Sociological dynamics in cross-boundaries literary translation – a SingLit case study

• Main Author: Ang, Debbie Qiao Xuan
• Other Authors: -
• Format: Thesis-Master by Coursework
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2024
• Subjects: Arts and Humanities; SingLit translation; Literary translation; Polysystem theory; Ideology; Poetics; Patronage; Norms
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/178449
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Relevant to our globalised society today, translation studies of contemporary literature call for a review of translation as a cultural product. In doing so, translation processes are interpreted accordingly as cross-cultural transferences and transactions that occur between various powers. Among the many cross-cultural transferences occurring in our contemporary society, the rising genre of Singapore Literature (SingLit) remains absent within the China literary polysystem. The vacuum of SingLit works within China, the major literary market in the region justifies further scrutiny of the cultural and relational dynamics between the two economic powerhouses in Asia. Branching out from conventional linguistics and text-oriented research, this paper approaches the topic from a sociological perspective surrounding the potential translation process of a SingLit case study, State of Emergency, into the target China literary polysystem. By incorporating foundations rooted in the polysystem theory (Even-Zohar, 1990), a comprehensive theoretical framework is developed to facilitate the discussion of notions of ideologies, poetics, patronage, (Lefevere, 1992) and norms (Hermans, 1996). The resulting conclusion proves that societal and market realities today heavily impact the changing landscape of how various stakeholders perceive and approach literary translations across cultures.