Quote:
Originally Posted by HarryT
"The Count of Monte Cristo" is an interesting case. Nearly all English editions are based on the anonymous 1846 translation commissioned by the original English publishers, Chapman and Hall. This omitted some material from the original, which could not have been published in England at the time, due to Victorian English mores - particularly material related to one of the characters in the book (Eugénie) being a lesbian. This is still the version of the text that you'll find in pretty much all English-language editions, including the "Oxford World Library" edition (and the version available here at MR, of course).
In 1996, Penguin Classics commissioned a new translation by Robin Buss which is faithful to the original, although it's written in "modern" language which I personally find to be at odds with the historical setting.
Regardless of omissions from the original text, though, the Chapman and Hall translation is one of the my favourite adventure stories; it's a cracking good read.
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Hmm, so, you should have a combination of the two, because I love the Oxford translation! Maybe I should find a Penguin copy and read it just to see what the Oxford one is missing...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Toxaris
There are many good translations. A translation is always difficult, because language is more than just a grouping of words. Some words have special meaning for which there is no substitute. That is why I prefer to read the original language, if I can (are you hearing me, US and UK publishers!).
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You should know by know that nobody but the English and Americans read English! Why else shouldn't they want to sell those English language books to other countries?