Matteo Bandello - English Translation of Novellas

English Translation of Novellas

The only translation of Bandello's tales is "The novels of Matteo Bandello", translated by John Payne in 6 volumes, 1890. This edition is separated into 4 parts, containing 51, 43, 51, and 21 stories, respectively, for a total of 166, minus two (part 2, story 35 and part 4, story 6), omitted because of their being almost identical to those of Marguerite the Navarre's Heptameron (stories 30 and 17), respectively, though keeping Bandello's dedicatory preface.

The Payne translation is a mixture of 19th and 16th century idioms. Examples of the latter include "an thou wilt" instead of "if you will", "wheneas" instead of "when", "methinketh" instead of "I think", "parlous" instead of "perilous". On most occasions, the language is clear and of fine literary value, but sometimes it is degraded with terms no one ever spoke or wrote. For example, instead of saying "Now I would gladly hear your advice on this matter", the duchess of Amalfi says: "Now I would fain hear from thee that which thou counsellest thereanent."