BEOWULF AND OTHER OLD ENGLISH POEMS Translated/edited by Constance B. Hieatt. Bantham Classics 1967, revised 1983 edition.
I have several editions of Beowulf around, and this is probably the worst of them. It is a tired lethargic translation that strips the greatest early poetry in the English Language to the most basic and simplistic of prose. What shines through is the unshakeable quality of the story itself. Beowulf’s battle with the dreadful monster Grendel, and later with his vengeful mother is captivating. The hero tries to relive his former glory when he is just too old to accomplish the task, and dies a noble death as his son helps to end the truly terrifying monsters once and for all. At least he dies knowing that the monsters have finally been vanquished once and for all. Later the son manages to avoid making the same mistake when further danger threatens his people. He knows that he is not as young and fit for engaging the enemy alone as once before, and so he is triumphant. The story is gloriously violent, and the tone of the story is morbid and doom laden throughout. The claustrophobic atmosphere of the battle in the deep dark swamp water is thrilling despite the poor translation work. Of course, no one could hold his or her breath so long as Beowulf manages, but that is part of the myth itself.
This edition of one of the earliest and finest examples of English literature remains interesting for the author’s addition of an eclectic mix of bits from other stories and fragments of records from battles, legends and prayers, - that the translation is bad is highlighted even by the translator who includes side by side with some of his work, alternative, earlier and vastly superior translations by Ezra Pound and Alfred Lord Tennyson. This edition is worth having around to flick through and also to remind you how it shouldn't be done. Hopefully this won't be most people's first introduction to Beowulf or the other wonderful works cited. http://www.humanities.mcmaster.ca/~beowulf/main.html
A recent CGI heavy film version of the myth makes further travesty of the story, with Grendel's mother being replaced by a glamorous sorceress, played in voice and seduction skill by Angelique Jolie, and no regard for the literary ending to the story.
Arthur Chappell
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