J.K.Ellis
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Joined 01-26-07, id: 554500, Profile Updated: 03-13-08
Author has written 10 stories for Love, Religion, Life, and Nature.

I have a couple of mediocre biblically-themed original poems up here, but what I really do is translate poetry between the French and English languages. I'm sort of thinking of translating all of Charles Baudelaire's Les Fleurs du Mal into English, but it's already been done. Plus it's a huge corpus of poetry- too large a task to do just for fun. Seems more like dissertation or senior thesis material to me. But whatever, maybe I'll get around to it one day. I tend to translate in trickles, only when I'm inspired. And right now I'm looking at Apollinaire, not Baudelaire. Verlaine, Nerval, even Blake, it's all fun to do.

But I do worry that I'm tampering with great art. Baudelaire is utterly sublime and I know that my while versions can never do him complete justice, I can rest assured that most people really don't read French and need a translation, so I might as well do it if it's entertaining for me anyway.

As a final note, I always keep rhyme in some form or another. Verlaine once said "de la musique avant toutes choses" : "music before all else." It means that without lyricism, there is no poetry, only a collection of words.

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Spring Poem No 1
Spring is finally manifesting itself in my part of the world and it's been bringing to mind all the flowers and trees of my youth.
Poetry: Nature - Rated: K - English - Fantasy/Poetry - Chapters: 1 - Words: 87 - Published: 4/10/2009 - Complete
The Fountain of Blood or La Fontaine de Sang
Translation of the Baudelaire poem from French to English. Rhyme preserved.
Poetry: Life - Rated: K+ - French - Horror/Tragedy - Chapters: 1 - Words: 410 - Published: 5/1/2008
I Love You Equally as the Nocturnal Vault reviews
Translation of the Baudelaire poem "Je t'adore à l'égal de la voûte nocturne." Rhyme and meter are preserved.
Poetry: Love - Rated: K+ - French - Romance/Tragedy - Chapters: 1 - Words: 282 - Reviews: 1 - Published: 4/20/2008 - Complete
For My City reviews
A poem dedicated to the doleful, dying, north-eastern city in which I currently live.
Poetry: Life - Rated: K - English - Poetry - Chapters: 1 - Words: 92 - Reviews: 2 - Published: 3/16/2008 - Complete
The Mirabeau Bridge
Translation of "Le Pont Mirabeau" by Guillaume Apollinaire. Includes lyrical and direct translations as well as the original French.
Poetry: Love - Rated: K - English - Romance/Poetry - Chapters: 1 - Words: 568 - Favs: 1 - Published: 3/16/2008 - Complete
Cloudy Sky or Ciel Brouillé reviews
Lyrical translation into English of a poem by Charles Baudelaire. Includes the original poem as well as a direct translation.
Poetry: Love - Rated: K - English - Romance - Chapters: 1 - Words: 509 - Reviews: 1 - Published: 3/13/2008 - Complete
Dona Nobis Pacem reviews
Biblically themed musing on the need for blood sacrifice.
Poetry: Religion - Rated: K - English - Tragedy - Chapters: 1 - Words: 83 - Reviews: 3 - Published: 1/7/2008 - Complete
The Divine Image L'Image Divine reviews
A translation of a poem by William Blake. Un traduction d’un poème de William Blake.
Poetry: Religion - Rated: K - French - Spiritual - Chapters: 1 - Words: 609 - Reviews: 1 - Published: 1/7/2008 - Complete
A path in the Luxembourg Gardens reviews
English translation of the little Gerard de Nerval poem Une allée du Luxembourg. Sweet and sad, ABAB rhyme scheme.
Poetry: Love - Rated: K - French - Romance/Tragedy - Chapters: 1 - Words: 353 - Reviews: 2 - Favs: 1 - Published: 1/2/2008 - Complete
Invitation to the Voyage or L'Invitation au Voyage reviews
My translation of the celebrated Baudelaire poem L'Invitation au Voyage. The original French is included.
Poetry: Love - Rated: K - English - Romance/Poetry - Chapters: 1 - Words: 724 - Reviews: 1 - Published: 1/31/2007 - Complete