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Publication details [#27868]

Valdeón, Roberto A. 2012. Tears of the Indies and the Power of Translation: John Phillips' version of Brevísima relación de la destrucción de las Indias. Bulletin of Spanish Studies 89 (6) : 839–858.
Publication type
Article in jnl/bk
Publication language
English
Person as a subject
Title as subject

Abstract

This paper explores the ideological transformations carried out in producing Tears of the Indies, one of the first English translations of Brevísima relación de la destrucción de las Indias by the Dominican Bartolomé de las Casas, a tract which he addressed to the future King Philip II, and in which he denounced the actions of the conquistadors in the New World. The translator, John Phillips, appropriated the text to create an anti-Spanish narrative with a view to promoting English nationalism as well as encouraging the construction of an English empire in the Americas. The article examines the changes to the title, the replacement of the original preface and the translation strategies adopted. Evidence is also provided of the long-lasting influence of this version, which continues to be used in Anglophone schools and academia, in spite of its serious flaws and the existence of more recent and accurate retranslations.
Source : Based on publisher information