Fëanor
Your embryonic lust for light,
Nascent, formless blaze;
Pride, catalyst of consequence,
Doomed despot of bleak phantasms,
Twisting soulless internment.
Prison of radiance.
Words spoken, pulsing ruin,
Transcending pustule of twisted fury:
Elemental passion,
Entropic damnation.
Loath to follow, bound by blood,
The followers of your labyrinthine promise
Bitter crossing to abeyant doom.
Beggared by your flowering ego
Weary, rambling, frayed, forlorn
They sought your jewels of vengeance
And found your natal star.
— Wendy S. Delmater
Votre convoitise embryonique pour la lumière
Éclat sans forme, naissant
L’orgueil, catalyseur de consequence
Despote condamné des fantasmes sombres
Internement sans âme, tordue.
Prison de rayonnement
Paroles prononcés, pulsation de la ruine
Pustule transcendant de déchaînement torsade
Passion élémentaire
Damnation entropique
Réticents à suivre, liés par le sang
Les adhérents à votre promesse labyrinthique
Passage pénible au destin dormant.
Appauvris par votre arrogance grandissant
Épuisés, vagabonds, abattus, délaissés
Ils ont cherché à vos joyaux de la vengeance
et trouvé votre étoile natale.
— Ef Deal (Translator)
Ef Deal teaches French and English in South Jersey, and writes fantasy, science fiction, and horror in very short doses. Her work has been published in The Fortean Bureau, Flashshots, and Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine.
In translating this work, I sought a vocabulary that not only recalled the consonance of the original work but also evoked the epic nature of the story itself. I majored in classic French literature, studying Baudelaire in France, and I tried to draw on his nightmare vision to portray the tragic despair of The Silmarillion.
Editor’s Notes: (Cited from Wikipedia) Fëanor (IPA: [ˈfɛ.anɔr]) is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien’s legendarium who plays an important part in The Silmarillion. He was the eldest son of Finwë, the High King of the Noldor, and his first wife Míriel Serindë. Fëanor’s mother, Míriel, died shortly after giving birth, having given all her strength and essence to him. Finwë remarried, and had two more sons, Fëanor’s half-brothers Fingolfin and Finarfin, and two daughters, Findis and Írimë.
Fëanor is best known as the creator of three gems, the Silmarils, which figure prominently in The Silmarillion and are mentioned briefly in The Lord of the Rings. His name is a compromise between Faenor (in Tolkien’s fictional language of Sindarin) and Fëanáro, meaning “Spirit of fire” (in Quenya, another of Tolkien’s invented languages). He was originally named Finwë or Finwion after his father and later Curufinwë (“Skilful (son of) Finwë”). Fëanor wedded Nerdanel daughter of Mahtan, who bore him seven sons: Maedhros, Maglor, Celegorm, Curufin, Caranthir, Amras, and Amrod.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F%C3%ABanor
Editor’s Image Note: Fëanor and Fingolfin from J. R. R. Tolkien’s work (cited from Wikipedia)