The Difficulties of Polysystem Translation in Vida de Jesus: Theory and Analysis

Authors

  • Cintia Ramirez Nuñez Centro Universitário Adventista de São Paulo - UNASP, São Paulo, (Brasil)
  • Fábio Augusto Darius Centro Universitário Adventista de São Paulo - UNASP EC

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.19141/1809-2454.kerygma.v20.n1.pe2018

Keywords:

Polysystem, translation, realia, Ellen G. White, adaptation

Abstract

The article explores challenges in translating Ellen White's works, a 19th and 20th-century writer, due to the translation of polysystems. The study compares two Portuguese translations of Vida de Jesus (The Story of Jesus): Guilherme Stein Jr.’s (1910) and Sônia Maria Mastrocola Gazeta’s (2011). The objective is to analyze the translational difficulties resulting from polysystems in religious texts. The research used the collation of translations, focusing on polysystems to explain translational decisions. Even-Zohar’s (2007) polysystem concept considers translation as part of a broader universe, influenced by political, social, and scientific systems. The methodology analyzed how retranslation is affected by patronage, institutional manipulation, and economics, impacting what and how to translate. Five examples of translation differences from the English original were qualitatively examined, focusing on alterations of “realia” (specific cultural elements). The analysis of realia alterations in Vida de Jesus translations revealed the formation of a translation polysystem. The alterations disregarded original cultural data to update vocabularies. Mastrocola’s more recent translation showed more “realia” alterations than Stein’s, corroborating Even-Zohar (2007).

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biographies

Cintia Ramirez Nuñez, Centro Universitário Adventista de São Paulo - UNASP, São Paulo, (Brasil)

Graduada em Letras (Espanhol) pela Universidade Estácio de Sá, Letras (Português) e Licenciatura em Música pelo Centro Universitário Adventista de São Paulo (UNASP). Atualmente é professora de espanhol.

Fábio Augusto Darius, Centro Universitário Adventista de São Paulo - UNASP EC

Doutor e mestre em Teologia pela Escola Superior de Teologia de São Leopoldo - EST; Graduado em História pela Universidade Regional de Blumenau; e Teologia pelo Centro Universitário Adventista de São Paulo–UNASP, onde atua como professorde Teologia. E-mai: fabio.darius@unasp.edu.br.

References

BRAZILIAN White Center. Stein Jr., Guilherme (1871-1957). In: Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists. 29 Jan. 2020. Disponível em: https://encyclopedia.adventist.org/article?id=AGPT&highlight=stein. Acesso em: 12 jan. 2023.

EVEN-ZOHAR, Itamar. Polisistemas de cultura. Tel-Aviv: Universidad de Tel-Aviv, 2007. Libro electrónico provisional.

FERNÁNDEZ ESTAÑÁN, Maite. Taller de traducción: guía práctica y poética para la traducción de libros del inglés al español. S.l.: Alba, 2019.

GEOFFREY, J. P. The shaking of Adventism. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1978.

HOMERO. Ilíada. Tradução: Carlos Alberto Nunes. Rio de Janeiro: Ediouro, 2001.

KNIGHT, George R. Caminando con Elena G. de White: su lado humano. Traducción: Ernesto Giménez. Buenos Aires: ACES, 2010.

LAKE, Jud. Ellen G. White e seus escritos: a Guerra Civil americana. In: ZUKOWSKI, Jean Carlo; SUÁREZ, Adolfo S.; SIQUEIRA, Reinaldo (Eds.). Ellen G. White: seu impacto hoje. Engenheiro Coelho, SP: UNASPRESS, 2017. p. 41-67.

MAGALDI, Carolina A.; STEIL, Juliana; RODRIGUES, Roberta R. Nota das tradutoras. In: EVEN-ZOHAR, Itamar. O trabalho ideacional e a produção de energia social. Florianópolis: Rafael Copetti, 2021. p. 7-9.

MOON, Jerry; KAISER, Denis. Por Jesus e pelas Escrituras: a vida de Ellen G. White. In: MOON, Jerry; FORTIN, Denis (Eds.). Enciclopédia Ellen G. White. Tradução: Cecília Eller R. Nascimento et al. Tatuí, SP: CPB, 2018. p. 29-111.

