divine comedy translation comparison
.. A customizable, digital workspace for scholarly analysis of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy. Thus began Dantes famed journey, one that would take him through the depths of hell. This page allows you to compare five passages from seven verse translations side by side. Dante's Inferno -The Webpage of Author David Lafferty. This particular translation is characterized by a rather faithful adherence to the the original source texts physical structure. Since childhood they had exchanged in passing the one word their families would allowSalute! Paolo and Francesca are technically together, as they whirl around like doves summoned by desire in Infernos punishing winds. This provides the reader with the sounds of the original as well as Musa's translation, which captures the meaning but reads with a different spirit. These lines have the virtue of being faithful to the original content, and then the next line continues with a rhyme (The keening sound . "So there we were, actually duplicating the situation in the canto, because the two lovers are reading a book that's what brought them together. Noticeably missing in Rogerss version is Dantes comio morisse which had to be dropped to stay within the meter however was able to be kept Nortons prose-style translation along with the repetition of falling in the final line. This page allows you to compare five passages from seven verse translations side by side. I'm going to be reading The Divine Comedy soonactually, re-reading Inferno and re-starting Purgatorio and finally getting to La Paradiso.I've opted to go with the Robert and Jean Hollander translation. That there have been a lot of translations of the Comedy can be seen by glancing at the Wikipedia page "English translations of Dante's Divine Comedy. Provide Feedback Form. I was lost. That's why we've put together this ultimate guide to help you make a decision. And I was so fascinated with what she told me, about how Dante's verse worked, that the idea never left me, that I should try to make my own poetry as interesting as that. I've also heard great thngs about Merwin and Pinsky but they've only done the Purgatorio and Inferno respectively. by the love that moves the sun and the other stars. Dante asks her why such a courteous and well-spoken creature as shea highborn lady who had fallen for Paolo innocently enough one day when they were alone together readingcould find herself among the damned. Divine Comedy Comparisons. Rutgers is an equal access/equal opportunity institution. #4 -- we'll just assume that's tongue-in-cheek. And lo and behold, that's what we were doing. I've also heard great thngs about Merwin and Pinsky but they've only done the Purgatorio and Inferno respectively. Inferno, Canto I. 1994), was edited by Giorgio Petrocchi. It's nice to compare, and if you're interested in learning the language, it's a great way to get some personally meaningful immersion. "There is no young man's version of this translation. He did most of the translation work before becoming seriously ill, "but I could feel the end of my life coming. He combined a lot of dialects into the thing we now know as Italian. The Divine Comedy is a 14th century poem that has never lost its edge. Just for joining youll get personalized recommendations on your dashboard daily and features only for members. "That will, of course, be clear to you," he said. The Divine Comedy. ed. The Best Books to Get Your Finances in Order, Books Based on Your Favorite Taylor Swift Era, Cook a Soul Food Holiday Meal With Rosie Mayes, Aug 01, 1995 Here are Clive Jamess first lines: At the mid-point of the path through life, I found. The content of Dantes writing presents an even bigger problem. The verse. Yet Dante has the unenviable fate of having become more known than read: his name is immediately recognizable, his achievements justly acknowledged, but outside the classroom or graduate seminar, only the hardiest of literary enthusiasts pick up his Divine Comedy. Right now I'm choosing between Ciardi, Mandelbaum and Hollander. Oddly enough, and at least in the United States, we seem to know more about Dante the manhis exile, his political struggles, his eternal love for Beatricethan his poetry. In comparing translations, you notice quickly if theres an attempt to duplicate Dantes terza rima, in which the first and third lines rhyme, and the second line rhymes with the first line of the following stanza. Of what we call our life, I looked up and saw no sky. Not only are constant rhymes difficult to translate, but Dante also uses rich and ambiguous language in his poems. While it is true that Rogerss translation is more faithful from a structural standpoint there are some instances in which such an adherence forces other content-related translation loss which is not present in Nortons. Clive Jamess 2013Comedyuses quatrains and augmented quatrains as its building blocks, while Mary Jo Bangs 2012 translation of theInfernoin colloquial American English, carries elements of her own style, and is unrhymed. I'm going to third the choice of John Ciardi. For the