Elizabethan Prose Translation

James Winny examines prose translation in relation to the growth of intellectual curiosity in the sixteenth century.

During the sixteenth century, prose translation was very closely related to the growth in intellectual curiosity brought about, in no small part, by the appearance of the printed book in 1477. In this 1960 volume, James Winny outlines the changes in the order of English life brought about by such intellectual development, and provides extensive extracts of a number of prose works translated by great English minds. These translations are accompanied by concise textual and bibliographical commentaries. This work contains translations by 11 different Elizabethan prose translators, including John Florio, Philemon Holland and Sir Thomas Hoby. It will be of great use to any scholar of Elizabethan literature and the history of translation, whilst those newer to the field will find that Winny's accompanying notes make the translations contained within this volume hugely accessible and highly engaging.