CW5001 Translation Workshop

Translation as a practice spans the work of rendering a faithful English version of a source text, which requires competency in at least one foreign language, and the use of a source text as a springboard for creative adaptation, giving rise to a new poem or work of prose. Translation in this course will span both senses of the practice, so that students with developing competencies in foreign languages can work alongside students who are translating in a looser, more experimental mode, availing themselves of dictionaries and the imagination to render freer translations and explore lesser-known languages. The course therefore encourages, but does not require, competency in a language other than English. Students may work on experimental translations and traditional translations or alternate between them; they may build their intimacy with one source language or translate from different languages over the course of the semester. The practice of translation will be facilitated by close readings of experimental translations as well as essays on the theory of translation. Class visits by contemporary translators, translation workshops, and work with the Center for Writers and Translators (and their cahier series featuring writers writing about translation) will be important components of the course.

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