Translation equivalent but different, impossible but necessary, interlingual or intercultural: conceptualizing translation

Abstract

In this study I will try to outline a common emancipatory program for the politically-engaged translator based on the work of these thinkers. We will pay special attention to the counter-hegemonic potential of translation as developed by our authors and to the concept of “constellation” advanced by Santos in his works. Another chief concern will be to explore the divide between these two different concepts of translation (interlingual and “cultural”), trying to answer several pressing questions. Can these different notions be unified in such a way that the insights from these thinkers can be reconciled with mainstream translation theory? Do we run the risk of diluting the concept of translation to such an extent, in this constant conceptual broadening, that it ceases to have any solid foundation?