Недотыкомка is a symbol-word in the Russian literature of the Silver Age, meaning ubiquitous evil, according to the modernist world view, constituting the nature of existence. In this paper we demonstrate how the translation of this untranslatable word has influenced the perception of a literary work. We focus mainly on the poem Недотыкомка серая… (1905), the title of which in Wiktor Woroszylski’s translation is Niepochwytnica szara… (1971), while in the translation by Włodzimierz Słobodnik – Niedoruszajka szara… (1971) and in the novel Мелкий бес (1905), where this fulfils an important function (in René Śliwowski’s translation of 1973 – the name of this creature is Niedotkniątko). We examine what role the character of niedotykomka has in the discussed novels and we analyze the impact translation strategies have on the image of a fictional universe as well as a lyrical situation (i.e., the change of the feminine grammatical form in the character’s name into a grammatically neuter one).

This article presents an analysis of the Polish translation of the first poem from the series of six poems Звезда Маир (1898) by Fiodor Sologub and here in the translation by Witold Dąbrowski, Gwiazda Mair. Our task is to analyze the translation and trace to what extent the translator reflected the specificity of the lyrical situation presented in the original, and to what extent its image in the translation has changed. In addition, the focus was on translating the author’s proper names, reflecting Sologub’s creation of paradise, in order to show how specific translation activities affect the recipient’s perception of the lyrical situation shown in the poem. The rhythmic organization of the poem and the arrangement of rhymes in the original and in translation were also examined. It was shown to what extent the translators managed to reflect the hidden meanings and meaning‐creating symbols, so important for this Russian symbolist.