straightforward pathway had been lost. My preference for a rhyming attempt wins out over Mary Jo Bangs exuberant rendering, but only by a smidgen. Dorothy Sayers translation is, in my opinion, one of the finest translations that maintains the original ryhme scheme, is imminently readable and classic and is blessed further by knowledgeable, interesting and useful notes. I heard somebody say: "Watch where you step! I also enjoy Anthony Esolens translation (blank verse with some rhyme). The Divine Comedy, after all, is a poem, and its meanings are contained as much in sound as in "sense." Verse translations require more courage, and more thinking, because they are generally . In the very first line it is noticed when Dante writes Cos discesi del cerchio primario(34), Rogers translates it to From the first circle we descended down(17), which is a more faithful translation than Dayman writing So I plunged downwards from that upper ring(35), which is a more communicative way of translating. Having been a bookseller for more than a decade, I know that one of the most frequently asked questions from readers is, Which translation should I read of DantesDivine Comedy? I heard it said: "Take heed how thou dost go. Canto V is when Dante has descended into the second circle of hell. I couldn't have done it when I was younger. This topic is currently marked as "dormant"the last message is more than 90 days old. Your purchase helps support NPR programming. Translations that attempt to maintain any type of rhyme scheme often sound forced and usually compromise the meaning of the text. Any other translations you'd like to recommend are fine with me. Privacy Policy, Photo-illustration from Sandro Botticelli's portrait of Dante by Stephanie Bastek (Wikimedia Commons), Hilary Mantel, one of Britains most revered novelists, died last year at the age of 70. Since the poem appeared, and especially in modern times, those readers intrepid enough to take on Dante have tended to focus on the first leg of his journey, through the burning fires of Inferno. A major consideration is the topic of rhyme. The critic Walter Benjamin wrote that a great translation calls our attention to a works original language even when we dont speak that foreign tongue. Individuals Report Accessibility Barrier or So much depends on whats outside his text: the mass of other books, other stories, other issues that lie submerged beneath the actual lines of The Divine Comedy. Posted in Books, Dante, Divine Comedy The Divine Comedy in translation. As a one-time admirer of the troubadour poets, Dante was well versed, pardon the pun, in the intricate forms then in practice, such as the sestina, but his paean to Beatrice called for something new and even more demanding, a flexible and muscular form he invented precisely for the new undertaking, theterza rima. The Italian language the Italians speak today is largely Dante's invention. Dante Alighieri's great work tells the tale of the author's trail through hell each and every circle of it purgatory and heaven. I heard a voice cry: "Watch which way you turn: I heard this said to me: "Watch how you pass; I heard a voice cry out, "Watch where you step! These breathtaking lines conclude Dantes Divine Comedy, a 14,000-line epic written in 1321 on the state of the soul after death. Nichols, Hollander and Sinclair are the best translations I have come across, They all combine accuracy with poetry and readability. gi volgeva il mio disio e l velle, Body & Soul Uplifted: Dantes Magnificent Vision of Resurrection of - user66974. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and one of the greatest works of world literature. For example Divine Comedy was written around 1308 A.D. to 1321 A.D, in which he has depicted many Popes as suffering eternal damnation in hell namely Pope Anastasius II and Pope Nicholas III. These things are always hard, choosing between manner and matter , Your email address will not be published. New Jersey. You dont need to know the background, backstory, allusions, sources. Dante was transformed by his grief and vowed to write in Beatrices honor a poem unlike any ever written. In the Inferno, it is well known, Dante singled out corrupt leaders and political enemies, but the poem as a whole was actually inspired by unrequited love. Theyre easily the most accessible and enjoyable of the translations Ive seen. Copyright 2023, Rutgers, The State University of with Rutgers web sites to [email protected] or complete the Report Accessibility Barrier or Heres Dantes original: Even without an Italian dictionary at hand, most of the words in these lines can be puzzled out by English speakers, except, perhaps smaritta, which means something along the lines of obliterated or just lost from view. An amateur literal translation can go a long way but doesnt sing. A sinner, in the manner of a brake, So that he three of them tormented thus. They also both have good notes (a necessity). (I've studied only other Romance languages, and found it useful) Pinsky and Longfellow are both poets, themselves, so you get some artistry from either one. ", He calls the quatrains a "nice, easily