Accessibility Tools

  • Content scaling 100%
  • Font size 100%
  • Line height 100%
  • Letter spacing 100%
Poetry

Beowulf by Stephen Mitchell

by •
March 2018, no. 399

Beowulf by Stephen Mitchell

Yale University Press (Footprint), $44.99 hb, 256 pp, 9780300228885

Poetry

Beowulf by Stephen Mitchell

by •
March 2018, no. 399

The Old English Beowulf, the most important poem in English before Chaucer, was probably composed in the eighth century. The poem traces Beowulf’s three fights against the monster Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon. The dragon is defeated, but Beowulf also dies in the battle. The poem ends with an elegiac lament not just for the loss of its hero, but also for the dissolution of the society that he represents.

The language, grammar, and syntax of Old English are so removed from present-day English that most people must experience the poem via a translation, and there have been many of these. The latest is by Stephen Mitchell, a very experienced translator, whose works include translations of the Iliad, Gilgamesh, the Bhagavad Gita, and the Tao Te Ching.

Leave a comment
Bruce Moore

Bruce Moore, editor of the second edition of the Australian National Dictionary (2016), was director of the Australian National Dictionary Centre from 1994 to 2011. His recent publications include What's Their Story: A History of Australian Words (OUP, 2010), The Australian Concise Oxford Dictionary 5th edn (OUP, 2009), Speaking Our Language: The Story of Australian English (OUP, 2008), The Australian Pocket Oxford Dictionary, 6th edn (OUP, 2007), Australian Aboriginal Words in English 2nd edn, R.M.W. Dixon, Bruce Moore, W.S. Ramson, & Mandy Thomas (OUP, 2006).

From the New Issue

You May Also Like

Comment (1)

  • A good review and a useful discussion of translation issues. It would be interesting to know the extent of translator Mitchell's knowledge of Old English. Given the wide linguistic range of his other translations (Ancient Greek, Sanskrit, Chinese) one wonders how much he himself draws on the work of others, or whether he is one of those impressive intellects skilled in many languages. I agree with reviewer Moore that the Beowulf translations of Alexander and Heaney stand out, but even better is Alexander's Penguin Glossed Text of the poem whereby the reader (with a fair amount of work) can find their way into the original - Old English text on the left hand page, glossary on the right. Sydney Uni taught me Old English, Old Norse and Middle English in the 1960s, and, happily, I see it is still teaching others the same.
    Posted by Robert Wills
    01 March 2018

Leave a comment

If you are an ABR subscriber, you will need to sign in to post a comment.

If you have forgotten your sign in details, or if you receive an error message when trying to submit your comment, please email your comment (and the name of the article to which it relates) to ABR Comments. We will review your comment and, subject to approval, we will post it under your name.

Please note that all comments must be approved by ABR and comply with our Terms & Conditions.