Translation And Travelling Theory

Research has shown that feminist theory has flowed far more easily from North to South and from West to East, wheras travel in other directions has proved almost non-existent. While the hegemony of US feminist theory has been challenged in Europe, for example, there remain many ‘invisible’ discursive trajectories that link the development of feminist theories and movements across the world. This book brings together and engages with theories of globalisation, transnational feminism, travelling theory and cultural translation, exploring the travelling routes of feminist theory and practice to China over recent decades. With attention to the crucial questions of why and how knowledge travels or fails to travel, the forms that it takes and by whom it is sent, received, understood, translated, or even refused, the author examines the development and activities of different groups of women and women’s organisations in China, thus developing an alternative form of travelling theory. A study of the cross-cultural translation of knowledge and practices that occur or fail to occur when different cultures interact, and their impact, this book will appeal to scholars of gender studies, sociology and cultural studies with interests in feminist thought and the travel and production of knowledge.

Within translation studies books on translating conceptually dense texts, such as philosophical or theoretical writings, are remarkably few. Although the translation of literature has been a favourite topic for many decades, the translation of theories on literature has been neglected. The phrase 'theories of translation' is everywhere, but 'translation of theories' is a rare sight. On the other hand, the term 'translation' has become a commonplace in literary and cultural studies - yet usually as a rhetorical figure describing the fate of those who struggle between two worlds and two languages, such as migrants or women. Not much attention has been paid to the role of 'translation proper' in contemporary circulation of ideas. The book addresses these gaps in translation studies and in literary studies for the first time by examining two specific cases where translation strategies and patterns crucially influenced the reception of imported schools of thought. By examining the importation of structuralism and semiotics into Turkish and of French feminism into English, it invites the readers to think about the impact of translation on the transmission of ideas across linguistic-cultural borders and power differentials. It is, therefore, of particular interest to the scholars working in translation studies, in literary and cultural theory, and in gender studies.

The relationship between travel and translation might seem obvious at first, but to study it in earnest is to discover that it is at once intriguing and elusive. Of course, travelers translate in order to make sense of their new surroundings; sometimes they must translate in order to put food on the table. The relationship between these two human compulsions, however, goes much deeper than this. What gets translated, it seems, is not merely the written or the spoken word, but the very identity of the traveler. These seventeen essays--which treat not only such well-known figures as Martin Luther, Erasmus, Shakespeare, and Milton, but also such lesser known figures as Konrad Grünemberg, Leo Africanus, and Garcilaso de la Vega--constitute the first survey of how this relationship manifests itself in the early modern period. As such, it should be of interest both to scholars who are studying theories of translation and to those who are studying "hodoeporics", or travel and the literature of travel.

The connection between travel and translation is often evoked in contemporary critical theory, both practices seen as metaphors of mobility and flux linked to globalized 'post-modern' society. Travel is a multiple activity, encompassing temporary and voluntary displacement, repeated movement, exile, economic migration, diaspora. Places of origin are often plural and unstable, in spite of the enduring appeal of traditional labels such as 'mother country' or 'patrie'. The multiple interfaces between translation, travel and migration are the focus of all contributions in this special issue. Starting from different points of view, and using a variety of methodologies, the authors raise fundamental questions about the way in which we perceive the link between language, national or ethnic identity, and individual voice. Topics range from the interaction between travel, travel narratives and translation in early English representations of China, to the special role played by interpreters in mediating the first contact between a literate and a non-literate culture; from the multiple functions and audiences addressed by contemporary Romani literature and its translation, to the political as well a cultural implications of translating popular music across the Bosporus. A number of the articles focus on detailed textual analysis, covering the intersection between exile, self-translation and translingualism in the work of Manuel Puig; the uses and limitations of translation in the works of migrant authors; or the impact on figurations of Europe of experimental work embracing polylingualism. Collectively, these contributions also underline the importance of a closer examination of our assumptions about who the translators and the interpreters are, and what roles they play in our society.

The second wave of feminism which challenged and changed many assumptions about the world in which we live was a product of various western cultures, with no single country possessing a monopoly on the writing of the texts that became the canonical statements of the 'new' feminism. Though many of the contributions to feminist scholarship that went on to become internationally significant hailed from Europe and the United States, these works were often formed within the context of local debates and framed within traditions of feminism and other political engagements specific to these nations. Transatlantic Conversations explores the differences yielded by such conditions and their consequences for the meaning of feminism. Examining the meaning and implications of the different ways in which various shared categories have been treated on both sides of the Atlantic, this volume both analyses differences within feminism and provides a framework for the wider discussion of what is sometimes assumed to be the homogeneity of The West. With leading scholars from either side of the Atlantic presenting brand new work, Transatlantic Conversations suggests directions for future research which will be of interest to scholars of feminism, gender studies, sociology, political science and international relations, geography and cultural studies, as well as anyone concerned with the ways in which the different political and intellectual traditions of Europe and the US have shaped current political and intellectual debates.

This monograph explores the relation between travel, language and culture in the context of the travel philosophy of Alphonso Lingis and translation theory. The traveller is seen as a translating agent and intercultural mediator. The book begins with an historical overview, tracing the interrelatedness of translation and culture from Mikhail Bakhtin's notion of dialogue, to the recent 'cultural turn' in translation theory, ethnography and philosophy. The monograph then turns its focus onto the philosophy of Alphonso Lingis. Lingis believes that rational language is unable to fully transmit meaning, arguing that 'translation of culture' requires the use of all senses. He calls for spontaneity in translation as bodily performance -- highlighting the importance of the remainder or surplus in translation by emphasising ways of knowing that are channelled through taste, touch, vision, smell and sound. The traveller to a foreign country finds himself in a place like a deep woods: the unknown language he encounters speaks to him like a silent language and conveys no meaning. By placing the body at the centre, Lingis questions the idea of silence as muteness, and posits that the human voice, coming "from the bowels and tubes of the body", is able to connect and evoke a reply, because "our voice does not produce the sound out of silence" (The First Person Singular 24). Thus, even where there is absence of a common language, communication is still possible by means of a corporeal grammar.

Salman Rushdie's writing is engaged with translation in many ways: translator-figures tell and retell stories in his novels, while acts of translation are catalysts for climactic events. Covering his major novels as well as his often-neglected short stories and writing for children, Salman Rushdie and Translation explores the role of translation in Rushdie's work. In this book, Jenni Ramone draws on contemporary translation theory to analyse the part translation plays in Rushdie's appropriation of historical and contemporary Indian narratives of independence and migration.

The Routledge Handbook of Translation and Politics presents the first comprehensive, state of the art overview of the multiple ways in which ‘politics’ and ‘translation’ interact. Divided into four sections with thirty-three chapters written by a roster of international scholars, this handbook covers the translation of political ideas, the effects of political structures on translation and interpreting, the politics of translation and an array of case studies that range from the Classical Mediterranean to contemporary China. Considering established topics such as censorship, gender, translation under fascism, translators and interpreters at war, as well as emerging topics such as translation and development, the politics of localization, translation and interpreting in democratic movements, and the politics of translating popular music, the handbook offers a global and interdisciplinary introduction to the intersections between translation and interpreting studies and politics. With a substantial introduction and extensive bibliographies, this handbook is an indispensable resource for students and researchers of translation theory, politics and related areas.