Lucy Day Werts answers “I haven't read the translation listed...”

Caitlin asked this question about Don Quixote:

I haven't read the translation listed above, but I'm currently reading a translation by Smollet (I believe is the name) and it's absolutely horrid. I've read enough of the book (in extremely easy) Spanish to know when the translator is taking artistic liberties, but even some of the footnotes in my book acknowledge that the translator has changed entire words! does anyone know a better version?

Lucy Day Werts .
The Penguin translation this question is linked to is by John Rutherford, first published in 2000.
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The history of the 1755 Smollett translation is in…more.
The Penguin translation this question is linked to is by John Rutherford, first published in 2000.
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The history of the 1755 Smollett translation is interesting. It was initially a success. Translation used to be far less precise, and nobody minded. But somehow Smollett fell out of favor, and people started trash talking him (saying he didn't know Spanish, and/or didn't do any of the translation work himself, and/or plagiarized a previous translation). There was even a book published called "Smollett's Hoax" purporting to prove that his edition wasn't a genuine new translation. However, lately there have been attempts to resuscitate his image. A scholar at the University of Georgia published (in 2003) a new edition of his translation with additional materials defending its merits. There are also several cheap reprints available, since the translation is in the public domain.
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There are of course many other translations to choose from besides Smollett's. Edith Grossman's is the trendy one these days. John Ormsby's 1885 translation is a popular, less modern-sounding text, and in the public domain, so you can get a legitimate digital copy for free if you want.
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Check out the extensive list of available translations and editions at We Love Translations: World Literature in English. There are extracts so that you can compare how different translations sound, links to relevant articles, and info such as book cover images, ISBNs and pagecounts.
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» What's the best translation of Don Quixote?
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