ENGL 4301:002
Winter 1999-2000

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HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT #6

The passage below is from King Alfred's translation of Boethius. It's part of a well-known classical myth.

Your assignment (due in class Mon. 10 January) has several components:

  1. Make a word-by-word literal translation of the passage.
  2. Make a more idiomatic translation into Modern English.
  3. Write a brief essay that addresses these questions: what are the most salient differences between this Old English and your idiomatic Modern English version of the passage, in terms of word order and vocabulary? What are the strangest things about the Old English passage? What are the most familiar things?

You get a glossary with this assignment. You should be able to understand unglossed words, after some educated guessing.

The letter þ represents the sound of modern "th." The letter g is a sound close to modern /y/. "ge-" at the beginning of a word is the marker of the past tense or past participle.

 

 

PASSAGE:

Hit gelamp gio ðætte an hearpere wæs . . . se hearpere wæs swiðe ungefræglice good, ðæs nama wæs Orfeus; he hæfde an swiðe ænlic wif, sio wæs haten Eurudice. Ða ongon mon secgan be ðam hearpere þæt he meahte hearpian þæt se wudu wagode, ond þa stanas hi styredon for ðy swege, ond wildu dior ðær woldon to irnan ond stondan, swilce hi tamu wæren, swa stille, ðeah him men oððe hundas wið eoden, ðæt hi hi na ne onscunedon. Ða sædon hi þæt ðæs hearperes wif sceolde acwelan ond hire saule mon sceolde lædan to helle. Ða sceolde se hearpere weorðan swa sarig þæt he ne meahte ongemong oðrum mannum bion, ac teah to wuda, ond sæt on ðæm muntum ægðer ge dæges ge nihtes, weop ond hearpode, ðæt ða wudas bifedon, ond ða ea stodon, ond nan heort ne onscunode nanne leon, ne nan hara nænne hund, ne nan neat nyste nænne andanne nænne ege to oðrum, for ðære mergðe ðæs sones. . . .