"Such is the power of the editor": Translation of Middle English 'for gode'

Abstract

Nowadays Middle English texts are often translated and modernised. The readers of these texts are not always aware of the editorial changes that have been made, seeing that there is no standard way of editing a Middle English text. The Middle English phrase 'for gode' is a phrase where editorial emendation occurs more often than not. Generally, editors interpret the phrase as a reference to God and capitalise 'gode' following modern capitalisation rules. However, there is reason to believe that the phrase has a more basic meaning such as 'good' or 'truly'. For this thesis, several Middle English texts are considered and the outcome of this research shows that it is likely that 'for gode' is often mistranslated, even in respected reference works such as the Oxford English Dictionary and the Middle English Dictionary. In addition, it becomes clear that general guidelines and proper explanation of editorial changes may contribute to a better understanding of Middle English texts.