The Odyssey Translations Essay WORD
These translations are read and studied most often. Out of all these, Fitzgerald has he finest translation out of the four writers because his interpretation shows the most intriguing diction and an impeccable use Of sensory imagery. Diction is defined as the choice and use of words and phrases in writing. Fitzgerald keeps his work easy to understand, but adds picturesque words to “paint” the action for his readers.
Three lines from the following excerpt explain how Odysseus and his men are feeling after witnessing two of their men being eaten by Cyclops, a beast: ‘We cried aloud, lifting our hands to Zeus, powerless, looking on at this, appalled; but Cyclops went on filling up is belly with man flesh… ” This shows how mortified Odysseus and his men are. It astonishes them how a huge beast can and will devour two of their companions without hesitation. The key word that convinces the reader that Odysseus and his men are in true agony is the word, “powerless”.
It shows that it would be an impossible task to try and save the men from being eaten, and the men just have to stand and watch in anguish. Eagles phrases this situation with a different wording: “We flung our arms to Zeus, we wept and cried aloud, looking on at his grisly work-?paralyzed, appalled. Although this brings the message of how Odysseus and his men are shocked, Pages does not portray how miserable the men are as well as Fitzgerald does. Although he uses the words “paralyzed” and “appalled”, Eagles does not create the full effect of how the men are in misery. The sentence seems too brief to show how much pain they are all in.
Erie words this predicament differently by writing, “… While we could do nothing but weep and lift up our hands to Zeus in horror at the ghastly sight, paralyzed by your sense of utter helplessness. ” Similar to Beagles, Erie does not describe their distress as well as Fitzgerald. Although Erie’s word choice is good since he uses the word “ghastly,” Fitzgerald writing is simply more descriptive which makes his work more engaging to read. The last author, Pope, briefly mentions this scenario in his excerpt: ‘We see death from which we cannot move. ” This is the least descriptive of the four.
Pope sacrifices the description and word choice for the rhyme Of the poem. Out of these four quotes from each Of the translations, Fitzgerald has the best diction or word choice. Another reason why Fitzgerald writing is superior to the others is because his writing is so descriptive that it feels as if the reader is there and witnessing the action as it happens. For example, when the Cyclops is doing his chores, the reader can envision everything that the beast is doing. Fitzgerald describes this event by saying: the Cyclops built a fire and milked his handsome ewes, all in due order, putting suckling to the mothers. The audience can envision everything that the Cyclops and his sheep are doing at that moment in time. Erie similarly paraphrases this section of the excerpt by writing: the Cyclops lit the fire and milked his splendid ewes, all in proper order, putting her young to each. ” Erie’s version has much simpler wording, which makes visualizing easier but less detailed. If Erie replaces some words with a few more vivid images, then his work would be just as satisfying as Fitzgerald. Beagle’s translation of this part of The Odyssey is: “… He monster relict the fire and milked his handsome ewes, each in order, putting a suckling under each dam. This interpretation is even simpler than Erie’s version. It gives the message of how the Cyclops is lighting the fire and milking the ewes, but the phrasing of the excerpt does not draw the reader in because it lacks the description and narrative detail employed by Fitzgerald. Finally, pop?s translation of this situation is: “He wakes, he lights the fire, he milks the dams, and to the mother’s teats he submits the lambs. ” This interpretation is rather choppy in its flow because of the rhyme and rhythm.
