Whose tragedy is this? Translating Arden of Faversham

Abstract

This article considers the translation process of Arden of Faversham and the method that I have employed to translate collaborative plays, which is based on Matthew Reynolds's concept of prismatic translation, followed by examples of relevant textual variations found in the three earlier editions of Arden of Faversham as well as in the modern editions. I argue that by preserving textual differences based on different resources, the translation highlights the history of the text. It opens up possibilities accorded by the play's material existence, considering different textual elements, such as the words of the title, playtext, characters, and authorship.