What it really takes to translate Shakespeare, with Daniel Hahn episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 11, 2026 · 34 MIN

What it really takes to translate Shakespeare, with Daniel Hahn

from Grammar Girl: For Writers and Language Lovers.

1193. Today, we talk to award-winning translator Daniel Hahn, author of "If This Be Magic," about what it really takes to translate Shakespeare, starting with the philosophical paradox at the heart of all translation: changing every single word while changing nothing at all. We look at the special challenges Shakespeare poses, including preserving rhyme and meter in languages that work completely differently.Find Daniel's book "If This Be Magic"🔗 Join the Grammar Girl Patreon.🔗 Share your familect recording in Speakpipe or by leaving a voicemail at 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475)🔗 Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter.🔗 Take our advertising survey.🔗 Get the edited transcript here.🔗 Get Grammar Girl books.| HOST: Mignon Fogarty| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.Audio Engineer: Dan FeierabendDirector of Podcast: Holly HutchingsAdvertising Operations Specialist: Morgan ChristiansonMarketing and Video: Nat Hoopes, Rebekah SebastianPodcast Associate: Maram Elnagheeb| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.| Grammar Girl Social Media: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook. Threads. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon. Bluesky. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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What it really takes to translate Shakespeare, with Daniel Hahn

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