“With curses of joy on my lips” : translating poetics and idiomaticity in Henry Miller’s ‘Tropic of Cancer’ through a hermeneutic-pragmatic approach

Abstract

This dissertation explores the translatability of the idiomatic and poetic language in Henry Miller’s ‘Tropic of Cancer’ (1934), through a theoretical framework combining Hermeneutics, Semiotics and Pragmatics. Aligned with contemporary translation studies that emphasise a hermeneutic approach, this research views translation as an interpretative act. It highlights the translator’s role as an interpreter who actively engages with the text, transforming it while recognising the inherent limitations of interpretation. The research also examines the dynamic between languages within the context of semiosis, presenting language as an ongoing, open-ended process of interpretation. The term “pragmatic” in the title reflects a balance between theoretical depth and practical application in translation, focusing on how both idiomatic and poetic language can be preserved or recreated in the TT. This study prioritises linguistic creativity and cultural authenticity by contextualising both the ST and TT within their respective literary, sociolinguistic, and cultural frameworks. Additionally, the dissertation explores the interplay of poetic and idiomatic language, highlighting the intralingual and interlingual dimensions of translation, and the critical dialectic between the source and target languages that arises in the translation process.