Homework Need help, tutoring a 9th grader who needs to translate this (Yertle the Turtle).

[Simon Wilson]

Yertle the Turtle
On the far-away island of Sala-ma-Sond,
Yertle the Turtle was king of the pond.
A nice little pond. It was clean. It was neat.
The water was warm. There was plenty to eat.
The turtles had everything turtles might need.
And they were all happy. Quite happy indeed.

They were... untill Yertle, the king of them all,
Decided the kingdom he ruled was too small.

 

[Westcott]

When people ask us to do their homework, we ask them to post their own translation first. I would expect the same rule to apply to tutors!

 

[Ignis Umbra]

In addition to Westcott's remarks, I have two questions for you, Simon, if you don't mind.

1) Are you yourself finding difficulty in translating this passage, and if so, what with?

2) Has your tutee made an attempt at translating this passage, and if so, could we see it?

 

[Imperfacundus]

Crowdsourcing one's job .... why haven't I thought of that?

 

[Iohannes Aurum]

Crowdsourcing one's job .... why haven't I thought of that?

I wish we can get paid for this.

Oh, and the rule about homework also applies to tutors as well.

 

[Imber Ranae]

Kind of a silly thing to translate into Latin.

 

[Iohannes Aurum]

Kind of a silly thing to translate into Latin.

Not only that, but it is copyrighted.

We cannot translate the whole book without summoning the angry spirit of Dr. Seuss, unless we pay his estate.

 

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

It's not that silly; it rather looks like it could be turned into elegiac couplets. I suspect those of a certain age may remember James Elroy Flecker's parrot being used for this purpose; the trick being that it wouldn't fit in anything but the nominative or vocative, so you had to apostrophise your parrot. (By the way, is 'turtle' testudo, or is that just 'tortoise'? I'm a bit hazy on that sort of thing, but so might others be.)