The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #59251   Message #943011
Posted By: Wolfgang
29-Apr-03 - 04:13 PM
Thread Name: Lyr Add: Dachau Song (trans. from German please)
Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Dachau Song (trans. from German please)
A fine translation. Only one comment from me: 'Kamerad' and 'comrade' have obviously the same root, but both words have by now taken a slightly different route.

Whereas 'comrade' can have a socialist/communist meaning (and could be understood in this way in the concentration camp context) the German 'Kamerad' is completely free of that association. It is more neutral and in the context of this verse means something like 'pal'.

Some typos are corrected below:

Stacheldraht, mit Tod geladen, ist um unsre Welt gespannt
Drauf ein Himmel ohne Gnaden sendet Frost und Sonnenbrand.
Fern von uns sind alle Freuden fern die Heimat, fern die Frau'n
Wenn wir stumm zur Arbeit schreiten, Tausende im Morgengraun.
Doch wir haben die Losung von Dachau gelernt und wurden stahlhart dabei.
Sei ein Mann, Kamerad, blieb ein Mensch, Kamerad,
Mach ganze Arbeit pack an, Kamerad
Denn Arbeit, Arbeit macht frei!

One of these typos is very unfortunate, namely 'Mordengraun' for it changes the sense in a way which gave me the chills in this context. 'Morgen' is 'morning', 'Morden' is 'murder'. 'Graun' could be 'dawn' or, in some dialects, 'horror'. So the obvious typo made 'murdering horror' when what was meant (and has been translated by Michael adequately) was 'morning dawn'.

Wolfgang