My translation philosophy is equal parts Ezra Pound and Jim Henson. While Pound enjoins us to “make it new,” Henson’s Muppet skits encourage us to make it strange, to play the music in the words of Frank Zappa, “with a mustache on it” (no doubt alluding to Dali). Following Dan Remein’s provocative injunction for practicing … Continue reading One final note to Translation Principles…
What’s New?
Riddle or Not?: The Shield Speaks
Ic eom anhaga iserne wund, bille gebennad, beadoweorca sæd, ecgum werig. Oft ic wig seo, frecne feohtan. Frofre ne wene, þæt mec geoc cyme guðgewinnes, ær ic mid ældum eal forwurðe, ac mec hnossiað homera lafe, heardecg heoroscearp, hondweorc smiþa, bitað in burgum; ic abidan sceal laþran gemotes. Næfre læcecynn … Continue reading Riddle or Not?: The Shield Speaks…
Riddles and Materialism
The plurality of a world of things described in the Exeter Book Riddles seems thwarted by metrical monotony. It is a serious problem that these poems are written using the same meter that appears in all the other written Old English poetry, from Beowulf to the Metres of Boethius. (1) But an important task of … Continue reading Riddles and Materialism…
Coming soon: Review of Guthlac A & B translations
I’ve been wanting to work some reviews of volumes of translations for a while now, as a way to spell out why I think my efforts are important and to elucidate my contribution to the field. It’s probably should be said right up front that I do not feel many of these volumes are as … Continue reading Coming soon: Review of Guthlac A & B translations…
Updates
So just a minor update made recently: “Resignation” is now “Resignation A & B” and I added the split in that poem that scholars have posited since the ASPR was released. I also observed that Muir breaks the very-short “Partridge” into two pieces, the bulk of it tagged “Homiletic Fragment III.” I’ll consider the case … Continue reading Updates…
Riddles rationale
Now that I’m about 62 poems in to my revision process of the Exeter Book Riddles, I thought I should finally come out with the rationale behind this translation of these poems, so important to the extant canon and so commonly read and appreciated. One of the big issues I have with Old English poetry … Continue reading Riddles rationale…