Oldest Man in the World

Early in Chapter 11, Martin has just ridden in the ambulance to a fire and saved a fireman when he is approached by a reporter: "In years he was only twenty-nine, but he was the oldest and perhaps the most cynical man in the world."

This had been translated as "most skilled" and "most critical," and the "perhaps" was missing entirely.

This is not an unreasonable translation, but it smacks of one of two possible problems with the translator: a) he's entirely missing the irony and, perhaps, thinks he's missing something in the language, or that it's written poorly, or b) he doesn't feel he can trust the reader with such language.

The former is excusable. We all just do the best we can and none of us ever gets anything entirely right. 

But I have little tolerance for the latter. Surely, there are levels of readers. Some will read quickly not thinking twice about the unusual language. 

It will bother others, as though something is broken. Of this type, some will feel it only vaguely, while it will really bother others. 

But is for the final type that this passage is actually written. This type sees that "oldest" shouldn't be considered in absolute terms, but that this person is, perhaps, wise, seasoned or grown up beyond his years. 

I will confess that I don't know exactly what Lewis meant. But I get a notion of what it might mean, and I think my reader deserves to see what Lewis actually wrote, and make his own judgement.

My version says "oldest and perhaps the most cynical." This is footnote 140 in 114 pages. (When I've completed this draft I'll write a version without the footnotes, including only my corrections, and not the original translations.)