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Jonatan Pettersson

Research projects

Publications

A selection from Stockholm University publication database

  • De teologiska utredningarna i Medeltidens bibelarbeten 1.

    2019. Jonatan Pettersson. Arkiv för nordisk filologi 134, 49-102

    Article

    The collection of texts that usually are called Medeltidens bibelarbeten 1 (Medieval Bible Works 1, MB 1) contains a commented translation of the Pentateuch and some supporting texts, all probably from the first half of the fourteenth century. Among the supporting texts are two collections of theological expositions in the Old Swedish vernacular, which appear before and after the Pentateuch translation in the manuscripts. The first deals with questions of the creation and the original sin, the other one with the Old Law, and they are mainly translations of excerpts from Thomas of Aquinas’ Summa theologiæ. The investigations show clear indications of that it was the same person who translated and created the theological expositions and the Pentateuch translation, something that has been previously assumed but never investigated closely. The theme of the second theological exposition relates closely to an important feature of the translation method in the Pentateuch and there are close connections between the expositions and the comments of the Bible translation. From an investigation of metatextual comments it is argued that the Pentateuch translation was carried out first and the expositions later. Altogether, the connection between the supplementary texts and the Pentateuch translation improves our opportunities to discuss MB 1 as a work, what kind of reader MB 1 was intended for, and its place in the Swedish and Nordic text history of the fourteenth century in general.

    Read more about De teologiska utredningarna i Medeltidens bibelarbeten 1.

  • Textforskningen och översättningarna

    2012. Jonatan Pettersson. Språk och stil 22 (1), 162-186

    Article

    Translations have often been treated as texts of less interest and importance within text research, more often considered a problem rather than a resource. This article discusses the potential of both the translation process and the translated texts for different kinds of text research. The role of translations and translation theory within text historical research is first discussed, with focus on the

    Swedish Sakprosa project. Secondly, conceptions of translation among text users are treated and connections are drawn to text ethnographic and genre oriented research. Thirdly, the focus is placed on to the text producer and the writing process, and the article turns to discussing how knowledge of the translation process might be helpful when investigating other kinds of writing processes. Translation is then discussed within a systemic-functional theoretical perspective and the article points out how a discussion of translation might be valuable for the theoretical description and understanding of different kinds of text processing. The article draws the conclusion that text research should not consider translation and translations a problem but rather as potential resources for deepening our knowledge of texts and writing in general.

    Read more about Textforskningen och översättningarna

  • Fri översättning i det medeltida Västnorden

    2009. Jonatan Pettersson (et al.).

    Thesis (Doc)

    In this thesis, medieval free translation is explored as a text-producing practice as it appears in Alexanders saga, a 13th century Old Norse translation of the medieval Latin epic Alexandreis. The practice is investigated through analyses of (1) the rendering of the source text and (2) the translator’s role in making the target text. The rendering is analyzed through a systematic comparison between source and target text using a method of analysis based on systemic functional linguistics (SFL). Contrary to what was assumed previously, the rendering pro­ves to be consistent in the text, but a surprising result is that the rendering in chapters 2–4 and in chapters 1 and 6–10 respectively represent two significantly dif­ferent patterns, the former being closer to the source text than the latter, pre­sumably due to two different translators. The investigation further confirms an observation in previous research on Old Norse free translation that the rendering of parts in direct speech are closer to the source than that of narrative and descriptive discourse. The rendering is closest where the translator indicates that he is quoting the author of the source text. These patterns are found in both groups of chapters, and as they are confirmed in other Old Norse translations, they might be interpreted as a translation norm. The conceptions of translation are further investigated by examining what kind of text-producing role the translator assumes. It is claimed that, despite the freedom in free ren­dering, the translator assumes the role of intermediary between the source text and the receivers of the target text rather than the role of independent text pro­ducer. From an analysis of the translator’s metatextual additions, it seems as though this is also what the translator assumes the receivers of the text expect him to do.

    The results indicate the presence of certain conceptions of how translation was to be carried out in West Nordic society. The ”free” translation strategies did not mean freedom from or obliviousness to translation norms, but rather re­late to a specific text-producing practice.

    Read more about Fri översättning i det medeltida Västnorden

  • Translators and narrators. The translation of subjectivity in Old Norse literature.

    2009. Jonatan Pettersson. Translation an the (Trans)formation of Identities., 1-17

    Conference

    The medieval, indigenous narratives of Iceland and Norway, the sagas, are generally recognised for their objective style. However, in 13th century West Nordic texts, explicit subjectivity as a literary strategy appears, e.g. through the use of an active narrator in the story. The translation of courtly literature seems to have played an important role in the introduction of the subjective features, and the new strategies challenged the objectivity of the indigenous texts. In this paper, it is argued that different ways of handling subjectivity by translators in Norway and Iceland might be explained by the differences between the two societies, if we use the polysystem theory of Even-Zohar (1990) as a theoretical framework.

    Read more about Translators and narrators. The translation of subjectivity in Old Norse literature.

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