Tolkien's Beowulf - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Fordim Hedgethistle · 01-20-2006, 08:42 PM

I've got to say that I can't imagine a translation more moving and powerful than Heaney's. For years I've been watching people struggle with that initial "Hwaet!" and coming up either with silly monosyllabic, pseudo-archaisms like "Lo!" and "Hark!", or ignoring it completely. My delight was complete when I opened Heaney's version and read there simply, "So."

01-20-2006, 08:42 PM	#8
Fordim Hedgethistle Gibbering Gibbet Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Beyond cloud nine Posts: 1,844	I've got to say that I can't imagine a translation more moving and powerful than Heaney's. For years I've been watching people struggle with that initial "Hwaet!" and coming up either with silly monosyllabic, pseudo-archaisms like "Lo!" and "Hark!", or ignoring it completely. My delight was complete when I opened Heaney's version and read there simply, "So." __________________ Scribbling scrabbling.