Convent Paradise

Abstract

Middle Ages and the Renaissance. The latter image of the philosopher’s enslavement introduces the concept of appropriation, which is one of the most basic tenets of translation, at once a “moving of contents” from one language to another, but, in the complex cultural and literary background of the period in question, also a dynamic synergy of several different elements, such as the interaction of Latin and the vernacular, the radical social changes that allowed many important families to commission their own translations, and the development of the Italian vernacular(s), among others. The basic tenet of this book is that the Latin term for translator, interpres, hints at what transferring the meaning of words from one language to another really does, which is offering an interpretation of the transferred text. And yet, it goes even further by proposing that texts change according to the culture that receives them, so translation and interpretation are tightly connected to reception. The three terms in this dynamic interaction are translation, reception, and interpretation. This argument is linked to material philology, which takes into consideration not just texts, but also modes of production, printing practices, book selling, as well as reading practices and annotations. Reception is the mechanism that indeed brings a text or a cultural object to life and the quality of reception depends on chronology, geography, gender, and politics, among other factors. The fresh argument emerging from the widespread practice of translation—which remains a lesser art from the perspective of more (reputedly) elevated artistic expressions—has to do with the legitimization of the vernacular as the language of philosophical debate. The book is a brilliant rendition of a very complex phenomenon and the reader is left with a clear sense of what translating really meant at this time in Italian history. Refini displays great command of the materials he analyzes and great authority in the development and articulation of concepts and ideas. This study is filled with information, but erudition becomes a harmonious unit with the author’s theory and, while the argument is solid and complex, it is a pleasure to read. It is demonstration that serious scholarship can be pleasurable and may be consumed, if not effortlessly, nevertheless with blissful satisfaction.