Die deutschen Übersetzungen des Werks von Gerard Reve

Abstract

This Bachelor thesis is the first to discuss the German translations of the novels De avonden (orig. 1947; trans. Die Abende (Merlin Verlag, 1988)), Nader tot U (1966; trans. Näher zu Dir (Merlin Verlag, 1970) and De vierde man (1981; Der vierte Mann (Suhrkamp Verlag, 1993) by the famous Dutch novelist Gerard (Kornelis van het) Reve (1923 – 2006). The first part of the thesis is based on interviews with Reve’s German translator Jürgen Hillner (1937 –). By comparing Hillner’s statements to Reve’s letters and contemporary articles on translation studies, Reve’s choice of the publishers, his marketing strategies and the (bad) reception of the German translations are examined. The second part of the thesis draws on an extensive analysis of Näher zu Dir (by comparing it with the Dutch source text), using tools of both literary studies and translation studies. The results this comparison are combined with the institutional analysis from the first part. The third part of the thesis consists of a similar analysis of Der vierte Mann and Die Abende.

The thesis also contains a useful bibliography of the German translations of Reve’s work and a list of yet unpublished translations.