Translating and analysing songs: three songs in the context of communist Romania

Songs were the means used by the Romanian Communist Party to ‘educate’ Romanians. Through them, Romanians were told what they had to appreciate, how grateful they were supposed to be to the regime, how great President Ceausescu was and how they had to work harder and harder so that they could be even better Communists. This paper comprises the translation of three songs composed, performed and broadcast in Communist Romania and their analysis from the point of view of communication. In translating the song, I have chosen to translate closest to the original possible meaning and meanwhile to respect to the best of my ability Low’s ‘pentathlon principle’: singability, rhyme, rhythm, naturalness and fidelity to the sense of the source text

Les cançons eren un mitjà utilitzat pel Partit Comunista Romanès per ‘educar’ el poble. A través de les cançons, als romanesos els deien què havien d’apreciar, la gratitud que havien de sentir pel règim, que el president Ceausescu era fantàstic i com havien de treballar encara més per ser millors comunistes. Aquest treball conté tres cançons escrites, interpretades i difoses a la Romania comunista, la seva traducció a l’anglès i la seva anàlisi des del punt de vista de la comunicació. Pel que fa a la traducció de les cançons, he decidit traduir-les segons ‘el principi pentatló’ del professor neo-zelandès Peter Low: cantabilitat, rima, ritme, naturalitat i fidelitat al text original