Tra norme, riflessioni teoriche ed esperienze: il processo traduttivo al centro

This article aims at analyzing how a critical approach to Descriptive Translation Studies can contribute to the discourse and analysis of literary translation practice and how describing literary translation practice can enhance Translation Theory. The first and second sections of the article offer an overview of the concept of norm as defined by Gideon Toury and consider different perspectives - both positive and negative - related to how norms affect the analysis of translation processes in literature. In particular the analysis shows how often the concept of norm has been criticized by scholars in the field of literary translation because it seems to imply considerations on translation processes that allude to a personal point of view, more than to the universals of translation conceived within the framework of descriptive studies. In the third section the attention then focuses on an interesting trend in the Italian publishing sector, dedicated to the personal experience of literary translators, who report their considerations often clearly stating their refusal for the contributions of translation theorists. The analysis tries to pinpoint which could be seen as elements of contact between theory and practice and underlines how often the gap between these two poles has created a space for misunderstanding whereas both translators and scholars, in the end, seem to contribute to a more multifaceted field of descriptive studies in literary translation, from which all actors involved, especially young scholars/translators, could draw inspiration.