- Paperback: 402 pages
- Publisher: Virago Press Ltd; New edition edition (6 Nov 2003)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1844080811
- ISBN-13: 978-1844080816
- Product Dimensions: 12.6 x 19.8 x 2.9 cm
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 219,664 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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* 'A stunning writer' HAROLD BLOOM, PARIS REVIEW * 'Carson writes in a language any poet would kill for: sensuous and funny, poignant, musical and tender, brilliantly lighted' RUTH PADEL, NY TIMES BOOK REVIEW * 'A truly great poet of the 21st century' REBECCA WOOLF, TIME OUT * 'If she was a prose writer, she would be instantly recognised as a genius' COLM TOIBIN, TLS
New Books Magazine
'Sappho herself shines through...A lovely lyrical feel... fascinating'
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Sappho is notoriously problematic to bring into the modern world - we have a bare handful of complete or semi-complete poems and some odd lines. Often we only know the odd lines because some centuries-later scribe quoted a text from her to illustrate an entirely unconnectedly point of usage, so we are left hopelessly short of context as to what the line could possibly have meant. After that there are just dozens of pathetic scraps of papyrus with odd words and half-words.
She had a spectacular reputation in ancient times, however, and there's no doubting the depth of her human sensitivities nor the range of her output.
Various translators have made their best efforts to live with these flimsiest of materials and come up with some fashion of a response to open Sappho's exquisite subtleties to the modern reader. Many of these efforts fail through trying much too hard. Anne Carson however succeeds wonderfully by shooting low. She provides a terse and finely written introduction, and gives a carefully literal but not unpoetic translation of every word that's complete. She is willing to hazard some guesses regarding words that aren't complete, but this is done judiciously in that as soon as there's a genuine ambiguity she steps back and leave the Greek fragment to speak for itself.
You are left with a charming edition, understated and yet deeply evocative of the challenges faced by this very talented woman who lived such a full and rewarding emotional life.
She had a spectacular reputation in ancient times, however, and there's no doubting the depth of her human sensitivities nor the range of her output.
Various translators have made their best efforts to live with these flimsiest of materials and come up with some fashion of a response to open Sappho's exquisite subtleties to the modern reader. Many of these efforts fail through trying much too hard. Anne Carson however succeeds wonderfully by shooting low. She provides a terse and finely written introduction, and gives a carefully literal but not unpoetic translation of every word that's complete. She is willing to hazard some guesses regarding words that aren't complete, but this is done judiciously in that as soon as there's a genuine ambiguity she steps back and leave the Greek fragment to speak for itself.
You are left with a charming edition, understated and yet deeply evocative of the challenges faced by this very talented woman who lived such a full and rewarding emotional life.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Anne Carson's translation, and the excellent typesetting of the original fragments alongside them, combine in a wonderful edition that really is no less that Sappho deserves.
Others are better qualified to comment on the translation itself, but I certainly consider that Carson achieved her objective of transparent translation, in which the translator is largely absent.
The typesetting of this edition (each of the fragments is printed in full in greek, then in translation on the facing page, with the text of each aligned according to what is understood of the orientation of the fragment) is another great strength, and I was particularly struck by the way in which some of the fragments - where much of the original poem is lost - have been transformed into Kerouac-esque beat poetry by their losses.
The notes which appear the end of the book provide a jumping off point for further reading, and complete a strong package.
Others are better qualified to comment on the translation itself, but I certainly consider that Carson achieved her objective of transparent translation, in which the translator is largely absent.
The typesetting of this edition (each of the fragments is printed in full in greek, then in translation on the facing page, with the text of each aligned according to what is understood of the orientation of the fragment) is another great strength, and I was particularly struck by the way in which some of the fragments - where much of the original poem is lost - have been transformed into Kerouac-esque beat poetry by their losses.
The notes which appear the end of the book provide a jumping off point for further reading, and complete a strong package.
Format:Paperback
This is a really useful edition of Sappho because its one of the view complete ones, meaning that it includes all the fragments - even those where there's only about three words!
Previously I was using M. L. West's translation in 'Greek Lyric Poetry' but this translation is way more literal, and also makes a 'good read, as much as a collection of fragments ever can!
It has very detailed and useful notes (whereas the West one barely has any) and the completeness of the collection was great because I kept finding that the West translation would be missing fragments I needed - you never know when that one-liner is going to make you're essay!
Also its quite useful having the Greek on facing pages, because even if you only have a very limited knowledge of Greek its nice to be able to notice particular word choices.
My final point about this book is that its got a nice layout and feel. Its deceptively large in size because some pages literally only have one line on them, but this makes it quite easy to read, whereas in the West edition Sappho's fragments are put together in one continuous sprawl over 13 pages, which is really quite confusing when you're dealing with fragments.
Previously I was using M. L. West's translation in 'Greek Lyric Poetry' but this translation is way more literal, and also makes a 'good read, as much as a collection of fragments ever can!
It has very detailed and useful notes (whereas the West one barely has any) and the completeness of the collection was great because I kept finding that the West translation would be missing fragments I needed - you never know when that one-liner is going to make you're essay!
Also its quite useful having the Greek on facing pages, because even if you only have a very limited knowledge of Greek its nice to be able to notice particular word choices.
My final point about this book is that its got a nice layout and feel. Its deceptively large in size because some pages literally only have one line on them, but this makes it quite easy to read, whereas in the West edition Sappho's fragments are put together in one continuous sprawl over 13 pages, which is really quite confusing when you're dealing with fragments.
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