Translation, Plagiarism and Amplification in Mentaberry's Impresiones de un viaje a la China

Abstract

Adolfo de Mentaberry's 1876 book Impresiones de un viaje a la China is, in large part, an uncredited translation of the China section of Count Ludovic de Beauvoir's 1867–1872 French work Voyage autour du monde: Australie, Java, Siam, Canton, Pekin, Yeddo, San Francisco. However, Mentaberry inserts frequent additions into his translation of de Beauvoir's text. Amplification, or the adding to or changing of material in order to alter the emphasis or significance of someone else's work, was an acceptable practice during the Romantic period and was not considered culpable plagiarism. The sections of Impresiones that are direct translations serve to disseminate information not otherwise accessible to the general public. However, because of his amplifications on the goals and difficulties of the Spanish foreign mission in the text, there is a narrative voice independent of de Beauvoir's, and Impresiones goes beyond the scope of uncredited translation.