Paloma San Basilio answers “Best translation of Dostoyevsky 's Demons...”

Dean asked this question about Demons:

Best translation of Dostoyevsky 's Demons with critical apparatus , namely , notes and introduction ? Perhaps Volokhonsky/Pevear or Maquire/Meyer/Belknap (Penguin Classics) ? Thank you kindly in advance.

Paloma San Basilio The David Magarshack translation is also very good. The problem with Constance Garnett's translations is she softens the language to the point she eli…moreThe David Magarshack translation is also very good. The problem with Constance Garnett's translations is she softens the language to the point she eliminates the gravity and true intent of it. The bigger problem with Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky (P&V) translations is, aside from being poor translators, they actually remove or dramatically alter anything from Dostoevsky's text that THEY don't like, basically re-writing the classics. P&V are EXACTLY the people Dostoevsky was warning us about, ironically.

To sum it up:
THE BEST translation is McAndrew's, Magarshack is very good, Garnett's is fair, P&V is awful/ the worst.
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