Artistic translation as a "self-sufficient" and an "integrated" object of interpretation

Notes on the margins to some Polish translations of Gottfried Benn

Stanisław Barańczak

Translated by Soren Gauger

in: Edward Balcerzan, Stanisław Barańczak, Literature from literature, , sdvig press, 2020

Abstract

In this 1974 text, Barańczak argues that, due to certain textual features, to the decisions of translators or to editorial devices, literary translations can be interpreted by readers along two lines: they can either act as stand-alone that contain all the necessary information and do not require any comparison with the original; or they can demand of readers to confront translations with the original works (or alternatively: other existing translation variants in the target culture) and are in fact constructed to encourage such a bilingual or parallel reading. While Barańczak’s discussion suggests ways of considering translation and editorial strategies to shape the reader’s interpretation of a translated text, it does not limit itself to only these two binary oppositions. Rather, it suggests some regularities stretching on a spectrum between them. At the same time, Barańczak’s awareness of the positioning of translation was also reflected in his own artistic practice and bilingual writing.