Abstract
This project offers a literary analysis of five modern English translations of the Song of Songs, examining how translators navigate the tension between fidelity to the original Hebrew and the preservation of its poetic essence. Some translators strive for linguistic precision, replicating the syntax and structure of the biblical Hebrew; others prioritize capturing its lyrical, ethereal quality. These competing priorities—historical and religious fidelity versus literary enchantment—are often at odds. This thesis investigates how translators, working within similar temporal and literary frameworks, make distinct interpretive choices. Through close readings of selected verses, I explore the broader implications of translation as both a creative and interpretive act. My chapters address themes such as the racialized reception of Song 1:5a, the challenges of rendering wordplay and polysemy, and the structural implications of floral imagery in Song 2:1. I examine the ethical stakes of domesticating versus foreignizing the text, especially when confronting the strangeness or opacity of the Hebrew. Ultimately, this project argues that translation is less about finding a single “correct” rendering and more about navigating a series of thoughtful compromises, each shaped by the translator’s poetic sensibility, cultural context, and theological stance. In the end, the Song of Songs emerges not as a fixed artifact, but as an unfinished tapestry, continually rewoven by each act of translation.