(How) Does One Tell the Truth

8/11/2019 (How) Does One Tell the Truth

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(How)

Does

One

Tell

The

Truth?

Adaptations of UncleTomsCabinfor Dutch children from

18532008

Name Marija van Welie

Student number 0437964

Study Engelse Taal en Cultuur

MA Thesis Vertalen

University Universiteit Utrecht

1stSupervisor Dr. Cees Koster

2ndReader Prof. Dr. Ton Naaijkens
http://ivosrv0006d/users$/veldh/mijn%20documenten/javascript:window.close();


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1

Index

Index.......................................................................................................................................... 1

Introduction.............................................................................................................................. 3

Chapter1.TheSource............................................................................................................. 6

1.1TranslationHistory:CultureinTranslations............................................................. 6

1.2 SourceCulture............................................................................................................... 7

1.3 SourceText..................................................................................................................... 9

1.4SourceAuthor .............................................................................................................. 11

Chapter2.TheTranslationHistoryofUTCinDutch...................................................... 12

2.1TheTranslationHistory:Why?.................................................................................. 12

2.2Table1.OverviewofthefirsteditionsofUTCinDutch ....................................... 14

2.3Table2.OverviewofallEditionsofUTCinDutch ................................................ 17

2.4 TheTranslationHistory:anAnalysis .................................................................. 21

Chapter3.Politics&SocietyinHolland............................................................................ 29

3.1 TheAbolitionofSlaveryinHolland.................................................................... 29

3.2 TheInfluenceofUncleTomsCabin.................................................................... 31

Chapter4.WritingandTranslatingforChildren............................................................. 33

4.1ABookforWhom? ...................................................................................................... 33

4.2WhywasUTCAdaptedforChildren? ..................................................................... 34

4.3TranslatingforChildren ............................................................................................. 37

4.4 Illustrations:AVisualLanguage.......................................................................... 39

4.5Who

reads

What?......................................................................................................... 40

4.6ChildrensLiteraturefrom18502008 ....................................................................... 41

Chapter5.TextualAnalysisEenKijkjeindeHutvanoomTombyA.G.Bruinses......... 43

5.1ATertiumComparationis:SourceText.................................................................... 44

5.2ATertiumComparationis:APeepinUncleTomsCabin .................................... 47

5.3ATertiumComparationis:EenkijkjeindehutvanoomTom............................. 49

5.4TranslationStrategies.................................................................................................. 51

5.5AdaptationofPlot&Phrasing................................................................................... 52


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5.6InterpretationofThemesandTextWorld ............................................................... 54

5.7Society............................................................................................................................ 56

5.8ChildImage&ChildrensLiterature ........................................................................ 57

5.6TheIllustrations ........................................................................................................... 58

Chapter6.TextualAnalysisDehutvanoomTombyP.deZeeuw ................................. 61

6.1ATertiumComparationis .......................................................................................... 61

6.2TranslationStrategies.................................................................................................. 63


7.3.1InterpretationofThemes&TextWorld:Race...................................................... 66

7.3.2

Interpretationof

Themes

&

Text

World:

Religion

&

Gender............................ 69

6.4 Society........................................................................................................................... 70

6.5ChildImage&ChildrensLiterature ........................................................................ 71

6.6TheIllustrations ........................................................................................................... 74

Chapter7.TextualAnalysisDehutvanoomTombyEdFranck ..................................... 76

7.1ATertiumComparationis .......................................................................................... 76

7.2DehutvanoomTombyFranck:TranslationStrategies........................................ 78


7.4.1.InterpretationofThemes&TextWorld:Race..................................................... 84

7.4.2.InterpretationofThemes&TextWorld:Religion .............................................. 86

7.4.3.InterpretationofThemes&TextWorld: Gender&Society ............................. 89

7.5ChildImage&Childrensliterature ......................................................................... 90

Conclusion.............................................................................................................................. 94

Bibliography ....................................................................................................................... 97


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3

Introduction

UncleTomsCabin(UTC)remainsanamazingbook,notintheleastintermsofits

reception.Tobeginwith,thenovelwasanunprecedentedsalessuccess:bymid1853

morethanamillioncopiesweresold(Norton,363).Besides,fewtonowomenhave

thereputationtohavestartedawarbywritinganovel.HarrietBeecherStowehas

thatreputation:adecadeafterthepublicationofUTC,atthebeginningoftheCivil

War,AbrahamLincolnhimselffamouslygreetedherasthelittleladywhomade

thisgreatwar(Gossett,314).However,theSouthernnovelistWilliamGilmore

SimmsascertainedthatMrsStowebetraysamalignitysoremarkablethatthe

petticoatliftsofitself,andweseethehoofofthebeastunderthetable(Gosset,190).

ThequotesindicateBeecherStowewaseitherpraisedtotheskiesorcondemnedas

animmoralwoman.Further,thereactionsonthecontentsofUTCwerewidelydivergent.Thenovelwaspraisedfordefendingtherightsoftheblacksaswellas

heartilydenouncedforharbouringalatentracism.Thus,thereceptionofUTC

showedhowliteraturecaninfluencethegeneralpublicopiniontoagreatextentand

eventuallyevenindirectlybringaboutpoliticalandsocialchanges.

However,UTChasaworldwidepopularityandisnotmerelyinterestinginan

Americancontext.Immediatelyafteritspublication,UTCwastranslatedinvarious

languages.InFranceonly,elevendifferenttranslationswerepublishedwithinten

monthsafterUTCspublication(Kadish,55).BymeansoftranslationsUTCreacheda

worldwidereadingaudience.Thesetranslationsareasinterestingasthesourcetext,becausetranslationsneverappearinacultural,politicalorliteraryvacuum.Onthe

opposite,translatorsarealwaysanintrinsicpartofthenegotiatingdialogueitself,

holdingafragile,unstablemiddlebetweenthesocialforcesthatactuponthem(),

theirowninterpretationofthesourcetextandtheirassessmentofthetarget

audience(VanCoillie&Verschuren,v).InthisMAthesisIwanttoresearchhowthe

DutchtranslationsofUTCforchildrenreflectthecontemporaryopinionsaboutthe

child,childrensbooksandsociety.

Inordertoanalysethetargettextandthetranslationnormsandstrategies,a

basicunderstanding

of

the

source

text

is

invaluable.

In

Chapter

1the

source

culture,

sourcetextandsourceauthorwillbedescribedindetail.Thischapterhasa

frameworkfunction,asitmakesclearinwhichculturalcontextUTCwaswritten

andthusenhancestheunderstandingandappreciationofthebook.

AyearafteritspublicationUTCwastranslatedintoDutchandreprintedtime

andagain.Thetranslationhistoryinchapter2showsUTChadacontinuing

popularityinHollandsinceitsfirstpublication.Thefactsandfiguresofthe

translationhistoryarenottheendofthestory,butgiverisetomanyinteresting

questions:whywasUTCadaptedforchildrensooften?Whatmadeparticular

translationsso

successful?

Did

UTC

influence

the

opinion

of

the

average

Dutchmen

aboutslavery?


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Around1853,UTCscallforabolitionwasrelevantfortheDutchreaderstoo,

becauseslaverystillexistedintheDutchcolonies.Inchapter3thepoliticalsituation

concerningslaveryintheDutchcolonieswillbedescribed.Iwillbrieflyinvestigate

whetherthereareindicationsifthepublicationofUTCactuallyinfluencedthepublic

opinionabout

slavery

and

if

Dutch

readers

applied

the

call

for

abolition

to

slavery

in

theDutchcolonies.

MosteditionsofUTCinDutchaimatatargetaudienceofchildren.Asthe

mainfocusofthisMAthesisisonadaptationsofUTCforchildren,inchapter4Ill

givesomebriefinformationaboutchildrenbooksingeneral.First,Illinvestigate

whatcharacteriseschildrensbooksanddistinguishesthemfrombooksforadults.

Onthebasisofthatinformation,IlltrytoanswerthequestionwhichaspectsofUTC

madethenovelsosuitabletobeadaptedforchildren.ThefactthatUTCwasnot

originallywrittenforchildren,doeshaveconsequencesforthetranslationsfor

children.

Some

attention

will

be

paid

to

the

translation

strategies

translators

have

appliedtothetranslationofbooksforchildrenandhowtheyadaptedadultbooks

andpassagesforajuvenileaudience.

Inthefinalchapters,threeadaptationsforchildrenwillbeanalysedindepth.The

theoreticalinformationgiveninthefirstchapterswillbeusedtoanalysethe

translations.Thefinalgoaloftheanalysesistoanswertheresearchquestion

adequately:HowdothedifferenttranslationsandadaptationsofUTCinDutchreflectthe

contemporaryopinionsaboutthechild,childrensliterature,andsocietyinHolland?

Thethreeadaptationsthatwillbeanalysedareeachrepresentativeforacertain

period.A.G.Bruinsessadaptationappearedin1853andbecametheofficial

translationforchildrenforthenextfiftyyears.Fromthe1940sonwards,P.de

Zeeuwsadaptationbecameverypopular.ThewellknownFlemishwriterEdFranck

(1941)publishedhisadaptationofUTCin2003.Itwillbeinterestingtoinvestigate

whattranslationstrategiesthesetranslatorsappliedtothesourcetext,which

translationnormsdeterminedtheirchoices,andwhattheirchildimagewas.Inthe

sourcetext,raceandreligionarethecentralthemes.Oneofthemainquestionsis

howtheirtranslationstrategiesinfluencedthethematicinterpretationofthetext

world.BeecherStowesprimarygoalwiththesourcetextwastoconvincepeopleof

theinjusticeofslavery,butshealsofocussedonthenonviolentforceofreligionin

bringingaboutjustice.Asaresult,raceandreligionarethecentralthemesofthesourcetext.Besides,manyadaptationsofclassicsforchildrenkeepthesocial

criticismoftheoriginaloutofaccount.IntheanalysisIllalsopayattentiontothe

questionhowthetranslatorsdealtwiththesocialcriticismofthenovel.

Below,theresearchquestion,subquestionsandbibliographyofthetranslations

arelisted.

ResearchQuestion

HowdothedifferenttranslationsandadaptationsofUTCinDutchreflectthe

contemporaryopinionsaboutthechild,childrensliterature,andsociety?


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Inordertoanswertheresearchquestionproperlyandorderly,itcanbedividedin

thefollowingsubquestions.

Inwhich

cultural

and

literary

context

was

UTC

written?

Whatcharacterisedthesourcetext,theauthorandthesourceculture?

WhatinformationdoesthetranslationhistoryofUTCinDutchreveal?

HowandwhenwasslaveryabolishedinHolland?

WasthepublicopinionaboutslaveryinanywayformedbyUTC?

WhatcharacteristicsofUTCmadeitsuitabletobeadaptedforchildrenso

often?

Howdidthegenrechildrensbooksevolvefrom18501900?

Whatkindofstrategiesdotranslatorsusuallyapplytothetranslationof

childrens

books?

Whatinformationdothetranslationstrategiesrevealaboutthechildimage

andideasaboutchildrensliteratureofthetranslators?

Dothetranslationstrategiesinfluencethethematicinterpretationofthetext

world?

Aretheadaptationsrepresentativeofthetimetheyappearedin?


