Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll, transcribed by a Mac

Yesterday I tried Middle English, so today, nonsensical English seemed to be the next best thing.

Twist Briley again the slightly toes,
Did jarring gimbal in the wave:
Almonds you were the Bora Groves,
And the mom race outgrabe.

“Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the closet catch!
Beware the judge of Bird, and shunned
The feminist benders snatch!”

He took his mortal sword in hand;
Long time the men’s own photo he sought –
So rested he by the tom-tom tree
Instead a while in thought.

And, as an office thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the told you would,
And verbal does it came!

One, too! One, too! And through and through
The vocal blade went snicker snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.

“And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, might beamish boy!
Of fab just day! Hello! Calais!
It chortled in his joy.

Twist Greg, and the slighty toes
Did John gambling the wave:
On Mimsy were the Bora Groves,
And the Momerath upgrade.

The original:

’Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

“Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!”

He took his vorpal sword in hand;
Long time the manxome foe he sought—
So rested he by the Tumtum tree
And stood awhile in thought.

And, as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! And through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.

“And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!”
He chortled in his joy.

’Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

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Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll, transcribed by a Mac
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20 thoughts on “Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll, transcribed by a Mac

  1. 7

    So you’re reading to the computer and this is what it thinks you’re saying? Interesting. I suppose different readers will have different results, depending on such things as accent and diction. What program are you using?

    The quotes have been excellent choices so far, and they might make for an entertaining video. You’d hear the person speaking the real work, and see the computer’s output onscreen. I’d be interested to know what happens with Beowulf and Finnegan’s Wake, and maybe a Nadsat-filled passage of A Clockwork Orange.

    On a related note, have you ever played the game where you take a sentence and translate it through several other languages and then back to English? Your transcription mechanism reminds me of the results from that process.

    1. 7.1

      Just the native mac translation. As you can see, it doesn’t even translate me the same each time — first and last verse should be the same.

      What I like about this more than the getting back to english one is that, for the most part, it sounds like the original in meter and rhyme.

      I will add those to my list of things to do. Feel free to post a passage you’d particularly like done.

  2. 12

    It’s really interesting that the transcription was successful with several of Carroll’s coinages — whiffling, galumphing, beamish, outgrabe (once) — but not all, even one that is in pretty wide use (gyre).

    But now I want to meet the feminist banders snatch in the told you would. Hello! Calais!

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