CENSORSHIP AND SELF-CENSORSHIP IN INTERWAR AND SOVIET-ERA TRANSLATIONS FROM FRENCH INTO LITHUANIAN

Abstract

Translation is part of the polysystem of society and is therefore linked to other systems, such as political and ideological power, economics, literature, socio-cultural factors, etc. As it develops together with society, translation constantly changes and undergoes transformations specific to a certain historical period and reflects the particularities of a country's polysystems and socio-semiotic norms. The latter is reflected in different forms of translation, including both censorship and self-censorship. This study aims to analyse and compare censorship and self-censorship in the translations of canonical French literature into Lithuanian during the interwar and Soviet era, as well as to discuss the reasons, similarities and differences for the censorship and self-censorship of the research material within the broader context of the Polysystem Theory, socio-semiotic norms of translation, and the political powers of each period. To achieve this aim, the following objectives have been set: 1) to theoretically discuss the topic based on the Polysystem Theory, the socio-semiotic norms of translation, and other current scientific research on the topic of censorship; 2) to investigate mechanisms of selection of Lithuanian publications and censorship of translations during the periods from 1918 to 1940 and from 1940 to 1990; 3) to analyse the presence of censorship and self-censorship in the research material; 4) to compare censorship and self-censorship in translations from French into Lithuanian during the interwar and Soviet era in Lithuania, and to identify the reasons for their application, as well as their similarities and differences within a broader political, ideological, and sociocultural context. The aim and objectives of the study are achieved using the methods of scientific literature analysis, comparative and descriptive analysis. The research material consists of a representative amount of original and translated texts: the novel of Stendhal “Le Rouge et le Noir” (The Red and the Black) and its three translations into Lithuanian “Raudona ir juoda” (1939, 1949, 1976); “Le Nœud de vipères” (The Knot of Vipers) by François Mauriac and two translations of this book “Gyvačių lizdas” (1934) and “Gyvačių kamuolys” (1975); “Colomba” (Colomba) by Prosper Mérimée and two translations, both named “Kolomba” (1937, 1947); novel by Guy de Maupassant “Pierre et Jean” (Pierre et Jean) and translations “Pjeras ir Žanas” (1937, 1988); „Le Tartuffe ou l’Imposteur“ (Tartuffe, or The Impostor, or The Hypocrite) by Molière and its translations into Lithuanian “Tartifas ir Veidmainys” (1928) and “Tartiufas arba Apgavikas” (1967). The total size of the research material in both languages is 3 922 pages. A comparative analysis of censorship and self-censorship in the translation of French literary texts into Lithuanian revealed that during the periods from 1918 to 1940 and from 1940 to 1990 Lithuanian translators aimed to adjust translations to the polysystems of their society at the time and to control the unpredictability of translation while keeping in mind political, ideological and sociocultural norms of translation. All the examples of translations of canonical French literature into Lithuanian suggest that during the interwar, censorship primarily targeted politically unacceptable revolutionary parts of the originals; whereas during the Soviet era, religious, political and ethical censorship became more widespread. Furthermore, the research showed that translators of the interwar chose self-censorship more than translators of the Soviet era. It could have links with quite an obvious tendency during those years to adapt translations and make them as comprehensive as possible with the systematic cultural knowledge of the majority of readers at the time.