For or Against Translation? An Analysis of the Supreme Leader’s Discourse on Translation

Abstract

The present paper was an attempt to describe and analyze the ‘discourse’ of the Supreme Leader of ‎Iran on translation under the rationale that the analysis could reveal how translation was conceived at ‎the highest levels of the political system of Iran. To do so, the Supreme Leader’s statements were ‎collected from the website of The Office of the Supreme Leader and analyzed for his views and ideas ‎about translation. The result indicated that the Supreme Leader viewed translation both as a threat ‎and as an opportunity. The translation was considered a threat when it served the ‘cultural invasion’ ‎and the ‘soft war’ waged by the west against Iran; when it contributed to mere ‘imitation’ and ‎‎‘translation-orientedness’. On the other hand, it was viewed as an opportunity when it gave access to ‎the meanings of important religious works, filled the gaps in the society, contributed to the production ‎of knowledge and science, and served as a means of exporting the ideas and values of the Islamic ‎Revolution.‎