ABSTRACT
In translation one has to approach untranslatability; only then does one become aware of the foreign nation and the foreign language. Oral redundancy and repetition are major devices in the prose of Sholem Aleichem. But it is not only aesthetic considerations that make it difficult to translate the key words. What makes translation almost impossible is that each of these words has different cultural connotations. Gernot Jonas was the first to translate Sholem Aleichem's Ayznban-geshikhtes in their entirety into German. His translation, which successfully masters the linguistic challenges of the text, appeared in 1995, published by Suhrkamp under the imprint 'Judischer Verlag'. Comparing Sholem Aleichem's 'A khasene on klezmer' with Jonas's and Eliasberg's respective translations, it appears that Sholem was justified in his criticism. Eliasberg shows little awareness of the polyphony and polyglossia of the story. Reading Sholem Aleichem's original, the reader becomes aware of the rhythm of the train, which in turn shapes the rhythm of the narrator's voice.
