sentences containing am alexanderplatz englishgerman dictionary and search engine for english translations. Fraz biberkopf has just been released from prison after serving four years for violence that resulted in the death of a girlfriend. Soon, he is on the run for a crime he didnt commit and prepared to end it all that is until a conversion in custody and reimmersion in the city offers the faint yet possible prospect of redemption. Berlin alexanderplatz is a 1929 novel by alfred doblin. Jan 17, 2008 alfred doblins great novel berlin alexanderplatz, published in 1929, is pretty much untranslatable. I read berlin alexanderplatz through a number of mediators.
For serious berlin lovers only i am an idiot and i bought this thinking it was berlin alexanderplatz by alfred doblin, not alexanderplatz, berlin by georg diez. Translation of alexanderplatz by milva from italian to english. He has just been discharged from prison where he has been doing time because of former incidents, and is now back in berlin, determined to lead a decent life. Franz biberkopf is released after four years in prison for killing his girlfriend in a fit of rage. Published in 1929, berlin alexanderplatz often reads, in michael hofmanns new translation, as if it were conceived as a deliberate affront to contemporary sensibilities. Berlin alexanderplatz, book by alfred doblin paperback. Its not clear whether this is because of intrinsic qualities in the book itself, or the widely disliked first english translation by eugene jolas. It has subsequently been adapted to film a 1931 film version by piel jutzi which was shot in the prewar berlin of the novel, and the actual alexanderplatz and most famously the 1981 miniseries by rainer werner fassbinder.
Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Berlin alexanderplatz roman translation english german. This new english translation by michael hofmann the first in more than 75 years replaces stodgier versions by expertly capturing the fecundity. A lowlife for the ages a bold new translation reveals alfred doblins 1929 modernist masterpiece to english readers in new ways. Berlin alexanderplatz, the great novel of berlin and the doomed weimar republic. This landmark translation by michael hofmann is the first to do justice to berlin alexanderplatz in english, brilliantly capturing the energy, prodigality and inventiveness of doeblins masterpiece. Much of it is written in the workingclass argot of prewar berlin. You can complete the translation of berlin alexanderplatz roman given by the germanenglish collins dictionary with other dictionaries. Hofmanns accomplishment is to reimagine in english how the novel talks, squawks, screeches, and curses in doblins german. He teaches in the english department at the university of florida. Alfred doblin is known to the englishreading world, if at all, for only one of his many works. Mar 06, 2018 berlin alexanderplatz, the great novel of berlin and the doomed weimar republic, is one of the great books of the twentieth century, gruesome, farcical, and appalling, word drunk, pitchdark. Wikipedia, lexilogos, langenscheidt, duden, wissen, oxford, collins dictionaries. In this sordid world there are new womendevoted eva.
This book reports the story of franz biberkopf, an erstwhile cement and transportworker in berlin. Berlin alexanderplatz by alfred doblin, paperback barnes. Doblin is compared to joyce, but i think this is only fair in as much as ulysses is dublin, and berlin alexanderplatz is berlin. Berlin alexanderplatz engl download ebook pdf, epub. Alexanderplatz, berlin audiobook by georg diez, steve. When it was published in 1929, it became a monstrous hit and the book s popularity has been sustained all these years. Berlin alexanderplatz by alfred doblin waterstones. Translation aside this is truly an extraordinary novel which will leave no one indifferent. Berlin alexanderplatz is a monument of modern german literature and, more prominently to me, a byword for fat unreadability. Sophie duvernoy on alfred doblins berlin alexanderplatz, a masterpiece of german modernism, and its translations into english. In michael hofmanns extraordinary new translation, alfred doblins masterpiece lives in english for the first time. Nothing lost in translation of berlin alexanderplatz a new iteration of the novel by alfred doblin talks straight to the reader berlin in the 1920s the stage for alfred doblins.
Click download or read online button to get berlin alexanderplatz engl book now. In michael hofmanns extraordinary new translation, alfred. I dont know who she is or where she comes from the book. With a new translation of that book appearing in 2018, this is a good moment to introduce alfred doblins other major works beyond alexanderplatz in english. Berlin alexanderplatz engl download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl. It was published in 1929, just a year before the american john dos passos published the first volume of his trilogy usa, also considered a seminal work of experimental fiction. I was about a third of the way through when i realized my mistake. What he finds are unemployment lines, gangsters, prostitutes, petty thieves, and neophyte nazis. Doblin, a jew, left germany the day after the reichstag fire in 1933, and did not return until 1945. In the second english translation, by anne thompson, northern english dialect was used. Berlin alexanderplatz download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. When we first meet the doomed protagonist, a world war i veteran and petty criminal named franz biberkopf, hes just done time for beating his girlfriend to death. Berlin alexanderplatz, the great novel of berlin and the doomed weimar republic, is one of the great books of the twentieth century, gruesome, farcical, and appalling, word drunk, pitchdark.
Buy a discounted paperback of berlin alexanderplatz online from australias leading online bookstore. This landmark translation by michael hofmann is the first to do justice to berlin alexanderplatz in english, brilliantly capturing the energy, prodigality and inventiveness of doblins masterpiece. Feb 01, 2018 in the second english translation, by anne thompson, northern english dialect was used. The novel was translated into english, in 1931, by eugene jolas a friend and patron of james joyce.
