English Translations from the Greek: A Bibliographical Survey

English Translations from the Greek: A Bibliographical Survey

The history of English translation from the Greek is almost coincident with the history of English printing. In 1477 William Caxton set up his press in London and from that press in 1484 he issued his own translation of Aesop's Fables. The real beginning of serious translation, as is very evident from the chart accompanying this section, was made in the decade 1530-1540. From that time until the time of the Civil War and the Protectorate there was a steady output of translations, not many as compared with our day, but a proportion consistent with the size of the reading public of the time. In the one hundred and thirty years between 1520 and 1650, one hundred and seventy-nine translations were published. Of these one hundred and fourteen were new translations and sixty-five were reprintings. That two-thirds of the total number are new translations is not surprising; for with the awakening of interest in Greek which took place during these years, men could not turn to translations made in former years. For this reason they had to satisfy the demand for knowledge of Greek literature in the English language by producing their own translations and reprinting these as the demand required. That the reprints amounted to one-half of the production of original translations is interesting as showing that the demand for translations was not equalled by a supply of new ones and that translations must have been popular. Printers have never [pg xiv] been inclined to be sentimental in regard to publishing books and any over-enthusiasm a translator may have in regard to his author is sure to be checked by the monetary standards of the publisher. For this reason I would suggest that the publishers during the latter part of the sixteenth and the first part of the seventeenth century evidently found Greek translations a paying proposition; if they had not, they would not have ventured to place so many translations before a very limited reading public. All this seems to add one more evidence to the already established dictum that the Renaissance readers in England were much interested in Greek literature. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 48950
Author: Foster, Finley Melville Kendall
Release Date: May 12, 2015
Format: eBook
Language: English