Call for Papers: Authorship and Translation

Authorship and Translation (edited book collection)

Edited by Siobhan Lyons and Joel Gilberthorpe (Macquarie University)
Due date for abstracts (300 words): October 31, 201

The relationship between translation and authorship in philosophical, social and political contexts is relatively contentious and under-explored, and the lens through which this issue has been discussed lacks a substantial comparative analysis. While both the translator and author are of great academic interest, as both continue to dominate literary criticism, few studies have adequately explored the complex relationship between the two in light of historical and philosophical developments. Inevitably, there is a special connection between the author and the translator that is overlooked in literary cultures. Issues of untranslatability, attribution, censorship, and the concept of ‘faithful’ translations all pose challenges to traditional ideas of authorship. While significant critical attention is paid to the translator in recent literary discourse, the translator is predominantly understood as simply a mediator for an author’s work, rather than as an author in themselves. As a result, greater attention must be paid not only to the translator alone, but to the author/translator dynamic, in order to better understand the importance of the translator in textual production and analysis.

Authorship and Translation is therefore an important theme of discussion for both authorship and translation studies, and aims to answer questions such as: What is the relationship between the translator and the author in contemporary literature and translation studies? In what ways do the translator’s experiences differ/parallel with that of the author’s?

To what extent can translation be understood in equal measure with authorship? And how does the author’s dependence on the translator alter the dynamics of their relationship? Such questions are crucial in order to understand the complex nature of a text, how it is defined, determined, and, of course, how it is to be interpreted and through which lenses this is achieved. Of particular interest to this publication is a discussion of both authorship and translation studies and how both issues interact with each other.

We are seeking scholarly chapters that address but are not limited to:

• · The Author/Translator relationship
• · The philosophy of Authorship
• · The philosophy of Translation
• · Untranslatability, imitation, free translation, and inspiration
• · Ideas of ‘fidelity’ and ‘infidelity’ in translation
• · The Translator as Author
• · Self-Translation and the author as translator

Those interested should send abstracts of 300 words, along with a brief bio note, to both siobhan.lyons@mq.edu.au and joel.gilberthorpe@mq.edu.au by October 31, 2014. Chapters of approximately 6000-8000 words will be due in 2015.