“All acts of translation, are an attempt to mediate between cultures, texts and nationalities,” Sachidananda Mohanty wrote in Insider/Outsider: A Definition of Translation, “Translation is not merely a linguistic activity, it is a cultural act. Translation has been considered as a mechanical rather than creative process. It is all about the transferring of the source language into the target language. However, a clear insight of translation process will prove that it is not merely about transferring one language into another, but is intensely associated with political activity which creates and preserves its own hegemonic equations.”
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
4:30 – 6 pm
Fenwick Library Reading Room
George Mason University
From their disparate points of view panelists will discuss the realities of translating experiences of war and peace, justice and injustice. They will talk about the politics of what is translated and published, when, and why. As translators, scholars, historians and editors, they will discuss translation as a vehicle making the voices of the people heard across continents and cultures.
The panelists are:
HEBA F. EL-SHAZLI, Assistant Professor, George Mason University, George Mason University's School of Policy, Government and International Affairs (SPGIA) and Adjunct Faculty, Georgetown University’s Center for Democracy and Civil Society.
WALEED MAHDI, Assistant Professor, Arabic: U.S.-Muslim Cultural Politics, Arabic Language and Literature, Arab American Studies, Modern and Classical Language Department, GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY
AL FUERTES, Associate Professor, New Century College, and field practitioner in conflict resolution/transformation and psychosocial trauma and healing.
MARCIA LYNX QUALEY, a renowned freelance journalist and blogger who seeks to understand the kind of knowledge that is gathered in cross- cultural literature blogs, and how it is shared. She is a literary critic, journalist, and editor who publishes regularly in The Guardian, Al Jazeera, Qantara, and elsewhere, and who maintains the daily e-magazine Arabic Literature (in English), which covers the world of Arabic literature and translation.
Moderators: SARAH BROWNING, Split This Rock, and HELEN FREDERICK, George Mason University
January 21, 2016
