The (in)visibility of translation and translators in the Swedish publication of post-Soviet Russian literature
An analysis of peritexts
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4312/stridon.2.2.45-74Keywords:
visibility/invisibility, translators, translation, peritext, Russian literatureAbstract
In this article the (in)visibility of translation and translators in Sweden is studied, based on the analysis of a corpus of 82 post-Soviet Russian novels. The aim is to investigate how (if at all) the peritexts reveal the foreign nature of the text and the identity of the translator. The analysis shows that the translator is rather invisible in the external peritext, which is placed on the cover or dust jacket of the published translation, while the foreign (and consequently also the translated) nature of the novel is highlighted. The translator’s visibility inside Swedish translations of post-Soviet novels is usually signaled on the title page. Apart from this, the translator is invisible. A few translator’s comments and notes are included in the translation, but usually these are inconspicuous and not explicitly attributed to the translator. Moreover, they are written in an apologetic tone and do not seem to wish to disturb the reader.
Downloads
References
Primary sources
“2244.” 2015. Publisher’s blurb on back cover. In Familjen Joltysjev, by Roman Sentjin. Translated by Nils Håkanson. Stockholm: 2244.
Akunin, Boris. 2002. Vinterdrottningen: Ett fall för Fandorin. Translated by Kristina Rotkirch. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Akunin, Boris. 2004. Akilles död: Ett fall för Fandorin. Translated by Kristina Rotkirch. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Akunin, Boris. 2005. Särskilda uppdrag: Två fall för Fandorin. Translated by Magnus Johansson. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Aleksijevitj, Svetlana. 1997. Bön för Tjernobyl: en framtidskrönika. Translated by Hans Björkegren. Stockholm: Ordfront.
Aleksijevitj, Svetlana. 2013. Tiden second hand. Translated by Kajsa Öberg Lindsten. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Babtjenko, Arkadij. 2007. Krigets färger ett vittnesmål. Translated by Ola Wallin. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Coltso. 2010. Back cover. In Främlingen, by Max Frei. Translated by Alan Asaid. Stockholm: Coltso.
Coltso. 2011. “Ordförklaringar”. In Metro 2034, by Dmitrij Gluchovskij. Translated by Ola Wallin. Stockholm: Coltso.
Coltso. 2012. Back cover. In Den Levande, by Anna Starobinets. Translated by Mikael Nydahl. Stockholm: Coltso.
Djakov, Andrej. 2012. Resan till ljuset. Translated by Ola Wallin. Stockholm: Coltso.
Ersatz. 2006. “Back matter.” In Diamantsvärdet och träsvärdet, del 1, by Nick Perumov. Translated by Britt-Marie Ingdén-Ringselle. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Ersatz. 2013. “Anmärkningar”. In Tiden second hand, by Svetlana Aleksijevitj. Translated by Kajsa Öberg Lindsten. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Ersatz. 2019. “Anmärkningar”. In Zulejcha öppnar ögonen, by Guzel Jachina. Translated by Mikael Nydahl, 515–16. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Ersatz. 2020. Publisher’s blurb on back cover. Erövringen av Izmail, by Michail Sjisjkin. Translated by Mikael Nydahl. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Gluchovskij, Dmitrij. 2009. Metro 2033. Translated by Ola Wallin. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Gluchovskij, Dmitrij. 2011. Metro 2034. Translated by Ola Wallin. Stockholm: Coltso.
Håkanson, Nils. 2005. “Anmärkningar”. In Hurramabad, by Andrej Volos. Translated by Nils Håkanson, 407–11. Stockholm: Ruin.
Lukjanenko, Sergej. 2006. Nattens väktare. Translated by Roger Karlsson. Helsingborg: Fabulera.
Natur & Kultur. 2017. Publisher’s blurb on back cover. In Vid glömskans rand, by Sergej Lebedev. Translated by Nils Håkanson. Stockholm: Natur & Kultur.
Norstedt. 2008. Publisher’s blurb on back cover. In I det heliga Rysslands, by Vladimir Sorokin. Translated by Ben Hellman. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Nydahl, Mikael. 2020a. “Översättarens anmärkning”. In Erövringen av Izmail, by Michail Sjisjkin. Translated by Mikael Nydahl. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Nydahl, Mikael. 2020b. “Förklaringar till den svenska utgåvan”. In Erövringen av Izmail, by Michail Sjisjkin. Translated by Mikael Nydahl, 447–78. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Pelevin, Viktor. 1999. Omon Ra. Translated by Ben Hellman. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Pelevin, Viktor. 2000. Insekternas liv. Translated by Staffan Skott. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Perumov, Nick. 2008a. Nekromantikerns födelse. Translated by Maxim Grigoriev. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Perumov, Nick. 2008b. Nekromantikerns irrfärder. Translated by Maxim Grigoriev. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Perumov, Nick. 2009. Nekromantikerns flykt. Translated by Britt-Marie Ingdén-Ringselle and Ola Wallin. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Perumov, Nick. 2010. Nekromantikerns ensamhet 1. Translated by Ola Wallin and Kajsa Öberg Lindsten. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Perumov, Nick. 2011. Nekromantikerns ensamhet 2. Translated by Britt-Marie Ingdén-Ringselle and Ola Wallin. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Perumov, Nick. 2012. Nekromantikerns krig 1. Translated by Maxim Grigoriev. Stockholm: Coltso.
