[Julie Steiner]

Le Pont Mirabeau (read by the author here)

Sous le pont Mirabeau coule la Seine
          Et nos amours
     Faut-il qu’il m’en souvienne
La joie venait toujours après la peine.

          Vienne la nuit sonne l’heure
          Les jours s’en vont je demeure

Les mains dans les mains restons face à face
          Tandis que sous
     Le pont de nos bras passe
Des éternels regards l’onde si lasse

     Vienne la nuit sonne l’heure
     Les jours s’en vont je demeure

L’amour s’en va comme cette eau courante
          L’amour s’en va
     Comme la vie est lente
Et comme l’Espérance est violente

          Vienne la nuit sonne l’heure
          Les jours s’en vont je demeure

Passent les jours et passent les semaines
          Ni temps passé
     Ni les amours reviennent
Sous le pont Mirabeau coule la Seine

          Vienne la nuit sonne l’heure
          Les jours s’en vont je demeure

—Guillaume Apollinaire (Alcools, 1913)

[Julie Steiner]

Literal prose crib (mine, quibbles welcome):

Mirabeau Bridge

Under Mirabeau Bridge runs the Seine
          And our loves*
     It is necessary that I remember
Joy came always after pain

          Let the night come let the hour sound
          The days go away I remain

Hands in hands we stay face to face
          Whereas under
     The bridge of our arms passes
Eternal gazes' wave, so weary

          Let the night come let the hour sound
          The days go away I remain

Love goes away like this running water
          Love goes away
     Like [or "how"] life is slow
And like [or "how"] Hope is violent

          Let the night come let the hour sound
          The days go away I remain

They pass, the days, and they pass, the weeks
          Neither past time
     Nor loves come back
Under Mirabeau Bridge runs the Seine

          Let the night come let the hour sound
          The days go away I remain


* [In French, "loves" generally means "love affairs."]

[Julie Steiner]

Mirabeau Bridge

Under the Mirabeau Bridge there flows the Seine
          Must I recall
     Our loves recall how then
After each sorrow joy came back again

          Let night come on bells end the day
          The days go by me still I stay

Hands joined and face to face let’s stay just so
          While underneath
     The bridge of our arms shall go
Weary of endless looks the river’s flow

          Let night come on bells end the day
          The days go by me still I stay

All love goes by as water to the sea
          All love goes by
     How slow life seems to me
How violent the hope of love can be

          Let night come on bells end the day
          The days go by me still I stay

The days the weeks pass by beyond our ken
          Neither time past
     Nor love comes back again
Under the Mirabeau Bridge there flows the Seine

          Let night come on bells end the day
          The days go by me still I stay

—Translated by Richard Wilbur

[Julie Steiner]

The Mirabeau Bridge

Under the Mirabeau Bridge the Seine
Flows and our love
Must I be reminded again
How joy came always after pain

          Night comes the hour is rung
          The days go I remain

Hands within hands we stand face to face
While underneath
The bridge of our arms passes
The loose wave of our gazing which is endless

          Night comes the hour is rung
          The days go I remain

Love slips away like this water flowing
Love slips away
How slow life is in its going
And hope is so violent a thing

          Night comes the hour is rung
          The days go I remain

The days pass the weeks pass and are gone
Neither time that is gone
Nor love ever returns again
Under the Mirabeau Bridge flows the Seine

          Night comes the hour is rung
          The days go I remain

--Translated by W.S. Merwin

[Julie Steiner]

Pont Mirabeau

Under Pont Mirabeau glides the Seine
          And loves of ours
     Must I think back to when
Joy always followed in the wake of pain

          Sound the hour     night draw near
          The days go running     I stay here

Hand in my hand stand by me face to face
          While underneath
     The bridge of our embrace
Weary of everlasting looks the slow wave passes

          Sound the hour     night draw near
          The days go running     I stay here

Love flows away as running water went
          Love flows away
     As life is indolent
And as Hope is     violent

          Sound the hour     night draw near
          The days go running     I stay here

Though days run on     though days and weeks run on
          No time gone by
     No love comes back again
Under Pont Mirabeau glides the Seine

          Sound the hour     night draw near
          The days go running     I stay here

--Translated by X.J. Kennedy

[Julie Steiner]

Le Pont Mirabeau

Under Eads Bridge over the Mississippi at Saint Louis
Flows the Seine

And our past loves.
Do I really have to remember all that again

And remember
Joy came only after so much pain?

