# Good Poetry from the Bad Translator **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 1, 2010, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566 "2010-04-01T12:46:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/41 "2010-04-02T19:37:02Z")
Man, this thing is awesome. > [@](#): > > AFC and NFC Championship officials decided to cycle between the symbols. > Restrict the use of any football State University. > Like many other cities to play at this point, radio ads, we will try to Penasco ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/42 "2010-04-02T19:42:21Z")
I love this toy Here is a random recent post of mine > [@](#): > > "Unfortunately with my Acid reflux getting worse over the years I am going the other way and having cutting back on spices, because waking up with stomach acid in your lungs sucks big time. But hopefully with my weight losing the Acid will become less of a problem and I can go back to Habaneros. " > > …54 translations later we get: > > “Unfortunately, some members of my bad acid reduction. The problem of losses and expectation in Havana.” Apparently In real life I am Earnest Hemingway. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/43 "2010-04-02T19:46:03Z")
From an article on forensic psychology: Features the killer personality referred to as silent in the FBI report were as follows: sense of duty, unremorseful apathetic to others, unconscionable, blameful of others, manipulative and guidelines, affectively cold, the differences between the understanding of behavior and behavior acceptable social, social obligations, however, betray the social norms, irresponsible. These killers are not just anti-social people who constantly DSM-IV criteria for ASPD met, and they were predators who are psychopaths, merciless beauty, the purpose of intimidation and use, if necessary, impulsive and violent ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/44 "2010-04-02T21:17:57Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > My son, my father > He said his son, when he shows the speed > of the Messiah > This means that the draft > can be hell > Touzaburakkuparedo Days of Summer I forgot to mention which song this was from: > [@MCR](#): > > When I was a young boy my father took me into the city > too see a marching band. > He said son when you grow up will you be the Savior of the broken > the beaten and the damned? > Because one day I"ll leave you a phantom, to lead you in the summer. ---
**Author:** ![TheChileanBlob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thechileanblob/32/435_2.png) [@TheChileanBlob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheChileanBlob)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/45 "2010-04-02T22:53:57Z")
Some softcore erotica: > [@](#): > > Original text: > > “His glance inched to her full breasts, swelled high in her strapless black gown. Who could blame him; carnality exuded from the woman, and there was no lack of want there either.” > > …54 translations later we get: > > “I think the relationship is still dressed in black. Women’s fear and for money.” > [@](#): > > Original text: > > “My heart pounding with love, I submitted, to my needs and to his command, breathing his name just as the little death arrived to make its exalted claim.” > > …54 translations later we get: > > “Strengthening the core, Respiratory system named megumi necessary.” > [@](#): > > Original text: > > “With Meg primed to his taste, smoldering and whimpering like a puppy, Simon pounded her ass for the final conquest.” > > …25 translations later we get: > > “Crying, dogs, like fine tobacco, Simon has won the last city.” ---
**Author:** ![BlackKnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@BlackKnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlackKnight)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/46 "2010-04-02T23:12:38Z")
I wanted to see what happened when I put nonsense _into_ the Bad Translator. But not just any nonsense, of course. I took some stanzas from Lewis Carroll’s “Jabberwocky”. **Original** `Twas brillig, and the slithy toves Did gyre and gimble in the wabe: All mimsy were the borogoves, And the mome raths outgrabe. **10 translations** He’s a devil, slithy Zhimbl soft and light frost as: Misébiles borogoves and rats outgrabe now. **25 translations** It was hell, freezing slithy Zhimbl a soft and gentle: Misebiles Space and mice have borogoves. **54 translations** It’s like hell to keep mimsi mouse borogoves slithi zhimbl soft tennis. **Original** He took his vorpal sword in hand: Long time the manxome foe he sought – So rested he by the Tumtum tree, And stood awhile in thought. **10 translations** This is a Vorpal sword in hand: the enemy manxome long time I tried - I feel Tumtum tree, for a time, to remain in their minds. **25 translations** This time the enemy Manxome Vorpal - Tom wire to try during your stay. **54 translations** Oil of man, the death of the enemy - flavor, but when trying to quit Smoking **Original** And, has thou slain the Jabberwock? Come to my arms, my beamish boy! O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!’ He chortled in his joy. **10 translations** I Jabberwock? Come to my arms, even my son more than rice weird! In one day! Singer’s joy. **25 translations** I: arm Jabberwock, my son, even more than rice, get funny! Day! Y singer. **54 translations** No, now I love my son, America! Singer ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/47 "2010-04-02T23:29:58Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > \*Load up on guns and bring your friends It’s fun to lose and to pretend She’s over-bored and self-assured Oh no, I know a dirty word Hello, hello, hello, how low? > \* > …25 translations later we get: > > “ **Wood and shot his friend is a big loss** , dry, oh, I’m a dirty word. Hello, hello, hello, how do you know?” What’s funny/creepy about this is that the bolded portion looks like a reference to the 1990 death of Mother Love Bone singer Andy Wood by heroin overdoes. If Cobain had actually written this I’d feel certain that was what he was getting at. In honor of Andy Wood, here’s what the translator did to a verse from “Man of Golden Words”. Original: _And on her arrival, I will set free the birds It’s a pretty time of year, when the mountains sing out loud Tell me, Mr. Golden Words, how’s about the world? Tell me can you tell me at all?_ 10 translations: _When they arrived, the bird’s voice, he told the world this year, Mr. King, the release of the beautiful mountains? I said, you can tell me why?_ Interesting. Seems to be referencing Elvis here. 25 translations: \* He said when they arrived, the sound of birds this year, and the free world, the good king, rock? I told you to tell me why?\* Along with Elvis there’s now a clear reference to Neil Young’s classic “Rockin’ in the Free World”. 54 translations: _The world animal king or rock? Why?_ Now it’s just a weird fortune cookie. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/48 "2010-04-02T23:38:03Z")
First verse of Morrissey’s “Interesting Drug”: More and more pockets to save this young woman who died of debt is not a comfortable life? Oh, mother, and Nyamaa Nyamaa Nyamaa Nyamaa Nyamaa not your dream, the system of government, concerned about the drug my father died ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/49 "2010-04-03T00:08:35Z")
What we have here is failure to communicate. What we have here is lack of communication. We are the lack of communication. There is a lack of communication. Lack of communication. There is no connection. There is no context. There is no connection. It does not matter. Never mind. Forget it. Forget about it. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/50 "2010-04-03T00:17:26Z")
And to bring this full circle, I type in some intentionally bad poetry a character in a novel I’m working on is writing. The Bad Translator! improved on it, in that while not exactly good poetry, it at least makes an attempt to be good poetry, which elevates it above the mediocre stuff I’m writing: > [@Bad Translator!](#): > > Baby woman, > tribal conflicts have improved chemical, > Country Gardens is a broken heart, > we can remove the waste, body and soul with God, > as we do, > and design" ---
**Author:** ![Angel\_of\_the\_Lord](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angel_of_the_lord/32/2949_2.png) [@Angel\_of\_the\_Lord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Angel_of_the_Lord)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/51 "2010-04-03T02:23:51Z")
“I do not cough for two weeks I’m not anxious to see the dead, drowned girl was coughing. 15 days, I sleep four hours each night.” Also, "Seizure of the guitar, this is a good idea. Damn. I am not a musician. I forgot how to play my hands rough skin. I feel old. I smiled, trying to print and music, without any conditions." From fairly mundane LJ posts. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/52 "2010-04-03T03:00:10Z")
Repo Man by Iggy Pop: “I heard that, I am useless specific land waves, the rivers are so beautiful and the anti-Christ who said: “I will mushroom,” I want to reduce their fishing microscope, so that when my muscles” ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Tyger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Silver\_Tyger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Tyger)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/53 "2010-04-03T03:23:31Z")
