GÜNTER GRASS, TRANSLATION AND TRANSLATORS

Abstract

This paper intends to review the literary work of Günter Grass from the point of view of its interlinguistical and intercultural transmission, given his interest for careful elaboration and good transference of his narrative. This attitude caused him to force upon his editors the systematic arrangement of lengthy and detailed meetings between the author and his translators, which were moderated by well known experts. Remembering those meetings affords the chance to revisit a sample of difficulties which appear in several works by the author and the proposals for solving them which were exposed and examined at those meetings. This personal remembrance gives also a chance to look at some characteristics of Grass' works which make them hard to overcome in translation, while briefly dwelling on some strategies we used on trying to translate several of his texts into Catalan.