A relevance-theoretical approach to King Stakh’s Wild Hunt: translating the Belarusian language and culture

This paper takes a relevance-theoretical approach to the English translation of “Дзікае паляванне караля Стаха” (1964), the Belarusian novel written by Uladzìmìr Karatkevìč – “King Stakh’s Wild Hunt” (translated by Mary Mintz, 1989). In doing so, it proposes a different perspective on the alleged ‘untranslatability’ of minority literature. The analysis takes into account various procedures applied to the different elements of the novel and reveals that Mintz makes strategic choices aimed at choosing the best solution for each problem individually.