Andrzej Sapkowski - Encounters with Polish Literature - S3E2

Andrzej Sapkowski with David French
Andrzej Sapkowski (b. 1948 in Łódź), is the widely popular author of the Witcher series of fantasy novels, which has spawned games, a television series in Poland, and now a series in English on Netflix. His novels are imaginative and erudite, overflowing with futuristic speculation, European folklore, and medieval arcana, but nonetheless reflective of the times he has lived in, and they can be placed on the map of Polish literature. His more recent Hussite trilogy is historical fantasy set in Bohemia during the fifteenth-century Hussite wars.
In this episode we focus on "Season of Storms," a standalone novel set in the world of Geralt of Rivia, the ironic, self-deprecating, monster-slaying “Witcher” (Wiedźmin) trying to maintain his moral center in a corrupt world. As with some of the other translators who have appeared on “Encounters,” we discuss the translator’s relationship with the author and oversight of the translation, which has been quite varied in all the works we’ve discussed in the series. We get a sense of the amount of research needed to translate works with such a wide range of reference. We talk about how contemporary everyday life can filter through a completely fantastic world. For readers who haven’t had a chance to sample Sapkowski yet, the translator reads some extended passages from Season of Storms.
Encounters with Polish Literature is a video series for anyone interested in literature and the culture of books and reading. Each month, host David A. Goldfarb presents a new topic in conversation with an expert on that author or book or movement in Polish literature.
Learn more about this episode, and see the biography of the guest on the Polish Cultural Institute New York's website. The linked page includes a bibliography of translations and material on Sapkowski in English:
instytutpolski...
Access the Playlist of the entire series:
bit.ly/Encount...

[@inisvitre]

Coming here as a fan of the Witcher books, this was fantastic, I want to thank you so much for this interview and programme.
It is my first time seeing and hearing from David French after only knowing his name as a translator of Sapkowski, and I am elated to hear his thoughtful words on the subject. I was very intrigued to listen to his "tell-all" (I say in a lighthearted manner) about his working relationship with Andrzej Sapkowski, and saddened to know that there was a large disconnect during the first five years they worked together, with not having met in person and French not even having his direct email contact. Similarly, Sapkowski in interviews has alluded to not having much contact with the English publishers. I feel like the responsibility falls on the editors and publisher company to provide better contact between translator and author (and, also, to begin the translation in a timely manner, and publish the books in the correct order... I feel like the English publisher Orion/Gollancz did not really know what to do with Sapkowski's work, and thus the difficulties). But I am glad to hear their relationship bettered after they met, Mr. French's reflections on meeting him and signing books together, oh how sweet :)
I was also very amused by French's commentary on Sapkowski's intellectual nature with regards to his extensive knowledge of literature, history, and vocabulary. The intertextuality of the Witcher is no joke, and thus the work of the translator is difficult, as well. "This is what you do with Sapkowski. It’s not an easy ride. It’s a fascinating ride, but not an easy ride,” (40:00) I laughed so hard! Very true! And for myself, as an American reader, there is so much to miss on your first read... The Witcher is best enjoyed with friends, research, and multiple reads.
What also made this show for me is the host, as he is very insightful. Despite the conversation circling around Season of Storms (which, though it is a fun read, in my opinion, it does not represent the Witcher series all that well - the other books in the Witcher series have *much* better structure, pacing, characterization, themes and building of the plot...!) Mr. Goldfarb has caught note of some of the most significant and fundamental qualities of Sapkowski's Witcher: the "realistic fantasy" world featuring the consequences of bureaucracy and corrupt politicians, the "cinematic" quality of the prose, the historical references and neologisms, and finally, Geralt's strong attachment to his moral compass despite living a corrupt and often tragic world.
And with regards to Polish historical allusions in The Witcher, in an interview from 1998 with The Warsaw Voice, Sapkowski stated: "In one volume of my witchers' saga, I depicted a situation resembling the Sept. 17, 1939 events, when the Soviet Army hit Poland just as it had been attacked [two weeks earlier] by Hitler. My intention was to show that meanness has always existed, so it must exist in the imagined world as well. The problems I write about are important to me, sometimes they relate directly to my experience. But I don't try to teach the reader what's good and bad. My books are not a pulpit or a speaker's rostrum, not even a soapbox in Hyde Park on which I could stand and spread truth in the world. I describe stories and events that are familiar to us. Let the reader ponder what my characters say and whether they're right. Writers really shouldn't treat the reader like an idiot who needs sermons." In other interviews, he has denied political meaning in his work, but the fact remains consistent that Sapkowski's fantasy is a world which reflects ours - meaning, which reflects his life and perspective beginning in Poland in 1948.
If the host ever wants to read the Witcher series (or perhaps just one of the books from the saga) and review it, I would watch that in a heartbeat. The short stories and the saga especially involve some extremely poignant, interesting, and referential moments relating to war and politics. I think he would have an especially insightful view of Time of Contempt Chapter 5 and Tower of the Swallow Chapter 5, which present the readers with some heavy political references and moral questions.
P.S. Relating to Sapkowski's interest in cinema and film, this is what I have found, from an interview with him from the late 90s with Marek Ludwicki: "I won't hide my youthful (really old!) fascination [with film]. With the cross art of Wołodyjowski and the cynical spade of d'Artagnan, and Kurosawa, samurai and the Bushido codex. The reappearing mentions of reflecting an arrow or a bolt with a blade in my books were inspired by the movie about samurai Musashi, a legendary swordsman." So, from what I can tell, he likes at least some film :)
Apologies that this comment is so long, again, I want to say thank you! This was a wonderful conversation and I wish there were more like this!

[@dgoldfar]

Thanks so much for your thoughts and observations!

[@SaraNiemietz]

Thank you for this!

[@artinpoetsoulnature]

Great programs! Greetings💐