[JIF2023] Between Composition and Translation
Gregory Khezrnejat
Author, literary researcher. Ph.D., Japanese literature (Doshisha University, 2017). Currently serving as associate professor at the Hosei University Faculty of Global and Interdisciplinary Studies. In 2021, Gregory’s debut novel Kamogawa Runner was awarded the 2nd Kyoto Literature Prize. His latest work, Kaikonchi, was nominated for the 168th Akutagawa Prize. Both novels are available from Kodansha.
Between Composition and Translation
How do we write experiences of translation and interpretation? They form compelling topics as spaces where multiple languages blend and intersect — and contradictions normally concealed by common understanding are revealed. As they become familiar parts of daily life, translation and interpretation increasingly appear in fiction as well. But using language to describe the failures of communication, wavering meanings, and other phenomena arising in the spaces between languages creates a number of issues. In this session, we will discuss these issues and consider the ambiguous relationship between composition and translation.