Translation Policy of Anglophone Literature in Soviet Latvia from the 1940s to the 1960s: A Comparative Perspective

Evita Badina, Dr. philol., researcher
Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences
Daugavpils University, Latvia
e-mail: evita.badina@du.lv
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9604-3464

Žans Badins, Dr. philol., researcher
Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences
Daugavpils University, Latvia
e-mail: zans.badins@du.lv
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3270-3419

ABSTRACT

The present study aims to compare the translation policies of Anglophone literature during the Soviet occupation period after World War II. The study focuses on the translations of Anglophone literature texts into Latvian during the first two decades of the Cold War under the rule of Joseph Stalin and Nikita Khrushchev.
The results allow us to conclude that during the Soviet occupation of Latvia, the introduction and reception of Anglophone literature evolved, transitioning from purely ideological dominance to a more diverse selection of authors and genres. In the first years of Soviet occupation, the Latvian book market was flooded with the literature of predominantly ideological content by Soviet, primarily Russian, authors translated into Latvian. Western literature, including Anglophone literature, was published cautiously and limited to translations of classics and progressive authors. With the change in power in the 1950s, the number of works by Anglophone writers translated into Latvian gradually increased, and more diversity in the choice of authors and genres was observed. However, these works were still carefully censored as they were written by authors from Western bloc countries. All stages of the reception process were controlled, and authors and their lives and works were presented to the public in a biased, ideologically determined way. It was particularly true for living writers.

Keywords: Soviet Latvia, translation policy, censorship, Cold War, Soviet propaganda

PDF

How to cite:
Badina, E., Badins, Ž. (2023). “Translation Policy of Anglophone Literature in Soviet Latvia from the 1940s to the 1960s: A Comparative Perspective.” Journal of Comparative Studies 16 (45), 32-56. https://doi.org/10.59893/jcs.16(45).002