Seamus Heaney's Beowulf

[Aoibhill]

I just picked up a copy of this translation as inspiration for an upcoming RPG, and it made me very happy.

I've read Beowulf a few times, mostly for college classes, and while it was never dull, the other versions I've read were quite dry. Heaney, however, has done a brilliant job using language that's both clear and suitable, drawing the reader in rather than holding him an arm's length away. There's still a bit of a sense of detachment--a poem is a very different structure to a story, and so feels somewhat alien--but still well worth reading.

[Something Else]

I would agree with this assessment. The story was definitely a bit detached, but it's a nice translation, and a nice edition of the book...

[Alison Chains]

It was translated by a poet, as opposed to an academic, and boy it shows!!

[litlfrog]

Say, that reminds me . . .

http://www.bagbybeowulf.com/index.html

I've been waiting for this DVD to come out since I saw Bagby in performance a few years ago. He performs "Beowulf" in Old English, accompanying himself on harp. His vocal choices work really well; Bagby uses a mixture of recitation, singing, and chant that I found absolutely hypnotic. A modern translation is projected on a screen during performances; the DVD, of course, has subtitles.

[Aoibhill]

Say, that reminds me . . .

http://www.bagbybeowulf.com/index.html

I've been waiting for this DVD to come out since I saw Bagby in performance a few years ago. He performs "Beowulf" in Old English, accompanying himself on harp. His vocal choices work really well; Bagby uses a mixture of recitation, singing, and chant that I found absolutely hypnotic. A modern translation is projected on a screen during performances; the DVD, of course, has subtitles.

Oh, wow! Will have to see if I can find this.

[Fritzef]

Say, that reminds me . . .

http://www.bagbybeowulf.com/index.html

I've been waiting for this DVD to come out since I saw Bagby in performance a few years ago. He performs "Beowulf" in Old English, accompanying himself on harp. His vocal choices work really well; Bagby uses a mixture of recitation, singing, and chant that I found absolutely hypnotic. A modern translation is projected on a screen during performances; the DVD, of course, has subtitles.

Yeah, hypnotic is a good word. It's an unusual experience, at least the live version (haven't seen the DVD).

On the Heaney front, it's a very fine translation. Sometimes, though, I find I prefer a prose version. Ultimately, they tend to be closer to the sense of the original. Also, if you end up using Beowulf in teaching, students find the prose versions easier. And make no mistake, there's a lot of Beowulf-hate and resistance to reading it out there. IIRC, Woody Allen makes fun of it in Annie Hall and my local newspaper started its review of the pretty awful Beowulf movie of last year by saying how much better it was than being forced to read the poem. Of course, the film reviewers for the paper are pretty much idiots.