Translating Freud: a rocky road

by Giulia Boringhieri

The publishing house founded by Paolo Boringhieri played a crucial role in the diffusion of scientific culture in post-war Italy especially during the period between 1957 and 1987 when it acted as a pioneering trailblazer. Its ambitious objective was to provide science with the tools (books) with which to capture a leading role alongside humanistic culture. Above all, it was essential to catch up with international culture and therefore, to translate; authors writing in Italian were not yet numerous and not familiar with communication methods. It was necessary to create a formal style for written texts, which became the Boringhieri hallmark and guarantee of quality, exemplified in the monumental complete edition of the works of Sigmund Freud.