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A Bookseller's Hobby-Horse, and the Rhetoric of Translation
Anthony Ernst Munnikhuisen and Bernardus Brunius, and the First Dutch Edition of 'Tristram Shandy' (1776-1778)
Series: - Approaches to Translation Studies, Volume: 13
Author:
A Bookseller's Hobby-Horse, and the Rhetoric of Translation is a study of the first Dutch translation of Tristram Shandy (1759-67) as a product of and factor in the reception of Sterne's novel in the Netherlands, and as a specific manifestation of this reception: a derived text based on interpretation of the original. It took sixteen years for this translation to appear. Why was this so? And why did its publication (1776-79) prove unrewarding to the publisher? To answer the first question, Agnes Zwaneveld relates the development of Sterne appreciation in the Netherlands â from neglect in the 1760s to a literary craze in the 1780s â to a number of socio-cultural factors, including a growing interest in German literature. This relation with German literature is reflected in the choice of books published by A.E. Munnikhuisen, a Sterne-enthusiast and conscientious publisher, but also an outsider in the book trade, whose audacity led to the commercial failure of his enterprise.
A different question tackled in this study is to what extent the translation reflects the original text. Can it be accepted as a faithful rendering, or rather as an adaptation, an imitatio in the classical tradition? To understand what norms the translator, Bernardus Brunius, followed and what effects he can have been aiming at, his work is described in terms of the â rhetorical â theory of translation adhered to in his day. To avoid subjectivity in assessing the resemblance between translation and original, the comparison focuses on composition and the use of rhetorical figures as formal aspects which can be easily recognised across the centuries. The textual comparison was limited to the opening chapter of Tristram Shandy, seen as the novel's exordium, in which both author and translator are likely to have made a show of their intentions. Close reading of this chapter resulted in an interpretation of Tristram's authorial performance as inspired by both Quintilian and Longinus.
A different question tackled in this study is to what extent the translation reflects the original text. Can it be accepted as a faithful rendering, or rather as an adaptation, an imitatio in the classical tradition? To understand what norms the translator, Bernardus Brunius, followed and what effects he can have been aiming at, his work is described in terms of the â rhetorical â theory of translation adhered to in his day. To avoid subjectivity in assessing the resemblance between translation and original, the comparison focuses on composition and the use of rhetorical figures as formal aspects which can be easily recognised across the centuries. The textual comparison was limited to the opening chapter of Tristram Shandy, seen as the novel's exordium, in which both author and translator are likely to have made a show of their intentions. Close reading of this chapter resulted in an interpretation of Tristram's authorial performance as inspired by both Quintilian and Longinus.
Introduction. PART ONE: EARLY RECEPTION OF TRISTRAM SHANDY IN THE NETHERLANDS, AND THE VENTURE OF A FIRST DUTCH TRANSLATION. Chapter 1. Centres of Literary Activity, Their Values and Interests in the 1760s. 1. Introduction: Questions to Be Answered; Sources to Be Used. 2. Sterne Readership in the 1760s: a Slow Start. 3. Developments in Sterne Appreciation. 4. German Influences. Chapter 2. Munnikhuisen's Sterne Edition (1776-1780): Socio-Economic Context, Publishing History and Readership. 1. Family Background and Personality. 2. Business Aspects of Munikhuisen's Enterprise. 3. Anthony Ernst Munnikhuisen as a Literary Entrepreneur, and a Conscientious Publisher. 4. A Publisher's Policy. 5. The End of Munnikhuisen's Career. 6. Sale and Afterlife of Munnikhuisen's Sterne Edition. 7. Readership of Munnikhuisen's Sterne Edition. 8. A Postscript on Letters. PART TWO: TRANSLATION WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF CLASSICAL RHETORIC. Chapter 3. The Translator and his 'Figure in the World'. 1. Bernardus Brunius (1747-1785), a Translator's Life Gone Wrong. 2. Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Appreciation of Brunius' Translations. Chapter 4. Translation in the Eighteenth Century. 1. Introduction. 2. A Rhetorical Theory of Translation. 3. Strategies of Reproduction. 4. A Tale of a Tub. 5. Brunius' Principles of Translation and Attitude towards his Task. 6. Possible Models for a Translation of Tristram Shandy. Chapter 5. The Rhetoric of Tristram Shandy's First Chapter. 1. Introduction: Sterne's Audacious Technique. 2. Exclamation, Conversation, and the Structure of Tristram Shandy I.1. 3. Tristram's Technique: Chaos Controlled by Rhythm and Sound. 4. Interpretation: Antithesis as a Way of Thinking. 5. Conclusion: the Workings of Classical Rhetoric in Tristram Shandy I.1. Chapter 6. Brunius' Version of Tristram Shandy I.1. 1. Objectives of the Analysis; Terms to Be Used. 2. General Features: Division, Shaping Principles and Rhythm of the Text, with a Digression on Rhythm. 3. Analysis of Individual Moves. 4. Summary and Interpretation. 5. Conclusions. Appendices. 1. Reviews of Sterne's Work in Bibliothèque des Sciences et des Beaux Arts. 2. Three Versions of the Story of the Collision of Obadiah and Dr. Slop: Riedel, Van Alphen, Brunius. 3. Three Versions of the Apostrophe to 'Dear sensibility': Bode, Brunius, Feith. 4. A List of Munnikhuisen Publications. 5. Advertisements Referred to in Chapters 1-2. 6. The Munnikhuisen Circle. 7. Three Versions of Tristram Shandy I.1 (Divided into Rhetorical Moves): Zückert, Bode, Frénais, with a Brief Comparison of Brunius' Text and the German Versions. Notes. List of Abbreviations. Bibliography. Index.