Passion, Duty, and Fame: Women Translators of Cuore into Romanian (1893-1936)

Abstract

The second half of the nineteenth century saw a proliferation of translations from romance languages into Romanian as a consequence of the economic and cultural development of the Romanian society. In this context, 1893 saw the publication of the first Romanian translation of De Amicis’s Cuore (Heart): An Italian Schoolboy’s Journal, by Clelia Bruzzesi (1836-1903). The twentieth century brought five other versions, two of them signed by women translators: Sofia Nădejde (1856-1946) in 1916 and Mia Frollo (1885-1962) in 1936. Until recently, Cuore was part of the primary school curriculum in Romania, so the text left a mark on the cultural history of the country. This paper aims to raise awareness of the often neglected translation activity of women and to reveal Bruzzesi, Nădejde and Frollo’s place in society as well their motivations and the public reception of their translations.

Keywords

• women translators. de amicis’s cuore (heart): an italian schoolboy’s journal in romanian translation. literary translation into romanian. retranslation. history of literary translation.