Un’analisi del termine dysig alla luce delle testimonianze nella prosa anglosassone in traduzione

The concept of folly, considered in the Middle Ages as an ethical, religious and social issue, was interpreted by Anglo-Saxon translators according to a Christian interpretation: fools were not able to acquire divine wisdom, i.e. the laws of God controlling human beings and their lives. This paper offers a first outline of the concept of folly, intended as opposite to wisdom, with special regard to the Old English prose translation, from this point of view less investigated than the Middle German tradition. The Old English word dysig ‘ignorant, stupid’ is examined from an etymological perspective, considering relevant passages in Old English translations as well as their connections with related Latin sources. ‘Fools’ had the opportunity to be redeemed through the discovery and comprehension of God, True Wisdom. This is a key point of the whole project of vernacular translations: only through wisdom and knowledge folly can be definitively defeated and de-stroyed.