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Chapter1.TheSource

1.1TranslationHistory:CultureinTranslationsInthe1970stheIsraeliEvenZohardevelopedtheinfluentialpolysystem

theory,thatwouldcometoplayanimportantroleintranslationstudies.EvenZohar

stronglyobjectedagainststudyingatextanditstranslationontheirownandstressed

theimportanceoftheliteraryandculturalcontextofatext.InIntroducingTranslation

StudiesJeremyMundaydescribeshowEvenZoharstudiedtranslationsinthelarger

social,literaryandhistoricalsystemsofthetargetculture(108).Zoharscoordinated

approachoftranslationsstimulatedanintegratedapproachtowardsatextandits

translationintranslationstudies.Zoharstressedthatatextispartofaliterarysystem

andis

in

continual

interrelationship

with

other

aspects

of

the

system.

Zohar

blamedthetraditionaltextapproachfornotpayingattentiontoseeminglyless

importantgenres,likechildrensliterature(109).AsaresultofZoharsapproach,

translationscametobestudiedinthecontextofthesocial,historicalandcultural

forcesofsociety.

LikeZohar,GideonTourystatedthatagoodtranslationstudyshouldnotfocus

onatranslationinisolation,buthadtotakethebiggerwholeofthesource and

targetcultureinaccount.Thetranslationstrategiesthatareemployedaredetermined

bythesocialandliterarysystems(112).Tourysultimategoalwastodraw

conclusionsabout

the

norms

that

played

adetermining

role

in

the

translation

process.Inhisview,everytranslationisgovernedbynorms:sociocultural

constraintsspecifictoaculture,societyandtime(113).Knowledgeaboutthenorms

thatareusedinaliteraryfieldcanprovideinsightsinthetranslationprocess,and

source andtargetculture.

ZoharandTourybothstressedtheinterrelationshipbetweenatextandculture,

andclaimedthatatextanditstranslationsareexpressionsofacertaincultureand

shouldnotbestudiedontheirown.Thesuddenandgrowingattentionforthe

culturalcontextwasofsuchascalethatMarySnellHornbynameditthecultural

turn(127).Thistermdescribesthegradualchangeintranslationstudiesfrom

describingatextanditstranslationinmerelinguistictermstotheanalysisofatext

anditstranslationinitscultural,socialandliterarycontext.Hence,translation

studiesstartedtopayattentiontoculturalideologies,(post)colonialwritingin

translation,adaptationsandrewritings,andchildrensliteratureasfullyfledged

partsoftheliterarysystem.

AndrLefeverewasoneofthepersonsinvolvedintheculturalturn,sincehe

paidattentiontoconcreteculturalandsocialaspectsthataccompanyanddefine(the

receptionof)translatedliterature,likeconcepts,ideologies,persons,andobjects

belongingtoacertainculture(Lefevere,38).InLefeveresview,theliterarysystem

isgovernedbythreefactors:professionalswithintheliterarysystem,patronage,and


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thedominantpoetics.Thepoeticsconsistamongstothersofliterarydeviceslike

genresandprototypicalcharacters.Naturally,thepoeticsofasourcecultureoften

differfromthoseofthetargetculture.Therefore,thetranslatorbuildsbridges

betweenthesource andtargetcultureandstrikesabalancebetweenwhatis

consideredacceptable

by

both

cultures.

Lefevere

was

most

interested

in

the

ideologiesthatarerevealedbytranslations.

Zohar,TouryandLefevereallstatedthattranslatedtextsareproductsofa

certaincultureandshouldbestudiedinthatculturalcontext,ratherthanontheir

linguisticmeritsandcharacteristicsalone.Asanunderstandingofthesourceculture

andknowledgeaboutthesourceauthorandsourcetextclearlyarevitalforagood

understandingofatext,IwillpayattentiontotheAmericansourcecultureand

sourceauthorofUTCinchapter1.Inchapter3,attentionwillbepaidtothetarget

culture.TheinformationbelowismainlytakenfrommyBAthesisUncleTomsCabin

adapted

for

children,

in

which

I

studied

American

adaptations

of

UTC

for

children.

1.2 SourceCulture

Withitsvehementrepudiationofslavery,UTCshookAmericansocietytoits

core.NineteenthcenturyAmericawasnotjustasocietywithslaves,butaslave

society.TheentireeconomyoftheSouthofAmericaheavilyreliedonthesystemof

slavery(Norton,331). Eventhoughin1776,TheDeclarationofIndependencehad

proudlydeclared:thatallmenarecreatedequal(Jefferson,688),thiscertainlydid

notleadtoeitheranimmediateoranabsoluteabolitionofslavery.Eventually,the

conflictbetweenNorthandSouthaboutslavery,whichwasstirredupgreatlybythepublicationofUTC,grewintothemainsourceoftheCivilWar.

ThemainreasonwhytheSouthhadkeptslaveryintact,wasthatits

economicalsystemdependedonslavery.Overtheyears,theSouthevendevelopeda

worldviewthatjustifiedslavery.Apparently,somesouthernersdefendedslaveryin

practicaleconomicalterms.Besides,defendersofslaveryconsideredthesystemas

justifiableinbothbiblical,historicalandbiologicalterms.Theyinterpretedbiblical

referencestoslaveryasafreeholdandcommissiontoholdslaves.Inthesame

mannersomearguedthatslaverywasjustifiedbyitsageoldtradition.However,the

proslaveryargument

was

grounded

on

strong

racism.

Whites

claimed

they

were

morally,physicallyandintellectuallysuperiortoblacks,andthattheirsuperiority

providedthemwiththerighttoenslaveblacks.GeorgeFitzhugh,acontemporary

sociologistfromtheSouth,defendedthisview:thenegroraceisinferiortothe

whiterace,andlivingintheirmidst,theywouldbefaroutstrippedoroutwittedin

thecaseoffreecompetition(Fitzhugh,311).Thus,fundamentalinequalitybetween

theraceswasthestartingpointofslaveholders.Fitzhughdismissedtheideaof

equality:Menarenotbornentitledtoequalrights.Itwouldbefarnearerthetruth

tosay,thatsomewerebornwithsaddlesontheirbacks,andothersbootedand

spurredto

ride

them

(Norton,

331).

Still,

slaveholders

felt

they

had

amoral

obligationtowardsthepeopletheyowned.Forthatreasontheytookona


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paternalisticattitudetowardsblacks,becausehewasbutagrownupchild,and

mustbegovernedasachild(idem).Paternalismonitsturnbecameaninstrument

thatjustifiedanddefendedslavery,becauseitcreatedtheimageofthecontented

black(Fitzhugh,311)anditsbenevolentmaster.

Thoughslavery

was

not

abolished

until

the

1860s,

politics

on

slavery

did

alreadychangeintheearly19thcentury.ThetensionbetweenNorthandSouth

sharpenedwhenthecontroversialFugitiveSlaveActwasissued,thatobligedfree

Northernersonaveryfeeblejudiciarybasistoreturnrunawayslavestotheirformer

Southernmasters.Abolitionistsunanimouslydeclaredtheacttobeashame,because

thefreeNorthcouldnolongerharbourfugitives.Still,thoughmostNortherners

resistedslavery,manysupportedtheAmericanColonizationSocietythatwas

foundedin1816.Thesocietyadvocatedgradualemancipationofslavesand

establishedthecolonyLiberia,wherefreedslavesshouldresettleandreformAfrican

society.

Meanwhile,

the

slave

population

yearly

increased

naturally.

Importation

was

nolongernecessary,andwasbannedbyCongressinthe1830s.Moreover,slaves

developedtheirownculturalconsciousnessandasenseofracialidentity.Asa

consequence,moreandmoreslavesrebelledtotheviolence,sexualharassmentand

salethatalwaysthreatenedthem.

In1860therepublicanAbrahamLincoln,wholaterbecameknownasthegreat

emancipatorofblacks,waselectedpresidentoftheUnitedStates.Thecontinued

existenceoftheUnitedStateswasatstakewhenSouthernstatesclaimedtheir

autonomyandindependencefromtheNorthandestablishedtheSouthern

Confederacy.TheCivilWarbrokeoutin1861,becauseNorthernandSouthernviews

onstateinstitutiondiffereddiametricallyandprovedirreconcilable.Or,asLincoln

putitinapersonalletter:Youthinkslaveryisrightandoughttobeexpanded;

whilewethinkitisawrongandoughttoberestricted.ThatIsupposeistherub

(Norton,378). OnJanuary1,1863,LincolnissuedtheEmancipationProclamation

thatfreedtheslavesintherebelliousSouth.In1865the13thamendmenttothe

constitutionbannedslaveryintheentireUnion.Assoonas1863,Lincolnstartedthe

Reconstructionofthewartorncountry.Itsgoalsweretwofold:toreformthesouth

andtosavetheunion.TheFreedmansBureauwasfounded,inordertopromote

blackemancipation.Itestablisheduniversities,churchesanddevelopedthe

sharecroppingsystem.However,duringthePresidentialReconstructionofJackson,BlackCodesthatresembledformerSlaveCodeswerereintroduced.Violenceand

discriminationagainstblacksremainedwidespread.Thoughtheyreceivedsuffrage,

virtuallynoblackvoted.Inthetenyearsbetween1889and1909morethan1700

blackswerelynchedintheSouth.Thoughwhiteswerebynowinclinedtoacceptthat

AfroAmericanswereequal,theystillconsistentlyheldthatblackswerevery

different,andexpressedtheirfeelingsinthemotto:equal,butseparate.

Segregationlaws,thatseparatedwhiteandblackinpublic,becameknownastheJim

Crowpolicyandexistedtillthe1960s.


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1.3 SourceText

UTCwasnotpublishedinaculturalandliteraryvacuum.Beforeitwas

releasedasabookin1852,severalslavenarrativeshadalreadyprecededits

publication.HarrietBeecherStowehadreadFrederickDouglassautobiography,

titledNarrative

of

the

life

of

Frederick

Douglass,

An

American

Slave,

written

by

himself

(1845).Douglasswasarunawayslaveofmixedblood;withhisexcellenteducation

andgreatintellecthewasanimportantrepresentativeoftheAntiSlaverySociety.

Hisoutspokennessandfierceattackonslaveryturnedhisbookintoabestsellerand

hebecameaspokesmanforabolitionism,makingseveraltoursthroughEurope.

AfterHarrietBeecherStowehadpublishedUTCshewasreprovedtohavewrittena

highlyfantasticalnovel.Inordertorefutethisassertions,shewroteAKeytoUncle

TomsCabin,inwhichshedescribedthesourcesofherbook.Stowemakesthelink

betweenUTCandDouglassnarrativeexplicit.Withregardtotheintelligenceof

George,

and

his

teaching

himself

to

read

and

write,

there

is

a

most

interesting

and

affectingparalleltoitintheLifeofFrederickDouglassabookwhichcanbe

recommendedtoanyonewhohasacuriositytotracetheworkingsofanintelligent

andactivemindthroughallthesqualidmisery,degradationandoppression,of

slavery(Stowe,24). Moreover,HarrietBeecherStowedrewherinspirationforthe

characterofUncleTomfromtheautobiographyofJosiahHenson:TheLifeofJosiah

Henson,FormerlyaSlave,NowanInhabitantofCanada.NarratedbyHimself.Stowewas

inspiredbytheslavenarratives,andbasedthecharactersinUTConreallive

characters,withwhomthereadingaudiencecouldalreadyhavebeenfamiliar.

