Report on the Situation of Literary Translators in Poland

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present the study of the mechanisms that affect the status of a literary translator in Poland. Factors presented here are grouped into several major topics, which include: economic and social status, visibility, education, relationship with the market, copyright and cultural policies concerning literary translation. This report is based on: data collected from state institutions, the literature related to the topic, interviews conducted by the author with participants of the literary translation market (translators, publishers, publishing editors, academics, scientists involved in translation studies, representatives of associations representing literary translators, booksellers, etc.) and on the author’s own analysis and observations. The article also presents the influence of the political and economic transitions in Poland after 1989 on the change in the status of a literary translator and the level of literary translation in general. The text ends with a SWOT analysis and a formulation of recommendations that could lead to a real change in the situation of literary translators in Poland.