This paper considers John Florio’s famous translation of Montaigne’s Essays as a source of invalu... more This paper considers John Florio’s famous translation of Montaigne’s Essays as a source of invaluable insight into the Elizabethan practice and theory of translation. In the letter addressed to the reader, Florio strongly advocates the use of translation as a means of advancing knowledge and developing the language and culture of a nation. Echoing the Elizabethan debate between the defenders and detractors of translation, his preface provides precious information on the various Elizabethan understandings of the role of translation. Casting himself in the role of a “foster-father”, Florio foregrounds the idea of translation as rewriting of the original text into a new creation. While most scholars have emphasised solely Florio’s augmentation of Montaigne’s text and his fondness for addition, paraphrase and alliteration, the present paper intends to demonstrate that this dimension of his translation is frequently complemented by Florio’s tendency to render the text closely, even word ...
The new political vision advanced by Niccolò Machia velli in Il Principe represented a radical sh... more The new political vision advanced by Niccolò Machia velli in Il Principe represented a radical shift in the early modern po litical discourse. Investigating such topics as the logic o f power, the use of cruelty, the honestum/utile dichotomy and asserting the insufficiency of theological and moral imperatives to meet the rhetorical concerns of effective political action, Machiavelli provoked a disruption in the Renaissance understand ing of politics, power and ethics. This essay considers Michel de Mo ntaigne’s response to two important Machiavellian themes – th e honourable/useful distinction and the prince’s use of cruelty – and argues that Montaigne adopts a different, at times ambiguous, stance towards these issues. On the one hand, Monta igne’s treatment of the use of deceit in political life se ems to share Machiavelli’s views on the divorce of ethical princ iples from practical ones in the realm of politics, although h e is quite adamant that there should be a difference betw...
The present paper sets out to emphasise the important ideological function of translations in the... more The present paper sets out to emphasise the important ideological function of translations in the nineteenth-century Romanian principalities by illustrating the way in which sociocultural factors, ideology, the dominant poetics and politics shaped and influenced the first Romanian translations of Julius Caesar (1844) and Macbeth (1850). The two translations share important characteristics such as the option for a verbatim translation and the Frenchifying of the text. I aim to demonstrate that these processes were meant to shore up not only the dominant poetics but also the revolutionary ideology of the time, which aimed to assert the Romanians’ national identity by emphasising their Latin origins. Moreover, I will consider the two plays’ topicality, in both Wallachia and Moldavia, on the eve and in the aftermath of the 1848 Romanian revolution.
The exploration of the multifarious ways in which cultural reworkings and translations have been ... more The exploration of the multifarious ways in which cultural reworkings and translations have been involved in the transmission and circulation of various discourses, concepts and ideas in different historical periods and places, has become one of the most productive fields of inquiry in Early Modern Studies. Both translation and cultural reworking have been understood as forms of rewriting that involve altering, reinterpreting and adapting texts (Fischlin&Fortier, 2000; Lefevere, 1992). The main difference between the two concepts lies in their relation to the text/texts they are supposed to rewrite. Thus, translations are related to more direct and evident means of appropriation and rewriting, most often acknowledging themselves as attempts to render a specific text from one language/culture into another. Cultural reworkings, on the other hand, presuppose the appropriation and remaking of various texts and discourses in a more indirect manner, without necessarily pointing to the par...
American, British and Canadian Studies Journal, 2014
Translation has been essential to the development of languages and cultures throughout the centur... more Translation has been essential to the development of languages and cultures throughout the centuries, particularly in the early modern period when it became a cornerstone of the process of transition from Latin to vernacular productions, in such countries as France, Italy, England and Spain. This process was accompanied by a growing interest in defining the rules and features of the practice of translation. The present article aims to examine the principles that underlay the highly intertextual early modern translation theory by considering its classical sources and development. It focuses on subjects that were constantly reiterated in any discussion about translation: the debate concerning the best methods of translation, the sense-for-sense/ word-for-word dichotomy - a topos that can be traced to the discourse on translation initiated by Cicero and Horace and was further developed by the Church fathers, notably St. Jerome, and eventually inherited by both medieval and Renaissance ...
The paper investigates the factors contributing to the recent surge in popularity of Shakespeare&... more The paper investigates the factors contributing to the recent surge in popularity of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet on the Romanian stage. One possible explanation lies in the play's adaptability and relevance to present-day concerns coupled with the opportunities for creative reimagining offered by its canonical Romanian translation. The article posits that directors and playwrights have engaged in a fruitful "collaboration with the dead" (Leitch 19), breathing new life into the classic text by means of different forms of rewriting. Specifically, the paper discusses two recent versions of Romeo and Juliet staged in Bucharest, at Teatrul Mic in 2018 and at Teatrul Odeon in 2021, and focuses on the process of rewriting Shakespeare’s text in the form of a theatre adaptation and of a radical appropriation.
Cahiers Élisabéthains: A Journal of English Renaissance Studies, 2020
speare Library (27 June 2017), www.folger.edu/shakespeare-unlimited/phyllida-lloyd-allfemale-shak... more speare Library (27 June 2017), www.folger.edu/shakespeare-unlimited/phyllida-lloyd-allfemale-shakespeare (accessed 28 June 2020). ‘Harriet Walter as Hannah Wake from The Tempest’, St Ann’s Warehouse (6 January 2017), www. youtube.com/watch?v=CxBoNnBJ6AE (accessed 28 June 2020). ‘Prison Theatre Project Moves from Stage to Screen’, York St John University (15 June 2018), www.yorksj.ac.uk/news/2018/prison-theatre-project/ (accessed 28 June 2020).
