Reading literature in translation: "Beowulf" as a case study
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=814
A lesson plan for grades 9–12 English Language Arts
By comparing a number of translations of Beowulf with each other and with the basic poetic elements of Old English alliterative verse, this lesson asks students to reflect upon the nature of translation not as an act of accurate representation of a literary work but as an act of interpretive re-creation. After reviewing Old English poetics, students listen to a passage of Beowulf in Old English to hear the use of alliteration, meter, rhythm, and diction of the poem. Then the class reads two or three translations of the poem, reflecting on the differences and the choices of the use several poetic devices. After explaining the idea that translations cannot be accurate reflections of an original but are instead “imaginative reconstructions,” the teacher clarifies that reading several translations can help provide a better understanding of the poem than any one translation can impart. In the second session, students work in groups using a checklist to compare newer versions with the Old English poem and the translations they have already studied. Then after students share their findings with the class, they discuss how the translations affected their understanding of the poem. Readwritethink provides a reading reference sheet, a translation handout, and a link to an online literary guide for the epic poem. The lesson also provides a variety of extension activities and links to web resources for studying Beowulf.
North Carolina Curriculum Alignment
English Language Arts (2004)
Grade 9
- Goal 4: The learner will create and use standards to critique communication.
- Objective 4.02: Read and critique various genres by:
- using preparation, engagement, and reflection strategies appropriate for the text.
- identifying and using standards to evaluate aspects of the work or the work as a whole.
- judging the impact of different stylistic and literary devices on the work.
- Objective 4.02: Read and critique various genres by:
Grade 11
- Goal 4: The learner will critically analyze text to gain meaning, develop thematic connections, and synthesize ideas.
- Objective 4.01: Interpret meaning for an audience by:
- examining the functions and the effects of narrative strategies such as plot, conflict, suspense, point of view, characterization, and dialogue.
- interpreting the effect of figures of speech (e.g., personification, oxymoron) and the effect of devices of sound (e.g., alliteration, onomatopoeia).
- analyzing stylistic features such as word choice and links between sense and sound.
- identifying ambiguity, contradiction, irony, parody, and satire.
- demonstrating how literary works reflect the culture that shaped them.
- Objective 4.01: Interpret meaning for an audience by:
Grade 11 — Advanced Placement English Language
- Goal 4: The learner will analyze prose written in a variety of periods, disciplines and rhetorical contexts.
- Objective 4.01: Determine an author's intent/argument by:
- identifying an author's use of rhetorical strategies and devices and the extent to which they effect the development of the theme (e.g., selection of detail, tone, mood, style, attitude, point-of-view, syntax, organization, diction, voice).
- explaining the effectiveness of the author's use of language for the intended audience.
- Objective 4.02: Analyze the effectiveness of the author's intent/argument by:
- evaluating the author's rhetorical purpose.
- synthesizing connections between text and historical and cultural context.
- critiquing the use of literary devices (e.g., figurative language, irony, imagery).
- Objective 4.01: Determine an author's intent/argument by:
Grade 12
- Goal 4: The learner will analyze and critique texts from various perspectives and approaches.
- Objective 4.02: Develop critiques that give an audience:
- an appreciation of how themes relate among texts.
-an understanding of how authors' assumptions, cultural backgrounds, and social values affect texts.
-an understanding of how more than one critical approach affects interpretation.
- Objective 4.02: Develop critiques that give an audience:
Grade 12 — Advanced Placement English Literature
- Goal 4: The learner will explore and provide critical perspectives through deliberate and thorough analysis, interpretation and evaluation of text.
- Objective 4.01: Develop organized critical analyses with focus and support to:
- provide the audience with a clear, credible thesis that establishes intent.
- substantiate the thesis with general and specific textual references including quotations.
- elaborate on textual support with insightful commentary.
- develop and organize ideas in coherent, persuasive, precise language culminating in a conclusion that is not a summary.
- Objective 4.02: Provide organized, structured critical analyses by:
- creating an awareness and appreciation of thematic connections among works.
- conveying an understanding of historical background and social values based on different cultural perspectives.
- Objective 4.01: Develop organized critical analyses with focus and support to:
