Subjectivity as skopos : on translating a Dutch novel

This master’s thesis presents an excerpt of my translation of the Dutch novel Maar buiten is het feest (Arthur Japin, 2012), along with critical commentary. I begin with a review of the most relevant and useful theory I researched for my project, with Hans J. Vermeer’s skopos theory providing a crucial basis for my ultimate application of various theoretical approaches, including Venuti’s foreignization and feminist translation theory. I then define my own skopos (from Greek: aim or purpose) for this particular translation project, and follow with a detailed discussion of my motivations, methods, and choices for the excerpt presented in light of the skopos I define. I argue that a translation should be judged according to the skopos or skopoi established by the translator and that, as such, the selection of a variety of theoretical approaches is appropriate in application.