The Role of the Translator and the Market of Children’s Literature in Egypt: A Sociological Study

Abstract

Translating children’s book hugely affect the cultural make-up of a nation. Through them, young readers get an array of international narratives, perspectives, and values (O'Sullivan, 2005). There is a dynamic and complex market for children’s books in Egypt, both translated and original where there is an emerging youth population coupled with a strong literary background. However, particularly from a social point of view the specific role of the translator in this specialized market goes unacknowledged more often than not. Translation studies have largely sidelined the broader social, cultural, and economic contexts within which translation occurs in favor of linguistic equivalence and textual analysis (Gentzler, 2001).