Tradurre la poesia: un percorso possibile tra segni e parole

Translating poetry from sign to spoken language has been systematicallydiscouraged because of the different semiotic nature of the two languages.Nevertheless, translation may enlighten not only the definition of poeticlanguage but also the nature of both languages and ultimately the act oftranslation itself. Therefore, it is crucial to define what language is and whatmakes language poetic. These issues will be explored taking into account thefunctions of language and the concept of rhythm as it has been suggested byBenveniste and Meschonnic. The aim of this paper is to analyse sign languagepoetry in order to identify a ‘deaf’ poetic and explore the building of translability.Drawing on some Italian Sign Language poems, my starting point is toshow the importance of overcoming levels and categories of analysis inheritedfrom Structuralism in order to highlight the crucial role of the body and thestrong interconnection between the signifier and the signified in sign languagepoetry. Starting from the concept of rhythm, a path for translating signlanguage poetry is suggested which exploits the role of the body to re-createthe meaning and expression in words.