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The Poet as Translator: Mary Wortley Montagu Approaches the Turkish Lyric

The Poet as Translator: Mary Wortley Montagu Approaches the Turkish Lyric Elizabeth Kelley Bowman This article examines Mary Wortley Montagu's self-representation in her letters in the context of literature, history, and culture, especially her literal and metaphorical translations of a Turkish love lyric in a letter to Alexander Pope in the spring of 1717. Beginning with a survey of recent feminist and postcolonial criticism in Montagu studies, including the fraught term of "orientalism" as it has sometimes been applied recursively to understand the discourse of Montagu's era, I emphasize Montagu's own words as she presents herself and her purpose in the letter and as she makes use of tropes of foreignness, literary tradition, and artistic merit. Along with a consideration of critical interpretations of Montagu, this article provides a historical and cultural analysis of Montagu's understanding of a poet's role and explores the political resonance of her choice to translate a Turkish lyric for Pope, an icon of British poetry. Critical and Historical Survey Mary Wortley Montagu was an influential figure in the literary, social, and political circles of Britain in the eighteenth century. She was a prolific author of poems, novels, and plays, including the frequently anthologized poem "The Lover: A Ballad," as well as more serious critiques http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Comparative Literature Studies Penn State University Press

The Poet as Translator: Mary Wortley Montagu Approaches the Turkish Lyric

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Publisher
Penn State University Press
Copyright
Copyright © The Pennsylvania State University.
ISSN
1528-4212
Publisher site
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Abstract

Elizabeth Kelley Bowman This article examines Mary Wortley Montagu's self-representation in her letters in the context of literature, history, and culture, especially her literal and metaphorical translations of a Turkish love lyric in a letter to Alexander Pope in the spring of 1717. Beginning with a survey of recent feminist and postcolonial criticism in Montagu studies, including the fraught term of "orientalism" as it has sometimes been applied recursively to understand the discourse of Montagu's era, I emphasize Montagu's own words as she presents herself and her purpose in the letter and as she makes use of tropes of foreignness, literary tradition, and artistic merit. Along with a consideration of critical interpretations of Montagu, this article provides a historical and cultural analysis of Montagu's understanding of a poet's role and explores the political resonance of her choice to translate a Turkish lyric for Pope, an icon of British poetry. Critical and Historical Survey Mary Wortley Montagu was an influential figure in the literary, social, and political circles of Britain in the eighteenth century. She was a prolific author of poems, novels, and plays, including the frequently anthologized poem "The Lover: A Ballad," as well as more serious critiques

Journal

Comparative Literature StudiesPenn State University Press

Published: May 31, 2013

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