Reframing the Western in Bande Dessinée : Translation, Adaptation, Localization

mots-clés : Traduction ; Intermédialité ; {Blueberry} ; Censure ; Espagne ; États-Unis

This thesis builds upon research in comics translation by Klaus Kaindl and Federico Zanettin and investigates the role of social agents—cartoonists, editors and translators, but also censors—in the framing and reframing of the Western genre in European {bande dessinée } and its translation in the United States and Spain. This research frame is also inspired by Jean-Marc Gouanvic’s application of Pierre Bourdieu’s work on the sociology of culture to the disciplines of Translation and Adaptation Studies. In the transnational field of comics, Western {bandes dessinées} have long been published, reprinted and translated, yet they have not received commensurate critical attention, particularly in Translation Studies. Looking beyond interlingual translation, the aim of this thesis is to adopt a wider stance and to explore the habitus of the agents of translation and the socio-cultural norms that influence translation of the Western {bande dessinée}. Such habitus shapes the products of translation, adaptation and localization and affects the reception of translated {bandes dessinées}. Taking Jean-Michel Charlier and Jean Giraud’s iconic {Blueberry} series as its main case study, this thesis argues that the habitus of diverse agents of translation plays a critical role in the international circulation and the transnational reception of this Western {bande dessinée}. What might initially appear as tangential decisions can change entirely the perception of the products and their authors and their position (their cultural capital) in the transnational field of comics, as this thesis shows in relation to the {Blueberry} series.