Translating Edward Gorey's Nonsense Verse

The translation of any text from one language to another is fraught with perils, especially when the work is fiction, poetry or song lyrics. These styles of writing are often as much about the language itself as it is the meanings expressed. A particularly difficult task is translating nonsense verse.

The works of Edward Gorey are now available in many languages. Edward Gorey's Epiplectic Bicycles is an article by Alan Levinovitc following the perils and pitfalls of translating my favorite Gorey volume into Spanish, German, French, Japanese and Chinese.