Il linguaggio di Holden Caulfield: una ritraduzione per trasformare il protagonista del Giovane Holden di Salinger : una prima riflessione su ripetizioni e volgarismi

The purpose of this article is to identify the methods used by Matteo Colombo to re-translate J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye more than 50 years after its first translation by Adriana Motti in 1961. A comparison between the two translations will help to shed light on the different choices made by the translators and on the effects these choices have on the final product. Moreover, it is interesting to investigate how the two translators dealt with the colloquial dimension of the language used in the Catcher, and if their approach to its translation is ethno- centric or non-ethnocentric. The choice of translating anew a literary work stems from precise motivations and sets clear goals. In the case of the new translation of the Catcher in Italian, it was necessary to provide Holden Caulfield with a youth language which will also be familiar to future generations. This is something that Motti’s translation did not fully achieve. An analysis of the two target texts shows how the choices made by the translators regarding the main character’s distinctive language – also those feeble and almost unperceivable – concur to modify the novel’s stylistics, characterizing boldly the main character, Holden Caulfield, which is one the key element in the novel’s fame.