Burton Raffel was a lawyer turned critic and translator. He specialized in poetry and, in addition to writing his own poetry, he translated Mandelstram, Old English poetry, Horace, Cervantes, a Vietnamese poetry collection along with many books on the structure and meaning of poetry.
Raffel’s Beowulf was the first version of the poem I read. In my teens and enthralled by Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, I sought out anything written by Tolkien. His groundbreaking essay, “Beowulf: The Monster and the Critics”, was a little over my head then, so I sought a translation of the poem to read. Burton Raffel’s was the most common (and still is). I read the poem in a day and started a fascination with the Beowulf story that has lasted my whole life. I’ve probably read a dozen translations/versions of the story. Although the Seamus Heaney (Irish poet) version is very good and others are technically more sound, Burton Raffel’s translation is still my favorite.
Signet Classics 2008 version of Beowulf features a cover design by HAVOC Media and is, by far, the best cover of the translation I have ever seen. The silhouette of Beowulf and the monster perfectly captures the epic style of the poem and adds a sense of timelessness to the story. I like how the two silhouettes are done in different styles: for Beowulf, it’s rough, hand-drawn and jagged, for The Monster it’s all clean lines with flowing curves and sharp edges. The white space above the figures places the images in stark contrast. The title in a red, beveled Old English font is perfect.
Burton Raffel’s translation of Beowulf first appeared in 1963. Roberta Frank’s new afterword places his work in the context of early sixties American culture and explains why his version is still relevant.
If you want to read Beowulf for the first time, I urge you to seek out Burton Raffel’s version, make a pot of tea, and spend the evening imagining a world lit by fire and filled with monsters and heroes.