Besides,theexistenceandgenreoftheslavenarrativeshowthatStowewasnotthe

firstwritertobringslaveryunderpublicattention.Still,itispracticallyimpossibleto

pinUTCdowntoacertaingenre.UTChascharacteristicsofmany,verydivergent

genres,asBettinaKmmerlingmakesclearinKlassikerderKinder undJugendliteratur.

SheexplainsthatUTCshowsinfluencesfromtheworkofCharlesDickenswhile

otherpassagestestifyvomEinflussdessentimentalenFrauenromansdes19.Jhs.S.

kompinierteElementeverschiedenerGenres(Familienroman,Zeitroman,Gothic

Novel)(Kmmerling,1032).Moreover,KmmerlingstatesthatUTCcanbereadas

areligiousnovel,becausesomecharactersaretypological.Inshort,HarrietBeecher

StowebasedthestoryofUTConslavenarratives,andmodelledthebookon

divergentgenres.UTCwasthebestsellingAmericannovelfromthe19thcentury;inthefirst

yearafteritspublication300,000copiesweresold,whilemorethanamillioncopies

hadfoundtheirwaytothereadersbymid1853.AjournalistoftheLiteraryWorld

Noticewasastounded:TheUncleTomepidemicstillrageswithunabatedviolence.

Nocountryissecurefromitsattack.TheUnitedStates,GreatBritain,and,bythe

latestaccounts,GermanyandFrance,haveyieldedtoitsirresistibleinfluence.Noage

orsexisspared,menandwomenandchildrenallconfessitspower.Noconditionis

exempt;lordsandladies,flunkiesandkitchenmaids,areequallyinfectedwiththe

rage(356).


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UTCwasperformedonstage,presentedindramaticreadings,andinspired

abolitioniststowritesimilarnovels.Itcertainlybroughtthemiseryofslaveryhome

toAmericanswhohadnevergivenmuchthoughtaboutit.However,notall

reactionswerepositive,andsouthernersweresorelyalarmedbythepopularity.On

the11

thof

June,

1852,

areader

of

The

Liberator

expressed

his

concern

in

aletter:

The

enthusiasticabolitionfanaticsknowfullwellthatthegreatmassofthepeoplecannot

beinducedtolistentotheirmadravings,orreadtheiressays;theythereforeexpect,

throughcunninglywrittenfictions,toinstiltreasonousideas,andkeepupthe

agitationwhichhassolongdisturbedthepeaceofthepeopleofourfairlandhence

theactiveexertionstoscatterbroadcastoverthecountryMrs.Stoweswork.Inorder

tomeetthefallaciesofthisabolitiontale,itwouldbewellifthefriendsoftheUnion

wouldarrayfictionagainstfiction.Hisadvicewasfollowedup:fifteentotwenty

proslaverynovelswerepublishedinthefollowingyears.Areaderoftheproslavery

novel

Aunt

Phillis

Cabin

ironically

remarks

in

The

Indepent,

on

28

October

1852,

that

thepicturesoftheintensehappinessoftheslavesaresoverycharming,thatone

wonderswhytheinventorsdonotmakehastetoselltheirchildrentotheslave

traders.

NowadaysUTChasgainedmythicalfeaturesandturnedintoaclassic.

Nevertheless,foritsdepictionofAfroAmericansithasbothbeenpraisedand

refuted.ModerncriticsspotlatentracisminStowesworkandnowadaysAfro

AmericansrefusetoidentifywiththemeekandhumbleUncleTom.Inthe1992play

IAintYoUncle:TheNewJackRevisionistUncleTomsCabin,RobertAlexanderwords

thecriticisminanironic,butverycreativemanner.CharactersfromUTCvividlycall

Stowetoaccount.WhydoesshenotallowGeorgeHarristocoolhisangerandto

shoottheevilslaveholderLegree?AndwhyisUncleTomsodreadfullymeek?

AlexanderpresentsUncleTomasamanwithanimageproblem(Otter,15),and

thuscriticisesStowesrepresentationofblacks.Nevertheless,inUncleTomsCabin

andAmericanCulture,ThomasGossettpointsoutthatlargescalecriticismofUTCdid

notoccurbeforeWorldWarII.Accordingtohim,AfroAmericanswereuntillshort

veryawareofthepositiveinfluenceofUTContheabolitionofslavery.Inthefaceof

thisconviction,itisunderstandablethatafullscaleattackupontheracialimageof

UncleTomamongblackswasalongtimecoming(Gossett,86).

WiththepublicationofUTCHarrietBeecherStowewantedtostrengthenthecauseofabolitionism.Therefore,herbookaimedatreadersthroughoutallAmerica,

inordertoconvincethemofthehorrorsofslaveryandputthemtoaction.Though

shedidnotwritethebookforchildren,itwasreadaloudinmanyfamilies,with

childrenintheaudience.TheconcludingchapterXLV,ConcludingRemarks,

repeatedlyaddressesthereadersandmakesclearwhatreadingaudienceStowehad

inmind.ThereadersconsistofthemenandwomenofAmerica;fromthe

generous,noblemindedmenandwomenoftheSouthtotheNorthernmen,

Northernmothers,NorthernChristians;fromthebraveandgenerousmenofNew

Yorktoyeofthewideprairiestates(410).However,astimepassedby,UTCprimarilycametoberegardedasachildrensclassicinsteadofabookaimingat


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adults.Nevertheless,BettinaKmmerlingdoesnothesitatetocountsuchabook,

thatoriginallyaimedatadults,amongchildrensclassics.DieKinderklassiker

umfassen()WerkederErwachsenenliteratur,dieentwederinkinderliterarischer

Bearbeitung(...)odermehroderminderunverndert(...)zuKinderbchern

gewordensind

(x).

UTC

is

aschool

example

of

cross

writing:

the

adult

source

text

wasadaptedtoanaudienceconsistingofchildren.

1.4SourceAuthor

HarrietBeecherwasbornonJune12,1811,inahugefamilyandcompound

householdthatconsistedofadozenchildren,servants,studentsandseveralmore

familymembers.HerfatherwasthepreacherLymanBeecher,whobroughthis

childrenupwithorthodoxCalvinism.Allofhissonsbecameparsons.Hedrick

describestheBeechersasalargefamilyofhighlyindividualistic,assertivesiblings

(93).AsayounggirlHarrietwaseducatedalongwithherbrothers,andhergenius(Gossett,15)wasobservedbyLyman,andincomparisontoherbrothers,hewrote,

shewoulddomorethananyofthem(idem).AttheageofthirteenHarrietalready

taughtattheHartfordFemaleSeminary,thatwasfoundedbyheractivistsister

Catharine,whoferventlypleadedforwomenseducation.Afterhavingexperienced

areligiousandpsychologicalcrisis,Harrietstartedwritingherschoolfriends

pastoralletters.Sheexpressedtofeeladeep&peculiarinterestforthosewho

begantheirChristiancourse(Hedrick,41).However,whenHarrietwas21the

daysofteachingwereover.ThefamilymovedtoCincinnati,whereherlifewould

takeadecisiveturn.ForyearsHarriethadbeenwritinganabundanceofletterstofamilyandfriends,andproducedsocalledparlorliterature.Hedrickpointsoutthat

parlorliteraturewasanageoldphenomenon.Whilebookswerestillexpensive,

peoplegatheredintheirownhomesandsharedtheirliteraryproductions(76).In

CincinnatishejoinedtheliterarySemiColonClub.TheSemiColonsreadtheir

literaryproductionsaloudontheirweeklygatheringsthatwereamixtureofdance,

musicandreading.Soonherwritingsstartedtofindtheirwaytoliterarymagazines.

JoanHedrickremarksthatthecosyanddomesticoriginofStoweswritingwasof

greatinfluencetoherlaterwriting,asitallowedhertobuildupanintimate

relationshipto

her

audience

(88),

that

also

characterises

UTC.

WhenHarrietreachedtheageof22,herfriendElizaTylerdiedofcholera.

Stowestalentforpastoralcounselling,thatshehaddevelopedattheHartford

FemaleSeminary,wasnowappliedtothewidowerCalvinStowe.Calvinsoon

admittedthathemustbewithinreachofwomanslove,ormyownfeelingswill

suffocateme(96),anddeclaredhislovetoHarriet.InJanuary1838Harrietwasa

marriedwoman,andgavebirthtotwingirlsninemonthslater.Inthefollowing

years,domesticchores,childcare,pregnancies,andthetroublesomefinancial

managementoftheStowehouseholdabsorbedmostofherenergy.Inordertoraise

somemoney

Harriet

wrote

stories

for

magazines.

Still

she

expressed

in

aletter

a

slumberingdiscontentandalongingtouseherliterarytalentstothefullest:Ihave


14/103

12

aboutthreehoursperdayinwriting&ifyouseemynamecomingouteverywhere

youmaybesureofonething,thatIdoitforthepayIhavedeterminednottobea

meredomesticslave withouteventheleisuretoexcelinmyduties(119).

Throughherwritingandpartlyduetoheractivistfamilymembers,Harriet

showedagreat

social

commitment.

When

in

1850

the

Fugitive

Slave

Act

was

passed,

Harrietsfierceprotestagainstslaveryawakened.Ifeelasifmyheartwouldburn

itselfoutingriefandshamethatsuchthingsare(205).HersisterIsabellapressed

hertouseherpenagainsttheaccursedthingslaveryis(207).Initially,Harriet

plannedtowriteafewshortsketchesfortheweeklyNationalEra,whichshebasedon

theexperiencesofescapedslaves.Theintendedsketchesexpandedtoamoving

serial,andtheserialbecamethenovelUncleTomsCabin.Whenthebookwasfinally

publishedin1852itsold10.000copiesinthefirstweek.Poems,songsandplayswere

createdthatwerebasedonUTC.AyearlaterAKeytoUncleTomsCabinwas

published,

in

order

to

defend

UTC

against

people

who

held

that

the

descriptions

of

crueltiesagainstslavesweremerefiction.After1853Harrietmadeseveraltours

throughAmericaandEuropetoargueinfavourofabolitionism.Thoughshecalled

herselfdisdainfullyalittlebitofawoman(239),hernovelwokeAmericancitizens

upandforcedthemtochooseside.AfterthepublicationofUTC,Harrietcontinued

workingasaprofessionalwriterandrepeatedlyaddressedcontroversialthemes.The

MinistersWooing(1859)dealtwithreligionandCalvinism,whileTheTrueStoryof

LadyByronsWifecommentedonasexualscandal.Untilherdeathin1896,attheage

of85,shekeptwritingandpublishingbooksthathadaprofoundinfluenceon

society.

Chapter2.TheTranslationHistoryofUTCinDutch

2.1TheTranslationHistory:Why?

Translationhistoriesfunctionasbiographies:theytellthelifestoryofatextinits

translation.Atfirstsight,informationaboutpublishers,dateofpublications,known

andunknowntranslators,titles,numerouseditions,illustrations,anddeclarations

canappearasboringandirrelevantfactualknowledge.However,ifwellinterpreted,

atranslationhistorycanprovidevaluableinsightsinpubliccontemporaryopinions

aboutliteratureandthepositionoftranslationsinacertainliteraryfield.Afterall,

translationsneverappearinaculturalandliteraryvacuum,butarealwaysan

expressionandproductofacertainculture.Forthatreason,atranslationhistoryisa

helpfultoolthatcanshowwhatthemesandsortofbookswerepopular.Besides,a

translationhistorycanunravelhowaliteraryfieldwasstructured,andwhatthe

generalpolicywastowardsforeigntexts(andcultures).Whetheracultureshunned

orembracedforeigninfluences,whetheritacceptedinnovatingbooksorclungto


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13

traditionalliterature,canberevealedbytranslationhistories.InthearticleEigen

vertoogeerst,ClemRobynsinterestinglyshowshowthepresenceorabsenceof

translations,asaproductfromaforeignculture,revealsinterestinginformation

aboutthegeneralattitudeofaculturetowardstheforeign(DenkenoverVertalen,

197208).

