Book review
Christopher Rundle, Anne Lange & Daniele Monticelli, eds. Translation Under Communism
Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 2022. xvii + 485 pp.

Reviewed by Birong Huang
Publication history
Table of contents

Throughout history, translation has been inextricably linked to politics through ideology. In Eastern Europe in particular, the widespread implementation of communist regimes in the twentieth century profoundly altered the production and dissemination of culture, thus shaping the politics of translation. Studying these regimes through the lens of translation can therefore provide unique insights into their history and the nature of their power. Until recently, however, relatively little scholarly attention has been paid to the relationship between communism and translation. Collected works on translation and ideology, as well as power and resistance, have only sporadically included case studies on communism (e.g., Baer 2010). Journal articles are more frequent but tend to concentrate primarily on censorship under communist regimes from the perspective of translators and translation practices (e.g., Sherry 2013; Monticelli and Lange 2014). In light of this, the sociologist Popa (2013, 2018) has undertaken relatively comprehensive research on communism and translation. She defines communism and provides an overview of Translation Studies in Eastern Europe during the communist period, albeit both publications are single chapters in anthologies.

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References

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