In the first chapter the work of translation as a form of literary art will be explained. Especially the works of Greiner and Gadamer were of great help in outlining the vast but young field of literary translation. The chapter focuses on the development of literary translations as a field of study and on the translator’s role as a mediator between cultures.
The second chapter focuses on the genre of utopianism. In order to analyze Herlitschka’s translation, this aspect of methodological knowledge is crucial. A short abstract of the genre’s development will be given. Also, the etymological definition of utopia will be explored. Furthermore, the words dystopia and anti-utopia will be defined. After these rather technical definitions, utopia, dystopia and anti-utopia will be defined as literary concepts. How are they different? And which concept does BNW identify with? The concepts of alienation and the importance of the reader will thus be touched upon, too.
Helpful throughout the whole chapter was especially the Cambridge Companion to Utopian literature.
After having laid out the theoretical and methodological foundation of this paper, the third chapter commences with the analysis of Herlitschka’s translation. In a first step, the narrative structure will be focused on.
Also, Herlitschka’s poetics will be studied in depth in order to present in detail whether his translation is a piece of own literary art or not. Following this thought it is important to see how he dealt with crucial passages. How did he alter the syntax? How is the English “you” translated to the German “du” or “Sie”?
Speaking of alteration, the characters and their renaming will be covered in a next step. Does Herlitschka change the notions characters imply in BNW? If so how does he utter this linguistically? Why are many names and all places changed?
Specifics that seem typical in Herlitschka’s translation will be slightly touched upon. Not all specifics will be named but the most striking ones will be explained. Interesting is to see how he deals with vocabulary repetition and different semantic notions words have when being transferred to another language.
Table of Contents
Introduction
1 The art of literary translation
2 Utopian Fiction – an attempt to define a genre
2.1 The etymological meaning of utopia, dystopia and anti-utopia
2.2 Utopia, dystopia and anti-utopia as literary concepts
3 Herlitschka’s translation from 1932
3.1 Narrative structure
3.2 Characters
3.3 Specifics of Herlitschka’s translation
Conclusion
Bibliography
Objectives and Core Themes
The primary objective of this paper is to conduct a comparative analysis between Aldous Huxley’s dystopian novel Brave New World and its 1932 German translation Welt-Wohin by Herbert Egon Herlitschka. The study seeks to investigate how the translator’s linguistic choices, the adaptation of cultural settings, and the renaming of characters impact the reception and the dystopian tone of the work in the German-speaking context.
- The role of the translator as a mediator between cultures and languages.
- Theoretical foundations of utopian, dystopian, and anti-utopian literary genres.
- Comparison of narrative structure and stylistic elements in the English original and the German translation.
- The impact of localizing names and places on the authenticity and narrative intent of the novel.
- Analysis of specific linguistic adaptations and their effect on the characterization of Mustapha Mond and John the Savage.
Excerpt from the Book
3.1 Narrative structure
Herbert Egon Herlitschka’s translation from 1932 was the first German edition of BNW. It was published in the Leipziger Inselverlag. Due to the scope of pages this paper offers, detailed information on the translator Herlitschka, his edition and the publisher will not be given.
Herlitschka starts as Huxley did in medias res and closely to the original: Due to German aesthetics of syntax the last sentence is split up into two sentences. Apart from this stylistic difference, the opening of the novel seems similar in both languages. They start in medias res and set the reader directly into the story’s center: London, Western Europe respectively Berlin, Mitteleuropa. A possible reason explaining why Herlitschka changed the story’s places and names will be discussed later in this chapter. Herlitschka moreover does not change the use of adjectives chosen by Huxley. The description of the “building” being “squat” and “grey” stays a “grauer Flachbau” in German. Interestingly, where Huxley uses two adjectives to describe a noun, Herlitschka often uses one and combines the other to a composed noun. This way he adapts to natural German writing and reading without necessarily influencing the narrative structure. Also the adverb “only” is translated to the German equivalent “nur” which emphasizes the incoherence between the information of a “squat building” and “thirty-four storeys”. Neither English nor German readers would expect a flat building to have thirty-four floors. Leaving the adverb, Herlitschka clearly transfers Huxley’s notion of futurism into German.
Summary of Chapters
Introduction: This chapter outlines the scope of the study, defining the comparison between Huxley’s Brave New World and Herlitschka’s Welt-Wohin as a form of literary analysis.
1 The art of literary translation: This section explores the theoretical role of the translator as a cultural mediator, drawing on scholars like Benjamin and Gadamer to define translation as an interpretive art.
2 Utopian Fiction – an attempt to define a genre: This chapter provides the etymological and conceptual definitions of utopia, dystopia, and anti-utopia to establish a framework for analyzing the primary text.
3 Herlitschka’s translation from 1932: This core chapter analyzes the narrative, character changes, and linguistic specifics of the German translation, focusing on how Herlitschka handles the source material.
Conclusion: This section synthesizes the findings, noting that while Herlitschka’s translation is grammatically and semantically faithful, his localization of settings and names introduces a unique German interpretation of the dystopian original.
Bibliography: A list of academic sources covering translation studies, utopian literature, and the primary text.
Keywords
Brave New World, Welt-Wohin, Herbert Egon Herlitschka, Aldous Huxley, literary translation, utopianism, dystopia, narrative structure, cultural localization, hermeneutics, Mustapha Mond, John the Savage, translation studies, linguistic adaptation, dystopian fiction.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary subject of this research paper?
The paper examines the 1932 German translation of Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, titled Welt-Wohin, by Herbert Egon Herlitschka, analyzing how the translator’s choices affect the literary quality and message of the original work.
What are the central thematic fields addressed?
The central fields are translation theory, the history and definition of utopian/dystopian genres, and the practice of literary translation as a bridge between two distinct cultures.
What is the core research question?
The study aims to determine how Herlitschka’s translation differs from the original in terms of poetic style, tone, and character representation, and whether these changes create an original piece of literary art.
Which scientific methods are employed?
The paper utilizes a comparative literary analysis, focusing on narrative structure, syntactic adaptation, and the semantic analysis of key passages to identify changes in connotations during the translation process.
What topics are discussed in the main body?
The main body covers the theoretical principles of translation, the genre-specific definitions of utopian literature, and a detailed case study of Herlitschka’s specific translation choices, including his handling of character names and setting.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
Key terms include literary translation, dystopian literature, Aldous Huxley, Herbert Egon Herlitschka, linguistic adaptation, and cultural studies.
Why did Herlitschka choose to change the character names and setting?
Herlitschka aimed to relocate the narrative from London to a German-speaking context (Berlin/Central Europe) to make the dystopian reality more relatable and immersive for the German readership of that time.
How does the translation of the word "horrible" demonstrate Herlitschka’s technique?
Herlitschka uses various German equivalents such as "grauenhaft" and "scheußlich" to avoid repetition and to add specific nuances—ranging from aesthetic disgust to ideological horror—thereby actively engaging in the creative process of translation.
- Citation du texte
- Sophie Wappke (Auteur), 2015, Stable poetics in transit. Huxleys "Brave new world" and Herlitschkas "Welt-Wohin", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/337113