Clearly,

an

adequate

interpretation

and

analysis

of

atranslation

history

can

leadtoabetterunderstandingofaliterarytext,aliteraryfield,andevenawhole

culture.

However,inanarticlethatwaspublishedintheDutchjournalforTranslation

Studies,Filter,IsabelleDesmidtshattershopesthatthemakingandinterpretingofa

translationhistorywouldbeaneasyjob.DesmidtusesRomanJakobsons

communicationmodeltomakeherpoint.Jakobsonstatedthatthebriefscheme

sender>message>receiverbasicallycanbeappliedtoeverycommunicativesituation.

Hisschemedescribestheinteractionbetweenthesenderandreceiverofamessage,

because

the

receiver

can

return

a

message

to

the

initial

sender

and

thus

become

a

senderhimself.DesmidtclaimsthatRomanJakobsons clearcutmodel(sender>

message>receiver),ismorecomplexthanitsuggest.Sheusestheexampleof

translationsandadaptationstoshowthatthereceiverofamessagecanbecomea

newsenderinatotallydifferentculturalcontext.Clearly,translationsand

adaptationsareinherentlyrepetitive.Asaresult,itisnotalwaysclearwhothe

originalsenderwasandwhattheexactmessagewashesent(79,80).Anexample

fromthetranslationhistoryofUTCbelowcanmakethisclear.Obviously,Beecher

StowewastheoriginalsenderofUTCandtheAmericanpeopletheoriginal

receivers.Amazingly,thetranslationhistoryshowsthatatacertainmomentthe

sourcetextwasadaptedforchildreninItalianandtranslatedfromItaliantoDutchin

the1960s.Thiscomplextranslationprocessseemssuperfluous,astherealreadywere

tensofadaptationsforchildrenavailableinDutch.Becausethereisnotalwaysa

directlinebetweenthesourceauthorofatextanditsappearanceinatargetculture,

thesender,message,andthereceiverrespectively,itcanbedifficulttodrawany

validconclusionsfromatranslationhistory.Besides,Desmidtstatesthatthe

confusionabouttheinterconnectionofatranslationhistorycanbecomeevengreater

intheabsenceofunivocaldefinitionsofwhatactuallyisatranslationoradaptation

(83).

Desmidtmentionsliteraryclassicsandchildrensbooksasthetwogenresinwhichmostbooksare(re)translatedand(re)adapted,becausethesegenresare

consideredasacommonproperty(80).UTC,thatisbothaclassicandachildrens

book,hascertainlyhadnumeroustranslationsandadaptations,asthetablesbelow

willshow.

Inshort,atranslationhistoryisusefulandcanprovideinsightsinthewaysatext

functionedinaculture,providedonetakesinaccountthatthereisnotalwaysaclear

linkbetweenasourcetextanditstranslationsandthereforetakescarenottojumpto

theconclusions.


16/103

14

Table1belowcontainsanoverviewofthefirsteditionsoftranslationsofUTCin

Dutch,followedbyanextensiveoverviewofallDutcheditionsofUTCintable2.In

thesetablesthebasicsofthetranslationhistoryofUTCarerecorded,whilemore

detailedrecordsaboute.g.theratiobetweenintegraltranslationsandadaptationsfor

childrenwill

follow

later,

alongside

with

an

analysis

of

the

translation

history.

2.2Table1.OverviewofthefirsteditionsofUTCinDutch

SortofTranslation: AdaptationforChildren

IntegralTranslation

Title Sortof

Trans

lation

Translator 1st

Edition

Publisher Series

Denegerhut:eenverhaaluithetslavenleveninNoord

Amerika

I C.M.Mensing 1853 A.C.Kruseman

Eenkijkjeindehutvanoom

Tom

AC A.G.Bruinses 1853 VanDruten

&Bleeker

DehutvanoomTom,ofde

verschrikkingenvanhet

slavenleveninAmerika

AC JohanJacobAntonie

Goeverneur

ca.1881 A.W.Sijthoff

Denegerhut:het

slavenleveninAmerika,

voordeemancipatie

I B.Scholten 1890 C.Misset

DenegerhutvanoomTom

(translationofUncle

TomsCabintoldtothe

childrenbyH.E.Marshall)

AC NettyWeetjen 1909 H.J.vande

Garde&Co

De

mooiste

verhalen

DenegerhutvanoomTom

(partofomnibustitledin

hetsprookjesland)

AC ElisedeGraaf 1910

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC W.Christian Ca.1910 Jacobs

DenegerhutvanoomTom:

opnieuwbewerkt(the

adaptationresemblesthat

ofS.S.ofPublisher

Frenzo)

AC ? 191? s.n.

DehutvanoomTom:een

verhaaluitdenslaventijdin

Amerika,nzestigjaar

geleden

AC ? 1912 Hepkema&

Vander

Velde

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC S.J.Barentz

Schnberg

1914 H.J.W.Becht

DehutvanoomTom AC MariedeKoning 1922 Zonneschijn

Bibliotheek

Denegerhut I H.J.vanderMunnik 1925 J.M.Bredes

Boekhandel

enUitg.


17/103

15

Title Sortof

Trans

lation

Translator 1st

Edition

Publisher Series

Hetnaaikransjeenandere

vertellingen(otherstories

are:Het

naaikransje;

WillemTell;Dehutvan

oomTom)

AC HenkVerduin 1925 s.n. C.O.

Denegerhutvanoom

Tomenandereverhalen

(otherstoriesare:Dewijze

Hans;Dewinterkoningen

debeer).

AC H.C.J. 1930 Hecozet

DehutvanoomTom AC FriedavanFelden 1933 Meinema

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC C.vanRietschoten 193? Goede

Lectuur

DenegerhutvanoomTomenandereverhalen(other

storiesare:Dezeeprinses;

Goedafgeloopen)

AC S.S.(mentioningthatitisreadaptedby

S.S.)

193? Frenzo

DehutvanoomTom AC P.deZeeuw 1939 VanGoor Oud

Goud

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC J.deClercq 1940 Uitgeverij

Unitas

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC PietBroos 1943 Boekdrukke

rijHelmond

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC L.Kievits 1945 LaConcorde,

BrusselDenegerhutvanoomTom AC W.Brugmans 1948 DeSleutel,

Haarlem

DehutvanoomTom AC H.vanHoorn 1950

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC ? C.1950 Wonderland

DehutvanoomTom:een

verhaal

uithetslavenlevenin

NoordAmerika

I JosWayboer 1952 Kramers

DehutvanoomTom AC AnkeMaris 1954 L.Opdebeek,

Antwerpen

DehutvanoomTom AC E.Verbraeken 1956 Standaard

boek

Klassie

kers

naverteld

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC HermanBroekhuizen

andJanvandenBerg

1956 Bowu De

Wereld

Jeugd

reeks

DehutvanoomTom AC MartinDeelen 1958 Classics

Nederland

Beroem

de

boeken

inwoord

enbeeld

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC A.vanMunching 195? VanGelder,


18/103

16

Title Sortof

Trans

lation

Translator 1st

Edition

Publisher Series

(pennameofHans

Petrusvanden

Aardweg)

Antwerpen

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC W.Brugmans(this

ACwaspublished

earlierbyDeSleutel)

1959 J.H.Gottmer Juno

jeugd

pockets

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC JanMens C.1960 DeGellu

streerdePers

DehutvanoomTom AC D.Hauwertjr. 1964 D.A.P.

Reinaert

DehutvanoomTom AC FrancineSchregel

Onstein

1972 Kerco

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC ? 1974 Amsterdam

Boek

Toppers

instripDenegerhutvanoomTom AC ? naarItaliaanse

uitgave

1974 Lekturama Wereld

beroem

de

jeugdboe

ken

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC ? 1977 Hemma Juniorbo

eken

club

DehutvanoomTom AC H.deBruijn 1979 VanGoor

Denegerhut(inan

omnibuswithAlleenopdewereld)

AC NellyKunst 1980 OmegaBoek Omega

jeugdboekerij

Jeugdomnibus(contains

a.o.DehutvanoomTom;

RobinHood;Aladinende

wonderlamp)

AC MarjaVos 1980 Ridderhof

DehutvanoomTom AC AlexanderdeKler 1984 EditoService

DehutvanoomTom AC AnneBogens 1984 Deltas

Klassiek

DehutvanoomTom AC AntheBarends 1987 Thieme

DehutvanoomTom AC L.Vogel 1991 DenHertog

DehutvanoomTom AC SusaHmmerle 1992 DeEekhoorn

DehutvanoomTom I ? 1993 Readers

Digest

DehutvanoomTom I ? 1999 Wolters

Noordhoff

Gouden

Lijsters

DehutvanoomTom AC EdFranck 2003 Davidsfonds

/Infodok,

Holkema&

Warendorf

DehutvanoomTom,ofhet

levenonderdeslaven

I TrisnatiNotosoeroto 2005 Athenaeum

Polak&Van

Gennep


19/103

17

2.3Table2.OverviewofallEditionsofUTCinDutch

Sortof

Translation:

Adaptation

for

Children

IntegralTranslation

Title Sortof

Trans

lation

Translator Year Nr.of

Edition

Publisher

Denegerhut:eenverhaaluit

hetslavenleveninNoord

Amerika I C.M.Mensing 1853 1 A.C.Kruseman

1854 2 A.C. Kruseman




1854 6 E.&M.Cohen

1868 7 Brinkman

1879 8 Brinkman

1885 9 Brinkman

1886 10 Brinkman

1887

Mention

ing reprint E.&M.Cohen

1892

Mentio

ning 10th

editon

of

adaptation

byMensing E.&M.Cohen

1893 11 E.&M.Cohen

1897 12 E.&M.Cohen

1901 13 E.&M.Cohen

1915 20 E.&M.Cohen

1919 ? E.&M.Cohen

Eenkijkjeindehutvanoom

Tom AC A.G.Bruinses 1853 1

VanDruten&

Bleeker

1854

2

VanDruten&

Bleeker

1880 3

VanDruten&

Bleeker

1888 4

VanDruten&

Bleeker

1904 5 VanderStal

1910 6 Bolle

1915 7 Bolle

1921 8 Bolle

1926 9 Bolle

1932 10 Bolle

DehutvanoomTom,ofdeverschrikkingenvanhet AC

JohanJacob

Antoniec.1881 1 A.W.Sijthoff


20/103

18

Title Sortof

Trans

lation


Edition

Publisher

slavenleveninAmerika Goeverneur

Denegerhut:hetslavenleven

inAmerika,voordeemancipatie I B.Scholten 1890 1 C.Misset

1892 2 C.Misset

DenegerhutvanoomTom

(translationofUTCtoldto

thechildrenbyH.E.

Marshall) AC NettyWeetjen 1909 1

H.J.vandeGarde&

Co

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC W.Christian

Ca.

1910 1 Jacobs

DenegerhutvanoomTom:

opnieuwbewerkt(the

adaptationresemblesthatofS.S.ofPublisherFrenzo) AC ? 191? 1 s.n.

