| dc.description.abstract | Based on the theories and methods of biblical performance criticism, this study examines Psalm 27:1–6 as oral performance. The purpose is to investigate to what degree an analysis of the Psalter as oral literature, exemplified through Ps 27:1–6, can provide insights for Bible translation into Swedish today.
The initial exegetical analysis combines Ernst Wendland’s methods for oral exegesis with Adele Berlin’s and Robert Alter’s insights in parallelism. The analysis identifies a significant number of poetic devices originating from oral discours. Examples include extensive repetition of words, themes, and sounds, as well as introductory rhetorical questions, graphic imagery, descriptions of gestures, in addition to parallelism on every level of the language.
After this, the study analyses the text of Ps 27:1–6 in two Swedish Bible translations, Kyrkobibel 1917 (KB1917) and Bibel 2000, in order to see to what extent these qualities are transferred. The results indicate that the oral qualities are transferred to a varied and limited degree. The semantically based parallelism is transferred to a high degree, although some idiomatic translations remove qualities from oral discourse. The repetition of words and sounds are transferred only partly, however, KB1917 transfer the repeated words to a higher degree than Bibel 2000.
Finally, the study presents a translation that intends a) to render the Hebrew to the highest extent possible in intelligible Swedish and b) to transfer in the highest extent possible qualities from oral discourse. The translation presented transfers the characteristics of oral discourse to a higher degree than both the Swedish translations analysed, indicating the value of analysing the text as oral performance. | en_US |
