This presentation of the translation and the Old English Text on facing pages allows the reader to approach the first major poem in English literature in a fresh and exciting new way. Includes a Guide to Reading Aloud, Introduction, Commentary and notes for translation from the original.
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
“It is everywhere vigorous. . . . Chickering enjoys the poem immensely, and this attractive attitude shines everywhere. . . . This book is valuable for its extended literary appreciations and its facing text.” –Library Journal
“A fine book. . . . The essays on poetics, social history, and structure and the notes to specific passages survey the important scholarship.” –Choice
“A fine book. . . . The essays on poetics, social history, and structure and the notes to specific passages survey the important scholarship.” –Choice
Language Notes
Text: English
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Splendid translation by splendid translator,
By A Customer
This review is from: Beowulf (Paperback)
Professor Chickering of Amherst College was my professor a few years back and he never even mentioned his extraordinary translation of Beowulf to our class! (we were readinng chaucer.) But I should not forgive him because it is certainly not something to be missed! Being a product of public schools and reading a rather bland edition of the Old English masterpiece, Chickering's great new version is bold, booming with a voice of classical sensibility with heroic tragedy as well. please support this important and underrated piece of genuine translation, unlike Heaney's total bifurcation of the original from raw to pretty. Beowulf is not pretty. It is gritty, the first action-adventure of Old English.
28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beowulf as it was meant to be read.,
By A Customer
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Beowulf (Paperback)
Can't find Seamus Heaney's new translation of Beowulf? Buy this one. It's better. While Heaney's tranlslation is lyrical and poetic, with a distinct Gaelic flavor, Chickering's rendering is raw and primitive, much closer to the original Anglo-Saxon. Whenever I read it, I have the feeling of actually being there.
27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Superb edition of Beowulf for the modern reader.,
By A Customer
This review is from: Beowulf (Paperback)
Professor Howell D. Chickering, Jr., of Amherst College has provided the indispensable edition of "Beowulf" for readers who, like this reviewer, know no Old English. While the extensive supporting material included in the book should be of significant value to those who wish to deepen their understanding of the structure and historical background of the original, the best thing here is the translation itself: clear, direct, and often eloquent. Chickering's modern version has a gnarled, vivid quality that one must assume reflects cardinal virtues of the original. My advice to anyone unfamiliar with this masterpiece would be: click now to buy this book. When you receive it, turn directly to p. 49 and dive into the poem itself. Beginning with the fast-moving first lines ("Listen! We have heard of the glory of the Spear-Danes / in the old days, the kings of tribes-- / how noble princes showed great courage!"), you will be drawn into a world incomparably remote from our own and yet as compelling as any contemporary work of fiction, poetry, or film. And speaking of film, if you have ever wondered what the inspiration was for every shadowy, lurking science-fiction monster you've been scared by at the movies (from "Forbidden Planet" to "Aliens"), read this book and know the answer. Professor Chickering has brought Grendel to life with a vengeance. A priceless gift to lovers of great tales everywhere!
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Listmania!
|
|
