Cover not available
Article published In:
Translation and Interpreting Studies
Vol. 18:2 (2023) ► pp.280–300
Thematic section

Mediatorship in the clash of hegemonic and counter publics

The curious case of Heartstopper in Turkey

ORCID logo | Erzincan Binali Yıldırım University
ORCID logo | Bandırma Onyedi Eylül University

This study discusses how the publication of Alice Oseman’s translation of the Heartstopper (Kalp Çarpıntısı) series in Turkey became a case of multiple mediatorship, from the stigmatization of the series as “propaganda of heresy” and the official restrictions of its sales to the support for its dissemination among the target audience. Closely relating to the mediation processes that turn sanctions into statements against the LGBTQ+ community or springboards for solidarity in support of equality and inclusion, the concept of multiple mediatorship embodies mediators or agents acting for or against the dissemination of the series among Turkish readers. In that vein, this study offers a nuanced understanding of how mediation cannot simply be deemed a collaborative act enabled by alliance, but, rather, of how it involves a clash of multiple mediators who are in conflict in the public sphere.

Keywords: Alice Oseman, Heartstopper , young adult queer fiction, multiple mediatorship, censorship
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • From mediation to multiple mediatorship in clashing publics
  • The curious case of the Heartstopper series in Turkey
  • A conflicting case of multiple mediatorship: Board members vs. publishing agents
  • Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 6 November 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/tis.23014.abd
References (68)
Acanerler, Alican
2021, April 13. “Why a growing number of children’s books are being declared obscene.” Inside Turkey. [URL]. Last accessed 30 May 2023.
Altunkanat, Anıl Ceren
2021 “Yabancı Yayınları’nın genel yayın yönetmeni, Ece Çavuşlu ile söyleşi: Kalp Çarpıntısı’nın zorlu serüveni.” Bilim ve Gelecek. [URL]. Last accessed 15 December 2022.
Archibald, James and Garzone, Giuliana Elena Garzone
2014 “Conceptualising linguistic and cultural mediation.” Lingue Culture Mediazioni / Languages Cultures Mediation 1(1–2): 7–16. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Arısan, Mehmet
2019 “From ‘clients’ to ‘magnates’: the (not so) curious case of Islamic authoritarianism in Turkey.” Southeast European and Black Sea Studies 19(1): 11–30. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Arslan, Devrim Ulaş
2020 Translation, Obscenity and Censorship in Turkey: Avni İnsel as a Translator and Patron of Popular Erotic Literature. Istanbul: Libra Kitap.Google Scholar
Atalay, Zeynep
2018 “Authoritarian neoliberalism and Islamist civil society in Turkey.” In Civil society in the Global South, ed. by Palash Kamruzzaman, 176–192. London: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Baer, Brian James
2020 Queer Theory and Translation Studies: Language, Politics, Desire. London: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bassnett, Susan
2011 “The translator as cross-cultural mediator.” In The Oxford Handbook of Translation Studies, ed. by Kirsten Malmkjær and Kevin Windle, 94–107. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Ben-Ari, Nitsa
2012 “When literary censorship is not strictly enforced, self-censorship rushes in.” TTR 23(2): 133–166. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Beyaz, Devrim
2021, August 15. “Eşcinsel karakter içeren kitap, bazı dijital satış sitelerinde sansüre uğradı.” Kayıp Rıhtım. [URL] Last accessed 16 December 2022.
BIA News Desk
2022, June 14. “Netflix Turkey described the ‘Heartstopper’ series about LGBTI+ youth as ‘harmful’.” Bianet. [URL]. Last accessed 16 December 2022.
Birkan Baydan, Esra
2015 “Ideological encounters: Islamist retranslations of the western classics.” In Tradition, Tension and Translation in Turkey, ed. by Şehnaz Tahir Gürçağlar, Saliha Paker and John Milton, 233–253. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Casanova, Pascale
2010 “Consecration and accumulation of literary capital: Translation as unequal exchange.” In Critical Readings in Translation Studies, ed. by Mona Baker, 287–303. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Çolak, Selin and Erten, Erdeniz
2021, August 15. “Kalp Çarpıntısı raflardan kaldırılıyor mu?” Bibliyograf, [URL]. Last accessed 15 December 2022.
Demirhan, Handegül
2022 “Translating gender and sexuality in children’s literature: Turkey as a case study.” MonTI 141: 149–179. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Duvar English
2021, September 8. “Turkish Family Ministry dubs book ‘detrimental’ for including gay characters.” Duvar English. [URL]. Last accessed 19 December 2022.
Epsilon. Hakkımızda