DenegerhutvanoomTom

(partofomnibustitledinhet

sprookjesland) AC ElisedeGraaf 1910 1

DehutvanoomTom:een

verhaaluitdenslaventijdin

Amerika, nzestigjaar

geleden AC ? 1912 1

Hepkema&vander

Velde

191? 2

Hepkema&vander

Velde

191? 3

Hepkema&vander

Velde

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC

S.J.Barentz

Schnberg 1914 1 H.J.W.Becht

1925 2 H.J.W.Becht

1927 3 H.J.W.Becht

193? 4 H.J.W.Becht

DehutvanoomTom AC MariedeKoning 1922 1

Zonneschijn

Bibliotheek

De

negerhut

I

H.J.vander

Munnik

1925

1

J.M.Bredes

Boekhandel

en

Uitg.

1933 2

J.M.Bredes

BoekhandelenUitg.

1937 3 A.Voorhoeve

1937 4 A.Voorhoeve

Hetnaaikransjeenandere

vertellingen(het

naaikransje;dehutvanoom

tom;willemtell) AC HenkVerduin 1925 s.n.

WillemTellendenegerhut

vanoomTom AC HenkVerduin 1930 1 s.n.

Dehut

van

oom

Tom

en

andereverhalen AC ?Henk

VerduinCa.

1933 1 s.n.


21/103

19

Title Sortof

Trans

lation


Edition

Publisher

DenegerhutvanoomTomen

andereverhalen(other

storiesare:DewijzeHans;Dewinterkoningendebeer). AC H.C.J. 1930 1 Hecozet

DehutvanoomTom AC

Friedavan

Felden 1933 1 Meinema

1935 2 Meinema

1939 3 Meinema

1949 4 Meinema

1950 5 Meinema

1951 6 Meinema

1954 7 Meinema

1958 8 Meinema


C.van

Rietschoten 193? 1 GoedeLectuur

DenegerhutvanoomTomen

andereverhalen(other

storiesareDezeeprinses;

Goedafgeloopen) AC S.S. 193? 1 Frenzo

DehutvanoomTom AC P.deZeeuw 1939 1 VanGoor

1948 5 VanGoor

1949 6 VanGoor

1950 7 VanGoor

1951

8

Van

Goor

1953 9 VanGoor

1954 10 VanGoor

1955 11 VanGoor

1957 12 VanGoor

1960 13 VanGoor

1962 14 VanGoor

1965 15 VanGoor

1967 16 VanGoor

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC J.deClercq 1940 1 UitgeverijUnitas


PietBroos

1943 1

Boekdrukkerij

Helmond

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC L.Kievits 1945 1

LaConcorde,

Brussel

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC W.Brugmans 1948 1 DeSleutel,Haarlem

1950 2 DeSleutel,Haarlem

1959 3 J.H.Gottmer


A.vanMunching

(pennameof

HansPetrusv.d.

Aardweg) 195? 1

VanGelder,

Antwerpen

DehutvanoomTom AC

H.vanHoorn

(penname

of

HansPetrusvan 1950 1


22/103

20

Title Sortof

Trans

lation


Edition

Publisher

denAardweg)

1979 2 Geka/Casterman?

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC ?C.1950 1 Wonderland

DehutvanoomTom,een

verhaaluithetslavenleven

inNoordAmerika(jubilee

edition18521952,new

adaptation) I JosWayboer 1952 1 Kramers

1952 2 Kramers

1952 3 Kramers

1955 3 Kramers

1959 4 Kramers

1963 5 V.A.Kramers

1966 15 Kramers

1966 16 Kramers

1966 18 Kramers

1973 23 Kramers

1974 24 VanGoor

1975 25 VanGoor

1975 26 VanGoor

1975 27 VanGoor

1975 28 VanGoor

1976

29

VanGoor

1976 30 VanGoor

1977 31 VanGoor

1977 32 VanGoor

1977 33 VanGoor

1978 34 VanGoor

1978 35 VanGoor

1978 36 VanGoor

1979 37 VanGoor

1980 38 VanGoor

1981 39 VanGoor

1981 40 VanGoor1982 41 VanGoor

DehutvanoomTom I JosWayboer 1988 42 VanGoor

1999 47 VanGoor

1999 48 VanGoor

2008 50 VanGoor

1990 44 VanGoor

1991 45 VanGoor

1995 46 VanGoor

DehutvanoomTom AC AnkeMaris 1954 1

L.Opdebeek,

Antwerpen

DehutvanoomTom AC E.Verbraeken 1956 1

Standaard

Boekhandel,Adam


23/103

21

Title Sortof

Trans

lation


Edition

Publisher

DenegerhutvanoomTom

AC

Herman

Broekhuizenand

Janvan

den

Berg

1956 1 Bowu

DehutvanoomTom AC MartinDeelen 1958 1 ClassicsNederland

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC JanMens c.

1960 1

DeGellustreerde

Pers

DehutvanoomTom AC D.Hauwertjr.

1964 1 D.A.P.Reinaert

DehutvanoomTom AC

Francine

SchregelOnstein 1972 1 Kerco

1974 2 Ridderhof

2004 3 Solo

2007 4 Solo


?

1974 1 AmsterdamBoek

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC ? 1974 1 Lekturama

DehutvanoomTom AC H.DeBruijn 1977 19 VanGoor

1972 17 VanGoor

1974 18 VanGoor

1977 20 VanGoor

1979 21 VanGoor

1979 22 VanGoor

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC ? 1977 Hemma

DehutvanoomTom AC AnneBogens 1984 1 DeltasKlassiek

1989

2

DeltasKlassiek

DehutvanoomTom AC AntheBarends 1987 1 Thieme

DehutvanoomTom AC L.Vogel 1991 1 DenHertog

1992 2 DenHertog

1994 3 DenHertog

1995 4 DenHertog

2001 5 DenHertog

DehutvanoomTom AC

Susanna

Hmmerle 1992 1 DeEekhoorn

DehutvanoomTom I ? 1993 1 Readersdigest

DehutvanoomTom I ? 1999 1 WoltersNoordhoff

DehutvanoomTom AC EdFranck 2003 1

Davidsfonds/Infodok,Holkema&

Warendorf

DehutvanoomTom,ofhet

levenonderdeslaven I

Trisnati

Notosoeroto 2005 1

AthenaeumPolak&

VanGennep

2.4TheTranslationHistory:anAnalysis

TheMethod

Inthe

article

Ivanhoe

en

de

verdwenen

vertalingen

Jan

van

Gielkens

described

the

processofmakingatranslationhistoryoftheclassicIvanhoeinDutch.Hisaimwas


24/103

22

toshowthatBookStudiesinHollandisnotassurveyableasonemightexpectbythe

smallsizeofthecountry.HissearchondigitalcatalogueslikePicartaandthe

KoninklijkeBibliotheekalonealreadyresultedin73differenthits.Furtherresearch

however,madeclearthatsomeeditionsthatappearedasdifferentmentionsonhis

listof

search

results

turned

out

to

be

one

and

the

same

edition.

Besides,

the

translationhistoryhebasedonthefindingsofofficialwebsitesstillcontainedlarge

gaps.Gielkenscomplaintwasclear:sourcematerialthatisnecessarytomakea

completetranslationhistoryisnoteasilyaccessibleandoftenincomplete.Gielkens

difficultieswithmakingupacompletetranslationhistoryofaclassicare

recognisable.Asearchwiththekeywordshutvanoomtomresultedin53hitsin

thedigitalcatalogueoftheKoninklijkeBibliotheek.Theircatalogueisagoodstartfor

researchonatranslationhistory,becausetheKoninklijkeBibliotheekownsan

extendedfileofbooksthatwerepublishedinTheNetherlandssinceitsfoundationin

1798.

After

the

key

words

were

changed

to

negerhut

van

oom

Tom,

the

search

resultwasalistofasmanyas80titles.SupplementedwiththefindingsonPicarta,

thebasicoutlinesofthetranslationhistorycouldbedrawn.However,eventhough

theKoninklijkeBibliotheekclaimstohavealleditionsofallbookspublishedinThe

Netherlands,thisfirstdraftstillcontainedlargegapswherenumbersofeditions,

namesoftranslators,orpublisherswerelacking.WiththehelpofBrinkmans

catalogusmostofthesegapscouldbebridged.

TheTranslations

From1853to2008,nolessthan49differenteditionsofUTChaveappearedin

Dutch.Apparently,IsabelleDesmidtsremarkthatclassicsandchildrensliterature

areoftenseenascommonpropertyistrueforUTC.Thoughthenovelwasoriginally

writtenforadults,itisnowprimarilyviewedascrossoverliterature;literaturethat

canbebothbereadbyadolescentsandadults.BettinaKmmerlingaptlydefines

thesebooksinherhandbookKlassikerderKinder undJugendliteratur:Die

Kinderklassikerumfassen()WerkederErwachsenenliteratur,dieentwederin

kinderliterarischerBearbeitung(...)odermehroderminderunverndert(...)zu

Kinderbcherngewordensind(x).OnthebasisofthedatainTable1itiseasyto

calculatethat42ofthe49editions(86%)werenotintegraltranslationsbut

adaptationsofthesourcetextthatspecificallyaimedatatargetaudienceofchildren.

LateronsomeattentionwillbepaidtothequestionwhatmadeUTCsosuitabletobeadaptedforchildren.Ataglancethegraphicbelowvisualisesthesupremacyofthe

adaptationsforchildrenoverintegraltranslations.


25/103

23

0

2

4

6

8

10

Nr.of1stEditions

Year

1st Editions 1852-2008

Integral Translations Adaptations for Children

Nevertheless,though86%ofthe49editionsconsistedofadaptationsforchildren,the

14%ofintegraltranslationswerecomparativelymoresuccessful,astheyhadmore

reprints.ThegraphicbelowvisualisesthesupplyofalleditionsofUTCfrom1852to

2008.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Nr.ofEditio

ns

All editions 1852-2008

However,bothgraphicsalsotellaboutotherthingsthantheratiochildrens

adaptationstointegraltranslations.Asgraphic1shows,UTCwastranslatedinto

DutchsoonafteritwaspublishedintheUnitedStatesin1852:in1853.Clearly,the

firsteditionsheldamonopolyontranslationsofUTCinDutchforyears.Theintegral

translationbyC.M.Mensingthatwaspublishedin1853,wastheonlyintegral

translationsforfourdecades.NeitherhadA.G.Bruinsessadaptationforchildren

anyrivaltranslationsforaboutthirtyyears.Apparently,acenturylaterthiswasno

longerthecase.From1910onrivalrybrokeout:manypublisherstriedtogettheir

share

of

the

classic

and

there

appeared

at

least

two

new

editions

of

UTC

every

decade,asgraphic1shows.Possiblythecopyrightwasexpiredbythattime.The


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24

1950sstandoutwitheightneweditionsofUTC,whiletherewasaregularsupplyof

neweditionsfrom19701999. Naturally,noteveryeditionofthe49couldbe

successfulandonlyafewhadoneormorereprints.Thetablebelowcontainsalistof

alleditionsthatwerereprinted.

Table3.NumberofReprintsTitle Sortof

Trans

lation

Translator Publisher Nr.of

Reprints

Period

DehutvanoomTom,een

verhaaluithetslavenlevenin

NoordAmerika

I JosWayboer Kramers;Van

Goor

50 1952

1988/2008

Denegerhut:eenverhaaluit

hetslavenleveninNoord

Amerika

I C.M.Mensing Kruseman;E.M.

