Robert Fagles, Ph.D (1933 -2008) is the renowned translator of Homer’s epic poems. He himself was a poet, along with an academic and professor of English at Princeton and Yale University.
He made an effort to keep his translations as close to the ancient Greek they were originally written as possible, while still remaining in contemporary English language.
I began research on Fagles because I liked the way that his translation brought the text to life; in particular the language of metaphor is rich and for me felt similar to the Bible passages that we had read. I wondered in Fagles had also been a biblical scholar. I read his Princeton obituary just out of curiosity. He was not exactly a biblical professor but he was very learned in the Humanities. What impressed me in the testimony of his colleagues was the way that he was a hero to his students. Perhaps reading and translating all of the heroic literature of the Greeks made him take in the characteristics of the heroes he wrote about
(http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S20/67/18E36/index.xml?section=topstories)
He made an effort to keep his translations as close to the ancient Greek they were originally written as possible, while still remaining in contemporary English language.
I began research on Fagles because I liked the way that his translation brought the text to life; in particular the language of metaphor is rich and for me felt similar to the Bible passages that we had read. I wondered in Fagles had also been a biblical scholar. I read his Princeton obituary just out of curiosity. He was not exactly a biblical professor but he was very learned in the Humanities. What impressed me in the testimony of his colleagues was the way that he was a hero to his students. Perhaps reading and translating all of the heroic literature of the Greeks made him take in the characteristics of the heroes he wrote about
(http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S20/67/18E36/index.xml?section=topstories)
Fagles sense of the energy of the Greek virtues and the way that you can feel the action still kept me in mind of one Bible verse in particular from the book of Mark.
And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts:Which deuoure widowes houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: These shall receiue greater damnation. Mark 39-40
This is when Jesus is accusing the church leaders of taking advantage of the widows who have no husbands to protect or take care of them. They are such greedy and uncaring men that they are not thinking of the vulnerable position of the women and how their house is all they have left to live on and they are trying to take advantage of them. this made me think of the passage from the Odyssey where TElemachus accuses the suitors of taking advantage of his mother’s hospitality and trying to literally consume her life and her house with their greed. Telemachus tells them to leave and bravely stands up to them in defense of his mother who is not exactly a widow but could be if her husband does not make it back.
"You must leave my palace ! See to your feasting elsewhere, devour your own possessions, house to house by turns. ...Zeus will pay you back with a vengeance...” (1:430-436)
I was struck by the use of the word “devour” because I wondered if FAgles knew this biblical passage and thought how powerful the image is of eating a whole house; I also thought about the idea of the hero and how important standing up for those who need protection is. The passage is very vivid as it tell the suitors to go eat their own houses and possession and to leave the “widow” Penelope alone.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
No comments:
Post a Comment