10: “My name is Inigo Montoya. Do you want to kill my father. Prepare yourself for death.” 25: “My name is Inigo Montoya. You want to kill my father. Ready to die.” 54: “Inigomontoia put my name to kill his father. Are you ready to die.” And it goes from “Ninjas can’t catch you if you’re on fire” to “Ninja can not turn off” in just ten translations. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/54 "2010-04-03T03:48:03Z")
“A capital ship for an ocean trip Was the Walloping Window Blind. No storm that blew dismayed her crew Nor troubled the captain’s mind.” … becomes … “Blind extremism around the main spacecraft. The stormy dawn Do not panic, the crew is concerned soulmate.” ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/55 "2010-04-03T03:56:40Z")
Golly. “One time in Alexandria, in wicked Alexandria, Where nights were wild with revelry and life was but a game, There lived, so the report is, an Adventuress and courtesan, The pride of Alexandria; and Thais was her name.” After 10: “Once in Alexandria, Alexandria, bad, wild parties at night, and life is just a game, life, and why risk reports and Alexander honor of prostitutes, it is called in Thailand.” After 25: “When Alexandria, Alexandria, swimming, wildlife and the night is just a game, life, and the risk of Alexander which means that prostitution in Thailand undisclosed price.” Max: “Alekandria, Alexandria, bars, Boats and Wildlife, Thailand, Business, Corporations, Prostitutes Alexander.” Poetic inspiration ran really dry on that last one… ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/56 "2010-04-03T04:21:49Z")
Another improvement on my intentionally bad poetry. I put together the results of my 10,25, and Max translations one after another I actually think this is a pretty good poem when you put them together! Hagan’s position and the necessary worm. Take a deep breath, I hope you can make them bend. To overcome this world to another great king and fall, and must be consistent with the earthworm. Hagan conditions needed for worm. Take a deep breath, I hope you can go. You can save the world and the great king after the death of insects. But in my heart I want. When you save the king bug. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/57 "2010-04-03T04:43:20Z")
From the chorus to Pearl Jam’s “Even Flow” (selected because the lyrics to this song are famously difficult to make out anyway): “Even flow, thoughts arrive like butterflies Oh, he don’t know, so he chases them away Someday yet, he’ll begin his life again” **10 translations:** “Even thought the flow, like a butterfly, ah, he also knew that one day, the rule will begin a new life” (This is recognizably a poor translation of the original.) **25 translations:** “Bar, oh, you want to know that the law is still in progress Butterfly start a new life” (Hmm, drop the “Bar” and I rather like this. Has kind of a '60s hippie vibe.) **54 translations:** “A - BR command to start a new life Licensing” (Suddenly we’ve got a line from the “English” manual to a 1980s Japanese video game.) I thought I might get better results if I dropped the “Oh” from the original, but it actually turned out even weirder for the first two. The last one almost seems deep this way, though: **10 translations:** “Ji Shi mobile ideas, such as butterflies, it is not known, so that one day rule, which will start a new life” **25 translations:** “Shay G. ideas of motion, as if the rule day butterfly, not start a new life” **54 translations:** “Shea began a new life in the idea of Torah, called the butterfly image” ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/58 "2010-04-03T04:49:58Z")
Gosh **Lamia** , change “Shea” to “Shmuel” and you’ve got an Isaac Bashevis Singer story there in that last line. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/59 "2010-04-03T05:02:06Z")
My name is Ozymandias, king of kings, look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!" …54 translations later we get: “Ojimandyasu king of kings. But he said the job Figures!” Yeah, figures. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Enuma\_Elish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5e9695/32.png) [@Enuma\_Elish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enuma_Elish)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566/60 "2010-04-03T05:12:10Z")
Oh, I gotta try this! “There are places I remember All my life, though some have changed, some forever, not for better, Some have gone and some remain.” 10 translations: “Some will think of all life, but some people can never change, some of the best pair and they are saved.” 25 translations: “Some say that everything in life, but nothing more than some people change for the perfect, no.” Max translations: “But others say that life is completely changed.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-poetry-from-the-bad-translator/534566.md?page=4)