Polysystem theory was developed in the early 1970s by Itamar Even-Zohar, an Israeli scholar, for the study of language, literature and translation, and in his later writings it expanded into a general theory of culture.

References

Chang, Nam Fung

2000 “Towards a macro-polysystem hypothesis.” Perspectives: Studies in Translatology 8 (2): 109–123  TSB

Chang, Nam Fung

2001 “Polysystem theory: Its prospect as a framework for translation research.” Target 13 (2): 317–332  TSB

Even-Zohar, Itamar

1979 “Polysystem theory.” Poetics Today 1 (1–2): 287–310

Even-Zohar, Itamar

1990 Polysystem Studies. Durham: Duke University Press. Special issue of Poetics Today 11 (1).  TSB

Hermans, Theo

1996 “Norms and the determination of translation: A theoretical framework.” In Translation, Power, Subversion, Román Álvarez & M. Carmen-África Vidal (eds), 25–51. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.  BoP

Hermans, Theo

1999 Translation in Systems: Descriptive and System-oriented Approaches Explained. Manchester: St. Jerome.  TSB

Huang, Dexian

2006 “Duoyuanxitonglun shiyi: Zuohaer fangtan lu.” (Clarifications on polysystem theory: Interview with Even-Zohar) Chinese Translators Journal 3: 57–60.

Toury, Gideon

1995 Descriptive Translation Studies and Beyond. Amsterdam & Philadelphia: John Benjamins  BoP

Tymoczko, Maria

2000 “Translation and political engagement: Activism, social change and the role of translation in geopolitical shifts.” The Translator 6 (1): 23–47  TSB

Wang, Dongfeng

2008 “When a turning occurs: Counter-evidence to polysystem hypothesis.” In Translation, Globalisation and Localisation: A Chinese Perspective, Wang Ning & Sun Yifeng (eds), 140–154. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.  TSB

Further reading

Chang, Nam Fung

in press. “In Defence of Polysystem Theory”. Target 23 (2).  TSB