Résumés
Abstract
This essay charts the evolution of the translation concepts developed by the Brazilian poet Haroldo de Campos from his early concrete phase in the 1950s to what could be termed a postcolonial turn in the 1980s. I argue that the early concept of “transcreation” emerged from the practice of concrete poetry with its isomorphic mirroring of form and content. Stemming from the difficulty of translating concrete poetry and similar isomorphic texts, de Campos suggests a form of translation where a correspondence between the form and content of the original is also sought in the target text. Moving away from primarily formal concerns, in later developments, de Campos lays emphasis on a translation concept that puts forth a critical view of the original through the metaphor of the cannibal, who both reveres and devours the enemy, literally incorporating its energies into his body. This later concept of translation as cannibalism can be read within the larger arena of postcolonial translation. Although De Campos’s concepts were mainly developed independently from the mainstream currents of translation theory, they may be understood in relation to more recent discussions by Lefevere, Bassnett, and Trivedi, among others.
Keywords:
- Haroldo de Campos,
- isomorphism,
- concrete poetry,
- Noigandres,
- transcreation,
- anthropophagy,
- cannibalism,
- postcolonial translation
Résumé
Cet article retrace l’évolution des concepts traductologiques développés par le poète brésilien Haroldo de Campos, depuis sa phase concrète au début des années 1950 à ce que l’on pourrait appeler son tournant postcolonial dans les années 1980. Je soutiens que le concept de « transcréation » a d’abord émergé de la pratique de la poésie concrète qui se caractérise par un isomorphisme entre la forme et le contenu. Partant de la difficulté de traduire la poésie concrète et les textes isomorphes semblables, de Campos propose une forme de traduction qui s’attache à produire une correspondance analogue entre la forme et le contenu de l’original dans le texte cible. Laissant de côté les aspects principalement formels, qu’il développera ultérieurement, de Campos met l’accent sur une conception de la traduction qui repose sur une vision critique de l’original à travers la métaphore du cannibale, qui à la fois révère et dévore l’ennemi, incorporant, littéralement, dans son organisme l’énergie de l’ennemi. Ce concept de cannibalisme trouve une pertinence dans le champ de la traduction postcoloniale. Bien que les concepts de Campos aient été principalement forgés en marge des courants dominants de la théorie de la traduction, ils peuvent être compris à la lumière d’élaborations traductologiques plus récentes comme celles de Lefevere, de Bassnett et de Trivedi.
Mots-clés :
- Haroldo de Campos,
- isomorphisme,
- poésie concrète,
- Noigandres,
- transcréation,
- anthropophagie,
- cannibalisme,
- traduction postcoloniale
Parties annexes
Bibliography
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