Abstract
Part 1 of this article made a case for “pleonastic” translation, i.e., adding pleonasms (synonymous adjectives) to metaphorical nouns to bridge the cultural distance between the ancient Israelite text and the present-day reader. Part 2 exemplifies this approach with a translation of some of the body-description verses from the Song of Songs (esp. 7.2-6 [English 7.1-5]). Introductory considerations concerning this biblical book are offered, addressing, e.g., life-setting, register, and hermeneutical key. Rooted in translation theory and metaphor theory, this article draws attention to the various aspects of the Song of Songs and proposes a “dynamic equivalent” way (following Nida and Taber’s call for clarity) to provide present-day readers with a comprehensible translation of its ancient metaphors. This results in a respectful translation with additional pleonasms and other types of elucidations.
Highlights
Part 1 of this article made a case for “pleonastic” translation, i.e., adding pleonasms to metaphorical nouns to bridge the cultural distance between the ancient Israelite text and the present-day reader
One may appreciate the poetic art of the Song of Songs, but without hermeneutics or with the wrong hermeneutics, the poem does not make sense
The present article focuses on the “secular” aspect of the meaning of the Song of Songs because a better understanding of this aspect contributes to a fuller appreciation of the Song; it extends the basis for intertextual and figurative readings by emphasizing the uniqueness of the Song, deepening the understanding of the field from which the assumed metaphoric language of the Song is taken
Summary
Part 1 of this article made a case for “pleonastic” translation, i.e., adding pleonasms (synonymous adjectives) to metaphorical nouns to bridge the cultural distance between the ancient Israelite text and the present-day reader. Part 1 of this article (TBT 71: 101-19) introduced a pleonastic approach to the translation of metaphor, especially in poetry in the Hebrew Bible.
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