Characterizing Daisy Buchanan in retranslations of The Great Gatsby: translator behavior and reader reception

Abstract

This chapter explores the characterization of Daisy Buchanan in the two Dutch translations of the great American Classic The Great Gatsby, published first in 1948 (translated by Lili Cornils) and then in 1985 (translated by Susan Janssen). After an introduction to research on retranslation and reader reception, the chapter first briefly summarizes a number of important differences in Daisy’s characterization between the Dutch translations and the English source text, and between the first translation and the retranslation, arguing that such differences may affect readers’ views on Daisy’s personality. It then discusses the results of a reader response survey in which real readers were presented with fragments from the two translations and were asked to assess Daisy’s personality traits. The results show interesting differences in reader responses between the 1948 and 1985 translations, though the differences in scoring were only statistically significant for characteristics confident and helpless. Nevertheless, the emerging patterns confirm that translator decisions may indeed affect the way readers receive and perceive female characters and their gender roles.