A descriptive approach to (im)possibility of poetry translation: A case study on pseudotranslation

Whether poetry translation is possible or not has been debated for centuries, and the poetry translation has been mostly seen as problematic. When the relevant literature is reviewed it has been observed that source oriented and prescriptive approach in translation theories towards the translation phenomena is at the roof of this problem, and the theories in translation has not found a solution to this problem. However, the changes that took place in the history of the translation in 1970s within the new paradigm are discussed as a turning point for approaching the translation phenomena. The changes that took place in translation reveal that it is possible to overcome the problems that are seen as underlying reasons for the impossibility of poetry translation. Studies on pseudotranslation as an outcome notion of the changes that occurred within the framework of the new paradigm shed light on the scope of descriptive translation studies. Therefore, in the case study part of the thesis, Kabareden Emekli Bir ''Kızkardeş'' that is offered as a translation of a poetry book, despite being an indigenous work, is analyzed in the light of descriptive translation studies. As a result, this thesis demonstrates that the non-existence of the corresponding source text, which is seen as the starting point of the untranslatability of poetry, cannot prevent descriptive studies; therefore, the problem of untranslatability in poetry can be overcome in the light of descriptive studies.