I have been reading and re-reading Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations for years. The translation in the Penguin edition always
suffered from a kind of stiff literalism.
It was as if the translator wanted to make the Meditations a more formal work than it is.
Gregory Hays, in his translation of the work,
pitches the idea that the Meditations was never meant for publishing, and as such,
varies in formal style and quality. He
tries to capture this in English, by switching from somewhat stiff, philosophical
language in some parts, to a more conversational tone in others. He wants us to see the Meditations for what he believes it is: a kind of self-help book
the Marcus Aurelius’ wrote for himself; a reminder of what his goals were and how to
achieve them.
This makes Hays’ Meditations
a much easier read than its predecessor; he gives Marcus’ voice a freshness and
immediacy that is missing in other translation.
Most importantly, he give new life to the voice of a Roman emperor who
lived nearly two-thousand years ago.
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