Roman Theories of Translation: Surpassing the Source

摘要

In Roman Theories of Translation: Surpassing the Source, McElduff sets out both to illustrate the nature of translation in the Roman context and to identify the points in which this differs from translation in modern Western understandings of the word. She splits the study into somewhat overlapping sections that illustrate the roles translation occupied in the Roman world, along with the ways these roles developed over several centuries of its history. The book's arrangement is logical and friendly to those of us to whom much of its material is unfamiliar. It begins by introducing Roman translation in relatively broad strokes, addressing who in Roman society was translating, why they did so, and what material they focused on. Then, having set the scene, McElduff discusses in detail the approaches to translation advocated by numerous pillars of Roman civilization, such as Catullus, Seneca and, of course, Cicero.