The Translator as a Cultural Tastemaker

This chapter traces the trajectory of the Persian translation of the acclaimed Dutch-language novel De engelenmaker (The angel maker) by Stefan Brijs (translated by Samgis Zandi), from its selection and production to its circulation and reception within Iran's book market. It takes as its overarching premise Bourdieu's social-cultural framework, which attributes the pivotal influence in the literary sphere to the agents of consecration and cultural intermediaries within the domain of cultural production. These mediators deftly manipulate tastes, shaping preferences for specific goods and practices while delineating and safeguarding societal positions. Through the lens of Bourdieu's theoretical framework, this case study investigates the formation of cultural taste as an emergent, collaborative phenomenon, highlighting the translator's critical role as a cultural tastemaker navigating the space between Dutch literary production and its reception in Iran, shaping aesthetic sensibilities and fostering literary diversification.