flowing rhythmic grid on which to mount the individual moments. Also, Anthony Esolen has an interesting article published: Esolen, Anthony. Again, it might come down to your trust in a translators skill in keeping up the rhyme pattern. It may be grossly unfair, I admit, to try to judge merely on the first canto or even the first or second stanza, but decisions made in the first few stanzas determine the shape of the rest of the work. Hollander: a more contemporary translation of The Divine Comedy that I've heard great things about but it can get pricey with each section in a separate book. I don't remember ever reading Mandelbaum but I believe my daughter used both Mandelbaum and Hollander in College and she preferred the Hollander. As Victor Hugo wrote about The Divine Comedys blessed realms, The human eye was not made to look upon so much light, and when the poem becomes happy, it becomes boring.. A collection of 100 poems to be exact, one for each canto, some more sublime than others. The grading is as follows: 3 = perfectly faithful, 2 = defensible paraphrase (same basic meaning), 1 = dodgy paraphrase, 0 = unforgivable paraphrase (putting words in Dante's mouth). When translating the Divine Comedy, the translator often has to choose between capturing the original meaning or capturing the poetry, often choosing an intermediate between the two. Henry Boyd produced one of the early English-language translations of The Divine Comedy; it was published in 1802.Notable translations of the 20th and early 21st centuries include those by John D. Sinclair (1939-48), Dorothy L. Sayers and . He produced one of the first complete, and in many respects still the best, English translations of The Divine Comedy in 1867. A tough call. ", Clive James is both an Officer of the Order of Australia and a Commander of the Order of the British Empire. I found it easy to use. accessibility issues with Rutgers web sites to [email protected] She is beloved for her sweeping. But what makes this an interesting comparison is that Daymans translation maintains the terza rima, while Rogers does not. The following version appears to be in Terza Rima: La Divina Commedia / The Divine Comedy - A Translation into English in Iambic Pentameter, Terza Rima Form. There are a lot of different Best Dantes Divine Comedy Translation in the market, and it can be tough to decide which one is right for you. Liveright Publishing Even though The doctrine of Papal infallibility was defined dogmatically in the First Vatican Council . Such extreme faithfulness can make the language of the translation feel unnaturalas though the source were shaping the translation into its own alien image. Dantes The Divine Comedy is one of Italian Literatures most frequently translated texts, it has literally been being translated for over hundreds of years. So in order to get Dante, a translator has to be both a poet and a scholar, attuned to the poets vertiginous literary experimentalism as well as his superhuman grasp of cultural and intellectual history. Report Accessibility Barrier or hide caption. We'll go over the different features and what to look for when you're shopping. From Inferno 1 to Paradiso 33, scores of different literary personaesome real, some invented, some famous, some obscuretake the stage to plead their case or expound on their joy before the autobiographical character Dante as he journeys from hell to heaven. for I had lost the path that does not stray. The Books Alexis Patterson Is Loving Right Now, 27 Childrens & YA Books Written by Asian Authors, Browse All Our Lists, Essays, and Interviews. In truth, some of the most sublime moments in The Divine Comedy, indeed in all of literature, occur after Dante makes his way out of the Infernos desolation. It's very beautiful. Mind you, I haven't read any other translations for comparison (plus, I'm still in the middle of. Both translations by Rogers and Dayman, are kept in poem style. Excellent notes, too! Part of the problem lies in the difficulty that Dante poses for English translation. While Rogers does not maintain a rhyme scheme, nor Dantes famous hendecasyllable structure per se, he does opt for using a classical English poetic meter, the iambic pentameter. His metered language often seems more natural than Sayers and more in keeping with the diction of Dante, which favored solid vocabulary and straight-forward syntax. The Divine Comedy is the most well-known piece in Italian literature. Submit your nominations for the 2024 NEH Jefferson Lecturer, NEH Jefferson Lecture in the Humanities nominations. As of 2021, Dante's magnum opus has been translated into English . Provide Feedback Form. I wasn't thrilled with either Mellville or Longfellow. Mandelbaum is writing in blank verse (although here the first and third lines rhyme, that is not indicative of the whole), so youre faced with a choice: Do you trust the efforts, strained at times, of the translator who remains loyal to the form, or opt for a more natural-sounding version? But long before rehabilitating Thomas Cromwells reputation, Mantel was unparalleled in her crystalline dissections of power, whether