„Czy sie kryć w pustym lesie?” O przekładzie i interpretacji mitu o Akteonie w ujęciu Andrzeja Zbylitowskiego
“Shall I Hide in an Empty Forest?” On the Translation and Interpretation of the Myth of Actaeon in Andrzej Zbylitowski’s View

Summary/Abstract: Analysing Andrzej Zbylitowski’s translation of a fragment of Ovid’s "Metamorphoses" (Actaeon’s history from Book 3, lines 155–252), the author of the present article attempts to settle why the verse interpretation of the myth (the protagonist is devoured by dogs – incurring debts) which the poet included into the translation so strongly departs from the presented story. As a result, Polish translations of Ovid are traced, followed by an insight into the Roman poet’s immense popularity in the Middle Ages and an attempt made then to adjust "Metamorphoses" to school purposes through allegoric commentaries. To add, the article points at customary changes (mainly in hunting) and at a possible translator’s error, all of which influenced not only the interpretation of the myth but the figures of Actaeon and Diana, and the symbol of deer as well. The considerations lead to the conclusions that the allegorical interpretation in the mediaeval spirit was still valid among 16th century humanists, allegorical commentary coexisted with the new model of translation, and mythological tales were still treated as exempla, i.e. stories with their own sets of interpretations.

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