Local Genre – Universal Reception? Polish Literary Reportage from the First Two Decades of the 20th Century Read by a French-Speaking Audience

Abstract

The article examines the reception of Polish contemporary authors associated with the genre of “literary reportage” among the readers of their French translations. The analysis starts with the assumption taken from the thoughts of Tzvetan Todorov, who claimed that genre – shaping both the author’s writing model and the reader’s horizon of expectations – can be an important mechanism of mediation driving the literary communication. The analysis includes translations of books by Wojciech Tochman, Jacek Hugo- Bader, Mariusz Wilk and Mariusz Szczygieł. In the first part, the publishing peritext is examined, through which French publishers create the perception of Polish authors and the literary genre they can be associated with. The second part of the analysis is devoted to the reception of translations of the above-mentioned authors – both among professional critics and amateur reviewers or readers – with particular emphasis put on the genre classification made by the audience. The summary attempts to determine whether French-speaking readers perceive Polish authors in accordance with the specific rules of “literary reportage” and what role the publishing peritext may play in this process. The issue of marketing potential of the literary genre as an important tool in creating the publisher’s offer is also discussed.