PREFACE 



Translations are usually designed either to present 



the thought of a foreign writer in the EngHsh most 

 appropriate to it, without regard to the pecuHarities 

 of his style (so far as style and thought can be dis- 

 tinguished), or, on the contrar}', to convey to the 

 Enghsh reader, as far as is possible, the style as well 

 as the thought of the foreign original. 



It would seem, however, that neither of these 

 objects should be the primary aim of a translator 

 constructing a version that is to be printed facing the 

 original text. In these circumstances the purpose 

 of the version is to assist the reader of the original 

 to understand its meaning. This modest intention 

 must guide the choice of a rendering for each phrase 

 or sentence, and considerations of EngHsh style are 

 of necessity secondarj^ 



A few biographical notes on persons mentioned 

 by the author will be found in the index. 



VI 



