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E. V. Rieu

January 01, 1970

Emile Victor Rieu CBE (10 February 1887[1] – 11 May 1972) was a British classicist, publisher, poet and translator. He initiated the Penguin Classics series of books in 1946 and edited it for twenty years.

Biography edit

Rieu was born in London,[1] the youngest child of the Swiss Orientalist Charles Pierre Henri Rieu (1820–1902), and his wife Agnes, daughter of Julius Heinrich Hisgen of Hamburg.[2] He was a scholar of St Paul's School and Balliol College, Oxford, gaining a first in Classical Honours Moderations in 1908. In 1914 he married Nelly Lewis, daughter of a Pembrokeshire businessman. They had two sons (one was D. C. H. Rieu) and two daughters. Rieu died in London in 1972.

Publishing and translating edit

Having worked for the Bombay branch of Oxford University Press, Rieu joined the publishers Methuen in London in 1923, where he was managing director from 1933 to 1936, and then academic and literary adviser.

Rieu became best known for his lucid translations of Homer and for a modern translation of the four Gospels which evolved from his role as editor of a projected (but aborted) Penguin translation of the Bible. Though he had been a lifelong agnostic, his experience translating the Gospels brought him to change and join the Church of England.[3] His translation of the Odyssey, 1946, was the opener of the Penguin Classics, a series that he founded with Sir Allen Lane and edited from 1944 to 1964. According to his son, "[h]is vision was to make available to the ordinary reader, in good modern English, the great classics of every language."[4]

The inspiration for the Penguin Classics series, initially faint, came early in the Second World War, while bombs were falling. Each night after supper, Rieu would sit with his wife and daughters in London and translate to them passages from the Odyssey. The Penguin editors are said to have been dubious about the commercial prospects for the book (1946), but it became recognised as a classic itself, celebrated for the smooth and original prose, and the forerunner of Penguin's successful series of translated classics.[5]

Often, though, he embroidered Homer's verse, following the principle that has since become known as dynamic equivalence or thought-for-thought translation. Whereas a literal translation would read, for example, "As soon as early-born Dawn appeared, rosy-fingered,"[6] Rieu's version offered, "No sooner had the tender Dawn shown her roses in the East."[7] Some of his renderings were boldly contemporary: "the meeting adjourned," "I could fancy him," and, "It's the kind of thing that gives a girl a good name in town." He sometimes discarded Homer's anonymous immortals: "A god put this into my mind" became "It occurred to me." Rieu also tended to make the characters more courteous by preceding orders with "Kindly..." or "Be good enough to..." Some of these foibles were amended in a revision made by his son D. C. H. Rieu,[4] who also translated The Acts of the Apostles by Saint Luke (1957) for the Penguin series.

By the time Rieu retired as general editor of the Penguin Classics series, he had overseen the publication of about 160 volumes. He assiduously tracked down all the scholars and translators he wanted for each, creating a series that combined sound scholarship with readability, and accessibility through authoritative introductions and notes. Rieu himself also translated the Iliad (1950), the Voyage of Argo (1959) by Apollonius of Rhodes, The Four Gospels (1952) and Virgil's Pastoral Poems (1949). Having become an Anglican in 1947, Rieu sat on the joint churches' committee that oversaw the production of the New English Bible (1961–70). The genial and witty Rieu was a friend and editorial mentor of the science fiction writer Olaf Stapledon.

Poetry and stories for children edit

Rieu is less known for his children's verse, Cuckoo Calling: a book of verse for youthful people (1933). This he expanded as The Flattered Flying Fish and Other Poems (1962). A selection of his verse appeared in A Puffin Quartet of Poets (1958).[5] For Rieu himself, his poems were a sideline, aimed mainly at children.[8]

Rieu wrote the short story "Pudding Law: A Nightmare", included in The Great Book for Girls, published by Oxford University Press.

