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台灣文學與文化翻譯week1邱貴芬Whatisworldliterature?•DavidDamrosch:•1.worldliteratureisanellipticalrefractionofnationalliteratures.•2.worldliteratureiswritingthatgainsintranslation.•3.worldliteratureisnotasetcanonoftextsbutamodeofreading:aformofdetachedengagementwithworldsbeyondourownplaceandtimeWorldliteraturevs.nationalliterature?•Comparatistsinthepostwareraoften…heldoutmessianichopesforworldliteratureasthecureoftheillsofnationalisticseparatism,jingoismandinternecineviolence—and,byimplication,advancingthecomparatistasthetranscendentheirtothenarrownessofmonolingualspecialization.282•Comparativeliteratureasthegrandcorrectivefor“thenationalisticheresy”?Whatdoestheongoingvitalityofnationalliterarytraditionsmeanforthestudyofworldliterature?•Worldliteratureasanellipticalrefractionofnationalliteratures:•Virtuallyallliteraryworksarebornwithinwhatwewouldnowcallanationalliterature•Workscontinuetobearthemarksoftheirnationaloriginevenaftertheycirculateintoworldliterature,andyetthesetracesareincreasinglydiffusedandbecomeevermoresharplyrefractedasaworktravelsfartherfromhome.Negotiationbetween2differentcultures•Thereceivingculturecanusetheforeignmaterialinallsortsofways:•1.asapositivemodelforthefuturedevelopmentofitsowntradition•2.asanegativecaseofaprimitive,ordecadent,strandthatmustbeavoided•3.asanimageofradicalothernessagainstwhichthehometraditioncanmoreclearlybedefined.283Worldliteratureisthusalwaysmuchaboutthehostculture’svaluesandneedsasitisaboutawork’ssourceculture;henceitisadoublerefraction283Recognizingtheongoing,vitalpresenceofthenationalwithinthelifeofworldliteratureposesenormousproblemsforthestudyofworldliterature:•Lackoftimetolearnabouttheculturalunderpinningsofthechosensubjects•LackoftimetolearndifferentlanguagesProposedSolution:workingcollaboratively•Workonworldliteratureshouldbeacknowledgedasdifferentinkindfromworkwithinanationaltradition.286•1.Selectivity:astudentofworldliteraturehasmuchtogainfromanactiveengagementwithspecializedknowledge•Thisknowledgeisbestdeployedselectively,withakindofscholarlytact.286•Readershouldbesparedthefullforceofourlocalknowledge.2872.Worldliteratureiswritingthatgainsintranslation•Atextisreadasliteratureifwedwellonthebeautiesofitslanguage,itsform,anditsthemes,anddon’ttakeitasprimarilyfactualinintent288•someworksaresoinextricablyconnectedtotheiroriginallanguageandmomentthattheyreallycannotbeeffectivelytranslatedatall.[anotherwaytoapproachuntranslatability]288Itismoreaccuratetosaythatsomeworksarenottranslatablewithoutsubstantialloss,andsotheyremainlargelywithintheirlocalornationalcontext,neverachievinganeffectivelifeasworldliteratureExample:李安的色，戒=-8451962485484717627&vt=lf&hl=zh-TWCreditandlossintranslation•Aworkcanholdaprominentplacewithinitsownculturebutreadpoorlyelsewhere,eitherbecauseitslanguagedoesn’ttranslatewellorbecauseitsculturalassumptionsdon’ttravel.289•Thebalanceofcreditandlossremainsadistinguishingmarkofnationalversusworldliterature:literaturestayswithinitsnationalorregionaltraditionwhenitusuallylosesintranslation,whereasworksbecomeworldliteraturewhentheygainonbalanceintranslation,stylisticlossesoffsetbyanexpansionindepth…289Theneedtoengagetranslations•Evenwithamajorimprovementinthebreadthoflanguagestudy,andevenwithasubstantialincreaseincollaborativeprojects,itwillbenecessarytomakeactivescholarlyuseoftranslationifwearenottocontinuecuttingourtopicsdowntothesizeofwhateverlinguisticbedisavailabletousatagivenmoment.•Itisonlypossibletoengagecriticallywithworksintranslationifwecanallowthatliterarymeaningexistsonmanylevelsofawork.Translationcanneverreallysucceedifawork’smeaningistakentoresideessentiallyinthelocalverbaltextureofitsoriginalphrasing.•[Question:theproblemofmisinterpretation/mistranslationorabusivetranslation]•[“localverbaltextureoforiginalphrasing”•Question:ambiguityofthetext]Translation:creativeinteractionbetweenthereaderandthetext•Notthelossofanunmediatedoriginalvisionbutinsteadaheighteningofthenaturallycreativeinteractionofreaderandtext.292•Thetextexertsapowerfullimitingforceonthevariabilityofreaderlyresponse.292Theuseoftranslations•Tousetranslationsmeanstoaccepttherealitythattextscometousmediatedbyexistingframeworksofreceptionandinterpretation.Wenecessarilyworkincollaborationwithotherswhohaveshapedwhatwereadandhowwereadit.298•Benjamin”Thetaskofthetranslator”,p.71Worldliteratureasamodeofreading•Thegreatconversationofworldliteraturetakesplaceontwoverydifferentlevels:amongauthorswhoknowandreacttooneanother’swork,andinthemindofthereader,whereworksmeetandinteractinwaysthatmayhavelittletodowithculturalandhistoricalproximity.298