Marco Polo in Argentina

About editorial mediation and the arrival of the Venetian traveler to the field of LPN in the first decade of the 21st century

Abstract

This paper analyzes the incorporation of The Travels of Marco Polo into Argentine children’s literature in the first decade of the 21st century, through the study of three versions published in children’s book collections: the adaptations by Ricardo Mariño (2001), Ignacio Miller (2007) and Juan Caramiñas (2009). The research explores how a text not originally intended for children becomes part of this literary field through specific editorial operations. Drawing on the categories of adaptation, version and translation (Soriano, 1995), the study describes the modes of rewriting that enable its inclusion in children’s literature. It also examines the editorial strategies that mediate between the source text and the new young readership, based on the theoretical frameworks of Piccolini (2005) and Tosi (2019). This analysis offers a reflection on the mediation devices that allow classic texts to circulate within contemporary publishing catalogues for children.