On 10/9/09 10:29 AM, Gene wrote:
On Fri, 09 Oct 2009 09:49:29 -0400, H the K
wrote:




Robert Lowell, who held a precursor Poet Laureate post at the LC in the
1940s, taught a class called "The King James Bible as English Literature."

I took a similarly titled course while pursuing my master's in English.

The KJ bible is a magnificent work in the English language, and many
serious students of English lit consider it English lit.

You can "consider" anything you want, but English Literature is
defined as:

Literature written in English since c.1450 by the inhabitants of the
British Isles.

or

English literature refers to literature written in the English
language, including literature composed in English by writers not
necessarily from England.....

Serious students of cuisine can consider a chilidog as part of the
American Kennel Club, but that doesn't make it so..... that's one big
reason we don't let *students* make those decisions.....

Most scholars of English lit would include the KJ bible. Even wiki does,
under the header, English Literatu

"The King James Bible, one of the most massive translation projects in
the history of English up to this time, was started in 1604 and
completed in 1611. It represents the culmination of a tradition of Bible
translation into English that began with the work of William Tyndale. It
became the standard Bible of the Church of England, and some consider it
one of the greatest literary works of all time. This project was headed
by James I himself, who supervised the work of forty-seven scholars.
Although many other translations into English have been made, some of
which are widely considered more accurate, many aesthetically prefer the
King James Bible, whose meter is made to mimic the original Hebrew verse."


"...one of the greatest literary works of all time."

And it is in English. Therefore, it is English literature.

I studied Rouse's of Homer's Odyssey and Iliad. For many, Rouse's work
is considered a landmark of *English* literature, even though his prose
is based upon translations from the Greek.





--
Birther-Deather-Tenther-Teabagger:
Idiots All