Georges Mounin, pionnier de la traductologie française

Abstract

GEORGES MOUNIN, PIONEER OF FRENCH TRANSLATION STUDIES

Georges Mounin developed his reflections on translation in a series of texts published from 1953 and can thus be regarded as one of the founders of translation studies in France and in the French language. His early research dates back to the same time as Fedorov’s, who represents what might be called the Russian school of translation. This paper seeks to analyse Georges Mounin’s work, which spans 40 years, until his death in 1993. His legacy is not just bibliographical, it is also that of a teacher with remarkable communication skills who trained disciples, and that of a talent scout who discovered the young Ladmiral and Meschonnic in the 1970s. Most importantly however, Georges Mounin has the immense merit of having introduced translation studies into French universities and within the field of linguistics, an achievement which later enabled him to take the sociolinguistic turn, notably with the issue of worldview and language universals. This paper is also largely about the man, seen through his teaching career, his political commitment, his links with other authors, not to forget his work as a translator. Georges Mounin was indeed first of all a field man, who translated Dante, Petrarch, Machiavelli or Pasternak.