Conclusion

These are but a few instances of a cultural reading of the practice of translation. It is valuable because it adopts a comprehensive view of translation by locating it in the contexts in which it is produced and in the personality of the translator. It dispels the notion that translations are merely exercises in language, without any political or cultural agenda. Venuti is essentially pointing out that all translations are acts of “ethnocentric violence” (22) perpetrated on the source text, in that they cater to the values of the target culture alone. This of course is a debatable point, but it definitely provokes thought about the practice of translation especially in the contemporary world that is bedeviled by competing languages and cultures. It also has to be remembered that Venuti is basing himself almost exclusively on the Anglo-American translation culture. We need to think about its relevance in the Indian context.