Published on Mar 31, 2017
In this talk, we are joined by Prof. Matthew Reynolds, professor of English and Comparative Criticism, Tutorial Fellow at St. Anne’s College at the University of Oxford, and author of Oxford University Press‘ “Very Short Introduction” on Translation.
He introduces his audience into the word of translation from the point of view of a writer and a scientist, highlighting a broad range of aspects of the subject and discussing the different perspectives one can have: How is the “failure” of a machine to correctly translate a text different from the “artistic license” of a human writer who translates an ancient piece of literature in non-standard grammar?
Translation is everywhere and matters to everybody. Translation doesn’t only give us foreign news, dubbed films and instructions for using the microwave: without it, there would be no world religions, and our literatures, our cultures, and our languages would be unrecognizable.
In this Very Short Introduction, Matthew Reynolds gives an authoritative and thought-provoking account of the field, from ancient Akkadian to World English, from St Jerome to Google Translate. He shows how translation determines meaning, how it matters in commerce, empire, conflict and resistance, and why it is fundamental to literature and the arts.
ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
