Ah, Odysseus. What a guy. Fagles' translation introduces Odysseus as a "man of twists and turns" (1.1.) But how does one deserve the title of "man of twists and turns"? Does this title hold a positive connotation? negative? how do I perceive this silly-sounding title?
Let's start in the beginning, when the Odyssey existed only in Ancient Greek. Here lies the first problem: I have no idea where I would find an original Ancient Greek Odyssey, nor would I have any idea how to read it. Thankfully, there are many different translations of the Odyssey now, which I am able to read and comprehend (sort of). But, because the Odyssey exists in many translated forms, Odysseus isn't always given the same title/description.
Samuel Butler translated Odysseus as "[the] ingenious hero" (1.1.), and Rieu and Rieu's translation describes Odysseus as "[the] very resourceful man" (1.1). I read these two translations as being positive. I hear the words "ingenious" and "resourceful" and think of someone who is creative and smart, someone who is clever and knows how to handle situations tactfully and efficiently. And these traits to describe Odysseus. He knows how the "play the game" and use his cunning plots to evade danger (for the most part) and allow him to rise to the top. Pretty cool and heroic, huh?
On the other end of the spectrum, Allen Mandelbaum has a more negative translation with Odysseus being "the man of many wiles" (1.1). I see this translation as still portraying Odysseus as a smart and clever character, but now he is also deceptive (going off of the Merriam-Webster definition of "wile").
And now somewhere in the middle, Richmond Lattimore translations Odysseus as "the man of many ways" (1.1). Talk about open-ended. This title is so extremely broad. This translation introduces Odysseus in a more vague sense, similar to Fagles' "man of twists and turns." I like these two translations because I think it allows for more interpretation of Odysseus; there is no preconceived notion regard Odysseus, the reader is able to determine what "twists and turns," and "many ways" means to them. And in my case, I see Odysseus as being super smart (the gods are even amazed at how cunning and clever he is). He is resourceful and perseveres on his journey home, he is able to take back his throne, etc. But, as I read through the Odyssey, I felt that Odysseus was a lil bit self-centered and deceptive. I personally feel like Odysseus fits the frame that Mandelbaum creates in his opening line of the Odyssey.
Fagles, Robert, translator. The Odyssey. By Homer, Penguin Classics, 1999.
Lattimore, Richmond, translator. The Odyssey. By Homer, Harper Classics, 2007.
Mandelbaum, Allen, translator. The Odyssey. By Homer, Bantam Classics, 1991.
E. V., translator. The Odyssey. By Homer, Penguin Classics, 2003.
Good research on multiple translations!! It's interesting to think about what else could be different in a different translations, and what could be lost. Maybe the reason our class seems to be so cynical of Odysseus is just Fagles' language staying in our subconscious. For me the "Twists and turns" seems pretty shady, and I agree that resourceful and ingenious are endearing terms. Good post.
ReplyDeletelol i love the title of this post
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It really is interesting how much ground different translations cover. You'd think that a single epithet could only have so many variations, but nooo. It makes you wonder how different everything else is, too. Would Telemachus and Odysseus have come across as less morally gray characters if we'd used a different translation? I think the first translation of the Odyssey I read made about a billion references to Odysseus and others being anointed, and yet it doesn't come up even once in Fagles' version. Hm. Maybe Fagles assumed modern readers would find it too culturally alien and emasculating that a bunch of dudes keep getting rubbed down with oil in each other's houses. Or I'm remembering the wrong book, but eh. Whatever.
Odysseus is bathed and anointed with oils a few different times throughout his travels, but (at least in the Fagles translation) it's always women servants who are doing the anointing. We get a few different references to him stepping from the bath looking like a gleaming god--it's sort of the mortal version of Athena "lavishing splendor." Also, it's good hospitality!
DeleteFor what it's worth, the word used in the original Greek is πολύτροπος. I, too, do not speak Ancient Greek, so I can't speak to the minute connotations, but Tufts Greek dictionary says it means "much-turned" and google translate says "multimode". Regardless, I think you're right to get us thinking about what influence the translator has on how we understand the whole story. We're kind of relying on him to relay the story as accurately as he can, but no one can help bringing in their own biases. Who knows what is shaded or obscured?
ReplyDeleteAfter seeing a few other translations you've found, it does seem like there's a connotation of cunning and deception. But while we might be uneasy about such a descriptor, the characters in The Odyssey seem to be admired for this trait. Athena and Odysseus have a mutual appreciation (almost an affection on Athena's part) for one another's wily abilities, and Penelope is shown to have a cunning side as well. While we as readers might not interpret being "a man of twists and turns" as a good thing, the ancient Greek audience may have instead seen a very positive trait in Odysseus.
ReplyDeleteWooah I didn't know there were so many different translations -that's pretty interesting! I agree with the two open ended translations being nice since it lets the reader decide how they want to interpret it. But at least for me, I see him as very cunning, but also clever so I guess theres a bit of negative and positive connotation to each one and something like "twists and turns" sums it up nicely leaving room for both possibilities.
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