The Translation Industry: Enlightenment as Mass Deception. Some New Remarks on an Old Issue Cover Image

Przemysł tłumaczeniowy: Oświecenie jako masowe oszustwo. Nowe uwagi na temat nienowego problemu
The Translation Industry: Enlightenment as Mass Deception. Some New Remarks on an Old Issue

Author(s): David Schauffler
Subject(s): Literary Texts
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego

Summary/Abstract: This essay takes its inspiration from Adorno and Horkheimer’s work "Dialektik der Aufklärung", which critically examines culture at large. Schauffler interrogates all the key words used in his title in order to discuss the significance of translation in contemporary culture and communication. The industrial aspect of translation is related to Walter Benjamin’s claim that (literary) translation is not supposed to serve the reader. Nowadays, on the other hand, translation is an industry and as such is obliged to be subordinated to the demands of the market. That reflects on the assumptions and strategies employed by the translator: her/his attitude to the source language and the very notion of translation are modified accordingly.

  • Issue Year: 2011
  • Issue No: 22-23
  • Page Range: 55-65
  • Page Count: 11