Abstract

In our translation programs at Arab universities we devote a lot of time to the teaching of translation theory believing that there are certain rules and theories that if a student masters, s/he will be a better and more competent translator. An awareness of intertextuality undermines the importance of theorizing about translation in favor of boosting translation practices. This paper discusses allusion and the intertextual space in an attempt to highlight the repeated patterns and the tissues of relations that unite all texts. Theorists of intertextuality claim that there is no original text and that there is nothing unsaid before. It is possible, therefore, to deoriginate texts to the zero level, i.e. to find roots for all components of a text in other previous ones. Thus a translator who practices the translation of poetry for several years becomes acquainted with patterns and structures that are repeated in different other texts. Awareness of theoretical materials on the know-how of translation has little value in contributing to the proficiency of a translator; practice is the path of excellence.