The Factor of Author's Reputation in Retranslations: Edgar Allan Poe on the Turkish Literary Scene

Abstract

This paper investigates the validity of André Lefevere’s assumption that “a canonized author is translated more on his own terms (according to his own poetics) than on those of the receiving system” (2000: 237) through a case study of Edgar Allan Poe retranslations in the Turkish literary system. The first part of the paper includes extratextual analysis carried out according to Gérard Genette’s categorization of “metatexts” and “paratexts,” and a further category which includes the social media. Poe’s poetics and the poetics of the Turkish literary system, as well as Poe’s reception in the system are explored through extratextual analysis to determine whether Poe gained more canonicity or reputation. The extratextual analysis reveals the author’s increasing influence, reception and reputation in the Turkish literary system over a time span of almost ninety years. The second part of the paper presents the textual analysis of Poe’s two tales, “Hop-Frog” and “The Masque of the Red Death”, in eight translations published between 1928 and 2002. Textual analysis serves to reveal whether Poe was translated more according to his own poetics as he became more reputable in the target literary system. The paper concludes that factors other than reputation of an author have also a role to play in translating an author according to his own poetics.