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textwasalsocharacteristicofprosetranslationsoftheperiod.Irinarkh
Vvedensky,atalentedandverypopulartranslatorofmanynovelsbyCharles
DickensandWilliamThackeray,wouldtypicallyaddseveralpageswhichhad
nothingtodowiththesourcetext.InhistranslationofDickens’sDavid
Copperfield,forexample,heintroducedhisowntextsattheendofthesecond
chapter,atthebeginningofthesixthchapterandinsomeotherpartsofthe
novel.Andhejustifiedsuchcontributionsbythedesiretopleasethereader,
claimingthatthetranslatorhadtherighttofreelyrecreatethespiritofthe
sourcetext,togiveanewlifetotheideasoftheauthorinanewsituation–
‘underanothersky’,asheputit.
AlexanderPushkinandMikhailLermontov,thetwogreatRussianpoets,also
playedamajorroleinthehistoryoftranslationinRussia.Althoughtranslations
occupiedarelativelymodestplaceintheirpoetry,theymadeasignificant
contributiontotheimprovementofliterarytranslationinRussia.Intheirpoetic
paraphrasesandimitationstheymanagedtoreproducethemostimportant
featuresofforeignpoetryand,aboveall,theirrenderingswereremarkable
worksofartintheirownright,innowayinferiortotheiroriginalmasterpieces.
Thesefreetranslationsservedasamodelforothertranslatorsandestablished
animportantprinciple,namelythatagoodliterarytranslationshouldbepartand
parcelofthenationalliteratureinthetargetlanguage.Theroleplayedby
PushkininthedevelopmentoftheRussianschooloftranslationdeservesspecial
emphasis.Healwaysshowedgreatinterestintheproblemsoftranslation,and
hiscriticalanalysesoftranslationswereexemplaryandthoughtprovoking.He
emphasizedtheimportanceoftheinitialselectionoftheliteraryworkstobe
translated.Hisinsistenceonloyaltytothesourcetext,coupledwiththehigh
qualityandexpressivenessofthetranslator’sliterarystyle,wasapositive
influenceonthebestRussiantranslatorsofthenineteenthandtwentieth
centuries.
Althoughthemajorityoftranslatorsduringthisperiodadvocatedandpractised
freetranslation,afewinsistedoncompletefaithfulnesstothesourcetext,on
literalismeventothedetrimentofsenseandclarity.Amongthemweresuch
prominentmenoflettersasP.A.Viasemsky,N.I.GnedichandA.A.Fet,all
ofwhomtranslatedfromanumberofdifferentlanguages.However,theydid
notalwaysdoastheypreached.Sometimesthetranslator’sartisticintuitionand
talentbrokethroughthebarrierofliteralism.Viasemsky’stranslationsofworks
byB.ConstantandA.Mickiewicz,forinstance,werenotdevoidofliterary
value,andGnedich’stranslations,especiallyhistranslationofHomer’sIliad,
werehighlyappreciatedbyPushkin.Fet’sextremeliteralismadverselyaffected
thequalityofmostofhistranslations,buthedidcomeupwithsuccessful
solutionssometimes.
Freetranslationwassometimespractisedasameansofpromotingdemocratic
ideas,whichwouldnothaveescapedofficialcensorshipinoriginalworks.
TranslatorssuchasV.Kurochkin,D.MinaevandM.Mikhailov,amongothers,
achievedthisbychoosingsuitablesourcetextsand/orbyintroducingintheir
translationssubtlechangeswhichtriggeredassociationswiththeRussian
context.Itwasduringthisperiodthenthatusingtranslationasavehicleof
dissentbecamepartoftheRussiantradition.
TheSovietperiod
Theyearsfollowingthe1917revolutionsawanewupsurgeintranslation
activity.OnMaximGorky’sinitiative,anewpublishinghousewassetupwith
anambitiousgoalofpublishingneworrevisedtranslationsofallmajorliterary
achievementsbothintheWestandintheEast.Inspiteofenormouspractical
andadministrativedifficulties,thisorganizationmanagedtopublishinthe
followingtwodecadesorsotranslationsoftheworksofsuchgreatauthorsas
Balzac,AnatoleFrance,Stendhal,Heine,Schiller,Byron,Dickens,Bernard
Shaw,MarkTwainandmanyothers.
Agreatnumberoftranslationswerealsopublishedbyothernationalandlocal
pressesinthe1930sandthefollowingdecades.Thecountry’sbestscholars
andwritersparticipatedinthiswork,elevatingtheartoftranslationtoanew
levelofperfection.Manytalentedtranslatorsbecameknownandrespectedin
theSovietUnionandabroadduringthisperiod;theyincludedM.Losinskij,T.
ShchepkinaKupernik,S.Marshak,N.Lubimov,E.Kalashnikova,N.Daruzes
andmanyothers.