Translation and Geography

Book excerpt: Translation and Geography investigates how translation has radically shaped the way the West has mapped the world. Groundbreaking in its approach and relevant across a range of disciplines from translation studies and comparative literature to geography and history, this book makes a compelling case for a form of cultural translation that reframes the contributions of language-based translation analysis. Focusing on the different yet intertwined translation processes involved in the development of the Western spatial imaginary, Federico Italiano examines a series of literary works and their translations across languages, media, and epochs, encompassing: poems travel narratives nautical fictions colonial discourse exilic visions. Drawing on case studies and readings ranging from the Latin of the Middle Ages to twentieth-century Latin American poetry, this is key reading for translation theory and comparative/world literature courses.