Europe and Latin America: Returning the Gaze (review)

THE COMPAKATIST The Encyclopedia ofLiterary Translation into English resulted from a similar initiative. Editor Olive Classe calls it an "instrument ofrecord" whose purpose is to map and report on the progress oftranslation as a relatively new field ofstudy in the English-speaking world (vii, ix). Admitting that the scope ofher "enterprise is bold" (vii), she explains that it was planned as a single volume but gradually became two, because both the large quantity ofmaterial and the enthusiasm ofher contributors called for more entries than originally envisioned. The volumes contain more than 600 entries ofthree types: general and historical surveys ofmaterial translated into English; discussions oftranslation history, theory, and practice; and essays about translations ofworks by major authors, individual translations, and selected translators. The Encyclopedia also contains five lists and indexes that greatly facilitate its use, making it possible to search for individual titles, writers, and translators and to locate writers and their work with respect to language. The length ofmost entries, arranged alphabetically from "Adaptation" to "Stefan Zweig," is about 1,000 words, but some reach 6,000. Although they follow a standard format (including a bibliography and suggestions for further reading), Classe explains that contributors in effect had carte-blanche concerning the questions addressed and the criteria used to evaluate translations. That freedom, along with a policy of light editing (xii) and the fact that most of the major issues in translation studies are discussed in relatively briefarticles by multiple authors, produces a mosaic-like work that covers a wide range oftopics from an equally wide range ofperspectives, not all ofthem wholly compatible. Many entries are excellent and contain well-reasoned, insightful evaluations based on clearly articulated criteria . In some cases, however, evaluation seems to reflect solely the standard, and usually unacknowledged, definition, of"fidelity." Given the constraints ofa briefreview and the significant contributions made by each title, I have not stressed shortcomings. Nor have I singled out individual entries for praise or criticism, since it would not have been possible to explain my reasons. In short, both the Guide and the Encyclopedia should be welcomed by comparatists and all those interested in any aspectofliterary translation. Yes, there are flaws (for instance, the very small type face in the Guide is hard on the eyes, and the Encyclopedia's volumes are heavy and unwieldy); yes, there are regrettable omissions (for instance, neither work mentions such fine translators as Anne Carson , David Ferry, Pierre Joris, or Rosemarie Waldrop, and there are no entries for W. G. Sebald or Severo Sarduy, nor more than one or two briefreferences to gay and lesbian issues); and ofcourse, like all printed reference works, they were bound to be outdated even before reaching a user's hands. Both books, however, offer not only a wealth of information but also invaluable, authoritative suggestions for finding and evaluating it. I hope that comparatists will use them regularly. Carol MaierKent State University PETER BEARDSELL. Europe and Latin America: Returning the Gaze. Manchester /New York: Manchester UP, 2000. xv + 233 pp. The relationship between Latin America and Europe has been a constant theme in the Latin American literary and intellectual tradition: Key debates on civilization and barbarism, nationalism and cosmopolitanism, modernity and identity may be seen as expressions of a persistent need to define Latin America's debt to and Vol. 26 (2002): 149 REVIEWS difference from Europe. In Europe and Latin America: Returning the Gaze, Peter Beardsell undertakes to look at this old topic in a new light, that ofpostcolonialism. The result is a well written, broad, and informative overview ofan important subject . But whether the book's finest insights in fact flow from the author's chosen theoretical framework seems doubtful. Beardsell approaches his topic with the help oftwo principal theoretical guideposts . From Lacan and Todorov he derives certain notions about the formation of identities, both individual and collective, in particular the idea that subject and object, self and Other mutually constitute each other. From Foucault and Said he takes the concept of "discourse," with its assumption that cultural forms are implicated in social relations of domination and subordination. Beardsell argues that historically Europe has played the role of subject in relation to the Latin American Other...