Vernacular translators in quattrocento Italy : scribal culture, authority, and agency / by Andrea Rizzi.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Rizzi, Andrea, author.

Series:

Late medieval and early modern studies ; 2406-5463 volume 26.

Late medieval and early modern studies, 2406-5463 ; volume 26

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Translating and interpreting--Italy--History--To 1500.

Translating and interpreting.

Translators--Italy--History--To 1500.

Translators.

History.

Italy.

Physical Description:

x, 233 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

Turnhout, Belgium : Brepols, [2017]

Summary:

This book provides a richly documented study of vernacular translators as agents within the literary culture of Italy during the fifteenth century. Through a fresh and careful examination of these early modern translators, Rizzi shows how humanist translators went about convincing readers of the value of their work in disseminating knowledge that would otherwise be inaccessible to many. The translators studied in this book include not only the well-known 'superstars' such as Leonardo Bruni, but also little-known and indeed obscure writers from throughout the Italian peninsula. Rizzi demonstrates that vernacular translation did not cease with the rise of 'humanism'. Translations from Greek into Latin spurred the concurrent production of 'new' vernacular versions. Humanists challenged themselves to produce creative and authoritative translations both from Greek and occasionally from the vernacular into Latin, and from Latin into the vernacular. Translators grew increasingly self-assertive when taking on these tasks. The findings of this study have wide implications: they trace a novel history of the use of the Italian language alongside Latin in a period when high culture was bilingual. They also shed further light on the topic of Renaissance self-fashioning, and on the workings of the patronage system, which has been studied far less in literary history than in art history. Finally, the book gives welcome emphasis to the concept that the creation and the circulation of translations (along with other literary activities) were collaborative activities, involving dedicates, friends, and scribes, among others. Late Medieval and Early Modern Studies, The series covers the historical period in Western and Central Europe from c. 1300 to c. 1650. It concentrates on topics of broad cultural, religious, intellectual, and literary history. The editors are particularly interested in studies that are distinguished by their broad chronological range; their spanning of time periods such as late medieval, Renaissance, Reformation, early modern; their straddling of national borders and historiographies; and their cross-disciplinary approach. Book jacket.

Contents:

Chapter 1 Early Quottrocento Vernacular Translators 35

How Many Vernacular Translators? What Texts Did They Translate? 38

Beyond 'Humanism' and its Dichotomies 47

Chapter 2 Translators as the Court of Naples 57

Agents of Praise and Blame 60

Diligent and Industrious 63

'I had worked hard': Self-translators and Self-promoters 68

Chapter 3 Early Quattrocento Humanists and the Dignity of the Vernacular 75

Vernacular Writing in the Early Quattrocento 78

Vernacular Translation and 'Following the Times' 83

Chapter 4 Bruni and the 'New' Quattrocento Translator 91

'Each thing is most completely perfect' 92

Communication and Persuasion through Vernacular Translation 98

The Traductor as a Model for Vernacular Translators 100

Bruni Defending his Translative Practice 107

Chapter 5 Between Elegance and Intelligibility 115

The Quest for Elegance 117

The Vernacular Traductor 120

'We have improved the text' 128

Chapter 6 Collaborative Transformations 139

Transforming the Ruler 141

Mirroring the Ruler 150

'Your lordship, make up my inaccuracies' 154

Chapter 7 Friends Gifting Vernacular Translations 159

Open Expressions of Friendship 163

Seeking and Giving Political Support 167

Gifts of Collaboration 175.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 201-225) and index.

ISBN:

9782503567853

2503567851

OCLC:

1005666550

Publisher Number:

9782503567853