[ ARNOLD’S EDITION]
Beowulf, a heroic poem of the eighth century, with a translation, notes, and appendix, by Thomas Arnold, M.A. London: Longmans, Green & Co., 1876. 8o, pp. xliii, 223.
Fourth English Translation. Prose.
Circumstances of Publication.
No edition of the text of Beowulf had appeared in England since the work of Thorpe[1], now twenty years old. The textual criticism of the Germans had, meanwhile, greatly advanced the interpretation of the poem. Grein’s text of the poem had passed into a second, and Heyne’s into a third, edition. There was an opportunity, therefore, for an improved English edition which should incorporate the results of German scholarship. This edition Mr. Thomas Arnold (1823–1900) undertook to supply.
Relation of the Parts.
The Introduction contained a new theory of the origin of the poem[2]. But the important part of the book was the text and translation. There is no glossary[3]. The notes are at the bottom of the page. Here glossarial, textual, and literary information is bundled together. There is a very inadequate bibliography in the Introduction.
Nature of the Translation.
The translation is a literal prose version, printed under the text. It resembles Kemble’s work[4], rather than Thorpe’s[5]. It eschews unwieldy compounds, and makes no attempt to acquire an archaic flavor. Supplied words are bracketed.