On the Air: An Intersemiotic Translation of Ovid's Heroides Item Type text; Electronic Thesis Authors Larres, Elise Citation Larres, Elise. (2021). On the Air: An Intersemiotic Translation of Ovid's Heroides (Master's thesis, University of Arizona, Tucson, USA). Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction, presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 24/09/2021 15:20:38 Item License http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/660168 ON THE AIR: AN INTERSEMIOTIC TRANSLATION OF OVID’S HEROIDES by Elise Larres _____________ Copyright © Elise Larres 2021 A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF RELIGIOUS STUDIES AND CLASSICS In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS WITH A MAJOR IN CLASSICS In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 2021 THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA GRADUATE COLLEGE As members of the Committee, we certify that we have read the thesis prepared by Elise Larres, titled Heroides and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement for the . _________________________________________________________________ Date: ____________ David Christenson _________________________________________________________________ Date: ____________ Robert Groves _________________________________________________________________ Date: ____________ Sarah McCallum Final approval and acceptance of this thesis final copies of the thesis to the Graduate College. I hereby certify that I have read this thesis prepared under my direction and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the requirement. _________________________________________________________________ Date: ____________ David Christenson Committee Chair Department of Religious Studies and Classics ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to thank Drs. David Christenson, Robert Groves, and Sarah McCallum for serving on my thesis committee, for giving me the excellent advice and instruction I needed before embarking on this project, and for helping me bring it to fruition. Special thanks to Monica Barcarolo, Mallory Main, and Ian Morgan for listening to my half-baked lyrics and off- key first drafts, and to Mallory in particular for kindly testing out one of those drafts in their classroom. Finally, I would like to thank my family: my parents, David and Terese, for gifting me with their love of music; my brother, Justin, whose encouragement and thoughtful suggestions inspired me to combine my passion for both language and music; and my sister, Lauren, for her unfailing patience and for listening during the hard times. Without their constant love, support, and gentle critiques, this project would not have been possible. Larres – 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ..........................................................................................................................5 INTRODUCTION: SINGING THE HEROIDES .............................................................6 The Skopos .......................................................................................................................6 The Translation Process .................................................................................................8 The Wind as an Interpretative Lens .............................................................................11 Helpful Notes for Using this Document .........................................................................14 The Wind – “Intro” Lyrics .............................................................................................16 CHAPTER 1: ARIADNE – “BLACK MARK” ................................................................18 Translator’s Statement ...................................................................................................18 Audio and Lyrics .............................................................................................................22 Commentary ....................................................................................................................26 CHAPTER 2: CANACE – “THE SICKNESS OF A CHILD” ........................................47 Translator’s Statement ...................................................................................................47 Audio and Lyrics .............................................................................................................56 Commentary ....................................................................................................................62 CHAPTER 3: PENELOPE – “MARCO”..........................................................................84 Translator’s Statement ...................................................................................................84 Audio and Lyrics .............................................................................................................90 Commentary ....................................................................................................................95 CONCLUSION: THE FUTURE OF THE PROJECT.....................................................115 WORKS CITED...................................................................................................................116 Larres – 4 ABSTRACT In this thesis project I translate three of Ovid’s Heroides, namely Ep. 1 (Penelope to Ulysses), 10 (Ariadne to Theseus), and 11 (Canace to Macareus), into musical pieces involving both lyrics and instrumentation. I have also composed an original piece to introduce the album and to help identify the Wind as the programmatic element and metapoetic lens through which my translation is heard. In my Introduction I establish the goals of this translation and the process by which I achieved them, including a discussion of the Wind as representative of electronic communication and the impact this interpretation has on the heroines’ narratives. Each chapter covers a single song- translation and includes (A) a translator’s statement which both clarifies key aspects of the Latin poem being translated and explains my broad focus and methodology for translating that particular song; (B) the audio file and lyrics; and (C) a commentary examining features of the Latin as well as highlighting the specific translation choices I have made and my reasoning for these. This project provides a case study of musical translation as reception of classical texts, as well as a valuable pedagogical tool for students of classics and Latin at all skill levels. Finally, my work here forms the foundation of a future concept album designed to appeal to a wide audience, including those with no knowledge of Ovid, Latin, or Roman culture. This album will serve as an effective way of attracting a new and diverse group of people to classics, and whose experiences and perspectives will enrich the field moving forward. Larres – 5 INTRODUCTION: SINGING THE HEROIDES The Skopos The goal or “skopos” 1 of this thesis project is to produce a modern concept album which functions as a translation of, and commentary on, Ovid’s Heroides. With this translation I aim to reach a broad, multifaceted audience ranging from those having no knowledge of the source text to others deeply conversant in Ovid’s poetry and the culture in which it was created. The musical format I have chosen is inherently accessible, and in its every aspect I seek to craft a polished song that is enjoyable to listen to and whose aesthetic value does not hinge on its status as a translation. Nevertheless, much like Ovid’s poetry, my song-translations are vastly enriched by a close familiarity with the source texts. In other words, a person who has never heard of Ovid can still appreciate these songs in their own right, but the the listener who is more acquainted with his Heroides and with Roman poetic practices is likely to enjoy and appreciate some aspects of my music all the more. While I have taken pains to ensure that these songs are melodic and pleasant to listen to, I have not viewed this as license to avoid rigorous engagement with the words, poetry, themes, characterizations, and approaches of my source text—a commitment which makes my song- translations excellent tools for the classroom. Either the album as a whole or the individual songs may be used to introduce or reinforce a number of exciting topics, including the Latin translation project, 2 aemulatio as a Roman cultural concept, creative translation as a class activity, and 1 I follow the theory of Hans Vermeer, who argues that, insofar as translation is an action, every translation has a goal or purpose, identified as the “skopos” of that translation (1989: 191–2). Translations are oriented toward the culture of the target text rather than that of the source text, and this ultimately defines their adequacy. Each individual translation will accordingly have a unique approach and method based on its skopos and intended audience (193, 196–7). 2 See further Feeney 2016. Larres – 6 intersemiotic translation, to name just a few. My songs may be used among students unfamiliar with Latin to spark discussion about Roman culture and literary values, as well as by students with any level of Latin knowledge, whether just beginning or advanced in the language. More advanced students will reap slightly different