Nicholas Haward's Translation of Seneca

Abstract

A RECENT ARTICLE by Harold H. Davis' established that The Line a of Liberalitie, published by Nicholas Haward in 1569 (STC 12939), has as its source the first three books of Seneca's De beneficiis. It is thus the earliest known English rendering of that work. However, in Renaissance terms may mean almost anything from exact and faithful rendering of the original to heavy indebtedness to earlier translations combined with capricious paraphrase, abounding in addition and omission. It is the purpose of this study to show that The Line of Liberalitie belongs mainly in the latter category, since it turns out to draw copiously on an earlier French translation and indirectly on a still earlier Italian translation of Seneca. Moreover, since Haward is far from consistent in his borrowing, it seems natural to add a brief account of the way in which his independent style asserts itself. Standard works of reference have dealt with Haward's book unsuspectingly, as if it were an independent effort. Here, for example, is the verdict of The British Bibliographer: 2