If You’re in Cairo: Translation as Deficiency, Translation as Choice

Eminent French translator Richard Jacquemond will be speaking at the Opera House’s Open Air Theater on April 15, at 7 p.m., on the topic of translation as a “A Matter of Deficiency or a Matter of Choice? Social Sciences in Arabic translation”:

richardThe event announcement notes that, in contemporary Arab culture, the dominant picture of translation “revolves around an idea of a deficiency: there is too little, too late, never the right books, never as it should be.”

In his talk, Jacquemond aims to move away from this ideology of deficiency, which he has said previously is commonplace in the world of translation, but takes on particular significance in a context of postcolonial domination. He aims to move beyond this to a defense of the idea of translation as a choice.

The talk will be held in Arabic.

From the announcement:

في إطار الثقافة العربية المعاصرة، يدور التمثيل السائد في مجال الترجمة حول فكرة النقصان. دائمًا ما يُترجم القليل، في وقت متأخر للغاية، بمنأى عن الكتب الجيدة، وعن الطريقة المُثلى.
دعونا ننتقل من عرض نقدي لأيديولوجية النقصان تلك، التي تميز سياق هيمنة ما بعد الاستعمار، إلى تبرير وضعية الترجمة كاختيار في ظل منطق إعادة تأهيل القدرة الفاعلة للمترجم وللفاعلين الاجتماعيين المعنيين بالترجمة العربية في مجال العلوم الاجتماعية.

From Richard Jacquemond:

Richard Jacquemond: On the lack and loss in translation

The video of Jacquemond’s talk at the AUC

Four “rules for translation”

Thanks to Marielle Morin for the note about this talk.