Prescriptive Polysystems, Struggle-free Fields and Burdensome Habitus. Translation Paradigm Shift in the Wake of the February 1948 Communist Overthrow in Czechoslovakia

Concentrating on a critical historical moment, the Communist overthrow in Czechoslovakia in late February 1948, this article explores the shifts in the publishing and translation practices with a focus on the position and strategies of individual translators and publishers of translated literature. In the wake of WWII, Czech publishers agreed to self-regulation and coordination in order to establish “ideal literature”. After February 1948, the Communist rulers transformed the self-regulatory and coordinating principles into strict principles of censorship and stateownership. The article follows closely the rise and fall of the Bridge international publishing project that was supposed to bring most of the small and mid-sized European countries together to support the promotion of minor literatures both in the participating countries and globally. It suggests, among other things, that a deep-rooted habitus of a publisher or a translator may under certain conditions disqualify them from participation in the publishing field. It also shows that, contrary to general assumptions, a literary polysystem may be prescriptive.