The article looks at the issue of the Other and otherness in translations and translation research. The starting point is that translating a priori involves taking an interest in the Other (or at least dealing with the Other) and that a translation is something other in relation to the original. Some translations lean more towards negating otherness, while some strive to preserve it; the first are domesticating, while the second are foreignising. The dichotomy between the two is critically presented; it is emphasised that the value of both terms is relative and necessarily dependent on each translation context. The article also considers some characteristics of contemporary translation research that open up new research directions with regard to shifting geographical and conceptual borders in the discussion of translation phenomena.
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