"The Song of Songs", often referred to as the "Song of Solomon", is one of the greatest love poems of all time. In their lyrical translation, Ariel Bloch and Chana Bloch restore the sensuousness of the original language and strip away the veils of mistranslating that have obscured the power and meaning of the poem. Presented "en face", this translation is scrupulously faithful to the Hebrew text.
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"[This translation] has a crisp energy that mirrors the poem's springtime mood, and a phrasing that captures the impulsiveness and the delight of the lovers in each other and in their mutual imaginative play. . . . Next to Genesis, no book in the Hebrew Bible has had a stronger influence on Western literature than the Song of Songs. This attractive and exuberant edition helps to explain much of its power, while leaving its mystery intact."--Alicia Ostriker, "The New York Review of Books
About the Author
Ariel Bloch is Professor Emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Chana Bloch is a poet, translator, scholar, and literary critic. She is Professor of English and Director of the creative writing program at Mills College.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I bought this on the recommendation of a lecturer at the London School of Jewish Studies where I took a course on the Song of Songs. This is a truly beautiful translation which benefits from the husband and wife team, she is a poet and he is a bible scholar and they lend their respective talents to this ancient and multi-layered piece of scripture. It is presented beautifully with the Hebrew text facing the English translation followed by notes and commentary. I especially liked the absence of footnotes to the translation as this preserved the feeling of poetry in the English mirroring the Hebrew (which is in a helpful legible font, fully vowelled). I can't recommend this highly enough.
6 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
As love poetry in the midst of theology and prophecy, The Song of Songs (or "of Solomon") is an often-ignored book of scripture. This translation celebrates its important place in our faith traditions. While it is aimed for the Jewish reader, as a Christian in love I found this a moving book, and as a scholar I found the commentary useful. Thank you for showing this to me, Rebbe!
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.3 out of 5 stars
14 reviews
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Remarkable translation of "The Song of Songs"
17 April 2000
By Esther Nebenzahl
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
Reading "The Song of Songs" directly out of the Bible and reading the work of Ariel and Chana Block is a complete different experience. The later enriches the first! An academic approach providing a first rate translation of "The Song of Songs," an in depth study and analysis of the poem itself, will broaden your understanding and enjoyment of this forever lasting and debated love poem. Its love transcending sexual imaginary!
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Spiritual & Romantic - with excellent commentary
4 Mar 1999
By A Customer
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
As love poetry in the midst of theology and prophecy, The Song of Songs (or "of Solomon") is an often-ignored book of scripture. This translation celebrates its important place in our faith traditions. While it is aimed for the Jewish reader, as a Christian in love I found this a moving book, and as a scholar I found the commentary useful. Thank you for showing this to me, Rebbe!
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Authentic & Beautiful - Capturing the Mystery of Love
1 Sep 2010
By J. Davies
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
The best translation, hands down, is this Modern Library Classics by Bloch and Bloch. The layout is very user-friendly, with the original Hebrew on one side, with the English translation on the other. Anyone who knows or is studying Hebrew will appreciate this feature. Also the Song jumps between voices and narration without the typical "he said"/"she said" obtrusions that are common to modern writing. Using context clues it is not too challenging to figure out if the lines belong to the Lover or the Beloved, but the translators' use of italics and bold, makes this distinction clear and renders a very smooth reading.
What makes this translation supreme is Bloch and Bloch's great command of Biblical Hebrew combined with their artistry in maintaining the poetic beauty of this text. They took great care to translate this text as closely as possible to the original Hebrew, but still made some artistic adjustments when a too literal translation would be awkward.
This edition includes a wonderful introduction which discusses the various historical interpretations of this text, as well as their own take. A detailed commentary follows which explains in minutiae the justifications for various translation decisions. For example the word "love" in 5:1, Bloch and Bloch argue has in Hebrew really the specific meaning of "love-making" as opposed to other Biblical terms for love such as the NT Greek "philos," or "agape," or the OT Hebrew "chesed" all of which can have meanings quite different from the act of coitus implied in "love-making." But the Blochs are careful to point out that the same Hebrew word used for love in 5:1 is used elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible, and in those instances is very clearly in the context of romantic lovers spending the night together.
The Bloch translation manages to capture the mystery, the beauty, the sensuality of the language, in a way that is fresh, readable, and true to the Hebrew.
What makes this translation supreme is Bloch and Bloch's great command of Biblical Hebrew combined with their artistry in maintaining the poetic beauty of this text. They took great care to translate this text as closely as possible to the original Hebrew, but still made some artistic adjustments when a too literal translation would be awkward.
This edition includes a wonderful introduction which discusses the various historical interpretations of this text, as well as their own take. A detailed commentary follows which explains in minutiae the justifications for various translation decisions. For example the word "love" in 5:1, Bloch and Bloch argue has in Hebrew really the specific meaning of "love-making" as opposed to other Biblical terms for love such as the NT Greek "philos," or "agape," or the OT Hebrew "chesed" all of which can have meanings quite different from the act of coitus implied in "love-making." But the Blochs are careful to point out that the same Hebrew word used for love in 5:1 is used elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible, and in those instances is very clearly in the context of romantic lovers spending the night together.
The Bloch translation manages to capture the mystery, the beauty, the sensuality of the language, in a way that is fresh, readable, and true to the Hebrew.
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4.3 out of 5 stars
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