Epsilon. [URL]. Last accessed 15 December 2022.
Epsilonyayinevi [@EpsilonYayınevi]
2020, March 5. Yazarın en tatlısı. :) Heartstopper Epsilon’da! [Tweet] Twitter. [URL]
Ertekin, E. [@EnesErtekin23
] 2021, August 14. Yabancı Yayınları’ndan çıkan LGBT içerikli Kalp Çarpıntısı adlı çizgi roman, @kitapyurducom’da satışa sunulmuş [Tweet]. Twitter. [URL]
Gerhards, Jürgens and Neidhardt, Friedhelm
1991 “Strukturen und funktionen moderner öffentlichkeit: Fragestellungen und ansätze.” In Öffentlichkeit, Kultur, Massenkommunikation: Beiträge zur Medien- und Kommunikationssoziologie, ed. by Stefan Müller-Dohm and Klaus Neumann-Braun, 31–89. Oldenburg: BIS.Google Scholar
Göle, Nilüfer
1997 “The gendered nature of the public sphere.” Public Culture 10(1): 61–80. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Habermas, James
1991 [1962] The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere: An Inquiry into a Category of Bourgeois Society, trans. by Thomas Burger. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.Google Scholar
Hatim, Basil and Mason, Ian
1990 Discourse and the Translator. New York: Longman.Google Scholar
ILGA-Europe
. [@ILGAEurope] 2021, September 13. The censorship of this book is the latest in a string of anti-LGBT #censorship of various media in #Turkey. We stand in solidarity with the #LGBTI community in Turkey, who are facing a relentless attack on their human rights, including the right to freedom of expression [Tweet]. Twitter. [URL]
Jansen, Hanne and Wegener, Anna
2013 “Multiple translatorship.” In Authorial and Editorial Voices in Translation: Collaborative Relationships Between Authors, Translators, and Performers, ed. by Hanne Jansen and Anna Wegener, 1–42. Montreal: Éditions québécoises de l’oeuvre.Google Scholar
Jinha Women’s News Agency. [@jinha_english]
2021, September 9. Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper Series announced “harmful” in Turkey [Tweet]. Twitter. [URL]
Kaos GL
2021, August 16. “Kalp Çarpıntısı’na soruşturma ardından Kitapyurdu, D&R ve İdefix’ten homofobik sansür!” Kaos GL, [URL] Last accessed 15 December 2022.
Karadağ, Ayşe Banu
2003 Edebiyat ve kültür dizgesini şekillendirmede ideolojik açıdan çevirinin ve çevirmenin rolü. [The role of both the translational action and the translator -in terms of ideology- in shaping the literary and cultural system]. Doctoral dissertation, Istanbul University Institute of Social Sciences.
Katan, David
1999 Translating Cultures: An Introduction for Translators, Interpreters and Mediators. Manchester: St Jerome.Google Scholar
Kaya, Arzu
2021, August 8. “Tartışmalı kitapta savcılık devrede! Eşcinsellik vurgusuna ‘müstehcenlik’ soruşturması.” Sabah, [URL]. Last accessed 20 December 2022.
Kayıp Rıhtım
2021, August 15. Kayıp Rıhtım, [URL]. Last accessed 15 December 2022.
Knight, Kyle
2015, June 30. “Dispatches: Violent crackdown at Istanbul’s Pride Parade.” Human Rights Watch. [URL]. Last accessed 19 December 2022.
Kronos
2021, September 27. “Bakanlığın ‘muzır’ ilan ettiği kitap zarf içinde satılacak.” Kronos, [URL]. Last accessed 16 December 2022.
Liddicoat, Anthony John
2016 “Intercultural mediation, intercultural communication and translation.” Perspectives 24(3): 354–364. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Loader, Brian D. and Mercea, Dan
2011 “Networking democracy? Social media innovations and participatory politics.” Information, Communication and Society 14(6): 757–769. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Luque, Francisca Garcia
2009 “Translation as a mediating activity: The influence of translation metaphors in research, practise and training of community interpreting.” Entreculturas 11: 647–668. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Merkle, Denise
2018 “Translation and censorship.” In The Routledge Handbook of Translation and Politics, ed. by Jonathan Evans and Fruela Fernandez, 38–253. London: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Mevzuat.gov.tr. Küçükleri Muzır Neşriyattan Koruma Kanunu
Mevzuat.gov.tr. [URL]
Milton, John and Paul Bandia
2009 “Introduction: Agents of translation and translation studies.” Agents of Translation, ed. by John Milton and Paul Bandia, 1–18. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
MoFLSS
2021 Küçükleri Muzır Neşriyattan Koruma Kurulu Kurul Kararı [Decision by the BPMOP]. 4 November 2021. Number: E-60108709-650-1621478.Google Scholar
Nethaber
2020, May 24. “Ünlü yayınevinden tepki çeken ‘eşcinsel’ çizgi roman: Kalp Çarpıntısı’.” Nethaber, [URL]. Last accessed 19 December 2022.
Oseman, Alice
2020 Heartstopper. Volume: 31. London: Hodder Children’s Books.Google Scholar
2021 Kalp Çarpıntısı. Trans. by Ömer Anlatan. Cilt 3. Istanbul: Yabancı Yayınları.Google Scholar
Oseman, Alice. [@AliceOseman
