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Comparison of Seven Beowulf Translations
There is not unanimity among Beowulf translators concerning all parts of the text, but there is little divergence from a single, uniform translation of the poem. Herein are discussed some passages which translators might show disagreement about because of the lack of clarity or missing fragments of text or abundance of synonyms or ambiguous referents.
After the Danish coast-guard meets and talks to Beowulf, the guard then begins his next speech with a brief maxim or aphorism:
Aeghwaepres sceal
scearp scyldwiga gescad witan,
worda ond worca, se pe wel penced. (287-289)
T.A. Shippey comments in “The World of the Poem” that :
Translating this ought not to be difficult…. The problem here is caused by the fact that proverbs are not merely linguistic phenomena…. the hidden factor is the extralinguistic frame; we have been taught in childhood when to use proverbs, what their metaphors mean, who to say them to, and how to take them. It is this nonverbal knowledge that we need to be able to understand the coastguard’s ‘gnome.’ Reluctance to reconstruct such intangibles and dogged staring at the text have led literary critics into controversy (Shippey 34).
So let’s cross-reference six translators and determine how serious a discrepancy exists here. Howell D. Chickering translates the troublesome part of the passage: “must know the distinction between words and deeds, keep the difference clear” (Chickering 65). E. Talbot Donaldson: “who thinks well must be able to judge each of the two things, words and works” (Donaldson 6). Kevin Crossley-Holland: “one whose mind is ...
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... multiple synonyms, vague references, etc.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Alexander, Michael. Beowulf A Verse Translation. New York: Penguin Books, 1973.
Chickering, Howell D. Beowulf A dual-Language Edition. New York: Anchor Books, 1977.
Crossley-Holland, Kevin, trans. Beowulf The Fight at Finnsburh, edited by Heather O’Donoghue. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.
Donaldson, E. Talbot, trans. Beowulf The Donaldson Translation, edited by Joseph Tuso. New York, W.W.Norton and Co., 1975.
Heaney, Seamus. Beowulf, A New Verse Translation. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2000.
Rebsamen, Frederick. Beowulf A Verse Translation. New York: Harper-Collins Publishers, 1991.
Shippey, T.A.. “The World of the Poem.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987..
... years in office. Even when President Reagan, didn’t make wise decisions, he took full blame for them, which made the American population trust him and gain more popularity. With his many major accomplishments in helping the American people, and putting them first, really helped in his favor. Reagan has built up the US military to what it is now because he believed that we needed to “restore America's ability to defend itself and fulfill its responsibilities as a trustee of freedom and peace in the world” (Wild Thing, January 21, 2006). President Reagan is man that has a heart and soul with America, and will fight for our freedoms and rights for as long as his lives. In 1994, President Reagan got Alzheimer’s disease, left public life, and died on June 5, 2004 from pneumonia. Reagan is still looked up to and is considered one of the greatest Presidents of all time.
Frank, Roberta. “The Beowulf Poet’s Sense of History.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.
But if there is one thing to say about both men, that they equally accomplished even though both did it different ways and by different means, is that they worked with Congress flawlessly. Both had the undivided support of their Congress in their actions. Whether it be leading Conservatives supporting Reagan and his foreign policy or Roosevelt when it came down to making changes in policies to better the public, they had the full support of those behind them. Both men seemed to be extremely charismatic when it came to this. It was almost as if that instead of choosing their Cabinets, they had managed to pick their Congress.
In Tolkien’s lecture, “Beowulf: The monsters and the Critics,” he argues that Beowulf has been over analyzed for its historical content, and it is not being studied as a piece of art as it should be. He discusses what he perceives the poet of Beowulf intended to do, and why he wrote the poem the way he did. Tolkien’s main proposition, “it was plainly only in the consideration of Beowulf as a poem, with an inherent poetic significance, that any view or conviction can be reached or steadily held” (Tolkien). He evaluates why the author centers the monsters throughout the entire poem, why the poem has a non-harmonic structure, why and how the author fusses together Christianity and Paganism, and how the author uses time to make his fictional poem seem real. He also discusses the overall theme of Beowulf and other assumptions of the text. To support his viewpoints, Tolkien uses quotations and examples from the poem, quotations from other critics, and compares Beowulf to other works of art. Tolkien discusses several statements in interpreting Beowulf as a poem.
In the length of the poem, Beowulf goes from abandoned child to gallant warrior to King. This transformation, expressed in the tone and content of the poem, shows the importance of the relationship between lord and thane and expresses the ultimate value of that connection. From the difference in battle scenes to Beowulf’s speeches, it is clear that he has gone from a somewhat self-loving hero to a selfless king. Within this change he also goes from serving a lord to becoming a lord, and in that way the poem shows us the importance of both sides of the relationship.
I have decided to write my research paper on the topic of Ronald Reagan's Domestic and Foreign Affairs. The reason that I choose this topic was because I have always been personally interested in Ronald Reagan's time in office and the national crisis he had to deal with. Reagan was awesome when it came to foreign policy because he knew how to negotiate with foreign leaders and their countries to get what he wanted. There were several instances during his time in office that he had the chance to use his ability to get the country out of danger. Domestic Affairs is another part of Reagan's presidency that was very important. He was able to take the country, which seemed to be in an economic slump and turn their economic status around. The economic growth of the United States is still holding true today. There is only one question that I wanted to answer with this paper. Was Ronald Reagan an effective leader when it came to domestic and foreign affairs?
Heaney, Seamus. Beowulf: A New Verse Translation. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2000. Print.
Heaney, Seamus. Introduction. Beowulf: a New Verse Translation. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2000. Xvii. Print.
Shippey, T.A.. “The World of the Poem.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987..
Beowulf. The Norton Anthology of English Literature, Volume A. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt. New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 2006. 34-100.
"The Life of Ronald Reagan: A Timeline." NPR. NPR, 2014. N.d. Web. 7 May 2014.
Tolkien, J.R.R.. “Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.
Ronald Reagan is arguably one of the most influential men in American history. Reagan’s childhood, and more specifically his relationship with his father pushed him to develop the strong religious faith, was instrumental in forming him into the man he was. The middle part of Reagan’s life was riddled with successes that more than likely gave him the confidence to pursue some of his greater goals later in life. Reagan’s career before politics made him well known face in many American households, which helped transition him into a well-liked political figurehead. Lastly Reagan’s time as president was a time of peace and prosperity for the American people. Reagan had many defining experiences that shaped him into the public figure, and president
At the start of his presidency, Reagan had a clear economic, social, and foreign policy agenda, along with the courage to achieve these goals. Looking back on his years in office, he said, "I am the same man I was when I came to Washington. I believe in the same things I believed when I came to Washington, and I think those beliefs have been vindicated by the success of the policies to which we hold fast." Reagan's legacy changed the United States and shaped the nation in which we live today. Soon after his presidency began, he remarked, "What I'd really like to do is go down in history as the President who made Americans believe in themselves again." President Ronald Reagan, you did just that.
Schaller, Michael Reckoning with Reagan. America and Its President in the 1980s. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992