Cohen

21 18531919

DehutvanoomTom AC P.deZeeuw VanGoor 16 19391967Eenkijkjeindehutvanoom

Tom

AC A.G.Bruinses VanDruten&

Bleeker;Bolle

10 18531932

DehutvanoomTom AC FriedavanFelden Meinema 8 19331958

DehutvanoomTom AC H.deBruijn VanGoor 6 19721979

DehutvanoomTom AC L.Vogel DenHertog 5 19912001

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC S.J.Barentz

Schnberg

H.J.W.Becht 4 1914193

?

Denegerhut I H.J.vander

Munnik

J.M.Bredes

Boekhandelen

Uitg.

4 19251937

DehutvanoomTom AC Francine

SchregelOnstein

Kerco;

Ridderhof;Solo

4 19722007

DenegerhutvanoomTom AC W.Brugmans DeSleutel;J.H.

Gottmer

3 19481959

Denegerhut:hetslavenlevenin

Amerika,voordeemancipatie

I B.Scholten C.Misset 2 18901892

DehutvanoomTom AC H.vanHoorn Geka/Casterman 2 19501979

DehutvanoomTom AC AnneBogens DeltasKlassiek 2 19841989

Thetableshowsthatonly14ofthe49differenteditionshadoneormore

reprints.Obviously,theother35werelesssuccessfulandonlyprintedonce.Expressedaspercentages:29%ofthe49editionshadareprint,71%not.Evidently,

mostpublishersdidnotsucceedintheirattempttoprofitfrompublishingtheclassic.

Amainreasonmusthavebeenthatthemarketwassaturatedandthecustomerlost

hiswayaroundthemanifoldadaptationsofUTC.

Ofthe49editions,12books(24%)arepartofaseries,butthisdidnotensure

orinfluencethesuccessofthebook,astheonlyonethatwasreprintedwasP.de

ZeeuwsadaptationintheseriesOudGoud.

Thelastcolumninthetableaboveshowsinwhichyearthelastandfirst

editionof

aparticular

book

appeared.

It

makes

clear

that

the

successful

translations

mainlyfollowedeachotherup,whiletheunsuccessful71%wererivaltranslations.


27/103

25

Besides,thesuccessfultranslationsallfunctionedforaconsiderabletime.Mensings

translationwasinuseforhalfacentury,from1852to1919.VanderMunniks

translationcouldhavefunctionedasaninbetweenuntilthepublicationof

WayboersUTC,thattooktheleadforthenextsixtyyears.Concerningthechildrens

adaptations,A.G.

Bruinses

translation

was

regularly

reprinted

over

aperiod

of

eightyyears.Afterthat,FriedavanFeldenstranslationwasrelativelysuccessful

witheightreprints,butwasoverruledbyP.deZeeuwsadaptationthatwasdoing

remarkablywellforaboutthirtyyears.P.deZeeuwsadaptationwaspartofaseries

publishedbypublisherVanGoor,calledOudGoud.Intheseseriesheadapted

classicsforajuvenileaudience.H.deBruijntookoverhisroleastranslatorin1972.

From1979onwards,therewasnolongeronespecificadaptationforchildrenthat

tookthelead.ApartfromL.Vogelstranslation,alladaptationshadlessthanfive

reprints.Someoftheseadaptationsforchildrenwillbeanalysedindepthfurtheron.

Popularity

FromitspublicationonUTCcausedafloodofpositiveandnegativeresponses

allovertheworld.Readerswerecaughtbytheimpressiveandcatchingstory,andits

vehementsocialcriticism.LikeintheUnitedStates,UTCwasputonstageinThe

Netherlands.In1853,inthesameyearthefirsteditionofthetranslationbyMensing

waspublished,UTCwasperformedinTheHague,titledDenegerhut.Interestingly,

theplaywastranslatedoutofFrench,ratherthanEnglish.Itwasfollowedupbya

newplayin1854:DenegerhutvanoomTom:dramainachtbedrijven,writtenbythe

DutchCornelissenandBeems.Probably,someDutchpeoplehavenotbecome

acquaintedwithUTCinreadableform,butasaplay.Fromthe1900sonwardsUTC

wasadaptedforfilmwithsomeregularity,amongstothersin1914,1920,1928,1958,

and1986.OneofthereasonsUTChadmanyreprintscouldbethatitwasadaptedfor

playsandfilmsregularlyandpeoplecouldinthatmannerbeputonitstrack.Inthe

1960sKramerspublishedseveralspecialfilmeditionsofUTC,withaphotofromthe

filmonthecover.

OneofthereasonsUTCsoldsowellshortlyafteritwaspublishedinThe

Netherlandsmayhavebeenbecauseittouchedanerve.Thesocialcriticismofthenovelandcondemnationofslaverycouldhavebeenconsideredrelevantbythe

readers,sinceslaverywasnotabolishedinTheNetherlandsuntilthe1880s.Thiswill

bedescribedinmoredetailinthechapteraboutthepoliticalhistoricalsituationin

theNetherlandsaroundthetimeUTCwaspublished.

AnotherreasonforthepopularityofUTCisgivenbyMarithaMathijsenasshe

mentionstheroleoftheMaatschappijtot NutvantAlgemeeninherbookabout

thepositionofliteratureinthe19thcentury,Hetliterairelevenindenegentiendeeeuw

(16).TheobjectiveoftheMaatschappijtotNut,whichwasfoundedbyaminister

in1748,wastocreateabetterandmoresocialsociety,bymakingagoodeducationandpersonaldevelopmentavailabletomorepeople(16).Amongstothers,the


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26

Maatschappijfocussedonsocialculturaleducationforadultsbyfoundingthefirst

freeorlowcostlibrariesintheworld.Peoplemadegooduseofthelibrariesandthe

MaatschappijsrecommendationofUTCmayverywellhaveenlargeditsreading

audience(17).Still,Mathijsenremarksthattheorganisationlargelyaimedat

Christiansand

therefore

failed

the

reach

society

in

its

whole.

However,

what

this

influentialorganisationcouldnot,UTCcould.InareviewofFatsoenlijkvertier,abook

whichwasrecentlypublished(2008)andthatdescribeshowthelowerclasses

enjoyedthemselves,therevieweroffhandedlyremarksthatUTCwasoneofthe

exceptionalbookswhichwereconsideredacceptablebyallgroupsinsociety.

TheTranslators

ThefirsttranslationofUTCwasmadebyanexperiencedtranslator:C.M.

Mensing.Inthesecondhalfofthe19thcenturyMensingtranslatedtensofbooks,asa

search

on

the

digital

catalogue

of

the

Koninklijke

Bibliotheek

shows.

Though

most

ofhistranslationsareoutofEnglish,heappearstohaveaccidentallytranslatedout

ofDanish,Swedish,FrenchandGermantoo.Mensingdedicatedhimselfto

translatingalmosttheentireoeuvreofCharlesDickensintoDutch.

C.M.MensingandJosWayboertranslatedthetwomostsuccessfulversionsof

UTC,thatwerereprinted21and50timesrespectively.Surprisingly,fromthesearch

resultsondigitalcataloguesWayboerappearsnottohavebeenanexperienced

translator,asUTCistheonlytranslationheproduced.

OppositetoJosWayboer,PietdeZeeuwwasanexperiencedwriterandadaptor

ofchildrensbooks.InthearticleGeenpreekjes,wleenboodschap,W.B.

KranendonkdescribeshowP.deZeeuwbecame adevotedwriter.Bornin1890ina

welltodofamily,hefollowedatrainingtobecometeacherandtaughthisownclass

onhisfourteenth.Initially,hewrotestoriesaboutkeymomentsorkeypersonsin

churchhistory,butlaterhealsobecamefamiliaroutsideChristiancircleswithhis

seriesOudGoud.UTCwaspartofthisseries,inwhichheadaptedclassicslike

RobinsonCrusoeandWilhelmTellforchildren.DeZeeuwabhorredpreachybooks,

butwasneverthelessconvincedthatchildrendeservedabookwithamessage.His

totaloeuvreconsistedofmorethan200titles.Inchapter6anindepthanalysisofhis

adaptationofUTCwillbemade.

A.G.BruinsesprovidedthefirstadaptationofUTCforchildren.Bruinseswasherpenname,asshewascalledJ.J.Beckeringinreallife.Asatranslatorshefocussed

onchildrensbooks.ApartfromUTC,shetranslatedsomestorybooksforchildren

outofGermanandEnglish,andaccidentallyabookoutofFrench.GulliversTravels

wastheonlyotherclassicsheadapted.Sheadaptedandtranslatedatotalof17books

inthesecondhalfofthe19thcentury.HeradaptationofUTCwasthemostsuccessful

one.

FriedavanFeldenwrotesomechildrensbookswithidyllictitleslikeNans

zonnigezomerandAnnekeendeprinsesjes,amongstwhichUTCseemstofitinbadly.

However,shealsoadaptedthehistoricalnovelDeDelftsewonderdokter,writtenby


29/103

27

A.L.G.BosboomToussaint.Besides,shetranslatedaGermannovel.Sheworkedin

themiddleofthe20thcentury.

L.VogelstartedwritingChristianchildrensbooksafterhisretirement.From

1989onhewrote20childrensbooks.ApartfromUTChealsoadaptedtheclassic

RobinsonCrusoe.

Theothertranslators,whosetranslationshadlessthan5reprints,areleftout

ofconsiderationhere.Itisremarkablethatonlyoneofthetranslatorsofthe

successfuleditionsofUTCwasatranslatorbytrade,namelyC.M.Mensing.Apart

fromthat,mosttranslatorsoradaptorswerewritersofchildrensbooksthemselves.

Nevertheless,itisoftenunclearhowanovelthatdescribesthehorrorsofslaveryin

suchdetailasUTC,fitsintheiroeuvre.

ThePublishers

Of

the

48

different

1

st

editions

of

UTC

in

Dutch,

44

were

published

by

different

publishers.Mostofthepublishingcompanies,however,nolongerexist:theyhave

beentakenover,wereincorporatedorwoundedup.

VanGoorclearlytooktheleadinpublishingtheunofficiallyauthorisedversionsof

UTC:P.deZeeuwsadaptationforchildrenandJosWayboersintegraltranslation.

VanGoorisasettledandinfluentialpublisherofchildrensbooksintheDutch

literaryfield.Sincearound1850theyhavepublishedchildrensbooksfromDutch

authors,andsomeclassics(Koster,69).ThepopularityandsuccessofvanGoors

editionsofUTCmaypartlybedeclaredbyitsfamiliaritytoDutchreaders.Brand

recognitioncanplayaninfluentialroleintheacceptanceofabook,especiallyifthere

areplentyoflesswellknown competitors.EventhoughVanGoorpublished

childrensbooks,itsintegraltranslationofUTCdoesnotpresentitselfasachildrens

book.Onthecoversofthe28thand39theditionthetextobviouslyaddressesadults.

UTCiscalledanepicofhumangriefandhumanlovethatshouldmakeus,

peopleofthepresentawareofthetruthofthestory.VanGoorapparentlytriedto

keepitstranslationsofUTCuptodate.Regularlythetranslationswererevised,and

inthe1970sP.deZeeuwsadaptationofUTCintheseriesOudGoudwas

replacedbyH.deBruijnsadaptation.

