Grounded in the growing field of the sociology of translation and its reception, this chapter considers selected case studies of retranslation and frames them within a new methodological perspective that takes into consideration the body of the translator. Discussions of translation and retranslation tend to rely on conventional metaphors in which translation is a ‘bridge’ between languages and cultures. The utility of metaphors for understanding translation has been challenged, but little consideration has been given to translators’ use of novel somatic metaphors to describe their practice. This chapter considers how translators’ use of novel somatic metaphors contributes new information to the understanding and evaluation of their acts of retranslation.