Echoes of the Absent: Hauntology, Narratology, and the Spectral Art of Translation

The aim of this article is to examine the relevance of Jacques Derrida's concept of hauntology to literary criticism and translation studies, with a focus on Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven and its French translations. It demonstrates how hauntology—emphasizing the spectral interplay between...

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Main Author: Sandy Pecastaing
Format: Article
Language:deu
Published: Axia Academic Publishers 2025-01-01
Series:Labyrinth: An International Journal for Philosophy, Value Theory and Sociocultural Hermeneutics
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.axiapublishers.com/ojs/index.php/labyrinth/article/view/372
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author Sandy Pecastaing
author_facet Sandy Pecastaing
author_sort Sandy Pecastaing
collection DOAJ
description The aim of this article is to examine the relevance of Jacques Derrida's concept of hauntology to literary criticism and translation studies, with a focus on Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven and its French translations. It demonstrates how hauntology—emphasizing the spectral interplay between presence and absence, origin and trace, and meaning and deferral—reframes texts as sites of revenance: haunted spaces of fragmented meanings and deferred interpretations. By analyzing the challenges of translating The Raven's rhythmic complexity, phonetic resonance, and iconic refrain, "nevermore," this study highlights the text's spectral nature and resistance to closure. Additionally, the paper seeks to provide a new perspective on the dispersion of meaning in translation. It shows how French translations by Baudelaire, Mallarmé, and others exemplify Derrida's notion of dissemination, contributing to contemporary discussions in literary studies, translation theory, and philosophical criticism.
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series Labyrinth: An International Journal for Philosophy, Value Theory and Sociocultural Hermeneutics
spelling doaj-art-a4ae2fd6ff35429f90487f58be584b782025-08-20T02:16:14ZdeuAxia Academic PublishersLabyrinth: An International Journal for Philosophy, Value Theory and Sociocultural Hermeneutics2410-48171561-89272025-01-0126210.25180/lj.v26i2.372Echoes of the Absent: Hauntology, Narratology, and the Spectral Art of TranslationSandy Pecastaing0University Bordeaux Montaigne The aim of this article is to examine the relevance of Jacques Derrida's concept of hauntology to literary criticism and translation studies, with a focus on Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven and its French translations. It demonstrates how hauntology—emphasizing the spectral interplay between presence and absence, origin and trace, and meaning and deferral—reframes texts as sites of revenance: haunted spaces of fragmented meanings and deferred interpretations. By analyzing the challenges of translating The Raven's rhythmic complexity, phonetic resonance, and iconic refrain, "nevermore," this study highlights the text's spectral nature and resistance to closure. Additionally, the paper seeks to provide a new perspective on the dispersion of meaning in translation. It shows how French translations by Baudelaire, Mallarmé, and others exemplify Derrida's notion of dissemination, contributing to contemporary discussions in literary studies, translation theory, and philosophical criticism. https://www.axiapublishers.com/ojs/index.php/labyrinth/article/view/372Jacques DerridaEdgar Allan PoeThe Ravenhauntologynarratologytranslation studies
spellingShingle Sandy Pecastaing
Echoes of the Absent: Hauntology, Narratology, and the Spectral Art of Translation
Labyrinth: An International Journal for Philosophy, Value Theory and Sociocultural Hermeneutics
Jacques Derrida
Edgar Allan Poe
The Raven
hauntology
narratology
translation studies
title Echoes of the Absent: Hauntology, Narratology, and the Spectral Art of Translation
title_full Echoes of the Absent: Hauntology, Narratology, and the Spectral Art of Translation
title_fullStr Echoes of the Absent: Hauntology, Narratology, and the Spectral Art of Translation
title_full_unstemmed Echoes of the Absent: Hauntology, Narratology, and the Spectral Art of Translation
title_short Echoes of the Absent: Hauntology, Narratology, and the Spectral Art of Translation
title_sort echoes of the absent hauntology narratology and the spectral art of translation
topic Jacques Derrida
Edgar Allan Poe
The Raven
hauntology
narratology
translation studies
url https://www.axiapublishers.com/ojs/index.php/labyrinth/article/view/372
work_keys_str_mv AT sandypecastaing echoesoftheabsenthauntologynarratologyandthespectralartoftranslation