Honours edit

The University of Leeds awarded him an honorary D.Litt. in 1949, and he received a CBE in 1953. In 1951, he was chosen president of the Virgil Society and seven years later vice-president of the Royal Society of Literature.[9]

Tribute edit

Irish poet Patrick Kavanagh evoked the translations' crisp and readable character in a poem "On Looking into E. V. Rieu's Homer":

"In stubble fields the ghosts of corn are
The important spirits the imagination heeds.
Nothing dies; there are no empty
Spaces in the cleanest-reaped fields."[10]

English poet Stevie Smith was moved by Rieu's translation of the Gospel of Mark to write her poem "The Airy Christ", for which she credited him in her brief introduction. [11]

See also edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ a b Catalogus Philogorum Classicorum
  2. ^ P. H. Ditchfield, "The family of Riou", Proceedings of the Huguenot Society of London, vol. 10, no. 2, 1913, Appendix, "A genealogical memoir of the family of Rieu", p.248-49. [1]
  3. ^ Blaiklock, E. M. "More and more, Scripture lives". Christianity Today, 1973, pp. 1293–1297.
  4. ^ a b D. C. H. Rieu's preface to The Odyssey (Penguin, 2003), p. vii.
  5. ^ a b P. J. Connell, op. cit.
  6. ^ ἦμος δ᾽ ἠριγένεια φάνη ῥοδοδάκτυλος Ἠώς, Homer, Odyssey 2:1.
  7. ^ "As soon as Dawn with her rose-tinted hands had lit the East." Rieu, Odyssey 2:1, (London: Book Club Associates, 1973 [Penguin, 1946]), p. 37.
  8. ^ Two poems of Rieu's at "Lost Poetry Quotations". Retrieved 17 November 2010.
  9. ^ P. J. Connell: Rieu, Emile Victor (1887–1972) Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford: Oxford University Press, Sept. 2004 [2]. Accessed 19 June 2010.
  10. ^ The implied comparison is with Keats' "On First Looking into Chapman's Homer".
  11. ^ "The Airy Christ by Stevie Smith". 13 April 2024.

Further reading edit

  • "Translating the Gospels: A Discussion Between Dr. E. V. Rieu and the Rev. J. B. Phillips". Interview of 3 December 1953.
  • E.V. Rieu, "Hall and Knight". An irreverent account of how a famous school algebra textbook came to be written. First published in Cuckoo Calling.

