1260248 (Un)translatability
of Nature:Modern Japanese Literature
as a Target/Source Text
Organizer(s):
Zuhal
KOCYIGIT
, University of Tsukuba (zuhal.kocyigittt@gmail.com)
This panel examines nature-related aspects in literary works and
their (un)translatability in the target language. In particular, four panelists
focus on the early 20th century literary works in Japan. They
try to clarify the relation between the nature-related aspects and the culture,
as well as the representations of these aspects in various contexts such as
poems, short stories and novels.
The word “Nature” may refer to
various meanings, yet it is mostly the case that at first, we imagine all
physical beings in the world. However, nature can also be related to religion,
it may refer to human nature, it can be a symbol for a nation. For instance,
for the Japanese culture, mountain may refer to deity (kami),
for the Chinese culture, peach may relate to immortality. Therefore, it is
important to say that nature is a cultural concept which has many
characteristics in itself. For the translation of these concepts, it can be
said that even though it is impossible to convey the complexity of primary
meanings, the legitimate attempt of translation would be possible via the
reference to the context.