Reviews
Maldon & Other Translations by Michael Smith
Shearsman Books, 58 Velwell Road, Exeter, EX4 4LD, www.shearsman.com and New Writer's Press, 61 Clarence Road, Dublin 8. ISBN 0-907562-60-4 154pp £9.95
All translations are open to question, not only as regards their accuracy but sometimes as to the reason for their existence. Michael Smith has produced a thematically mixed bag, an Anglo-Saxon classic, two 18th Century Irish poems, and 250 flamenco lyrics.
In a brief note Smith discloses some of his reasons for translating Maldon. Perhaps the only justifiable reasons are to either correct errors in other translations or to recast the piece in an approachable manner that will attract readers who are not students of Anglo-Saxon history or literature. To a large degree Smith has achieved this second task. It should be noted that his effort is labelled 'a version' rather than a translation. It is certainly a readable version that could entice modern readers to try other Saxon classics such a Widsith and Deor, The Ruin, or even Beowulf. However anyone who is already familiar with the literature of that era may find that some of the magic is missing from Smith's version. This is apparent if comparisons are made to other versions of Maldon or other translations of Saxon pieces. Smith's piece lacks any kennings, uses the word Viking in a largely anachronistic way, contains one dreadful line - lay low on the battlefieldo - and has each half-line appearing on a new line of text. Not that this should worry the general reader too much as it is still a robust and enjoyable piece.
The two Irish pieces, The Lament for Art O'Leary and Sean O'Dwyer of the Glen, are historical pieces that describe real people and events. They are devoid of the Ossianic style of mythology that flows out of Ireland but they do seem to possess a mythic feel of their own. They are inherently interesting in as much as they are concerned with periods of Irish history that may not be familiar to most people. Their readability makes them good companions to Maldon.
Smith's endurance in translating 250 flamenco lyrics is to be admired. His decision to do so must be questioned, quite simply there are too many of them. Another problem is that even Smith, in an interesting but overly long introduction to them, quotes two references to their extemporaneous nature. They are ephemeral and it would appear that authentic flamenco should be new at each performance. The subject matter of these lyrics is love, either unrequited or rejected. There is very little poetic merit to any of the lyrics and whilst a selection of about 30 may have been of passing interest to the general reader, 250 is overkill.
Page(s) 18
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