The King's English
Subtitle: strategies of translation in the Old English Boethius
By: Nicole Discenza.
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Published: 2005
Place of publication: Albany
Language: eng
Number of pages: 224
Subjects: Alfred, King of England, 849-899.; Alfred, King of England, 849-899 -- Knowledge -- Language and languages.; Boethius, d 524 -- Translations into English -- History and criticism.; Boethius, d 524.; Latin language -- Translating into English -- History -- To 1500.; Translating and interpreting -- England -- History -- To 1500.; English language -- Old English, ca. 450-1100 -- Style.
Description: "In the late ninth century, while England was fighting off Viking incursions, Alfred the Great devoted time and resources not only to military campaigns but also to a campaign of translation and education unprecedented in early medieval Europe. The King's English explores how Alfred's translation of Boethius's Consolation of Philosophy from Latin into Old English exposed Anglo-Saxon elites to classical literature, history, science, and Christian thought. More radically, the Boethius, as it became known, told its audiences how a leader should think and what he should be, providing models for leadership and wisdom that live on in England to this day. It also brought prestige to its kingly translator and enshrined his dialect, West Saxon, as the literary language of the English people." "Nicole Guenther Discenza looks at the sources Alfred used in his translation and demonstrates his selectivity in choosing what to retain, what to borrow, and how to represent it to his Anglo-Saxon audience."--Jacket.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 199-212) and indexes.