Bohdan Drozdowski

Bohdan Drozdowski (1931–2013) was a poet, playwright and author, writing journalism and radio drama. He translated eight Shakespeare plays, including five history plays: Życie i śmierć Króla Jana (King John, 1975), Ballada zimowa (The Winter’s Tale, 1978), Antoniusz i Kleopatra (1983), Henry VI – Kroniki Królewskie – Trylogia (Henry VI, Parts 1, 2 and 3, 1983), Król Henryk IV, Część 1 i 2 (King Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2, 2004). He was also an active participant in literary life, as a reviewer and polemicist.

He studied Polish at the Jagiellonian University. He made his debut as a playwright with Kondukt (Procession, 1960). He wrote his own plays using materials from Shakespeare (Hamlet II, Hermiona, Hamlet 70) and also adapted Shakespeare (Otello). Between 1972 and 1986 he was the editor of the monthly magazine Poezja. In 1974 he was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta.

Drozdowski was part of the second wave of post-war translators, whose work first appeared after 1960. His approach to translation was always eclectic: he combined paraphrase and adaptation with straight translation, but published his own versions of translations as well. He also wrote journalism, reviews and polemical articles, making sharp attacks on his competitors and explaining his priorities as a translator. His polemical manner made the debate about the translation of Shakespeare more visible within journalistic discourse. It also drew attention to his own translation projects and generally to the issue of how best to translate literary classics.

Theatre reviews are the primary place to look for opinions on Drozdowski’s translations. Between 1972 and 1980 his translations were staged seven times, if his adaptation of Othello is included. Król Jan was performed in 1975 and there were two separate productions of Ballada zimowa. Typically, critical judgements were contradictory: the texts were celebrated for bringing Shakespeare up to date with colloquial and expressive language, yet for the very same reasons they were simultaneously dismissed on the grounds that they brutalised the original. Setting the polemical views of translators aside, it is fair to say that Drozdowski’s work has not been subjected to thorough critical analysis. The plays have not been reissued.