The reception of science fiction and horror story anthologies in the last years of Francoist Spain
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Cristina Gómez Castro
Abstract
An official system of censorship was established during Franco’s dictatorship in Spain in order to control the cultural sphere in the country for the duration of the political regime. In the seventies, the publishing market consisted mainly of mass literature, and the translation of anthologies of science fiction narratives and horror stories from North America was an important part of this process. These stories originated as pulps, published with titles such as Weird Tales or Terror Tales, and it is a difficult task today to trace the English versions from which they were translated, mainly due to the fact that different tales by different authors are included in these magazines. The anthologies had to follow the same control procedures as other narrative material and were closely scrutinised regarding aspects such as sexual morals and language, two of the most controversial issues during the time of the dictatorship. Some of them encountered problems because of their depiction of sexually charged scenes or immoral attitudes. This article offers a brief depiction of the kind of anthologized material translated at the time, together with an examination of some of these files, with a descriptive aim in mind. Whether they were censored or authorised or not, the main objective of the publishers of these kinds of anthologies was achieved since, thanks to them, both genres became well known in the country and encouraged Spanish writers to engage in the production of similar material, in a process of pseudotranslation that confirms their importance in the recipient culture.
Abstract
An official system of censorship was established during Franco’s dictatorship in Spain in order to control the cultural sphere in the country for the duration of the political regime. In the seventies, the publishing market consisted mainly of mass literature, and the translation of anthologies of science fiction narratives and horror stories from North America was an important part of this process. These stories originated as pulps, published with titles such as Weird Tales or Terror Tales, and it is a difficult task today to trace the English versions from which they were translated, mainly due to the fact that different tales by different authors are included in these magazines. The anthologies had to follow the same control procedures as other narrative material and were closely scrutinised regarding aspects such as sexual morals and language, two of the most controversial issues during the time of the dictatorship. Some of them encountered problems because of their depiction of sexually charged scenes or immoral attitudes. This article offers a brief depiction of the kind of anthologized material translated at the time, together with an examination of some of these files, with a descriptive aim in mind. Whether they were censored or authorised or not, the main objective of the publishers of these kinds of anthologies was achieved since, thanks to them, both genres became well known in the country and encouraged Spanish writers to engage in the production of similar material, in a process of pseudotranslation that confirms their importance in the recipient culture.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Foreword vii
- Introduction: Translation anthologies and collections 1
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I. Discursive practices and scholarly agency
- Forms and functions of anthologies of translations into French in the nineteenth century 17
- The short story in English meets the Portuguese reader 35
- Cancioneiro Chinez 57
- Academic navel gazing? Playing the game up front? 75
- Las antologías sobre la traducción en la Península Ibérica 89
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II. National and international canonization processes
- Poetry anthologies as Weltliteratur projects 107
- Publishing translated literature in late 19th century Portugal 123
- Short stories from foreign literatures in Portugália’s series Antologias Universais 137
- Patterns in the external history of Portuguese collections with translations of Polish literature (1855–2009) 153
- Extra-European literatures in anthology during the Estado Novo (1933–1974) 171
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III. Selection and censorship
- Children’s literature in translation 189
- Translating German poetry into French under the Occupation 205
- The reception of science fiction and horror story anthologies in the last years of Francoist Spain 217
- Censored discourse in anthologies and collections of the Far West 229
- Philosophical collections, translation and censorship 247
- Translation anthologies and British literature in Portugal and Hungary between 1949 and 1974 259
- Notes on contributors and editors 275
- Name index 281
- Subject index 285
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Foreword vii
- Introduction: Translation anthologies and collections 1
-
I. Discursive practices and scholarly agency
- Forms and functions of anthologies of translations into French in the nineteenth century 17
- The short story in English meets the Portuguese reader 35
- Cancioneiro Chinez 57
- Academic navel gazing? Playing the game up front? 75
- Las antologías sobre la traducción en la Península Ibérica 89
-
II. National and international canonization processes
- Poetry anthologies as Weltliteratur projects 107
- Publishing translated literature in late 19th century Portugal 123
- Short stories from foreign literatures in Portugália’s series Antologias Universais 137
- Patterns in the external history of Portuguese collections with translations of Polish literature (1855–2009) 153
- Extra-European literatures in anthology during the Estado Novo (1933–1974) 171
-
III. Selection and censorship
- Children’s literature in translation 189
- Translating German poetry into French under the Occupation 205
- The reception of science fiction and horror story anthologies in the last years of Francoist Spain 217
- Censored discourse in anthologies and collections of the Far West 229
- Philosophical collections, translation and censorship 247
- Translation anthologies and British literature in Portugal and Hungary between 1949 and 1974 259
- Notes on contributors and editors 275
- Name index 281
- Subject index 285