Perumov, Nick. 2013. Nekromantikerns krig 2. Translated by Britt-Marie Ingdén-Ringselle. Stockholm: Coltso.
Perumov, Nick. 2014. Nekromantikerns krig 3. Translated by Maxim Grigoriev. Stockholm: Coltso.
Perumov, Nick. 2015. Nekromantikerns krig 4. Translated by Britt-Marie Ingdén-Ringselle. Stockholm: Coltso.
Perumov, Nick. 2016. Nekromantikerns krig 5. Translated by Britt-Marie Ingdén-Ringselle. Stockholm: Coltso.
Sentjin, Roman. 2015. Familjen Joltysjev. Translated by Nils Håkanson. Stockholm: 2244.
Skott, Staffan. 2000. “Några kommentarer Insekternas liv av Viktor Pelevin”. In Insekternas liv, by Viktor Pelevin. Translated by Staffan Skott, 237–43. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Sorokin, Vladimir. 2001. Blått fett. Translated by Ben Hellman. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Sorokin, Vladimir. 2006. Is. Translated by Ben Hellman. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Sorokin, Vladimir. 2008. I det heliga Rysslands tjänst. Translated by Ben Hellman. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Sorokin, Vladimir. 2015. Tellurien. Translated by Ben Hellman. Stockholm: Norstedt.
Starobinets, Anna. 2012. Den levande. Translated by Mikael Nydahl. Stockholm: Coltso.
Stepanova, Maria. 2019. Minnen av minnet: en romans. Translated by Nils Håkanson. Stockholm: Nirstedt/litteratur.
Ulitskaja, Ljudmila. 2015. Det gröna tältet. Translated by Hans Björkegren. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Ulitskaja, Ljudmila. 2017. Jakobs stege. Translated by Hans Björkegren. Stockholm: Ersatz.
Wahlström & Widstrand. 2002. Publisher’s blurb on back cover. In Den stulna drömmen, by Alexandra Marinina. Translated by Magnus Dahnberg. Stockholm: Wahlström & Widstrand.
*****
Secondary sources
Alvstad, Cecilia. 2012. “The Strategic Moves of Paratexts: World Literature through Swedish Eyes.” Translation Studies 5 (1): 78–94. https://doi.org/10.1080/14781700.2012.628817. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14781700.2012.628817
Bassnett, Susan. 2014. Translation. New York: Routledge.
Batchelor, Kathryn. 2018. Translation and Paratexts. 1st ed. New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351110112. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351110112-1
Bilodeau, Isabelle. 2013. “Discursive Visibility: Quantifying the Practice of Translator Commentary in Contemporary Japanese Publishing.” Selected Papers of the CETRA Research Seminar in Translation Studies 10: 1–25. https://www.arts.kuleuven.be/cetra/papers/files/bilodeau.
Dimitriu, Rodica. 2009. “Translators’ Prefaces as Documentary Sources for Translation Studies.” Perspectives 17 (3): 193–206. https://doi.org/10.1080/09076760903255304. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09076760903255304
Escarpit, Robert. 1970. Litteratursociologi. Translated by Nils Peter Tollnert. Stockholm: Wahlström och Widstrand.
Gea Valor, María Lluïsa. 2005. “Advertising Books: A Linguistic Analysis of Blurbs.” Ibérica 10: 41–62. http://www.aelfe.org/documents/04-Ib10-Gea.pdf.
Genette, Gérard. 1997. Paratexts: Thresholds of Interpretation. Translated by Jane E. Lewin. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511549373
Håkanson, Nils. 2012. “Fönstret mot öster: Rysk skönlitteratur i svensk översättning 1797–2010.” PhD diss., Uppsala University.
Ingo, Rune. 1991. Från källspråk till målspråk: introduktion i översättningsvetenskap. Lund: Studentlitteratur.
Kjellberg, Lennart. 1991. Den klassiska romanens Ryssland. 3rd ed. Göteborg: Renässans.
Kungliga biblioteket. 2003–2021. Nationalbibliografin. Stockholm: Nationalbibliografin, Kungliga biblioteket.
