Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: Oedipus Plays of Sophocles: Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone by Paul Roche, E. A. Sophocles ISBN: 0452011671 Publisher: Plume Pub. Date: 1996 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4
Rating: 4
Summary: A Fine Example of the Translator¿s Art
Comment: I'm not sure how to rate this book. For one thing, I don't know much about Greek drama. However, in some respects no one does. Our author tried to be faithful to the original in ways he feels are important: "I have tried to walk and to run, to rise and to sit, with the Master, but never by imitation, only by analogy, transposition, re-creation." He has given us the three plays in iambic lines of varying length, with inventive syntax and vocabulary (sanctioned by the example of the original). I got annoyed with the verse at various points as it seemed just wrong: the expression seemed not to reflect the intention, and words were used (dare I say it?) sloppily. Now, I know I'm on shaky ground here. For one thing (a big thing!), I have not seen the plays performed. Moreover, our author knows the Greek, and he may be reflecting it quite closely, and my criticism should be directed at the Master. On top of that, Paul Roche, from his introduction, is clearly a good writer, so I must assume that the odd things he does he does deliberately.
But, anyway, as he says in a note on meter in the Appendix, "Indeed, the danger on the stage is not that poetry should sound monotonous but that it should not sound at all." He has quite a bit more to say on the subject, which is an important one. Sophocles wrote in an "iambic" meter rather than prose. In fact, it's possible that writing a play in prose, or good parts of it in prose, made as much sense in classical Athens as writing song lyrics in prose would now, and for roughly the same reason. While the actors may not have sung all the words, certainly the chorus was singing, and song hovered around, heightening the action.
Having said all that, I think our author does some very good things. For one thing, he does give us a good verse translation with all the choral markings - the Episodes, the Strophes and Antistrophes, with nice summaries at their heads. He brings the speech into reasonably colloquial English without sacrificing the "beat". (As an example of that, I particularly liked the byplay between Creon and the sentry in "Antigone". Here he gives the sentry a Cockney accent and Creon the voice of one of those impatient stuffed-shirts in a screwball comedy.) Overall, he achieves the right balance between vivacity of expression and dignity. His introduction and appendix are informative, opinionated, and well-written. In summary, this is an excellent version of these three plays (only a trilogy by coincidence).
Rating: 4
Summary: This Sophocles guy sure knows what he's doing
Comment: This was a lot better than I expected it to be. The reading is easier than Shakespeare - in fact, I like this more. Much of the credit must go to Paul Roche. Watching a clip of a video of these plays (under a different translation) showed that his translation was not just word for word, but - as he says in the introduction - a work of art that retains the melody of the poetry.
I found the sophistication of Shakespeare (and the multiple suicides/murders) - amazing for something written so much earlier. But what was here was something more human. Within the different but wonderful style of speaking (thanks to Sophocles) was a modern voice (thanks to Roche) that made this play not only readable but enjoyable.
Rating: 4
Summary: Very captivating
Comment: This is extraordinary story and easy to follow. It is easily comparable to modern socitey. The tragic flaws in Creon and Oedipus are very defined. This is a classic "must read" !
 |
Title: Oedipus Trilogy (Cliffs Notes) by Charles Higgins, Regina Higgins ISBN: 0764585819 Publisher: Cliffs Notes Pub. Date: 2000 List Price(USD): $5.99 |
 |
Title: Becket or the Honor of God by Jean Anouilh, Lucienne Hill, Andre Aciman ISBN: 1573225088 Publisher: Riverhead Books Pub. Date: 1996 List Price(USD): $10.00 |
 |
Title: Heart of Darkness (Penguin Great Books of the 20th Century) by Joseph Conrad, Woolley ISBN: 0140281630 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: 1999 List Price(USD): $10.00 |
 |
Title: The Discovery of Poetry: A Field Guide to Reading and Writing Poems by Frances Mayes ISBN: 0156007622 Publisher: Harvest Books Pub. Date: 09 November, 2001 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
 |
Title: Gilgamesh: A Verse Narrative by Herbert Mason, John H. Marks ISBN: 0451627180 Publisher: New American Library Pub. Date: 1989 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
