An Overview of the Italian Translations of Srečko Kosovel’s Works and an Analysis of the Figurative Images Identified by Darja Pavlič

Abstract

The Slovenian government has proclaimed 2026 as the Year of Srečko Kosovel on the occasion of the centenary of his death. In this paper, we provide an overview of the Italian translations of Srečko Kosovel’s works and their translators. Furthermore, we focus on three types of representations identified by Pavlič (2005) – flowers, trees, and animals – analyzing them in three poems written in Slovenian and translated into Italian. The images reflect a poet deeply connected to nature, in which he mirrors his own feelings: sadness, melancholy, restlessness, an awareness of death, intense moods, but also elements tied to cultural identity and war. For the analysis of the representations and translations of the Karst poet, we use the collection Ostri ritmi, Aspri ritmi (2011), translated by Jolka Milič. The analysis shows how the three selected poems represent an interplay between nature, emotions, and states of mind. Depictions of pines, fieldfares, and cyclamens constitute a symbolic code through which the poet reflects both the external world and his inner life, creating a dialogue between the concrete and the abstract. On one hand the translations reflect a deep respect for the overall meaning of the original texts and on the other the tendency to emphasize and preserve the poetic equivalents.