between girls at the University of London or Dantonists in the French Revolution. I really enjoy the extra insights I receive from his notes, summaries, and essays. Provide Feedback Form, Rutgers, The State University of I also prefer Mark Musas version. The Divine Comedy. Looking specifically at Canto V, we will examine that there are different methods that go into translation, as seen in the translations by Charles Rogers (1782) and John Dayman (1865). I could feel that there was a closure on its way, and I was examining my life, and I wasn't particularly satisfied with what I saw when I examined it. Her creative leap is to begin with the word stopped and end the third line with I was lost, emphasizing the predicament in the original and elaborating the image of the dark wood. Thus, Longfellow demonstrates the scholarly chops necessary to convey Dantes encyclopedic learning, and the poetic talent needed to reproduce the sound and spiritthe respiro, breathof the original Tuscan. By Sergio M. Brattich | Dante's Commedia. The Divine Comedy in translation (what to look for, comparison of opening lines) - YouTube The vlog form of a blog I did in July 2021, discussing translations of The Divine Comedy. T. S. Eliot called such poetry the most beautiful ever writtenand yet so few of us have ever read it. "All this shall be made known to you when we stand, And he said to me: "When we have stopped along, And he responded, "These things will be made. TheDivine Comedy, finished by Dante Alighieri in 1320, is one of the most famous literary works of all time, and its author is considered the father of the Italian language. He remains faithful to the wording, but for reasons of meter he delves into unnatural word order, inverting what Palma has as dark wood to become forest dark. Palma or Longfellow? That link is to the hardcover that contains all three works, but even though that one is in my bookcase I never read it. He wrote in an intensely idiomatic, rhyme-rich Tuscan with a surging terza rima meter that gives the poem its galloping energya unique rhythm thats difficult to reproduce in rhyme-poor English separated from Dantes local vernacular by centuries. Translations that attempt to maintain any type of rhyme scheme often sound forced and usually compromise the meaning of the text. In theInferno, it is well known, Dante singled out corrupt leaders and political enemies, but the poem as a whole was actually inspired by unrequited love. Dante uses a complex rhyme scheme, called the terza rima, which is were there are stanzas of three lines that contain interlocking rhymes at the end of each line; the rhyme pattern follows: ABA-BCB-CDC. Your email address will not be published. by the love that moves the sun and the other stars. That's the version I read and those bleak covers, Barry Moser ink washes, were ubiquitous in freshmen dorms. I felt the necessity for understanding, for redemption, if you will, and I think some of that went into my reading and my writing. What, for us, would really be paradise? The setting allows him to utilise the past symbolically, exploit the present politically, and anticipate the future in . When he hears Francescas words, Dante faintscaddi come corpo morto cade, I fell as a dead body falls. A friend of mine once said of Shakespeare that everything you need to read him is right there on the surface, in the language of his plays. By Liliana Leuzzi | Dante's Commedia. At every mouth he with his teeth was crunching 55. . . The translators scored as follows: Longfellow, Singleton (27) Sinclair (26) Mandelbaum (25) Simone, Sisson (23) Hollander, Kirkpatrick (22) Lombardo (21) " It took nearly five hundred years from Dante's death for there to be a translation of all three parts of the poem. Daymans translation reads When that we read so true-hearted/ Kissing the smile so coveted before,/ And he who wrotethat day we read no more which is a more romantic way of writing the story, and it feels to be more in the spirit of the source text. To understand why Dante faints in Inferno 5, you have to realize just how surreal it was for him to hear Francesca cite the poetry of his youth, the words that helped make him poet and that hastened Francescas demise. The Divine Comedy, Part 1: Hell (Penguin Classics) Paperback - June 30, 1950 by Dante Alighieri (Author), Dorothy L. Sayers (Translator, Introduction) 105 ratings See all formats and editions Paperback $16.00 Other new, used and collectible from $1.43 The first volume of Dante's Divine Comedy Start earning points for buying books! Perhaps nowhere is this economy of expression more evident than in the justly celebrated canto of the star-crossed lovers, Francesca da Rimini and Paolo Malatesta. I wasn't aware of Benigni's TuttoDante -- sounds very interesting. encouraged to direct suggestions, comments, or complaints concerning any accessibility issues But the musicians performance doesnt look anything like a score; the two couldnt be any more different. And its hard enough to read Dante without throwing in the additional challenge of 19th-century poetic diction.
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