Traduzione e metafora. Quando la filosofia cambia d’abito

This essay explores the relationship between translation and metaphor in the philosophical discourse. In the Western philosophical tradition, both metaphor and translation are considered marginal, and the movement in language they launch is usually interpreted as a downgrading movement from the original to the copy, from the proper to the improper. Firstly, I will reverse this relationship between original and translation, proper and improper, moving from the metaphor of the clothing developed by Cicero and Benjamin. Secondly, I will explore Heidegger’s critique of the strict distinction between metaphorical and non-metaphorical discourse. Finally, I will argue that, for its own sake, philosophical conceptuality must free itself from the fear of drifting and shipwrecking, and the generative relation with both ‘metaphor’ and ‘translation’ shall be re-established and renewed.