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WEEKLY READINGS AND EXERCISES
29 Sept: Issues
6 Oct: A Semi-opaque process
13 Oct: Letter vs. Spirit
20 Oct: Comparing Translations
27 Oct: Process and Hermeneutics
3 Nov: Radical Translation
10 Nov: Linguistic Differences I
17 Nov: Linguistic Differences II
24 Nov: Traveling Will
1 Dec: Literary Considerations I
8 Dec: Literary Consdiderations II

13 Dec: Final Project Presentations

Assignments and Readings for Week 11, December 8
Literary Considerations II

Before Class:

This last week, I'm finally going to let you loose in the usual manner; having done so many exercises and had so much "practice," maybe we can make sense of the otherwise rather opaque pronouncements of various theoreticians. We will also take up issues with regard to Felstiner's translation of Neruda that we did not get to in the previous class.

So have a go at literati old and new, and at their pronouncements:

Read the following selections from Schulte and Biguenet, Theories of Translation:

  • Dante Gabriel Rosetti, "Preface to The Early Italian Poets," pp. 64-67
  • Octavio Paz, "Translation: Literature and Letters," pp. 152-62
  • Jacques Derrida, "From Des Tours de Babel," pp. 218-227
  • Hans Erich Nossak, "Translating and Being Translated," pp. 228-238
Also read chapter 15 of Le Ton Beau de Marot.

Post any thoughts you may have, all in a single conversation so you can comment on each other's thoughts, by 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, December 8. This assignment will not be graded.

In Class:
Since I will have just finished an experience of being translated, I will give a presentation on what it's like, and reflect on Nossack's ideas in light of my own experience.

Then we will give Mr. Felstiner the attention he deserves.

We will then discuss questions that come up in the theoretical readings, in the light of what we have done so far in class, and hopefully add to the near-final version of the floating issues list.

Finally, we will assign discussants for the final projects. The projects will be posted by 10:00 a.m. on Sunday, December 12, and the discussions will be due by 8:30 a.m. on Monday, December 13, in preparation for the 12:30 class.