You can complete the translation of berlin alexanderplatz roman given by the german english collins dictionary with other dictionaries. Berlin alexanderplatz is a bold and dazzling collage of a novel. This reprint of the 1961 english version of the novel could hardly have been translated by a person more competent and knowledgeable than eugene jolas. Fassbinders tvseries was a episode lengthy adaptation of virtually. Berlin alexanderplatz is a lumbering leviathan, all rough edges, and the translators challenge is to master its crude, prodigious energies. In jolass hands, berlin alexanderplatz became boisterous, comfortable, and wellworn. Jan 21, 2005 berlin alexanderplatz is one of the masterpieces of modern european literature and the first german novel to adopt the technique of james joyce.
Berlin alexanderplatz is usually described as a stream of consciousness novel, the first to reveal the influence of james joyces ulysses in the german language. The great novel of 1920s berlin life, in a superb new translation by. A translator can ignore this, of course, and use plain english, but then you lose the flavor of the original. Nothing lost in translation of berlin alexanderplatz. Berlin alexanderplatz is one of the masterpieces of modern european literature and the first german novel to adopt the technique of james joyce. The story of franz biberkopf continuum impacts by doblin, alfred isbn. Booktopia berlin alexanderplatz, pmc by alfred doblin. Diez actually references doblins book and he does not care for it. Bruno alfred doblin august 10, 1878 june 26, 1957 was a german novelist, essayist, and doctor, best known for his novel berlin alexanderplatz 1929. In a 2002 poll of 100 noted writers the book was named among the top 100 books of all time. Booktopia has berlin alexanderplatz, pmc by alfred doblin. Berlin in the 1920s is a harsh environment to navigate and as franz discovers its difficult to get off the merry go round.
Berlin alexanderplatz the story of franz biberkopf translated by eugene jolas a frederick ungar book continuum new york. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. The novel was translated into english in 1931 by eugene jolas, a friend of james joyce. Hofmanns translation that i do not like, but few that i can truly call wrong. Look, any honest estimation of the new translation, by michael hofmann, of alfred doblins berlin alexanderplatz from nyrb classics is bound to begin with duteous piety, lauding it, since it is a oneanddone masterpiece thats basically impossible to oversell, as why not the single biggest event in publishing in a lifetime, a crucial refurbishment of something englishlanguage readers.
This penguin classics edition the same translation is being released. With reverso you can find the german translation, definition or synonym for berlin alexanderplatz roman and thousands of other words. Berlin alexanderplatz covers some eighteen months in the life of franz biberkopf, beginning with his release from tegel prison and ending with his release from the buch insane asylum. It tells the story of franz biberkopf, a berlin proletarian who tries to rehabilitate himself after his release from jail but undergoes a series of vicissitudes, many of them violent and squalid, before he can finally attain a normal life. In many ways, this approach gets at the marrow of berlinisch. He returns to his old neighborhood alexanderplatz vowing to live a decent life. I also watched the 15hr movie from the 1970s which is useful for character, setting and plot details. It did not take long for doblins book to become a best seller in the weimar republic. This book is said to be one of the required readings for high school students in germany. It is considered one of the most important and innovative works of the weimar republic. Given this long and fruitful afterlife, one may question what a new edition of berlin alexanderplatz brings to the table. The answer, of course, begins and ends with michael hofmann. Berlin alexanderplatz was a bestseller in its time, so much so that doblin regretted the shadow it cast over his other work, but for years has been only patchily available in english. This edition, by anne thompson, is completely right.
Translation by anne thompson of alfred doblins masterpiece set in 1920s berlin towards the end of the jazz and musichall era of the roaring twenties. Mar 06, 2018 given this long and fruitful afterlife, one may question what a new edition of berlin alexanderplatz brings to the table. The square is named after the russian tsar alexander i and is often referred to simply as alex, which also denotes the larger neighbourhood stretching from mollstra. English translation, from the guide by boyd tonkin. It tells the story of franz biberkopf, a berlin proletarian who tries to rehabilitate himself after his release from jail but undergoes a series of vicissitudes, many of them violent and squalid. Doblins cutting prose and social commentary are no less sharp than they were in. A new translation that can reintroduce berlin alexanderplatz to a contemporary readership has been long overdue. It appeared in english under the original title and as alexanderplatz, berlin. Berlin alexanderplatz by alfred doblin new translation. Its dazzling counterpart, the berlin of the golden twenties, is not to be found in this novel. When we first meet the doomed protagonist, a world war i veteran and petty criminal named franz biberkopf, hes just done time for beating his. Apr 16, 2018 hoffman was not the first to try this book. Berlin alexanderplatz audiobook by alfred doblin, michael.
The translator has instincts all his own, and its a good thing, too. Berlin alexanderplatz, the great novel of berlin and the doomed weimar republic, is one of the great books of the 20th century, gruesome, farcical, and appalling, word drunk, pitchdark. Or he can go for an approximation, adopting a kind. So the approach hofmann took was to make the book seem more like its german version where it is a wonderful mix of the world around the main. Berlin alexanderplatz by alfred doblin librarything. It tells the story of franz biberkopf, who, on being released from prison, is confronted with the poverty, unemployment, crime and burgeoning nazism of 1920s germany. Michael hofmanns new translation now promises to awaken readers to the relevance of berlin alexanderplatz as an urgent, raw account of modernity.
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