Authors

Matilda Hicklin¹;  ¹ University of Bristol, UK

Discussion

This paper explores how the act of post-editing can function as a disruptive force in poetry translation. I examine this phenomenon through my own translations of Sofia Amirova's (b. 1993) multilayered poetic works, comparing the source texts with my own ‘human’ translations, as well as their machine-translated and post-edited counterparts, Drawing on the concepts of Bakhtinian 'sideshadowing' (Morson 1994) and Bauer and McKinstry's (1991) feminist dialogics, I investigate how the introduction of the machine into the translation process (via Google Translate) creates new possibilities for vocal multiplicity and textual alterity.

I argue that the post-editing process amplifies the translator's encounter with Otherness by introducing additional ‘voices’, potentially generating novel interpretations and unexpected textual alternatives. This technological intervention parallels Amirova's own use of polyphony in her feminist poetry: a disorienting device that simultaneously distances and intimately engages the reader. Building on Svetlana Boym’s (1991) notion of poetic ‘masking’, my paper demonstrates how post-editing can serve as a de-centering mechanism that challenges traditional notions of translatorial authority and voice. 

Through close analysis of selected translations, I show how the intersection of machine and human translation creates a productive tension that aligns with feminist approaches to multiplicity and the rejection of singular, pre-determined identities. This research offers insights into the creative potentialities of technological disruption in Translation Studies, while suggesting new frameworks for understanding how post-editing can enhance, rather than diminish, the complexities of poetic translation.