Fields, Networks and Finnish prose: A Comparison of Bourdieusian Field Theory and Actor-Network Theory in Translation Sociology *

Abstract

This article discusses and compares two sociologica l theoretical frameworks, Pierre Bourdieu’s field theory and the Actor-Network Theory (ANT) proposed by e.g. Bruno Latour. The former framework has been widely used in Translation Studies, while the latter has been introduced much more recently but is now gaining ground. The two approaches are compared with reference to a specific translation situation, the translatio n of Finnish prose literature into English in the UK. The comparison shows that the ANT model is better suited for analysing the structural context in which translation activity takes place, while the Bourdieusian model provides better opportunities for analysing individual translators’ practices through the concept of habitus. The most in-depth results can thus be obtained by combi ning the two approaches.

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