אדם-זאב

כריסטיאן מורגנשטרן: אָדָם זְאֵב

(תירגם: משה גנן)

אָדָם -זְאֵב בְּלֵיל אָפֵל
עָזַב אִישָׁהּ וְטַף, לִנְטוֹת
אַל קֶבֶר מְלַמְּדוֹ בַּכְּפָר.
בִּקְּשׁוֹ יָפֶה שְׁמוֹ לְהַטּוֹת.

זֶה – קָם מִמָּוֶת, הִתְיַשֵּׁב,
טִפֵּס עַל רֹאשׁ מַצֶּבֶת,
דְּבָרַיו נָשָׂא, בְּעוֹד הַזְּאֵב
הִצְלִיב טְלַפָּיו בְּעֶצֶב.

" אָדָם -זְאֵב" – אָמַר תַּנֶא
"לִזְאֵב- אָדָם, לַזְּאֵבִית…"
הֶחָכָם הַסָּב עָנָה
לְהַטּוֹתוֹ מִכֹּל זָוִית.

אָדָם הִזְאִיב וְהִזְדָּאֵב
כִּי הִסְתָאֵב אָדָם בְּדָם,
גַּם אָדָם לְ אָדָם הוּא זְאֵב
וּבְכָךְ תָּם הָעִנְיָן.

לִזְאֵב- אָדָם זֶה מְאֹד הֶחֱנִיף,
לִהְיוֹת מֻטֶּה בֵּין הַמִּי וּמִי.
"הַתּוֹאִיל עוֹד לְהוֹסִיף
עַל הַיָּחִיד – בְּרַבִּים אֶת שְׁמִי?"

אַךְ הַמְלַמֵּד הוּכרַח הוֹדוֹת
שֶׁבְּרַבִּים אֵין לְהַטּוֹת:
זְאֵבִים – אָמְנָם רַבִּים
וְהֵם בָּאִים בִּלְהָקִים,

אַךְ " אָדָם " – יָחִיד וּמְיֻחָד.
הַזְּאֵב- אָדָם קָם בִּכְאֵב חַד.
"הֵן לִי אֵשֶׁת וְטַף!"
הָלַךְ הַבַּיְתָה נֶעֱצָב.

נא להשוות עם המקור ועם עיבודיו השונים – ביניהם חופשיים:
 

 THE WEREWOLF
A Werewolf, troubled by his name,
Left wife and brood one night and came
To a hidden graveyard to enlist
The aid of a long-dead philologist.
"Oh sage, wake up, please don't berate me,"
He howled sadly, "Just conjugate me."
The seer arose a bit unsteady
Yawned twice, wheezed once, and then was ready.
"Well, `Werewolf' is your plural past,
While `Waswolf' is singularly cast:
There's `Amwolf' too, the present tense,
And `Iswolf,' `Arewolf' in this same sense."
"I know that–I'm no mental cripple–
The future form and participle
Are what I crave," the beast replied.
The scholar paused–again he tried:
"A `Will-be-wolf?' It's just too long:
`Shall-be-wolf?' `Has-been-wolf?' Utterly wrong!
Such words are wounds beyond all suture–
I'm sorry, but you have no future."
The Werewolf knew better–his sons still slept
At home, and homewards now he crept,
Happy, humble, without apology
For such folly of philology.
 

 
DER WERWOLF
Ein Werwolf eines Nachts entwich
von Weib und Kind und sich begab
an eines Dorfschullehrers Grab
und bat ihn: »Bitte, beuge mich!«
Der Dorfschulmeister stieg hinauf
auf seines Blechschilds Messingknauf
und sprach zum Wolf, der seine Pfoten
geduldig kreuzte vor dem Toten:
»Der Werwolf«, sprach der gute Mann,
»des Weswolfs, Genitiv sodann,
dem Wemwolf, Dativ, wie mans nennt,
den Wenwolf, — damit hats ein End.«
Dem Werwolf schmeichelten die Fälle,
er rollte seine Augenbälle.
»Indessen«, bat er, »füge doch
zur Einzahl auch die Mehrzahl noch!«
Der Dorfschulmeister aber mußte
gestehn, dass er von ihr nichts wußte.
Zwar Wölfe gäbs in grosser Schar,
doch »Wer« gäbs nur im Singular.
Der Wolf erhob sich tränenblind–
er hatte ja doch Weib und Kind!
Doch da er kein Gelehrter eben,
so schied er dankend und ergeben.
 

The Werewolf
In respectful imitation of the poem by Morgenstern. 
by John C. Reddick

A Werewolf one time burned for knowledge,
And driven by that sacred flame,
(Himself, he had not been to college.)
Left wife and child one night, and came
Among the local graves, and sought
The tomb of that most noble creature,
A Public High School English teacher,
For Exposition of the Plot.
He timidly voiced his conjecture.
The Corpse assented heartily —
(He once, he said, had taught AP) —
And straightway started in to lecture:
"The Werewolf, in a former sense,
Implies the Arewolf (present tense),
The Havebeenwolf (long past, you see),
And Willbewolf, (futurity)."
This learning pleased the Werewolf well,
But he continued: "Can you tell
Me, what is my subjunctive, please?"
The question caused distinct unease.
The teacher therefore gulped, and hissed:
"Werewolves, my good sir, don't exist,"
Bade him, "Good evening," rather stuffily,
And slammed his coffin cover huffily.
This stern decree of Nature's Laws
Gave (so to speak) the Werewolf pause.
He had a wife and child, you know.
He shook his head, and turned to go.
He went like one that Fate did slam
With Love betrayed, or "Rent Due" letter,
But stopped in at "The Slaughtered Lamb",
And ate a tourist, and felt better. 

– John C. Reddick