Rhythmic Indeterminacy: On the Translations of the Homeric Hexameter into English and French
| dc.contributor.author | Varsos, Georges | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2014-11-06T17:23:49Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2014-11-06T17:23:49Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2014 | |
| dc.description.abstract | This essay is a comparative approach to the role of rhythm in translations of Homer into English and French since early modern times. After briefly discussing the notion of rhythm as a component of literary works, referring to Benjamin and Deleuze, we will analyze how rhythmic articulations affect the Homeric notion of heroic kleos in Iliad 9, 410-416, and how rhythmic indeterminacy combines with aporetic semantic tensions. Selected translations of the same passage in English and French are subsequently compared. Their rhythmic variation echoes epochal and cultural shifts in literary trends, yet the overall image is also one of surprising constancies, as translations invariably tend to clarify the Homeric idea instead of voicing its enigmas. Although, in both prose and verse, the application of various rhythmic grids has often been coupled with tensions that counter dominant prosodic norms and expectations, translators have rarely opted for severe rhythmic breaks or leaps that might affect the very nexus of their syntagmatic articulations and thus effectively reinstate or even enhance Homeric aporias. Concluding remarks probe the theoretical implications of such translations as regards the endurance of influential literary works, and enquire into the corresponding role of translation as it resists modern cultural taxonomies without outdoing their territorial dialectics. | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | Cet article aborde la question du rythme en comparant des traductions de l’Iliade en anglais et en français depuis le XVIe siècle. Nous discuterons d’abord des aspects théoriques de la notion de rythme, composante de toute œuvre littéraire, en nous appuyant sur Benjamin et Deleuze, puis nous proposerons une analyse d’un passage qui met en relief les complexités et les incertitudes du rythme homérique ainsi que leurs implications quant à la notion de kleos, dont la signification demeure largement aporétique. Sont ensuite comparées des traductions de ce passage, leurs divergences reflétant des tendances propres à des époques et des cadres culturels donnés. On observe cependant des constantes surprenantes, liées au fait que les traductions modernes d’Homère tendent, en règle générale, à clarifier l’idée homérique plutôt qu’à en souligner les énigmes persistantes. Les traducteurs ne se sont que très rarement risqués à des ruptures rythmiques et syntagmatiques qui auraient pu réitérer ou amplifier les apories homériques. L’article conclut en s’interrogeant sur le rôle que la traduction joue dans la persistance des textes littéraires influents. | en_US |
| dc.identifier.citation | Varsos, Georges. "Rhythmic Indeterminacy: On the Translations of the Homeric Hexameter into English and French." In Tension rythmique et traduction /Rhythmic Tension and Translation. Eds. Christine Raguet and Marie Nadia Karsky. Montréal: Éditions québécoises de l’œuvre, collection Vita Traductiva, 2014. | en_US |
| dc.identifier.isbn | 978-2-924337-06-6 | |
| dc.identifier.issn | 1927-7806; v.7 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10315/27984 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
| dc.publisher | Éditions québécoises de l’œuvre | en_US |
| dc.relation.ispartofseries | Tension rythmique et traduction /Rhythmic Tension and Translation;1-10;2 | |
| dc.rights | The publisher should be contacted for permission to re-use or reprint the material in any form. | en_US |
| dc.rights.publisher | http://www.editionsquebecoisesdeloeuvre.ca | en_US |
| dc.subject | translation, rhythm, classics, meter, Homer, hexameter | en_US |
| dc.subject | traduction, classiques, rythme, métrique, Homère, hexamètre | en_US |
| dc.title | Rhythmic Indeterminacy: On the Translations of the Homeric Hexameter into English and French | en_US |
| dc.type | Book Chapter | en_US |