Robert Alter’s version has taken decades to produce. He makes the case for a more literary rendering of the ancient text
IN 1997 Gary Paul Morson, an American professor of Slavic literature, reflected on the work of Constance Garnett, the translator who introduced Tolstoy, Chekhov and Dostoevsky to the English-speaking world. “Every time someone else redoes one of these works,” he wrote, “reviewers say that the new version replaces Garnett; and then another version comes out, which, apparently, replaces Garnett again, and so on.
A new, complete translation seeks to set itself apart from both the King James version and from modern translations. Robert Alter first rendered the Book of Genesis in English in the 1990s, with no “quixotic” plan, in his words, to take on the whole Hebrew Bible. A professor of Hebrew and comparative literature at the University of California, Berkeley, Mr Alter had long argued that the literary aspects of biblical prose and poetry had been overlooked by scholars.
“The Art of Bible Translation” focuses on five main linguistic elements: syntax, word choice, sound play and word play, rhythm and the language of dialogue. For each of these, Mr Alter provides examples that illustrate the challenges involved, showing how a literary sensibility can affect the outcome for the better. The story of Jacob and Esau, for example, is used to demonstrate the importance of maintaining the original word choice.
Mr Alter rightly notes that many recent translations seem a bit detached from modern literature. Still, there are instances in which a greater sensitivity to pop culture would have benefitted his own work. After King Saul fails to obey the word of God, and takes his enemies’ sheep and cattle rather than killing them outright, he is informed by the prophet Samuel that he has fallen out of favour.
Mr Alter’s translation is unlikely to unseat the King James version, if only for reasons of historical attachment. Yet even if it is sometimes hard to share in Mr Alter’s outrage at the “egregious choices” some other Bible translations have made, his argument for a more literary rendering is sound and convincing. “The Art of Bible Translation” is a compelling book, which demonstrates both the extent of Mr Alter’s mastery and the degree of care and attention he put into this momentous project.
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