Template talk:Did you know/Desmond Lee

Desmond Lee
(diff)
 * ... that in translating the Republic of Plato (bust pictured), Desmond Lee preferred "magnificent myth" to what he considered the conventional mistranslation "noble lie"?

Created by Moonraker (talk). Self nom at 21:32, 11 August 2011 (UTC)
 * Symbol voting keep.svg Age, length, sources, neutrality OK. No close paraphasing. Victuallers (talk) at 22:37, 11 August 2011 (UTC)
 * Suggest


 * Alt1... that Desmond Lee thought Plato's important phrase "noble lie" had been mistranslated in earlier English versions of Plato's Republic?
 * That might suggest the mistranslation was by Plato. Having forgotten all the English he learnt while travelling with Doctor Who, what he wrote was not "noble lie" but "γενναίον ψεύδος"! Do you prefer Alt2? Moonraker (talk) 08:13, 12 August 2011 (UTC)


 * Alt2 ... that in translating the Republic of Plato (bust pictured), Desmond Lee rendered "γενναίον ψεύδος" as "magnificent myth", considering the conventional "noble lie" a mistranslation?
 * Modded Alt1 - I prefer short hooks but I have no strong view Victuallers (talk) 10:05, 12 August 2011 (UTC)
 * My point is that if Plato did not mean to suggest a falsehood, then "noble lie" was not his phrase. I have tweaked the original hook slightly, and it's now 168 characters, which is well within the limit. One reason why Alt1 is shorter is that it leaves out "(bust pictured)", and I don't see where that would go in Alt1. Moonraker (talk) 11:41, 12 August 2011 (UTC)