] 2022, January 1. This month, HEARTSTOPPER on Tapas is supporting @lambda_istanbul, who are fighting for LGBTQ+ rights and freedom in Turkey [Tweet]. Twitter. [URL]
P24
2021 “Censorship and self-censorship in turkey: December 2019 – December 2020.” SpeakUp Platform against censorship and self-censorship, [URL] Last accessed 18 December 2022.
Parantezhaber
2020, May 27. “Epsilon Yayınevi’nden sapkınlık propagandası!” Parantezhaber, [URL]. Last accessed 16 December 2022.
Resmi Gazete
2021, September 8. “Aile, Çalışma ve Sosyal Hizmetler Bakanlığı Küçükleri Muzır Neşriyattan Koruma Kurulundan.” Resmi Gazete. [URL]
Roig-Sanz, Diana and Reine Meylaerts
2018 “General introduction. Literary translation and cultural mediators. Toward an agent and process-oriented approach.” In Literary Translation and Cultural Mediators in ‘Peripheral’ Cultures: Custom Officers or Smugglers?, ed. by Diana Roig-Sanz and Reine Meylaerts, 1–37. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Savcı, Evren
2021 Queer in Translation: Sexual Politics Under Neoliberal Islam. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.Google Scholar
Sayınta, Demet
28 Haziran 2003 “Türkiye’deki ilk onur yürüyüşü.” Aramızda Toplumsal Cinsiyet Araştırmaları Derneği, [URL]. Last accessed 15 December 2022.
Schwartz, Cecilia
2018 “From Nuoro to Nobel: the impact of multiple mediatorship on Grazia Deledda’s movement within the literary semi-periphery.” Perspectives 26(4): 526–542. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Senstad, Idun Heir
2020 “Literary diversity through translation. The role of independent cultural mediators in the selection of Cuban literature in Norway.” Literatura Latinoamericana Mundial: Dispositivos y Disidencias, ed. by Gustavo Guerrero, Jorge J. Locane, Benjamin Loy and Gesine Müller, 97–122. Berlin: De Gruyter. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Shirky, Clay
2011 “The political power of social media: Technology, the public sphere, and political change.” Foreign Affairs 90(1): 1–9.Google Scholar
Solum, Kristina
2017 “Translators, editors, publishers, and critics: Multiple translatorship in the public sphere.” In Textual and Contextual Voices of Translation, ed. by Cecilia Alvstad, Annjo K. Greenall, Hanne Jansen and Kristiina Taivalkoski-Shilov, 39–60. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
2018 “The tacit influence of the copy-editor in literary translation.” Perspectives 26(4): 543–559. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Speakup
2021, September 10. “The book ‘Heartstopper’ declared obscene publication.” SpeakUp Platform against censorship and self-censorship, [URL]. Last accessed 17 December 2022.
Stoltenberg, Daniela
2021 “A conceptual framework for the role of space in public discourses.” Media and Communication 9(3): 5–15. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Tahir-Gürçağlar, Şehnaz
2009 “Translation, presumed innocent: Translation and ideology in Turkey.” The Translator 15(1): 37–64. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Taibi, Mustapha
2022 “Intercultural mediation in translation and interpreting studies.” In The Routledge Handbook of Intercultural Mediation, ed. by Dominic Busch, 399–407. London: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Tın, Büşra
2018, February 2018 Yabancı Yayınları 5. yılını kutluyor!: Yayıncılık üzerine samimi bir sohbet. Gaia Dergi, [URL]. Last accessed 15 December 2022.
Türkiye Yayıncılar Birliği
2021, September 17. “Muzır neşriyat kararlarını kaygıyla takip ediyoruz!” Türkiye Yayıncılar Birliği, [URL] Last accessed 18 December 2022.
Üstünsöz, İrem
2015 “Censorship of “obscene” literary translations: An analysis of two specific cases.” In Tradition, Tension and Translation in Turkey, ed. by Şehnaz Tahir Gürçağlar, Saliha Paker and John Milton, 219–232. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Ward, Irene
1997 “How democratic can we get?: The Internet, the public sphere, and public discourse.” Journal of Advanced Composition 17(3): 365–379.Google Scholar
Yabancı Yayınları
2021, June 7. Uzun zamandır beklediğiniz Kalp Çarpıntısı şimdi @ilknokta’da ön satışta! Yabancı’nın çizgi roman seçkisine katılan bu muhteşem seriye mutlaka bir şans verin! [Facebook post] Facebook. [URL]
Yabancı Yayınları. [@yabanciyayinlar]
2021, June 4. Haziran ayında sizlerle buluşacak bu güzelliğin haberini vermeye geldik. Üstelik ikinci kitap da arayı çok açmadan raflarda olacak! Bizden söylemesi [Tweet]. Twitter. [URL]
2021, September 10. Kalp Çarpıntısı serisi hakkındaki açıklamamızdır [Tweet]. Twitter. [URL]
Yabancı Yayınları. [@yabanciyayinlari]
2021, September 10. Kalp Çarpıntısı serisi hakkındaki açıklamamızdır [Instagram Post]. Instagram. [URL]
Yeşil Gazete
2021, September 9. “Kalp Çarpıntısı isimli kitap, Bakanlık tarafından muzır neşriyat ilan edildi.” Yeşil Gazete, [URL]. Last accessed 20 December 2022.