Une traduction oulipienne des oulipiens ?

Abstract

When considering the translation of Oulipian literature, it is not sufficient to raise the question of translation procedures or methods. Instead, the question must be approached from a tactical perspective, addressing the tactical manoeuvres necessary to ensure a version that is faithful both to the spirit and the letter of the text. In analysing the Catalan translation of Georges Perec’s La Vie mode d’emploi, a key work in constraint literature, we shall not attempt to review the procedures adopted at various points in order to criticise or commend them; rather, we shall look at the figure of the translator, which can be likened to that of a rat manoeuvering its way through the labyrinth to find a way out –one which, while adapting to the structural constraint, strives above all to seek microtextual solutions appropriate to each individual situation.

Keywords

• metastability
• manoeuvre
• maze
• illusion of transparency