GEORGE CRABBES POEM «THE PARISH REGISTER» IND.E. MINS INTERPRETRATION

The article presents for the first time an analysis of a famousRussian translator D.E. Min's understanding of customs and traditions of the provincial English life inhis interpretation of some fragments of George Crabbe's poem «The Parish Register» (1807), createdby him in the second half of the 1850-s. Min carefully followed the line of the narration development,chosen by Crabbe, made only insignificant divergence, conditioned by peculiarities of the literarymaterial. In particular, the Russian translator distinguished in the characteristics of the parish register afragment, devoted to criticism of Oliver Goldsmith; a separate fragment included contrast of hardworkingand idle men, preceding a significant for the author idea about the group of portraits as thebasis of the literary description. Some transformation of the text structure, realized by Min, didn'tbreak the narration logics, but provided more clear understanding of Crabbe's literary works by theRussian readers. On the basis of the analysis of the Russian translation of the story about the forsakenmiller's daughter Lucy, shocking with its spirit of tragedy, injustice of the fortune, abysmal cruelty tothe dearest people and narration about the happy existence of the rational pair of Robert and Susanna,who lived only by mind, without giving way to passions and so gradually making their relations absurd,the authors come to the conclusion that Min almost fully subordinated his activity to the task of maximumscrupulous and precise reproducing of peculiarities of the English original, what gave us an opportunity tojudge of significant advantages of Crabbe's works (such as aiming at the objective representation of life,overcoming pastoral ideas about the village, resting on personal experiences and impressions, professionalcombination of condemnation of wild passions and sympathy to the Fall and suffering) as well as hisdisadvantages, first of all, excess inclination of the English author to moralizing.

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