Des mots autour du silence : Elmar Tophoven traduisant Nathalie Sarraute

Abstract

German translator Elmar Tophoven (1923-1989) developed a method of documenting his translation process, which is called “transparent translating”. In doing so, he created a wealth of research material for genetic translation studies. One of the main problems he was faced with was that of the blanks throughout Nathalie Sarraute’s texts. The index cards he wrote each time he encountered this type of issue are gathered under the keyword « Ellipse » and show us the various strategies he used to translate absent words with a view to German syntax and rhythm. Elmar Tophoven’s evolution in his way of tackling this difficulty can be traced back to his “transparent translating” and the reflexivity about his practice that he gained from it.

Keywords

• Tophoven (Elmar)
• Sarraute (Nathalie)
• translation
• genetic
• ellipse