Early Theories of Translation

A study traces the development of English theorizing about translation from medieval precedents through the early modern period and into later eighteenth- and nineteenth-century discussion. It emphasizes sixteenth-century experimentation and Elizabethan prefaces as sources, contrasts literal and sense-for-sense approaches, and explores shifting definitions of faithfulness, accuracy, and the intended audience. The work highlights uneven continuity between practice and prescription, the influence of changing literary tastes, and recurring debates about who may properly judge translations, using prominent critics and translators of successive eras to illuminate evolving aims, terms, and methodological tensions.