Till Zoominariet

In genetic translation studies, the objective is to learn more about translators' creative processes by studying the different stages of the translation process. This is done by studying the avant-texte, that is, the different documents that precede the finished translation, such as drafts and manuscripts.

In this talk, I will explore the creative processes of Tuomas Anhava (1927–2001) when he translated Constantine Cavafy's (1863–1933) poetry into Finnish. Anhava's archive (at the Finnish Literature Society – SKS) contains about 150 pages of drafts, manuscripts, notes, etc. relating to these translations. These materials lend themselves for the study of how the translations of individual poems transform from one version to another and provide insights into the kind of research that Anhava did during the translation process.

The analysis sheds light on Anhava's compilative translation process. For example, when translating the poem "Η Πόλις" (I pòlis, 'The city'), he compared the Greek original to 11 different translations in four different languages (English, French, German and Swedish). As for individual translations' transformations, the archive contains four versions for the translation of the poem "Τα Παράθυρα" ('Windows' – in Finnish "Ikkunat"), for example. While some of the verses remain constant in all the versions, others exhibit differing degrees of variation. By studying the constants and variants, we can gain information on the translator's creative processes.

Laura Ivaska

About the Higher seminar in Translation Studies