Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 17 (2012) Winner
Burton Pike
バートン・パイク
Burton Pike
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1930-06-12
- Died
- 2022-12-22 age 92
- Nationality
- United States
- Languages
- English
Career
- Occupations
- translator, comparative literature scholar, Germanic literature scholar, university professor
- Active Years
- 1955-2022
- Affiliations
- University of Hamburg (faculty), Cornell University (faculty), Queens College (faculty), Hunter College (faculty), CUNY Graduate Center (comparative literature & Germanic languages and literature), Yale University (visiting professor)
- Influenced By
- Robert Musil, Rainer Maria Rilke, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Gerhard Meier
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Haverford College | — | — | BA | — | United States |
| Harvard University | — | — | PhD | — | United States |
Haverford College
Degree:
BA
Country:
United States
Harvard University
Degree:
PhD
Country:
United States
PhD (year not specified)
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Guggenheim Fellowship | — | — | John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation | 受賞 |
| — | American Council of Learned Societies Fellowship | — | — | American Council of Learned Societies | 受賞 |
| — | Fulbright Fellowship | — | — | Fulbright Program | 受賞 |
| — | Medal of Merit, City of Klagenfurt | Work on Robert Musil | — | City of Klagenfurt | 受賞 |
| — | PEN/Book-of-the-Month Club Translation Prize (special citation) | The Man Without Qualities (editor and co-translator) | — | PEN/Book-of-the-Month Club | 特別言及 / ファイナリスト |
| 2012 | Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize | Translation of Gerhard Meier's Isle of the Dead | — | Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize (awarding body) | 受賞 |
| 2016 | Friedrich Ulfers Prize | Championing German-language literature in the United States | — | Friedrich Ulfers Prize Committee | 受賞 |
Guggenheim Fellowship
Organization:
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result:
受賞
American Council of Learned Societies Fellowship
Organization:
American Council of Learned Societies
Result:
受賞
Fulbright Fellowship
Organization:
Fulbright Program
Result:
受賞
Medal of Merit, City of Klagenfurt
Work:
Work on Robert Musil
Organization:
City of Klagenfurt
Result:
受賞
PEN/Book-of-the-Month Club Translation Prize (special citation)
Work:
The Man Without Qualities (editor and co-translator)
Organization:
PEN/Book-of-the-Month Club
Result:
特別言及 / ファイナリスト
Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize
2012
Work:
Translation of Gerhard Meier's Isle of the Dead
Organization:
Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize (awarding body)
Result:
受賞
Friedrich Ulfers Prize
2016
Work:
Championing German-language literature in the United States
Organization:
Friedrich Ulfers Prize Committee
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Robert Musil: An Introduction to his Work
1961 Literary criticismAn introductory study of Robert Musil's work, surveying his major writings and intellectual context.
Musil studiesmodernismindividual and society
The Image of the City in Modern Literature
1981 Literary criticismA study analyzing how the image of the city has been portrayed in modern literature.
citymodernismliterary imagery
The Man Without Qualities, Volume I (co-translator/editor)
1996 Novel (translation)Volume I of Robert Musil's major novel 'The Man Without Qualities'; Pike served as editor and co-translator.
modernismidentitysocial critique
The Man Without Qualities, Volume II (co-translator)
1996 Novel (translation)Volume II of the English translation of 'The Man Without Qualities' (co-translator). An important English edition for Musil studies.
modernismportrayal of intellectualshistory and culture
Isle of the Dead (translation of Gerhard Meier)
2011 Novel (translation)English translation of Gerhard Meier's novel 'Isle of the Dead'. Pike's translation received acclaim and won the 2012 Wolff Translator's Prize.
memorydeath and losspsychological landscapes
The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge (translation of Rainer Maria Rilke)
2008 Poetry/prose (translation)English translation of Rainer Maria Rilke's 'The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge', a work that straddles poetry and prose.
solitudeself-explorationlimits of language
Where the Paths Do Not Go (translation of Rainer Maria Rilke)
2018 Poetry (translation)A collection of Rilke's poems translated into English; Pike's translations pay careful attention to rhythm and nuance.
poetic languagespiritualitynature
The Sorrows of Young Werther (translation of Goethe)
2004 Novel (translation)English translation of Goethe's classic 'The Sorrows of Young Werther', aiming to reproduce the emotional tone of the original.
romanticismemotion and selftragic love
Bibliography
- Robert Musil: An Introduction to his Work (1961)
- The Image of the City in Modern Literature (1981)
- Robert Musil, Selected Writings (editor and part translator, 1986)
- The Man Without Qualities, Vol. I & II (1996, co-translator)
- Gerhard Meier, Isle of the Dead (translation, 2011)
- Rainer Maria Rilke translations (2008, 2018)
- Goethe, The Sorrows of Young Werther (translation, 2004)
Translations of Works
- Isle of the Dead (Gerhard Meier, English translation)
- The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge (Rainer Maria Rilke, English translation)
- The Sorrows of Young Werther (Goethe, English translation)
- Where the Paths Do Not Go (Rilke poetry, English translation)
- The Man Without Qualities (Robert Musil, Vols. I & II, co-translation)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- precise, scholarly styletranslation approach attentive to original rhythm and diction
- Recurring Motifs
- dedication to German-language literatureattention to textual rhythm and tonerelationship of city and individual
Legacy
Burton Pike was a translator and scholar who significantly contributed to the dissemination and study of German-language literature—especially Robert Musil—in the English-speaking world. He received multiple honors and was the subject of a 2023 festschrift.
Trivia
- A festschrift in his honor, 'Underlying Rhythm: On Translation, Communication, and Literary Languages', was published in 2023.
- Known for his editorial and translation work on Robert Musil.
- Won the 2012 Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize.