08-09-2005, 10:19 AM | #1 |
An enigma in a conundrum
Join Date: Oct 1999
Posts: 6,476
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Harry Potter Now In Ancient Greek
-----here's a news excerp that warms my intellectual heart ----not logical but often true.
Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2005.08.07 J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Translated into Ancient Greek by Andrew Wilson. London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2004. Pp. 250. ISBN 0-7475-6897-9. $21.95. Reviewed by Tad Brennan, Northwestern University The book under review is surely one of the most important pieces of Ancient Greek prose written in many centuries. It will be a delight to all Classicists, a boon to all teachers of Greek, and a possession for all time. It is, of course, Andrew Wilson's translation, into Ancient Greek, of J.K. Rowling's first Harry Potter book. It is also, in this reader's opinion, a complete success. On nearly every page there is some felicity of composition to be admired, some construction that shows off the Greek language's power and versatility, some turn of phrase that arouses admiration for the translator. In its entirety, it is an extraordinary work -- a prose comp. exercise on an unprecedented scale. But unlike most prose comp exercises, it is also a wonderfully good read. It will also be of great value to teachers of mid-level Greek who are casting about for texts with which to encourage and entertain their students. After the Xenophontic parasangs have lost their charm and the Euripidean trimeters are limping, students can refresh themselves with a bout of "ikarosphairikê" (Wilson's spot-on neologism for quidditch), or enjoy the bantering of Fred and George. I don't suppose courses will be designed around it, but this book will certainly be a valuable auxiliary.
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