Reception, translation and cultural context

Abstract

The initiatives to publish an English translation of the influential Sémantique structurale (1966) by linguist and semiotician A. J. Greimas (1917–1992) provide an instructive case study for the reception of a work in new contexts. The efforts underscore the importance of (dis)connections between cultures’ intellectual traditions and trends, putting in play the relations between continental and American linguistic structuralism, generative semantics, cognitive linguistics, and “French” (post)structuralism throughout the human sciences. The projects also point up the significance of timing and of standards for translation quality – and the possibilities for controversy. In addition to published research, this study draws from archival documents and personal communications with Greimas, his translators and editors, and other principals involved.