Using Primary Sources to Produce a Microhistory of Translation and Translators: Theoretical and Methodological Concerns

In his paper Munday proposes a historical approach to translation. Taking steps from Levi and Ginzburg’s concept of microstoria, he invites the reader to reflect on the different types of documents available, for example, in archives to work on the ‘bigger picture’ of the history of translation. The research starts on a small scale, reading reader’s reports, interviews, archives, manuscripts, and personal papers in order to describe the experience of individual translators in crucial historical periods. The paper discusses the limits of such sources (e.g. the interviewee as mediator) but also the rich research ground that this kind of study offers, especially for the interactive nature of translators who actively shared their expertise with editors, publishers, and powerful institutions.