Abstract

This article explores the concept of equivalence in translation in the context of Francesca Ervas’ book, Uguale ma diverso. Il mito dell’equivalenza nella traduzione. The aim is to demonstrate that equivalence in translation is insufficient because it fails to account for human understanding of others and the world. To understand the breadth of this concept, three fundamental questions were analyzed: what is a translation? What is the relationship that is maintained with the so-called “original”? What exactly is this relationship? To answer these questions, it is necessary to analyze the various ways of talking about equivalence. Considering that both the origins of the concept of equivalence and the challenges posed by translation suggest the need for an analysis of the concept’s limitations, a new understanding of its meaning can only contribute to philosophical debates on translation when this insufficiency is rethought.