Translation, a measure of force of attraction? States, international organizations and the consecrating power of translation

Based on the premise that both translations and collective bodies have historically been used to build collective identities, shape their images, and defend their interests, this article examines several projects constituting the translation policy of the Intellectual Cooperation Organization (1925–1945) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (1945–) from a soft-power perspective. In the first section, I identify several contemporary trends in translation studies that share an interest in the state, though I also delve into parallel critiques against methodological nationalism. The second section addresses states and international organizations as agents of translation that maximize the potential of translation as a soft-power resource. The third and the fourth section examine two specific translation projects as soft-power resources from the perspective of the producing end. The fifth section examines the way the press of the time covered said projects and discusses their reception in different social spaces. This case study is used as a heuristic tool to discuss states as relevant objects of study in translation studies, the multiple receptions of translations, and the consecrating power of translation.