What is a paratext?

Unlike the terms 'translation' and 'translator', the term 'paratext' is based on a widely recognised scientific definition. Coined by the French academic Gérard Genette, the term describes text elements that accompany and influence the reception of a text. Paratexts fall into two subcategories:

a) Those that are part of a superordinate text, such as the title page, frontispiece, dedication, acknowledgements, foreword, epilogue and so on.

b) Those that initially exist separately from the superordinate text, for example in the form of accompanying materials, interviews, letters and portraits. 

Prefaces and postfaces can be searched vie the 'Preface/Postface' category. This approach recognises that translations are not a homogeneous unit, but are made up of individual parts.

In addition to translations and adaptations, the DLBT also collects reception documents, thus enabling a fundamental analysis. These include criticism and reviews as well as essays, academic treatises and other types of texts.