Thread: Rusalka - HC Andersen

Originally Posted by kidkboom

RUS: Далеко на море, вода же синей, как синего василька, и же ясно, как ясный кристалл; но ето очень глубокая, и слишком глубоко для любого канату, чтобы её измерять; и если многие шпили были навалены друг на друга, они бы не достигают поверхносты воды.

ENG: Far out at sea the water is as blue as the bluest cornflower, and as clear as the clearest crystal; but it is very deep, too deep for any cable to fathom, and if many steeples were piled on the top of one another, they would not reach from the bed of the sea to the surface of the water.

- В море; на море means actually "on the shore of the sea";
- comparative should be "синее(синей) василька" or "синее, чем василёк". Also construction "такая же ..., как" can be used: "такая же синяя, как василёк" (as blue as...), otherwise "как" and "же" should be removed;
- ясно should agree with the subject: ясна (short form because it is used as predicate);
- но там очень глубоко (the way to translate English construction "it is ...": It is deep. - Глубоко.);
- слишком глубоко, чтобы можно было измерить канатом (no direct equivalent for English construction "for smth. to do smth.");
- "навалены" obviously means "tumbled" and implies horizontal position, "поставлены" is better (it implies vertical position);
- "шпиль" means actually architectural shaft. A steeple building is колокольня;
- они бы не достигли (perfective past only);
- поверхности

There is also punctuation, which is not free in Russian.

Originally Posted by it-ogo

A steeple building is колокольня;

By the way, колокол is "a (large) bell" -- so a колокольня gets its name because that's where the church bells are.

(Although a колокольня can also be on a "secular" building instead of a church. In which case we'd call it a "bell tower" in English, and not a "steeple" -- that word specifically and exclusively means "церковная колокольня".)