Outline for a sociology of translation: Current issues and future prospects
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Johan Heilbron
Abstract
If translations have to be understood as embedded in their specific social context three dimensions have to be taken into account:
1. As cross-national transfers, translations first imply the existence of a field of international relations of exchange.
2. At a more specific level of exchange, one must distinguish between political, economic and cultural dynamics.
3. Finally, the dynamics of translation depends on the structure of the space of reception and on the way in which relevant intermediaries (translators, critics, agents, publishers) shape social demand. Here the analysis focuses on the group of translators, its social profile and the stratification of their craft, as well as on the role of critics and academic specialists, which play a key role in literary translation.
Abstract
If translations have to be understood as embedded in their specific social context three dimensions have to be taken into account:
1. As cross-national transfers, translations first imply the existence of a field of international relations of exchange.
2. At a more specific level of exchange, one must distinguish between political, economic and cultural dynamics.
3. Finally, the dynamics of translation depends on the structure of the space of reception and on the way in which relevant intermediaries (translators, critics, agents, publishers) shape social demand. Here the analysis focuses on the group of translators, its social profile and the stratification of their craft, as well as on the role of critics and academic specialists, which play a key role in literary translation.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction: The emergence of a sociology of translation 1
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Part I. The debate on the translator's position in an emerging sociology of translation
- Priests, princes and pariahs: Constructing the professional field of translation 39
- Translation, irritation and resonance 57
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Part II. Bourdieu's influence in conceptualising a sociology of translation
- Objectivation, réflexivité et traduction: Pour une re-lecture bourdieusienne de la traduction 79
- Outline for a sociology of translation: Current issues and future prospects 93
- The location of the 'translation field': Negotiating borderlines between Pierre Bourdieu and Homi Bhabha 109
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Part III. Mapping the field: Issues of method and translation practice
- Locating systems and individuals in translation studies 123
- Translations 'in the making' 135
- Bridge concepts in translation sociology 171
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Part IV. Constructing a sociology of translation studies: Overview and perspectives
- Between sociology and history: Method in context and in practice 187
- Y a-t-il place pour une socio-traductologie? 205
- Notes on contributors 219
- Author index 223
- Subject index 225
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction: The emergence of a sociology of translation 1
-
Part I. The debate on the translator's position in an emerging sociology of translation
- Priests, princes and pariahs: Constructing the professional field of translation 39
- Translation, irritation and resonance 57
-
Part II. Bourdieu's influence in conceptualising a sociology of translation
- Objectivation, réflexivité et traduction: Pour une re-lecture bourdieusienne de la traduction 79
- Outline for a sociology of translation: Current issues and future prospects 93
- The location of the 'translation field': Negotiating borderlines between Pierre Bourdieu and Homi Bhabha 109
-
Part III. Mapping the field: Issues of method and translation practice
- Locating systems and individuals in translation studies 123
- Translations 'in the making' 135
- Bridge concepts in translation sociology 171
-
Part IV. Constructing a sociology of translation studies: Overview and perspectives
- Between sociology and history: Method in context and in practice 187
- Y a-t-il place pour une socio-traductologie? 205
- Notes on contributors 219
- Author index 223
- Subject index 225
