Using Translation As An Instrument In Cross-Cultural Interaction

IIn recent years, an increase in cross-cultural relations has led to a huge interest in the process and products of translation. In this light, translation has become one of the most effective instruments that facilitate intercultural interactions. In turn, this has triggered a heightened awareness of the fact that translation is also an act of cultural transfer, besides being a tool for linguistic transference. Translation is the platform through which minor literatures become accessible to a significantly larger base of readers. Ideas, cultural values, principles and habits are spread in this way and contribute to the creation of a more comprehensive picture of a given culture. In this context, the figure of the translator as an agent of mediation between the two cultures acquires more relevance than ever before. This paper sets to take a look at the English translation of Filip Florian’s acclaimed novel Degete mici. The purpose of the ST-TT analysis is to attempt an identification of the translator’s agenda and the direction in which he guided the text. In doing so, we will make use of the notions of domestication and foreignisation put forward by Canadian researcher Lawrence Venuti.