January 01, 1970
rieu, emile, victor, rieu, february, 1887, 1972, british, classicist, publisher, poet, translator, initiated, penguin, classics, series, books, 1946, edited, twenty, years, contents, biography, publishing, translating, poetry, stories, children, honours, tribu. Emile Victor Rieu CBE 10 February 1887 1 11 May 1972 was a British classicist publisher poet and translator He initiated the Penguin Classics series of books in 1946 and edited it for twenty years Contents 1 Biography 2 Publishing and translating 3 Poetry and stories for children 4 Honours 5 Tribute 6 See also 7 Notes 8 Further readingBiography editRieu was born in London 1 the youngest child of the Swiss Orientalist Charles Pierre Henri Rieu 1820 1902 and his wife Agnes daughter of Julius Heinrich Hisgen of Hamburg 2 He was a scholar of St Paul s School and Balliol College Oxford gaining a first in Classical Honours Moderations in 1908 In 1914 he married Nelly Lewis daughter of a Pembrokeshire businessman They had two sons one was D C H Rieu and two daughters Rieu died in London in 1972 Publishing and translating editHaving worked for the Bombay branch of Oxford University Press Rieu joined the publishers Methuen in London in 1923 where he was managing director from 1933 to 1936 and then academic and literary adviser Rieu became best known for his lucid translations of Homer and for a modern translation of the four Gospels which evolved from his role as editor of a projected but aborted Penguin translation of the Bible Though he had been a lifelong agnostic his experience translating the Gospels brought him to change and join the Church of England 3 His translation of the Odyssey 1946 was the opener of the Penguin Classics a series that he founded with Sir Allen Lane and edited from 1944 to 1964 According to his son h is vision was to make available to the ordinary reader in good modern English the great classics of every language 4 The inspiration for the Penguin Classics series initially faint came early in the Second World War while bombs were falling Each night after supper Rieu would sit with his wife and daughters in London and translate to them passages from the Odyssey The Penguin editors are said to have been dubious about the commercial prospects for the book 1946 but it became recognised as a classic itself celebrated for the smooth and original prose and the forerunner of Penguin s successful series of translated classics 5 Often though he embroidered Homer s verse following the principle that has since become known as dynamic equivalence or thought for thought translation Whereas a literal translation would read for example As soon as early born Dawn appeared rosy fingered 6 Rieu s version offered No sooner had the tender Dawn shown her roses in the East 7 Some of his renderings were boldly contemporary the meeting adjourned I could fancy him and It s the kind of thing that gives a girl a good name in town He sometimes discarded Homer s anonymous immortals A god put this into my mind became It occurred to me Rieu also tended to make the characters more courteous by preceding orders with Kindly or Be good enough to Some of these foibles were amended in a revision made by his son D C H Rieu 4 who also translated The Acts of the Apostles by Saint Luke 1957 for the Penguin series By the time Rieu retired as general editor of the Penguin Classics series he had overseen the publication of about 160 volumes He assiduously tracked down all the scholars and translators he wanted for each creating a series that combined sound scholarship with readability and accessibility through authoritative introductions and notes Rieu himself also translated the Iliad 1950 the Voyage of Argo 1959 by Apollonius of Rhodes The Four Gospels 1952 and Virgil s Pastoral Poems 1949 Having become an Anglican in 1947 Rieu sat on the joint churches committee that oversaw the production of the New English Bible 1961 70 The genial and witty Rieu was a friend and editorial mentor of the science fiction writer Olaf Stapledon Poetry and stories for children editRieu is less known for his children s verse Cuckoo Calling a book of verse for youthful people 1933 This he expanded as The Flattered Flying Fish and Other Poems 1962 A selection of his verse appeared in A Puffin Quartet of Poets 1958 5 For Rieu himself his poems were a sideline aimed mainly at children 8 Rieu wrote the short story Pudding Law A Nightmare included in The Great Book for Girls published by Oxford University Press Honours editThe University of Leeds awarded him an honorary D Litt in 1949 and he received a CBE in 1953 In 1951 he was chosen president of the Virgil Society and seven years later vice president of the Royal Society of Literature 9 Tribute editIrish poet Patrick Kavanagh evoked the translations crisp and readable character in a poem On Looking into E V Rieu s Homer In stubble fields the ghosts of corn are The important spirits the imagination heeds Nothing dies there are no empty Spaces in the cleanest reaped fields 10 English poet Stevie Smith was moved by Rieu s translation of the Gospel of Mark to write her poem The Airy Christ for which she credited him in her brief introduction 11 See also editEnglish translations of HomerNotes edit a b Catalogus Philogorum Classicorum P H Ditchfield The family of Riou Proceedings of the Huguenot Society of London vol 10 no 2 1913 Appendix A genealogical memoir of the family of Rieu p 248 49 1 Blaiklock E M More and more Scripture lives Christianity Today 1973 pp 1293 1297 a b D C H Rieu s preface to The Odyssey Penguin 2003 p vii a b P J Connell op cit ἦmos d ἠrigeneia fanh ῥododaktylos Ἠws Homer Odyssey 2 1 As soon as Dawn with her rose tinted hands had lit the East Rieu Odyssey 2 1 London Book Club Associates 1973 Penguin 1946 p 37 Two poems of Rieu s at Lost Poetry Quotations Retrieved 17 November 2010 P J Connell Rieu Emile Victor 1887 1972 Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Oxford Oxford University Press Sept 2004 2 Accessed 19 June 2010 The implied comparison is with Keats On First Looking into Chapman s Homer The Airy Christ by Stevie Smith 13 April 2024 Further reading edit Translating the Gospels A Discussion Between Dr E V Rieu and the Rev J B Phillips Interview of 3 December 1953 E V Rieu Hall and Knight An irreverent account of how a famous school algebra textbook came to be written First published in Cuckoo Calling Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title E V Rieu amp oldid 1218832001, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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