OLSON, Robert W. Assistentes literários dos autores inspirados. In: STENCEL, Renato (Org.). Espírito de profecia: orientações para a igreja remanescente. Engenheiro Coelho, SP: Unaspress, 2012. p. 135-141.

PEREZ, Joubert C.; MASTROCOLA, Sônia M.; TORRES, Milton L. Bolhas de sabão. Maringá: Massoni, 2019.

PHILLIPS III, C. Robert. Standards, cult of. In: HORNBLOWER, Simon; SPAWFORTH, Antony (Eds.). The Oxford Classical Dictionary. Oxford: OUP, 2012. p. 1395-1396.

POIRIER, Tim. Tradução dos livros de Ellen G. White. In: MOON, Jerry; FORTIN, Denis (Eds.). Enciclopédia Ellen G. White. Tradução: Cecília Eller R. Nascimento et al. Tatuí, SP: Casa Publicadora Brasileira, 2018. p. 1340.

TORRES, Milton L. No escuro, os arqueólogos gostam de ficar em silêncio: o argumento do silêncio e a historicidade da anistia de Pilatos a Barrabás. Caminhando, v. 22, n. 2, p. 47-59, 2017.

WHITE, Arthur. Ellen White: mulher de visão. Tradução: Cristiane Perassol Sartorti e Fernando Dias de Souza. Tatuí, SP: Casa Publicadora Brasileira, 2015.

WHITE, Ellen G. Caminho para Cristo. Tatuí, SP: Casa Publicadora Brasileira, 2013.

WHITE, Ellen G. Vida de Jesus. Tradução: Guilherme Stein Jr. Tatuí, SP: Casa Publicadora Brasileira, 1910.

WHITE, Ellen G. Vida de Jesus. Tradução: Sônia Maria Mastrocola. Tatuí, SP: Casa Publicadora Brasileira, 2011.

WHITE, Ellen G. The story of Jesus. Takoma Park: Ellen G. White Estate, 2010 [1896].

Downloads

Published

2025-12-09

How to Cite

RAMIREZ NUÑEZ, C.; DARIUS, F. A. The Difficulties of Polysystem Translation in Vida de Jesus: Theory and Analysis. Kerygma, Engenheiro Coelho, SP, v. 20, n. 1, p. e2018, 2025. DOI: 10.19141/1809-2454.kerygma.v20.n1.pe2018. Disponível em: https://revistas.unasp.edu.br/kerygma/article/view/2018. Acesso em: 16 feb. 2026.

Issue

Vol. 20 No. 1 (2025): Fluxo contínuo

Section

Dossiê "Traduzindo Ellen G. White: História, Desafios e Métodos" | Organizador: Milton L. Torres

License

Copyright (c) 2025 Kerygma

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Copyright Statement

In summary, authors who publish in Kerygma must agree that:

  1. Once accepted for publication, the copyright of the articles is transferred to Kerygma.

  2. All third-party materials used in the text must be properly referenced.

  3. Authors must hold the rights or permissions for the use of images, tables, and other graphic materials.

  4. Authors guarantee that the submitted manuscript is original, of their own authorship, and has not been submitted or published elsewhere.

  5. The opinions and ideas expressed in the texts are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the journal.

  6. The editors reserve the right to make textual revisions and adjustments in accordance with the journal’s editorial standards.

  7. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication, with the work licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution–NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

  8. Authors authorize the reproduction and adaptation of the material by Kerygma, with the authors’ participation or express authorization when required.

  9. The journal may distribute, store, archive, and make the articles available through any physical or digital means, whether free of charge or paid.

  10. Authors may enter into separate agreements for the non-exclusive distribution of the published version of the work, provided that the original publication in Kerygma is acknowledged.

  11. Full or partial reproduction of the texts in other publications requires prior written authorization from the editor.

  12. Authors are permitted and encouraged to publish and distribute their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or personal webpages) before or during the editorial process, as this may increase the visibility and citation impact of the published work.

Crossref
Scopus
Google Scholar
Europe PMC