Johnny Lorenz (Montclair State University, U.S.A). Reading: "The Besieged City"/ "A Cidade Sitiada"

The Besieged City/ A Cidade Sitiada. Translated by Johnny Lorenz

Johnny Lorenz (Professor, Department of English, Montclair State University), son of Brazilian immigrants, received his doctorate in English from the University of Texas at Austin in 2000. He is a Full Professor at Montclair State University. His translations of Clarice Lispector's A BREATH OF LIFE (2012), finalist for the Best Translated Book Award, and THE BESIEGED CITY (2019), listed as one of the best books of 2019 by Vanity Fair, were published by New Directions.

JOHNNY LORENZ

TEXT

THE BESIEGED CITY / A CIDADE SITIADA

Here all of a sudden is a man, she was thinking. Men had always seemed excessively beautiful to her — that’s what she’d felt when centuries ago, in her parents’ house, in a ball gown, she’d resembled a young tree with few leaves — the memory had made her terribly ironic later.

And you couldn’t tell why the weak had later become her prey. Then, when she’d meet a weak and intelligent man, above all weak because intelligent — she’d devour him roughly, not let him find his balance, make him need her forever — that’s what she’d do, absorbing them, detesting them, supporting them, the ironic mother. Her power had become great. When a defeated

person would approach — she’d understand that person, she’d understand; how well you understand me, Afonso said. An object had always needed to be flawed in order for her to be able to seize it, and through its flaw. She’d buy it cheaper, that way.

What did she want now from this young man? a little excited by the drink, she was saying to herself: just look how ridiculous I’ve become.

The Besieged City

- Clarice Lispector

trans. Johnny Lorenz

New Directions (2019)

Eis de repente um homem, pensava. Os homens sempre lhe haviam parecido demasiadamente belos -- fora o que sentira quando há séculos, na casa dos pais, em vestido de baile, parecera uma árvore nova de poucas folhas -- a lembrança a tornara depois terrivelmente irônica.

E não se saberia por que os fracos haviam-se depois tornado sua presa. Então, quando encontrava um homem fraco e inteligente, sobretudo fraco porque inteligente -- devorava-o duramente, não o deixava equilibrar-se, fazia-o precisar dela para sempre -- era o que fazia, absorvendo-os, detestando-os, apoiando-os, a irônica mãe. Seu poder se tornara grande. Quando uma pessoa vencida se aproximava -- ela a compreendia, compreendia; como você me compreende, disse Afonso. Sempre fora preciso um objeto ser defeituoso para ela poder apoderar-se dele, e através do defeito. Comprava mais barato, assim.

Que desejava agora desse rapaz? um pouco excitada pela bebida, dizia-se: eis-me enfim ridícula.

A cidade sitiada  (1949)

- Clarice Lispector

Rocco