Translator Jan Schejbal and his influence on the reception of Catalan literature in the Czech Republic
Abstract
The paper introduces the most important Czech Catalanist, who has been introducing Catalan literature to Czech audiences for nearly half of a century. The case of Jan Schejbal confirms that the role of the translator cannot be reduced to transferring text from one language to another: they must actively participate in the literary exchange, often being the key figure.
The personal contribution of the translator seems to be even more indispensable when literary enrichment between minor and/or medium cultures is concerned. In this sense, the work Schejbal did within the publishing house Odeon during the 1970s and 1980s was absolutely essential, as he was the only one who translated from this Romance language whose literature was practically unknown in what was then Czechoslovakia.
However, this privileged position in forming Czech notions about Catalan literature ended with the downfall of Odeon, which occurred shortly after the fall of the Communist regime in 1989. Despite the initial adversity he faced from the new commercial publishing houses, Jan Schejbal remained faithful to his longstanding ambition and continued to spread quality literature written in Catalan.
Thanks to Prague's lectorat de catala, founded in 1991, nowadays known as the Centre Carlemany de Llengua Catalana, a new field of action opened for him: he has been introducing students of the Faculty of Arts of Charles University in Prague to the culture and literature of the Catalan-speaking countries and, within a translation workshop, trains his successors. Also Schejbal's life-long work on the very first Catalan-Czech and Czech-Catalan academic dictionary, about to be published, deserves special mention.
This feat, among others, confirms again that the translator's activity is more transcendental than it might seem. With the dictionary, Schejbal not only contributes significantly to the quality of future translations but also enables the reception of Catalan literature without the necessity of indirect translations via Spanish.