Specialeditions/SingularitiesAstheinformationaboveshowed,UTCwasrarelytranslatedintegral.

Undoubtedly,eachadaptationwillrevealinterestinginformationaboutthechild

viewofthetranslator,hisworldviewandideasaboutthesourcetext.Asthereare

toomuchversionstolookatindetail,onlyfourofthemwillbeanalysedindepthin

chapter8.Still,thebasicdatainthetranslationhistoryalreadyregularlyreveal

interestinginformationandshowtherearesomespecialtranslations.Eventhough

therearetensofadaptationsforchildreninEnglishtoo,mostpublisherschoosetolet

aDutchwriteradapttheclassic.Sometranslations,however,reachedtheDutch

childreninaremarkablyroundaboutway.TakeD.Hauwertsadaptationforexample.HetranslatedanItalianchildrensversionofUTCintoDutch.Inthesame


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28

waySusaHmmerletranslatedUTCfromGerman.Twice,UTCwasadaptedtoa

comicbook,oncebyAlexanderdeKlerandonceintheseriesToppersinstrip.

ThetitleofUTChasbeentranslateddifferently:inturnsitwasoftencalledDe

negerhutvanoomTomorDehutvanoomTom.Fromthe1980son,neger

disappearedout

of

the

title,

probably

because

the

word

nowadays

has

aderogatory

anddiscriminatingconnotation.

ItaretheomnibusesofwhichUTCispartthatreallysurprise.In1910an

omnibusappeared,titledInhetsprookjesland.UTCwasoneofthefairytalesit

contained.Apparently,itwasquitecommonforadaptersofUTCtomisunderstand

itsgenreandtotakeitforafairytaleorjustasweet,harmlessstory:in1925itwas

partofabooktitledHetnaaikransjeenanderevertellingenandinthe1930sitwas

adaptedbyS.S.andpublishedinabookwithotherstoriesthatweretitledDe

zeeprinsesand,ironically,Goedafgeloopen.In1980itwaspublishedinan

omnibus

with

Robin

Hood

and

the

fairy

tale

of

Aladin.

The

merry

omnibuses

UTC

ispartof,leadonetosuspectthattheauthorsdidtakesomelibertieswiththeharsh

endingofthestoryandtheviolencethatisdescribedinit.Throughtimepeoplemay

havestoppedtothinkofUTCasanovelfullofsocialcriticismand,instead,started

toviewitwithanostalgicfeeling.

InShort

Thetranslationhistorystillcontainsgaps,mainlybecausenotalleditionswere

notedinPicartaandthedigitalcatalogueoftheKoninlijkeBibliotheek.Though

BrinkmansCatalogusprovidedamorecompleteoverviewofalleditionsofUTC,

someeditionssimplyseemnottohavebeenregistered.Between1901and1915,for

example,editions14to19ofMensingstranslationmusthavebeenpublished,but

theyarenotgiven.NeitheraretheeditionsofP.deZeeuwsUTCdatedthatwere

publishedbetween1939and1948,duringwartime.Nowandthen,publishers

sordidlydonotmentionthetranslator.Unfortunately,thatisnotjustthecasewith

booksthatappeareddecadesago,asvanGoorsnewesteditionofUTCshows.More

omnibusesthanregisteredmayincludeanadaptationofUTC,asthetitleofan

omnibusnotalwaysmakesclearwhichstoriesitcontains.

Thoughcompleteempiricalaccuracyseemsnotwithinreach,themissingoutofsomeeditionsdoesnotmakeitimpossibletodrawvalidconclusions.Clearly,

UTCwasseenasacommonpropertymanypublisherstriedtogettheirshareof.

85%ofthefirsteditionsoftranslationsinDutchaimedatchildrenandaccordingly

overruledtheintegraltranslations.However,theintegraltranslationshadmore

reprintsandmostlyfollowedeachotherup,whiletheadaptationsforchildrenwere

fiercerivals.Thoughtherearenoofficialorauthorisedtranslations,obviously

someweremorepopularthanothersandhadremarkablenumberofreprints.One

couldsaythatC.M.MensingsandJosWayboersintegraltranslationsandA.G.

BruinsessandP.deZeeuwsadaptationsforchildrenwereauthorisedunofficially.SomeofthesemostinfluentialadaptationsofUTCwillbeanalysedindepthina


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furtherstage.Ithasbecomeclearthatalotofpublishersandtranslatorstriedtheir

handatUTC,whichsometimesresultedinremarkableeditions.Obviously,abook

thathasthereputationtohavestartedthebloodiestwarinAmericanhistorycan

smoothlybeadaptedtoafairytale.

Chapter3.Politics&SocietyinHolland

3.1TheAbolitionofSlaveryinHolland

UnliketheUnitedStatesofAmerica,TheNetherlandswerenotaslavesociety.

Onthecontrary,eventhoughHollandcontrolled5%oftheslavetradeandshipped

anestimate

of

550.000

Africans

into

slavery

from

1500

to

1850,

slavery

itself

was

practicallynonexistentinTheNetherlands.However,onDutchcoloniesinSurinam,

theDutchEastIndies,ArubaandtheNetherlandsAntilles,slaverywasacommon

thing.MostslavesworkedonplantationsinSurinamwheresugarcane,coffeeandtea

weregrown.TheNetherlandsAntilleswereanimportanttransitportfortheslave

trade:112.000slavesweretradedonCuraao.

IntheUnitedStates,slaverywasvisibletoeverybody.Itwaspartofsociety.

Eventhoughsomeslaveholderstreatedtheirslavesbadly,theywereboundby

socialandlegalrestrictions(Gomes,9).Thesystemofpaternalismmadetheslave

ownerresponsible

for

the

physical,

mental

and

religious

well

being

of

his

slaves.

The

organisationofDutchplantationsinSurinamdidnotresemblesocialfamily

structures.Ontheopposite,theplantationsweremanagedbyasmallgroupofwhite

menwhostayedinSurinamtemporarily.Becausesocialcontrolwasabsent,Surinam

slaverywascharacterisedbyexploitation,sexualabuse,crueltyandahighdeath

rate,ratherthanpaternalism(9).Englishofficialswerestunnedbythescaleofthe

crueltiescommittedagainstslaves.Itwasundertheirinfluence,thatDutch

governmentbegantomakeinquiriestothelivingcircumstancesofslavesand

graduallystartedtotakemeasuresthatwouldfinallyleadtoabolition.

JustlikeintheUnitedStates,Dutchslaveownersjustifiedslaverybystating

thatblackswereinallrespectsinferiortowhites.Generally,blackswereconsidered

tobelesscivilised,heathenish,lazyandlecherousandthereforeinneedofwhite

control(78,151).Evenabolitionistsfeltsuperiortoblacksandthoughtawhiteskin

representedcivilisation.Theyadaptedapaternalisticattitudeandoftenregarded

blacksaschildrenanddescribedthemintermsthatwouldbeconsidered

discriminatingandderogatorynowadays(1445,152).Nevertheless,abolitionists

wereconvincedblackshadthepotentialtodevelopthemselvesandbecomeas

civilisedaswhites.

Underpressureofreligiousgroupsandliberalthinkers,GreatBritainwasthe

firstEuropeancountrytoabolishtheslavetradein1807.Bymeansoftreatiesand


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30

lobbyiststheBritishmanagedtopushotherEuropeancountriestoabolishtheslave

tradetoo.In1814,theDutchsignedatreatythatendedtheslavetrade,butitstill

tookhalfacenturybeforeslaveryitselfwasabolishedin1863(Dossierafschaffing

slavernij1863).AtthatmomentDutchslaveholdersownedapproximately45,000

slaves(Kuitenbrouwer,

33).

Gijswijt

explored

why

The

Netherlands

were

one

of

the

lastEuropeancountriestoabolishslavery.SheexplainsthattheNetherlandstookin

aconservativepositioninEuropeandwerelessstampedbyhumanitarian

EnlightenmentprincipleslikeequalityofallhumanbeingsasotherEuropean

countries.Apartfromthat,theaverageDutchpersonwasunawareofthehorrorsof

slaveryandslavetrade,astheytookplacefarfromhome.Besides,becausetheDutch

abolitionistswereinternallydivided,theydidnotmanagetomobilisepeopleonsuch

ascaleashadhappenedinEnglandandthustoforcethegovernmentintaking

measurestowardsabolition.Moreover,theDutchalsohadaneconomicinterestin

the

colonies

and

slavery,

and

the

influential

slaveholders

thwarted

the

abolition

for

decades.Lastly,theindustrialrevolutionthatreplacedworkerswithmachinery,

beganlaterinTheNetherlandsthaninsurroundingcountries(810).

GijswijtshowsthatslaverywasgraduallyabolishedinTheNetherlandsand

thatthequestionthegovernmentdisagreeduponwasnotifslaveryoughttobe

abolished,butratherhowitshouldbeabolished(24,25).Theabolitionofslaveryby

TheNetherlandshadbecomeinevitableafterpowerfulEnglandandFrancehad

takentheinitiative.Besides,thenumberofslavesintheWestIndiesdecreased

alarminglyasaresultofthebadtreatmentofslaves,thelowbirthrateandmany

escapes(26).RumoursofslaverebellionsaftertheabolitionsbyEnglandandFrance

pressedthegovernmenttorethinktheissueofslavery.Apartfromthat,economical

motivesstimulatedthegovernmenttotakemeasures,asmanycolonieshadbecome

insolvent.ItwasnotfornothinganEnglishlobbyistforabolitionspecifically

rememberedtheloveofDutchmenfortheMoneypartoftheStoryafteravisitto

TheNetherlands(Janse,56).Around1850thepublicopinionchangedinfavourof

abolition.MainreasonswerethegruellingwitnessaccountsofslaveryintheDutch

colonies,ferventlobbyingofEnglishabolitionists,andthepublicationofUTC.With

renewedvigourtheabolitionistssignedpetitionsandpleadedforabolition.Janse

statesthattheseprotestswereawaytoexpressandmitigatethefeelingsofguilt

peopleexperiencedaboutslavery.Debehoeftepubliekelijkafkeertetonenvandegruwelenvandeslavernij,vormeneenuitdrukkingvandegevoelensvanonbehagen

enschulddiehetvoortbestaanvanslavernijindeeeuwvanvooruitgangopriep

(119).In1853governmentdeclareditsintentiontoabolishslavery.Atlonglast,after

adecadeofpoliticaldebateanddiscussion,slaverywasabolishedin1863.However,

toreimburseslaveholdersforthefinanciallosses,theslaveswereobligedtoremain

workingfortheslaveholdersforasmallfeeforanothertenyears.Theslaveholders

received300guildersperslaveasafinancialcompensationfortheirabolition.


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31

3.2TheInfluenceofUncleTomsCabin

UnlikeEnglandandFrance,TheNetherlandsdidnothaveastrongabolitionist

movementthatmanagedtomobilisepeopleofallsociallayersagainstslavery.In

1840theMaatschappijtotbevorderingvandeafschaffingderslavernijwas

founded(Gijswijt,

24).

