7/31/2019 "America: Found in Translation" Project (10-11 graders) - III Prize (Natalya Sirotkina)

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America: Found in Translation Project

Translation of an episode from TV series One-Storied America

III prize (10-11 graders)Natalya Sirotkina (Gymnasium # 7)

The smell of America is not only smell of money. It is also a smell of freedom, smell of promises and fulfillment of desires. All these things together are called an American dreamwhich people come here from all over the world for.

-Ships sailed into that strait by the Statue of Liberty.-She greets every ship. I clearly remember when I was leaving America at the age of

fifteen I said goodbye to her. I remember there was a pressing feeling. Of course I couldntimagine that I wont see this city for so long time, but there was a sense of farewell when wesailed by the Statue.

Ilf and Petrov as everybody who have arrived to America for the last 100 years weregreeted by the Ms. Liberty which official name is Liberty Enlightening the World.

It was created by a sculptor Frederic Bartholdi and installed October 28, 1886 onLiberty Isla nd (ex Bedloes Island).

-The pedestal stands on the foundation in a shape of eleven-point star. There was afort on this island, and that fort had eleven rays, too.

There is another island close to Liberty Island which is not less famous, but even morefamous Ellis Island. It opened its doors for immigrants from all over the world from January1, 1892 to 1954. 12 million of future American citizens who wanted freedom have passedthrough the filtration point on the Island of tears as it was often called.

-A man came and said his surname was Shestakovich. It was totally unclear for thepoliceman and he said:

-What??- Shestakovich-Ok, youll be Cowidge. -No, Im -Do you wanna pass? Youre Cowidge. And lots of surnames have been changed in such a way just because they were too

difficult to pronounce.

7/31/2019 "America: Found in Translation" Project (10-11 graders) - III Prize (Natalya Sirotkina)

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Tired after a long trip people had to spend lots of exhausting hours in endless queues,they passed through the series of humiliating medical examinations, through the verificationof documents, they had to answer endless obscure questions such as Arent you ananarchist?, Are you going to engage in prostitution?, Do you have money?. Severalhours of fear in order to obtain permission Or rejection.

-People went from their homes to a foreign, unknown place, they even didnt knowthe language, didnt have any culture. Look at their faces!

There are lots of different characters: Germans have their own, French have their,Irish, English, Jews, Russians and so on. Imagine that all that characters were plunged intoone pot and mixed and the new one which we call an American character was created.What is it? Its a mix where there is everything: greed and generosity, adventurism,persistence, faith in victory, industry, but the main thing is optimism.