Thursday, June 09, 2011

Linguistic allergy against "Thee," "Thou" & "Thy"

This is so silly. We seem to have no problem with these traditional terms in the Our Father. But the CENSORS seems to have major problems with them anywhere else -- even when it would seem most natural and ... dare I say it? ... fitting and even beautiful.

My English translation of the daily prayers of the Novena to the Holy Spirit has words like "possesseth" and "hast vouchsafed" in it. Okay, "old fashioned," maybe; but not a problem.
  • "Knowledge is a fountain of life to him that possesseth it."

  • "Almighty and eternal God, Who hast vouchsafed to regenerate us by water and the Holy spirit, and hast given us forgiveness of all sins, vouchsafe to send forth from heaven ...."
But then it insists on substituting "You" and "Your" for [nearly] every instance of the second person singular referring to God.
  • "I cling to You and give myself to You and ask You, by Your compassion to watch over me in my weakness."
I say "nearly" every instance, because the CENSORS missed one "Thee"!!!

Ha! Fie, foul Censor! Thou spleeny fool-born pigeon-egg! Thou clay-brained guts, thou knotty-pated fool, thou whoreson obscene greasy tallow-catch! Thou spleeny toad-spotted bum-bailey! Thou pribbling shard-borne mammet! (Who said Elizabethan English couldn't communicate today?)
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3 comments:

  1. Dan10:57 AM

    Why don't they just go back to Latin? The dignity would be restored and the English would be no more than an aid to comprehension. Whether the English was archaic wouldn't matter.

    The two old proverbs about translation still apply. "Translators, traitors!" and "To translate is to kill."

    'Vouchsafest' might come less trippingly off the tongue than 'hast vouchsafed.'

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  2. Deo volente11:20 AM

    Ah, but they are "operating" on the Ave Maria (Hail Mary) now! When I receive literature from religious organizations that is accompanied by "How to Say the Rosary" and find "Blessed are you among women," it instantly goes into the rotary file. The first time I heard someone recite the rosary (in English of course) and using the pronouns "you and your," I could not get past those "modernisms".

    I still chafe when the proper pronouns for God are not capitalized in Catholic texts. Oh well, He is only the Creator of all that is seen and unseen. What the heck!

    Pax tecum!
    D.v.

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  3. Anonymous10:13 AM

    Perhaps you could also note the demise of the lowly subordinate clause in prayer, or for that matter in the whole of the language?

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