EFFENDI KADARISMAN’S PEKSI JIWA, A JEWEL OF LITERARY TRANSCREATION

Abstract

Good literary translators satisfy readers’ demands for entertainment or moral teachings originating from foreign texts, but more importantly, they also provide academia with valuable research data. Certain translation techniques and strategies, combined with historical background or social circumstances surrounding the translations, can push outstanding literary translation projects into recognition and transform them into new pieces of literary work that equal or even outshine the original. Effendi Kadarisman’s Peksi Jiwa (1980), a Javanese poem freely translated from Emily Dickinson’s epic poem Hope is the Thing with Feathers (c.a., 1891), is a perfect example of this case. This article presents a broader translation analysis of this work, incorporating knowledge of Professor Kadarisman’s personal biographical background and character, with the aim of understanding Peksi Jiwa as a Javanese transcreation of an Emily Dickinson classic. The analysis reveals that Peksi Jiwa’s literary translation incorporates remarkable elements of cultural and poetic considerations during the translation process, enabling it to transcend from a mere Javanese translation into an exceptionally well-written poem worthy of its own merit. Thus, Peksi Jiwa becomes a transcreation of Emily Dickinson’s original poem.