Landers, Clifford E. 2001. Literary Translation: A Practical Guide. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21832/9781853595639
Lindqvist, Yvonne. 2002. “Översättning som social praktik: Toni Morrison och Harlequinserien Passion på svenska.” PhD Diss., Stockholm University.
Lindqvist, Yvonne. 2015. “Det skandinaviska översättningsfältet – finns det?” Språk & Stil 25: 69–87.
McRae, Ellen. 2012. “The Role of Translators’ Prefaces to Contemporary Literary Translations into English: An Empirical Study.” In Translation Peripheries. Paratextual Elements in Translation, edited by Anna Gil-Bajardí, Pilar Orero and Sara Rovira-Esteva, 63–82. Bern: Peter Lang.
Määttä, Jerry. 2006. “Raketsommar. Science fiction i Sverige 1950–1968.” PhD diss., Uppsala University. http://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:168907/FULLTEXT01.pdf.
Nergaard, Siri. 2013. “The (In)Visible Publisher in Translations: The Publisher’s Multiple Translational Voices.” In Authorial and Editorial Voices in Translation 2 - Editorial and Publishing Practices, edited by Hanne Jansen and Anna Wegener. Montréal: Éditions québécoises de l’oeuvre, collection Vita Traductiva. http://hdl.handle.net/10315/26585.
Newmark, Peter. 1988. A Textbook of Translation. New York: Prentice Hall.
Norberg, Ulf. 2012. “Literary Translators’ Comments on their Translations in Prefaces and Afterwords: The Case of Contemporary Sweden.” In Translation Peripheries. Paratextual Elements in Translation, edited by Anna Gil-Bajardí, Pilar Orero and Sara Rovira-Esteva, 101–16. Bern: Peter Lang.
Paloposki, Outi. 2010. “The Translator’s Footprints.” In Translators’ Agency, edited by Tuija Kinnunen and Kaisa Koskinen, 86–107. Tampere: Tampere University Press. https://urn.fi/urn:isbn:978-951-44-8082-9.
Pellatt, Valerie. 2013. “Packaging the Product: A Case Study of Verbal and Non-Verbal Paratext in Chinese-English Translation.” The Journal of Specialized Translation 20: 86–106. https://www.jostrans.org/issue20/art_pellatt.php.
Podlevskikh Carlström, Malin. 2020. “The Trials of the Intertextual: The Translation and Reception of Tatjana Tolstaya´s Kys’ in Sweden and the United States.” PhD diss., University of Gothenburg.
Podlevskikh Carlström, Malin. 2022a. Swedish Reviews of Post-Soviet Russian Novels Pub¬lished in Swedish Translation 1992–2020. Swedish National Data Service. Version 1. https://doi.org/10.5878/e1k4-1058.
Podlevskikh Carlström, Malin. 2022b. “Translation Visibility and Translation Criticism in the Swedish Reception of Post-Soviet Russian Literature: Literary Reviews as Epitexts.” In Paratexts in Translation: Nordic Perspectives, edited by Richard Pleijel and Malin Podlevskikh Carlström, 123–64. Berlin: Frank & Timme.
Toledano Buendía, Carmen. 2013. “Listening to the Voice of the Translator: A Description of Translator’s Notes as Paratextual Elements.” In The International Journal of Translation and Interpreting Research 5 (2): 149–62. https://doi.org/10.12807/ti.105202.2013.a09. DOI: https://doi.org/10.12807/ti.105202.2013.a09
Toury, Gideon. 2012. Descriptive Translation Studies – and Beyond. Rev. ed. Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins. ProQuest Ebook Central.
Venuti, Lawrence. 1995. The Translator’s Invisibility: A History of Translation. 2nd ed. London: Routledge.
Venuti, Lawrence. 2013. “How to Read a Translation.” In Translation Changes Everything: Theory and Practice, 109–15. London: Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203074428
Yuste Frías, José. 2012. “Paratextual Elements in Translation: Paratranslating Titles in Children’s Literature.” In Translation Peripheries. Paratextual Elements in Translation, edited by Anna Gil-Bajardí, Pilar Orero and Sara Rovira-Esteva. 117–34. Bern: Peter Lang.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Malin Podlevskikh Carlström
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Copyright Notice
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors are confirming that they are the authors of the submitting article, which will be published online in journal Stridon by Znanstvena založba Filozofske fakultete Univerze v Ljubljani (University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Aškerčeva 2, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia). Author’s name will be evident in the article in journal. All decisions regarding layout and distribution of the work are in hands of the publisher.
- Authors guarantee that the work is their own original creation and does not infringe any statutory or common-law copyright or any proprietary right of any third party. In case of claims by third parties, authors commit their self to defend the interests of the publisher, and shall cover any potential costs.
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licensethat allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
