Drawing on the results of research into the scale and distribution of Polish translation activity with regard to the Shakespeare an canon in the 19th century, the article discusses the various roles assumed by both professional and informal editors working with Shakespeare translators over time. Understandably enough, the editorial efforts serve to ensure the quality and reception of the text, and range from publisher’s pressure and copyediting to aesthetic (or societal) patronage and complementary efforts to append the text with critical commentary. The article juxtaposes the intimacy of the  translation process with the inherently intrusive role of an editor, foregrounding the fragile psychological balance which preconditions effective collaboration and longterm commitment. Finally, the article discusses the need for editorial policies attuned to Shakespeare in translation, which would take into account both the literary intricacy of the original(s) and the specificity of retranslation  dialectics, with the necessary positioning of new rewritings against past canon(s).

Drawing on the results of research into the scale and distribution of Polish translation activity with regard to the Shakespeare an canon in the 19th century, the article discusses the various roles assumed by both professional and informal editors working with Shakespeare translators over time. Understandably enough, the editorial efforts serve to ensure the quality and reception of the text, and range from publisher’s pressure and copyediting to aesthetic (or societal) patronage and complementary efforts to append the text with critical commentary. The article juxtaposes the intimacy of the  translation process with the inherently intrusive role of an editor, foregrounding the fragile psychological balance which preconditions effective collaboration and longterm commitment. Finally, the article discusses the need for editorial policies attuned to Shakespeare in translation, which would take into account both the literary intricacy of the original(s) and the specificity of retranslation  dialectics, with the necessary positioning of new rewritings against past canon(s).