Poems by Philippe Denis translated from French to English by Paul Auster

LE MONDE. . .
ALREADY. . .
Le monde est déjà loin derrière –
comme une apparence de chacun de Already, the world is far behind—
nous. like an apparition
of each one of us.

Hâte de ce qui nous emporte, et qui n’est

qu’avenir. Haste bears us away,
and leads toward nothing
but future.
Véhicule de lenteur
(dans l’oblique du Froid)
Vehicle of slowness
(in sharp slanting of cold)
où une image crie.

where an image howls.

ÉTOILE... A STAR...

Étoile A star,
là- there—
dans le non vivable in the unlivable
de tout ce qui vit heart
chassé de la vie. of each living thing
driven from life.

La douler
infuse Pain
toute blancheur seeps
artère into whiteness,
la force du voyage— pumps blood
into the quick
of the journey
(la grande route d’eau
(the vast road of water
WORD FOR WORD TRANSLATIONS::

Le monde est déjà loin derrière

(noun) The world; is (adverb) (adverb) (preposition)
(referring to people) Already Far, along a -Behind
everybody, everyone way -(fig) on the
back of a
decision

Comme Une Apparence De Chacun

(preposition) (pronoun) (noun) (preposition) (pronoun)
Like, as the same way One Appearance Of, from, in, - each
(determiner) by - everyb
-a, an ody

De Nous hâte De Ce
(preposition) (subject) (noun) (preposition) (noun)
Of, from, in, by referring to Haste; Of, from, in, -this (used to
we formally impatience by denote a
nearby object
or event)
Qui emporte et N’est Qu’avenir véhicule de
(preposition)- To take and is future (noun) (preposition)
who, whom, -vehicle Of, from, in,
whoever by
Lenteur Dans L’oblique Du Froid
(noun) (preposition) (adjective) (preposition) (adjective)
-slowness - in diagnoally From, of cold
(indicating
place)
où Une Image crie
(adverb) (pronoun) (noun) Cry, scream,
place- where, One -picture, shoutout
period, time- when (determiner) image
-a, an
étoile là Dans Le Non
(noun) (adverb) (preposition) (determiner) (adverb)
-star -here(indicating - in (indicating -the - no
position of place)
speaker)
Vivable De Tout Ce Qui
(adjective) (preposition) (adjective) –all (pronoun) – this (preposition)
-inhabitable Of, from, in, by the ( used to denore -who, whom,
(pronoun) – a nearby object whoever
everything, all or event)
(adverb) – very,
quite
Vit chassé De La Vie
Live, exist (verb, (preposition) (determiner) (noun)
reside transitive) Of, from, in, by -the - life
- to hunt, to
chase
somebody away
La Douleur Infuse Toute Blancheur
(determiner) (noun) Inborn, naturale All, anything, (noun)
-the -pain, grief, everything -whiteness
disress
artère La Force Du voyage
(noun) (determiner) (noun) – (determiner) (noun)
-artery -the strength, force - some - journey, trip
La Grande Route D’eau
(determiner) Big, tall, high (noun) –road, Aquatic, water
-the route, pathway

Poems by Philippe Denis translated by Francesca Richardson

where one image weeps.

THE WORLD . . .
ASTAR . . .
The world is already far behind—
like a vision of A star
us all. here—
in the unlivable place
of all those whom exist
Haste takes us away, directing us to this to chase away its life.
future.

The pain
Medium of slowness injects
(in the obliqueness of Frost) total whiteness
in route
of a demanding journey—
(the greatest pathway of water