This paper considers John Florio’s famous translation of Montaigne’s Essays as a source of invalu... more This paper considers John Florio’s famous translation of Montaigne’s Essays as a source of invaluable insight into the Elizabethan practice and theory of translation. In the letter addressed to the reader, Florio strongly advocates the use of translation as a means of advancing knowledge and developing the language and culture of a nation. Echoing the Elizabethan debate between the defenders and detractors of translation, his preface provides precious information on the various Elizabethan understandings of the role of translation. Casting himself in the role of a “foster-father”, Florio foregrounds the idea of translation as rewriting of the original text into a new creation. While most scholars have emphasised solely Florio’s augmentation of Montaigne’s text and his fondness for addition, paraphrase and alliteration, the present paper intends to demonstrate that this dimension of his translation is frequently complemented by Florio’s tendency to render the text closely, even word ...
The new political vision advanced by Niccolò Machia velli in Il Principe represented a radical sh... more The new political vision advanced by Niccolò Machia velli in Il Principe represented a radical shift in the early modern po litical discourse. Investigating such topics as the logic o f power, the use of cruelty, the honestum/utile dichotomy and asserting the insufficiency of theological and moral imperatives to meet the rhetorical concerns of effective political action, Machiavelli provoked a disruption in the Renaissance understand ing of politics, power and ethics. This essay considers Michel de Mo ntaigne’s response to two important Machiavellian themes – th e honourable/useful distinction and the prince’s use of cruelty – and argues that Montaigne adopts a different, at times ambiguous, stance towards these issues. On the one hand, Monta igne’s treatment of the use of deceit in political life se ems to share Machiavelli’s views on the divorce of ethical princ iples from practical ones in the realm of politics, although h e is quite adamant that there should be a difference betw...
The present paper sets out to emphasise the important ideological function of translations in the... more The present paper sets out to emphasise the important ideological function of translations in the nineteenth-century Romanian principalities by illustrating the way in which sociocultural factors, ideology, the dominant poetics and politics shaped and influenced the first Romanian translations of Julius Caesar (1844) and Macbeth (1850). The two translations share important characteristics such as the option for a verbatim translation and the Frenchifying of the text. I aim to demonstrate that these processes were meant to shore up not only the dominant poetics but also the revolutionary ideology of the time, which aimed to assert the Romanians’ national identity by emphasising their Latin origins. Moreover, I will consider the two plays’ topicality, in both Wallachia and Moldavia, on the eve and in the aftermath of the 1848 Romanian revolution.
The exploration of the multifarious ways in which cultural reworkings and translations have been ... more The exploration of the multifarious ways in which cultural reworkings and translations have been involved in the transmission and circulation of various discourses, concepts and ideas in different historical periods and places, has become one of the most productive fields of inquiry in Early Modern Studies. Both translation and cultural reworking have been understood as forms of rewriting that involve altering, reinterpreting and adapting texts (Fischlin&Fortier, 2000; Lefevere, 1992). The main difference between the two concepts lies in their relation to the text/texts they are supposed to rewrite. Thus, translations are related to more direct and evident means of appropriation and rewriting, most often acknowledging themselves as attempts to render a specific text from one language/culture into another. Cultural reworkings, on the other hand, presuppose the appropriation and remaking of various texts and discourses in a more indirect manner, without necessarily pointing to the par...
American, British and Canadian Studies Journal, 2014
Translation has been essential to the development of languages and cultures throughout the centur... more Translation has been essential to the development of languages and cultures throughout the centuries, particularly in the early modern period when it became a cornerstone of the process of transition from Latin to vernacular productions, in such countries as France, Italy, England and Spain. This process was accompanied by a growing interest in defining the rules and features of the practice of translation. The present article aims to examine the principles that underlay the highly intertextual early modern translation theory by considering its classical sources and development. It focuses on subjects that were constantly reiterated in any discussion about translation: the debate concerning the best methods of translation, the sense-for-sense/ word-for-word dichotomy - a topos that can be traced to the discourse on translation initiated by Cicero and Horace and was further developed by the Church fathers, notably St. Jerome, and eventually inherited by both medieval and Renaissance ...
The paper investigates the factors contributing to the recent surge in popularity of Shakespeare&... more The paper investigates the factors contributing to the recent surge in popularity of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet on the Romanian stage. One possible explanation lies in the play's adaptability and relevance to present-day concerns coupled with the opportunities for creative reimagining offered by its canonical Romanian translation. The article posits that directors and playwrights have engaged in a fruitful "collaboration with the dead" (Leitch 19), breathing new life into the classic text by means of different forms of rewriting. Specifically, the paper discusses two recent versions of Romeo and Juliet staged in Bucharest, at Teatrul Mic in 2018 and at Teatrul Odeon in 2021, and focuses on the process of rewriting Shakespeare’s text in the form of a theatre adaptation and of a radical appropriation.
Cahiers Élisabéthains: A Journal of English Renaissance Studies, 2020
speare Library (27 June 2017), www.folger.edu/shakespeare-unlimited/phyllida-lloyd-allfemale-shak... more speare Library (27 June 2017), www.folger.edu/shakespeare-unlimited/phyllida-lloyd-allfemale-shakespeare (accessed 28 June 2020). ‘Harriet Walter as Hannah Wake from The Tempest’, St Ann’s Warehouse (6 January 2017), www. youtube.com/watch?v=CxBoNnBJ6AE (accessed 28 June 2020). ‘Prison Theatre Project Moves from Stage to Screen’, York St John University (15 June 2018), www.yorksj.ac.uk/news/2018/prison-theatre-project/ (accessed 28 June 2020).
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