Two English Translations of Alexander Pushkin’s “A History of Pugachev”

The article considers English translations of Alexander Pushkin’s “A History of Pugachev”. The English attention to the historical work of the Russian poet seems rather belated: translators turned to the text when the majority of Pushkin’s writings had appeared to be translated. The complete text of the “History” was translated into English twice – by Earl Sampson and Paul Debrezceny. Both translations were first published in 1983 and later republished (we know of two reprints of Debrezceny’s work and one of Sampson’s), which speaks for the popularity of the “History” with the English-speaking audience of the time. This article provides general information about both translations, compares and contrasts them, highlighting stylistically noteworthy passages, notes some inaccuracies springing from the lack of knowledge of the cultural nuances (e.g., topographical and historical details, names). Apart from factual distortions contained in both translations (which is unfortunate, since Pushkin approached his “History of Pugachev” as scholarly), these works are quite praiseworthy: they offer brilliantly rendered passages, attempting to convey the features of Pushkin’s style. As for the differences between two English texts, they seem to be prompted by targeting different audiences. Debrezceny’s main strategy seems to be domestication, while Sampson is prone to foreignization. Both use translational commentaries with additional information for English readers; however, Debrezceny did not retain Pushkin’s system of notes, while Sampson's commentaries are more extensive and detailed.