Billy Collins: Two poems about what dogs think (probably)

Translator: Judit Piñol (Amara Staff) Reviewer: Silvia AM

I don't know if you've noticed,

No sé si us n'heu adonat,

but there's been a spate of books

però hi ha hagut una sèrie de llibres

that have come out lately

publicats últimament

contemplating or speculating

contemplant o especulant

on the cognition and emotional life of dogs.

sobre la vida emocional i cognitiva dels gossos.

Do they think, do they feel and, if so, how?

Pensen, senten, i si és així, com?

So this afternoon, in my limited time,

Així que aquesta tarda, en el meu temps limitat,

I wanted to take the guesswork out of a lot of that

m'agradaria esborrar les suposicions de tot això

by introducing you to two dogs,

presentant-vos a dos gossos,

both of whom have taken the command "speak"

els quals s'han près l'ordre de "parlar"

quite literally.

bastant literalment.

The first dog is the first to go,

El primer gos és el primer,

and he is contemplating an aspect

i contempla un aspecte

of his relationship to his owner,

de la relació amb el seu amo,

and the title is "A Dog on His Master."

i el títol és "Un Gos sobre El Seu Amo".

"As young as I look,

"Tan jove com semblo,

I am growing older faster than he.

envelleixo més ràpid que ell.

Seven to one is the ratio, they tend to say.

Set per cada un és l'equivalent, es diu.

Whatever the number, I will pass him one day

Sigui quin sigui el nombre, el passaré algun dia

and take the lead,

i seré el líder,

the way I do on our walks in the woods,

com quan passegem al bosc,

and if this ever manages to cross his mind,

i si això mai li passa pel cap,

it would be the sweetest shadow

seria la sombra més dolça

I have ever cast on snow or grass."

que mai he donat en neu o prat."

(Applause)

(Aplaudiments)

Thank you.

Gràcies.

And our next dog

I el següent gos

speaks in something called the revenant,

parla d'una cosa anomenada "revenant",

which means a spirit that comes back

que significa que un esperit torna

to visit you.

per visitar-te.

"I am the dog you put to sleep,

"Sóc el gos que vas enviar a dormir,

as you like to call the needle of oblivion,

com t'agrada anomenar l'agulla de l'oblit,

come back to tell you this simple thing:

vinc a dir-te una cosa molt simple:

I never liked you."

mai em vas agradar."

(Laughter)

(Rialles)

"When I licked your face,

"Quan et llepava la cara,

I thought of biting off your nose.

pensava en mossegar-te el nas.

When I watched you toweling yourself dry,

Quan et mirava assecant-te amb la tovallola,

I wanted to leap and unman you with a snap.

volia saltar i capar-te d'una revolada.

I resented the way you moved,

Resentia com et movies,

your lack of animal grace,

la falta de gràcia animal,

the way you would sit in a chair to eat,

la manera com seies a menjar en una cadira,

a napkin on your lap, a knife in your hand.

tovalló a la falda, ganivet a la mà.

I would have run away

Hauria escapat

but I was too weak,

però era massa dèbil,

a trick you taught me

un truc que em vas ensenyar

while I was learning to sit and heel

mentre aprenia a seure i venir

and, greatest of insults,

i, el més gran dels insults,

shake hands without a hand.

a donar la mà sense una mà.

I admit the sight of the leash would excite me,

He d'admetre la visió de la corretja m'excitava,

but only because it meant I was about to smell things

però només perquè sabia que oloraria coses

you had never touched.

que mai havies tocat.

You do not want to believe this,

No t'ho vols creure,

but I have no reason to lie:

però no tinc raó per mentir:

I hated the car, hated the rubber toys,

odiava el cotxe, odiava les joguines de goma,

disliked your friends, and worse, your relatives.

no m'agradaven els teus amics, i pitjor, els teus parents.

The jingling of my tags drove me mad.

la dringadissa de les meves plaques m'embogia.

You always scratched me in the wrong place."

Sempre em vas rascar al lloc equivocat."

(Laughter)

(Rialles)

"All I ever wanted from you was food and water

"Tot el que vaig voler de tu era menjar i aigua

in my bowls.

als meus bols.

While you slept, I watched you breathe

Mentre dormies, et mirava respirar

as the moon rose in the sky.

i la lluna s'enlairava al cel.

It took all of my strength

Vaig haver d'esforçar-me

not to raise my head and howl.

per no enlairar el cap i udolar.

Now, I am free of the collar,

Ara, sóc lliure de collar,

free of the yellow raincoat,

lliure de l'impermeable groc,

monogrammed sweater,

el jersei brodat,

the absurdity of your lawn,

l'absurditat de la teva gespa,

and that is all you need to know about this place,

i això és tot el que necessites saber d'aquest lloc,

except what you already supposed

excepte el que ja suposaves

and are glad it did not happen sooner,

i content de que no passés abans,

that everyone here can read and write,

que tothom aquí pot llegir i escriure,

the dogs in poetry,

els gossos en poesia,

the cats and all the others

els cats i tots els altres

in prose."

en prosa."

Thank you.

Gràcies.

(Applause)

(Aplaudiments)