Hand in hand, face to face,
Let the belfry softly bong the late hour.

Nights go by. Days go by.
I’m alive. I’m here. I’m in flower.

The days go by. But I’m still here. In full flower.
Let night come. Let the hour chime on the mantel.

Love goes away the way this river flows away.
How violently flowers fade. How awfully slow life is.

How violently a flower fades. How violent our hopes are.
The days pass and the weeks pass.

The past does not return, nor do past loves.
Under the Pont Mirabeau flows the Seine.

Hand in hand, standing face to face,
Under the arch of the bridge our outstretched arms make

Flows our appetite for life away from us downstream,
And our dream

Of getting back our love of life again.
Under the Pont Mirabeau flows the Seine.

--Translated by Frederick Seidel

[Julie Steiner]

The Mirabeau Bridge

Under the Mirabeau Bridge runs the Seine
And our love
I must bring to mind once again
That joy always came after pain

Cometh the night chimeth the hour
The days go on I lack power

Hands joined face to face each of us abides
Whilst beneath
The bridge our arms form slides
The weary water of love forever's tides

Cometh the night chimeth the hour
The days go on I lack power

Love passes like this running stream
Love takes its leave
Life is a dream
And Hope a dangerous extreme

Cometh the night chimeth the hour
The days go on I lack power

On go the days and on go weeks again
Not time gone by
Nor love can one regain
Under the Mirabeau Bridge runs the Seine

Cometh the night chimeth the hour
The days go on I lack power

--Translated by Peter Dean

[Julie Steiner]

Mirabeau Bridge
(tanka sequence with haiku refrain)

The Seine keeps flowing
under the Mirabeau Bridge -
and our loves also -
I need to remember that
joy always follows sorrow.

And when night's bell tolls
the days take their departure -
I alone remain

Holding hand in hand,
let us sit face to face while
underneath the bridge
of our arms pass eternal
gazings on such weary waves.

And when night's bell tolls
the days take their departure -
I alone remain

Love is flowing fast
away, just as these flowing
waters flow away
slow as life itself flows by -
how violent Hope becomes.

And when the night's bell tolls
the days take their departure -
I alone remain

The days passing by,
the weeks passing by - and yet
neither our past time
nor our loves return - under
Mirabeau Bridge flows the Seine -

And when night's bell tolls
the days take their departure -
I alone remain

--Translated by James Kirkup

[Julie Steiner]

Le Pont Mirabeau

Under the pont Mirabeau flows the Seine
          Our loves flow too
     Must it recall them so
Joy came to us always after pain

          May night come and the hours ring
          The days go by and I remain

Facing each other hand in hand
          Thus we will stand
     While under our arms' bridge
Our longing looks pass in a weary band

          May night come and the hours ring
          The days go by and I remain

Love leaves us like this flowing stream
          Love flows away
     How slow life is and mild
And oh how hope can suddenly run wild

          May night come and the hours ring
          The days go by and I remain

May the long days and the weeks go by
          Neither the past
     Nor former loves return
Under the pont Mirabeau flows the Seine

--Translated by Roger Shattuck

[Julie Steiner]

Le pont Mirabeau

Under the Mirabeau bridge flows the Seine
          And our love
     Comes back to memory again
Where always joy came after pain

          Comes the night, the hours sound
          Days go round in which to drown

Hand in hand, face to face
          While underneath
     The bridge of our embrace
Eternal gazes, weary waves

          Comes the night, the hours sound
          Days go round in which to drown

Love goes away like the water flows
          Love goes away
     Like life is slow
And like Hopefulness is violent

          Comes the night, the hours sound
          Days go round in which to drown

Pass the days, pass the nights
          Neither time past
     Nor love comes back
Under the Mirabeau bridge flows the Seine

          Comes the night, the hours sound
          Days go round in which to drown

--Translated by Charles Bernstein