It

failed

to

become

influential,

because

the

Christian

and

liberalmemberswereinternallydivided.TheEnglishabolitionistministerMiller

criticisedthepoliticallyineffectiveattitudeofDutchabolitionistChristiansandtheir

refusaltocooperatewiththeliberals:WhymaketheAntiSlaverySocietyasectarian

society?OnyourprincipleyoumustconvertallHollandtoEvangelicalChristianity,

beforeyoucaneffecttheEmancipationoftheslaves(Janse,61).Besides,theDutch

abolitionistsobeyedtherequestofthegovernmentnottodisturbthepublicorderin

TheNetherlandsandtheDutchcolonies,becausetheydidnotwanttogivecauseto

slaverebellions(73).Thus,before1850,onlyaminorityoftheDutchconcerned

themselves

with

slavery

and

dedicated

themselves

to

abolition.

From

1850

onwards,

however,thetideturned.Therearemanyindicationsthatitwasthepublicationof

UTCthatdrewtheattentionofthepubliconslaveryandchangedpublicopinionin

favourofabolition(Janse,53).LikeinAmericaandotherEuropeancountries,UTC

wasanimmediatesuccessinTheNetherlands.Inthetwoyearsafteritspublication,

UTCwasreprintedsixtimesandanadaptationforchildrenappeared.Thisstormy

receptionwasindicativeoftheinfluencethebookwouldhave.

AfterthepublicationofUTC53brochuresappearedthatarguedinfavourof

abolition(Kuitenbrouwer,39).AbolitionistregularlyexplicitlyreferredtoUTCinthe

titleandcontentoftheirbrochures.Clearly,theyassumedtheirreadingpublicwas

familiarwithUTCandtheyhopedareferencetoUTCwouldincreasetheirreading

audience.In1853JulienWolberspublishedabrochuretitled:Deslavernijin

Surinam,ofdezelfdegruwelenderslavernij,dieindeNegerhutgeschetstzijn,

bestaanookinonzeWestIndischekolonin!(Janse,101).Ayearlater,amemberof

parliament,vanHovell,wrotetheinfluentialbookSlavenenvrijenonderde

Nederlanschewet,whichwascomparedtoUTC(Janse,101).Withmanifoldexamples

ofthecrueltyandexcessesofDutchslaveryhemadeanappealtotheconscienceof

thereaders.

Ikrekendehetmijtotpligt,zoomogelijkeenealgemeeneverontwaardigingoptewekkentegendeslavernij;ikwenscheennationalenkruistogttegenhaar

voortdurendbestaanintleventeroepen;ikwenschzulkeenafschuwvoordie

instellingbijhetNederlanschevolkteweegtebrengen,dathare

instandhoudingnietmeermogelijkzij(Janse,118).

Inhisbook,vanHovellpresumedthereadersfamiliaritywithUTC.He

sarcasticallycommentedonthereaderscriticismofAmericanslavery,whileatthe

sametimeslaveryintheDutchcolonieswaskeptintactandtrivialised.Besides,he

claimedtheDutchslaverysystemwasascruelandunsustainableastheAmerican.


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32

HebtgijUncleTomsCabingelezen?Maarwelkeenvraag!Wieheeftdatboek

nietgelezen?Gijzijtverontwaardigdoverdetooneelen,diedaarinworden

geschilderd,engijdenktonwillekeurigaanonzekolonin,vooralaan

Suriname!Maarbekommeruniet;detoestandderslavenisdaar,ondereen

Nederlandschbestuur,

vrij

wat

dragelijker

en

gelukkiger,

dan

die

hunner

beklagenswaardigelotgenooteninAmerika.()Opdezeendergelijkewijze

trachtmenhetgewetenderNederlandschenatie,zoodrahetontwaakt,weder

inslaaptesussen(48).

VanHovellsbookaboundswithdetailedexamplesoftheilltreatmentofslaves,of

whichtheexamplebelowisrepresentative.

Ditallesistegenhetreglementvan1851,dusonregt.

Maar

dat

reglement

geeft

de

bevoegdheid

tot

eene

vaderlijketuchtigingaanjeugdigeslavenbenedende

14jaren.Watisdit?Deeigenarenbeschouwendenzin

dierwoordenalsgrenzenloos.Devaderlijke

tuchtigingwordtgewoonlijkmetdezweepofeen

eindtouwuitgeoefend.Nietzeldenzietgijvreesselijk

mishandeldekinderenrondloopen.Zoonamopden

8stenSeptember1852een,doordenheerR.opde

afschuwelijkstewijzegemartelde,jongenzijntoevlugt

inhethtelvandenGouverneur.Hijwas13of14jaar

oudenvangemengdbloedof,gelijkmenhetnoemt,

eenkleurling.Zijnmeesterhadhemaaneenboom

opgehangen,enmeteeneindtouwzoodaniggeslagen,

dathetganscheligchaammetwondenoverdektwas.

OplastvandenGouverneur,werdeenegeregtelijke

vervolgingtegendenheerR.ingesteld.Hetbleek,dat

demisdaadvandenjongenbestondin.....hetlanguitblijvenbijhetverrigten

vaneeneboodschap!Hijhadeenrijtuigmetvierpaarden,eenvoorhem

vreemdverschijnsel,zienvoorbijrijden,enhaddaarnaarstaankijkenenzoo

zijntijdverbeuzeld zijnestrafkennenwij.DeheerR.werdveroordeeld;zijnestrafwas.....eenegeldboete!(79)

Thoughslaveholderswereboundbylegalrestrictions,vanHovellkeptstressing

thatslaveownerssetthelawatnaughtintheilltreatmentoftheirslaves.Often,he

cynicallyremarkedontheillfunctioningofthelaw:ZijtgealsNederlanderniet

trotschopzulkeeneNederlandschewet?(60)VanHovellsmethodindenouncing

slaverywaseffective.Thereaderswereshockedbythedescriptionsofthesuffering

oftheslaves:BijhetlezenvandegruwelenderslavernijinSurinam,()wordthet

bloedvanverontwaardigingdoorhetaangezichtgejaagd(Janse,101).ReactionslikethesewerewhatvanHovellhadhopedfor.VanHovellandotherabolitionist


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showedthattheactivatingmessageofUTCalsoappliedtotheDutchsituationand

thatreaderscouldnotremainneutral.TherealisticdescriptionsofslaveryinUTC

andinabolitionistbrochureslikeSlavenenvrijen greatlyunnervedpeopleandmade

themwillingtoorganisethemselvesandtakeaction.

Theprotestant

civil

servant

Gefkens

re

established

the

Nederlandsche

MaatschappijterBevorderingvandeAfschaffingderSlavernijafterhehadread

UTC.HestressedthatUTCstruckasympatheticnote andmadethehorrorsand

injusticeofslaverycleartohimandotherreaders.HetwerkvanMistressBeecher

Stowehadveeltoegebrachtomhetstelselderslavernijinalzijneafschuwelijkheidin

eenhelderdaglichttestellen.Hetvondweerklankinveleharten(91).Eventhough

youngpeopleandwomenwereexcludedfrompoliticalprocessedanddeniedthe

righttovote,theydidorganisethemselvesinabolitionistmovements.In1855

womenfoundedaDutchequivalentoftheEnglishFemaleAntiSlaverySociety(103)

and

the

overall

number

of

members

of

the

Dutch

abolitionist

society

grew

rapidly

in

the1850s.In1853apetitionforabolitionwassignedbyanunprecedentednumber

of200,000people.Thefactthatfrom1853on,amajorityofthegovernment

supportedabolitionforthefirsttime,showedthatabolitionistscouldbefoundinall

layersofsociety(Gijswijt,27).

Inshort,thepublicationofUTCgaveastrongimpulsetotheweakabolitionist

movementofTheNetherlands.Intheyearsfollowingitspublication,quiteanumber

ofbooksandbrochuresappearedthatweremodelledonUTC.Theymadereaders

awarethatslaveryintheDutchcolonieswasasgruellingandunsustainableas

slaveryinAmerica.Asaresult,arecordnumberofpeoplejoinedabolitionist

movementsandsignedpetitionsinfavourofabolition.Thus,likeinAmerica,UTC

broughtslaveryhome.

Chapter4.WritingandTranslatingforChildren

4.1ABookforWhom?

In1890,CharlesEdwardStowepublishedTheLifeofHarrietBeecherStowe,a

biographyabouthismotherslife.HedescribeshowthefirstaudienceofUTCwere

children:Harrietsownfamily.HismotherreadoutmanypartsofUTCtoherfamily

beforeshepublishedthestory.CharlesEdwardparticularlyrememberedhowhis

motherreadaboutUncleTomsdeath:Gatheringherfamilyabouthersheread

whatshehadwritten.Hertwolittleonesoftenandtwelveyearsofagebrokeinto

convulsionsofweeping,oneofthemsayingthroughhissobs,Oh,mamma!slavery

isthemostcruelthingintheworld(148,149).HarrietBeecherStoweadmitted

herselfthatthefirstaudienceofUTCconsistedofchildren.Thefirsteditionfor

childrenofUTC,APeepinUncleTomsCabin,containedanAddressoftheAuthor


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34

()tothechildrenofEnglandandAmerica(iv).Init,BeecherStowetellsthe

juvenilereadersaboutthestory:Longbeforeitwaseverwrittendownatall,itwas

toldtoacircleofchildren,andthen,asfastasitwastoldtothem,itwaswritten

down;andtherewasagreatdealoflaughingandcryingamongthesechildren,you

maybe

sure,

and

agreat

deal

of

hurrying

that

it

might

be

got

through

with.

So

you

seethestorybelongstochildrenveryproperly(iv).

ThoughHarrietBeecherStowetestedUTCoutonherownfamily,herdesignwas

nottopublishachildrensbook,buttowriteanovelthatwouldmakethewhole

nationfeelwhatanaccursedthingslaveryis(146).Nonetheless,afteritspublication

thebookwasreadaloudinwholefamilies,childrenofallagesincluded.From

shortlyafteritspublicationonwardsuntiltodayspecialchildrenseditionsofUTC

startedtoappear.Clearly,UTChasheldagreatattractiontochildrenandadults

alike.BettinaKmmerlingpointsoutthatUTCisnowprimarilyregardedasa

childrens

book.

Nicht

nur

in

Deutschland

()

hat

sich

dabei

der

Status

von

Uncle

TomsCabinalsKinderbuchdurchgesetzt,obwohldieAutorinkindlicheLesernicht

vonvornhereininsAugegefassthat(10334).Thewayinwhichthetargetaudience

ofUTChaschanged,raisessomeinterestingtheoreticalquestionsaboutthenatureof

childrensliteratureingeneralandtherelationbetweenchildrensliteratureand

literatureforadultsspecifically.InapopularscientificarticletheFlemishwriterand

translatorBartMoeyaertwordstheviewthatthereisnointrinsicdifferencebetween

childrensliteratureandliteratureforadults(235237).Herevilesthestricttraditional

classificationofbooksaseitherchildrensliteratureoradultliterature.ZoharShavit

however,acknowledgesandrecognisesthisdenialofthesupposedspecialstatusof

childrensbooks,butmaintainsthereisadifference.However, despitethe explicitdenial of the special status of children's literature, it cannot be denied that writers for children

do write within the frameworkof constraints imposed on the system due to the specific

addressee (41).PeterHuntalsoacknowledgestheargumentsthathaveledpeopleto

statethatchildrensliteraturedoesnotexist.LikeShavit,hedefinesitintermsofthe

reader.

...itcannotbedefinedbytextualcharacteristicsofstyleorcontent,andits

primaryaudience,thechildreader,isequallyelusive.(...)Allofthissuggests

aspecies

of

literature

defined

in

terms

of

the

reader

rather

than

th

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