Antigone Lecture 2 Response
Something that has always interested me is how goods and services and literature moves across the world without the aid of electronics. The way that the papyrus was found with ancient works in a different country across a sea is fascinating. How did it get there? Who thought it was important enough to bring? Maybe it was just brought as some seafarer’s companion while traveling. Another thing I think about a lot is how did translating originally occur? Did people just learn multiple languages as a child and those people served as translators? Or were there ancient methods of communicating what was what. For example, was Antigone translated originally during the time it was performed? Or did it take many more years to find someone who spoke ancient Greek and the desired language. The other fascinating piece about translation is the line that switched from Ismene to Anitgone. Why was this done? Was it by accident, a mere error in transcription, or was it purposeful due to Iseme’s past. There is also the issue with a line similar to that of another work. Again, was it added purposely or accidentally? I think it must have been purposeful, as I believe these works were proofread. They had to have been. If they were not, it is possible that someone transcribing the work simply had the line on their mind, and proceeded to write it down without thinking. Regardless of the source, it is cool to think how it was absorbed into the text.
I definitely agree on your comments about the mistranslation in the line meant for Ismene that was given to Antigone. It leaves me wondering about the truth behind it, too. I talked about it in my response, but I also cannot imagine how such an obvious mistake could be missed across multiple different translations. Leads me to think it must have been purposeful.
ReplyDeleteIt's crazy to think about all of the translations over the centuries and I particularly thought your comment about wondering what the actual truth is. I think about that a lot when it comes to history that has been passed down over the years as well.
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