Original rough chronological order was maintained.

This subseries consists of Fagles's translation files for his early works, primarily his drafts, revisions, correspondence, and notes for translations of the Complete Poems of Bacchylides, published by Yale University Press in 1961, and Pindar's Olympian Odes, published in installments in the literary journal Arion in 1964 and 1965. Also present toward the end of the subseries are a few files regarding Fagles's other early contributions to various anthologies and literary journals, including his work on the Twickenham Edition of Alexander Pope's translations of Homer, which he co-edited with Maynard Mack and others, Homer: A Collection of Critical Essays, which he co-edited with George Steiner, as well as a review of Howard Baker's book Persephone's Cave that appeared in The Southern Review. These latter files largely consist of correspondence and royalty statements.

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Original order was maintained.

This subseries consists of notes, several different early and revised drafts, page proofs, and galleys for Fagles's translation of Aeschylus's Oresteia, a trilogy of tragic plays that includes Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, and The Eumenides. Beginning in 1963, Fagles worked on the Oresteia for over 10 years before it was published by Viking Penguin in 1975. Drafts exist in manuscript and typescript form, usually with extensive revisions and comments by Fagles and his collaborator W. B. Stanford, who wrote the introduction and notes for Fagles's translation, alongside voluminous preparatory notes and glossaries, in which Fagles sketched out his choices regarding vocabulary, symbols and motifs, the role of the chorus, and modern philosophy. Also present are related correspondence regarding book production, publication, and sales, reprints in later editions, theatrical performances based on Fagles's translations, award nominations, and class visits Fagles made to discuss and read from the plays.

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Original order was maintained.

This subseries comprises materials related to Fagles's only book of original poetry, titled I, Vincent: Poems from the Pictures of Vincent van Gogh, which he began in 1975 and published with the Princeton University Press in 1978. Fagles's project was to translate Vincent van Gogh's paintings into poems that could collectively provide a biographical sketch of the artist. His early manuscript and typescript drafts with extensive notes regarding the development of the poems are present, along with later revised drafts for publication, galley proofs, and plates for accompanying artwork. Correspondence regarding publishing, permissions, reviews, and responses, promotional materials, and Fagles's introductions to poetry readings he gave following the book's publication are also included.

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Original order was maintained.

This subseries contains materials related to Fagles's translations of Sophocles's Three Theban Plays, including Antigone, Oedipus the King, and Oedipus at Colonus, which were published in 1982. Early drafts of each play in multiple versions, drafts with meticulous notes and revisions by Fagles's collaborator Bernard Knox, and page proofs are present, as are preliminary versions of the book's introduction, notes, glossary, and bibliography. Other related materials include contracts and financial papers with publisher Viking Penguin, correspondence and responses from other writers regarding the book, promotional materials, files on radio productions and journal publications, fellowship proposals, corrections to later editions, and permissions files regarding the use of Fagles's translations in anthologies and theatrical performances.

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Original order was maintained.

Fagles began working on his translation of Homer's Iliad in 1982 and completed it in 1990. This subseries includes early and later typescript drafts with manuscript revisions by both Fagles and Bernard Knox, notes on spelling and pronunciation of the Greek, as well as preliminary versions of the book's notes, introduction, and glossary, and correspondence regarding early drafts of the epic. Following its publication, the book sold many copies and won the Harold Morton Landon Translation Award from the Academy of American Poets, an award from the Translation Center of Columbia University, and the New Jersey Humanities Book Award; files that Fagles kept on these awards are included alongside his working files. Also represented in this subseries are publishing correspondence, contracts, financial papers regarding sales and royalties, and files on book design, promotion, audiobook versions, and reprints, as are materials regarding theatrical performances and stage readings, radio broadcasts, publicity, reviews, lectures, and other public appearances Fagles made in conjunction with his work on the Iliad. Several books of the Iliad were published prior to the completion of the epic in the literary magazines Grand Street and TriQuarterly, which versions are also contained in these files.

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Original order was maintained.

Fagles began translating Homer's Odyssey in 1990, immediately following his completion of the Iliad. His translation was published in 1996 to widespread critical acclaim and popularity. This subseries includes correspondence with Bernard Knox and others regarding Fagles's plans and progress with regards to the translation, as well as early and revised drafts, including those with extensive comments by Knox, and a later complete copy-edited version. Jacket design materials, preliminary versions of source maps, genealogies, glossaries, and notes, correspondence regarding publishing and promotion, sales and royalties records, and contracts with Viking Penguin are also present, along with reposes, reviews, and interviews related to the book. During and immediately following his work on the Odyssey, Fagles made frequent appearances at translation symposia, public readings, festivals, Princeton events, lecture series at universities, and high school classes to discuss and read from his work. He kept files documenting each of these appearances, which can be found in this subseries. Fagles also kept track of mentions of his translation in various publications and television programs, which are also present. Since Fagles's public appearances in the late 1990s often regarded his translations of both of Homer's epics, researchers should note that this subseries also contains some materials that relate to the Iliad as well as the Odyssey.

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Original order was maintained.

This subseries includes materials related to Fagles's last major work, an English translation from the Latin of Virgil's Aeneid, which was published in 2006. It includes typescript drafts, arranged by book within the epic, usually six to seven drafts per book. These drafts contain exhaustive notes and suggestions for editing by Bernard Knox, as well as notes by Lynne Fagles. Drafts are also sometimes accompanied by letters from Knox providing his general commentary on the book as a whole. The subseries also contains some files regarding promotion, responses, reviews, publishing correspondence, sales and royalties records, permissions, and book jacket design, although these tangential materials are present in a lesser quantity for the Aeneid than for the Iliad and the Odyssey. In 2006, Fagles was awarded a National Humanities Medal from the National Endowment for the Humanities, which is also represented by a file in this subseries.

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Correspondence in this file group is arranged alphabetically, with a file of general family correspondence at the end.

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Correspondence in this file group is arranged chronologically.

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Original order was maintained.

This subseries includes materials related to publishing and permissions, including printed materials, revised typescripts for later reissues of Fagles's translations, and correspondence reflecting Fagles's relationships with his publisher, literary agent, and collaborators. Correspondence with Bernard Knox and Georges Borchardt is accompanied by a significant group of permissions inquiries and replies pertaining to the reuse of Fagles's work in publications and performances by others. A group of materials related to Fagles's revisions of his translations from the Greek for the Penguin Classics series in the early 2000s is also present. Researchers should note that Fagles kept all materials regarding the initial publication of each of his translations along with his complete files on those works; therefore, those searching for publication files regarding specific works should consult the corresponding subseries in Series 1.

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Original order was maintained.

This subseries contains Fagles's topical files on his various awards, honorary degrees, commencement and inauguration talks, participation in academic organizations, and occasionally, seminars and conferences at Princeton. Also included are several copies of Fagles's curriculum vitae and publication history. Materials regarding awards and talks for specific works can also be found with his files for those works in Series 1.

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