Tool-box, tradition, and capital: Political uses of translation in contemporary Spanish politics

ABSTRACT

This article presents a critical overview of the central, yet frequently ambiguous role played by translation within the political cycle that began in Spain following the indignados or 15M movement of 2011. It argues that the crisis caused by the emergence of the 15M movement and its sustained critique of the previous political consensus (the so-called “Culture of the Transition”) has left certain cultural and intellectual gaps within the public sphere, which are being partially filled through translation. By analyzing and contextualizing a series of translations and related paratextual materials, the article examines the potentially contradictory ways in which translation has contributed to debates on the definition and origins of the movement, the dissemination and exploration of innovative ideas within it, and the creation of new political figures.

KEYWORDS:

• Indignados
• anti-austerity movements
• 15M movement
• Podemos
• translation of politics

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Note on contributor

Fruela Fernández is Lecturer in English Studies at Universitat de les Illes Balears (Spain). He is the author of two research monographs (Espacios de dominación, espacios de resistencia, Peter Lang, 2014, and Translating the Crisis, Routledge, forthcoming) and has co-edited the Routledge Handbook of Translation and Politics (2018).

Notes

1 Although some of the claims made here are applicable to the whole Spanish State, I will limit the study to translations into Spanish. Due to the particularities of the cultural and administrative structures of the country, flows of translation into other languages would require independent analysis. Unless otherwise noted, all translations from Spanish quotes are my own.

2 On 11 March 2004 (11M), shortly before Spain’s general elections, Madrid suffered several train bombings that caused 192 casualties. Despite early findings suggesting the involvement of Islamists in response to Spain’s backing of the American invasion of Iraq, the Conservative government of the Partido Popular attributed exclusive responsibility to the Basque terrorist organization ETA. On 13 March (13M), popular protests against the perceived duplicity of the government were spontaneously arranged by citizens through SMS, contributing to the electoral defeat of the Conservatives.