Bilingual translation/writing as intercultural communication
-
Daniel Gagnon
Abstract
This article explores the particular Canadian/Québec practice of bilingual "translating as writing" within the varied tradition of expatriate writing, and contemporary post-modern and post-colonial practices of the plurilingual text. The analysis focuses on two examples: Nancy Huston's Plainsong, published in French as Cantique des Plaines, and my own The Marriageable Daughter, published in French as La Fille à marier. Among the issues addressed are the context and motivation for this particular process of bilingual writing; the creative dimensions of inter-cultural writing; differences between the original and the translation in terms of transgression of literary conventions. As experiences of writing/ translating between two colonial cultures, both texts work towards decolonizing literary practice. More specifically, within their own Canadian/Québec intercultural context, they open up an unusual shared space for cultural exchange.
Abstract
This article explores the particular Canadian/Québec practice of bilingual "translating as writing" within the varied tradition of expatriate writing, and contemporary post-modern and post-colonial practices of the plurilingual text. The analysis focuses on two examples: Nancy Huston's Plainsong, published in French as Cantique des Plaines, and my own The Marriageable Daughter, published in French as La Fille à marier. Among the issues addressed are the context and motivation for this particular process of bilingual writing; the creative dimensions of inter-cultural writing; differences between the original and the translation in terms of transgression of literary conventions. As experiences of writing/ translating between two colonial cultures, both texts work towards decolonizing literary practice. More specifically, within their own Canadian/Québec intercultural context, they open up an unusual shared space for cultural exchange.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Foreword vii
- Introduction: On the social and cultural in translation studies 1
-
Agents behind translation
- Trends in the translation of a minority language 27
- “Of course Germans have a certain interest in Finland, but…” 41
- Translation from the point of view of the East German censorship files 53
-
Social histories
- Choosing not to translate 65
- From Robinson Crusoe to Robinson in Wallachia 73
-
Perceived roles and values
- Translating from across the channel in nineteenth-century France 83
- English translation in Gujarat 93
-
Interaction of inner and outer contexts
- Between Translation and Traduction 101
- Bilingual translation/writing as intercultural communication 117
-
Power relations disclosed
- The female state of the art 129
- Translation as discursive import 143
-
Power distribution and cooperation
- “Translation culture” in interpreted asylum hearings 151
- Interpreting at an immigration detention center in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria 163
- Negotiating linguistic and cultural identities in interpreter-mediated communication for public health services 173
-
Constructing systems
- Babel rebuilt 191
- From 10-minute wedding ceremonies to three-week spa treatment programs 201
-
The view from Interpreting Studies
- “Going social?” On pathways and paradigms in interpreting studies 215
- Notes on contributors 233
- References 237
- Index 253
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Foreword vii
- Introduction: On the social and cultural in translation studies 1
-
Agents behind translation
- Trends in the translation of a minority language 27
- “Of course Germans have a certain interest in Finland, but…” 41
- Translation from the point of view of the East German censorship files 53
-
Social histories
- Choosing not to translate 65
- From Robinson Crusoe to Robinson in Wallachia 73
-
Perceived roles and values
- Translating from across the channel in nineteenth-century France 83
- English translation in Gujarat 93
-
Interaction of inner and outer contexts
- Between Translation and Traduction 101
- Bilingual translation/writing as intercultural communication 117
-
Power relations disclosed
- The female state of the art 129
- Translation as discursive import 143
-
Power distribution and cooperation
- “Translation culture” in interpreted asylum hearings 151
- Interpreting at an immigration detention center in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria 163
- Negotiating linguistic and cultural identities in interpreter-mediated communication for public health services 173
-
Constructing systems
- Babel rebuilt 191
- From 10-minute wedding ceremonies to three-week spa treatment programs 201
-
The view from Interpreting Studies
- “Going social?” On pathways and paradigms in interpreting studies 215
- Notes on contributors 233
- References 237
- Index 253
