Translating the Memory of Migration

Professor Loredana Polezzi gave a lecture entitled “Between Trauma and Desire: Translating the Memory of Migration” at the Faculty of Philology and Translation in Vigo, on 30 Nov 2017. The talk  was directly linked to the  doctoral seminar (actividade formativa de doutoramento) “The Representation of Conflicts: An Introduction to Trauma and Memory in Texts”, co-taught by Dr. Teresa Caneda and Dr. Martín Urdiales. This seminar approaches the representation of traumatic events such as the Irish Famine and the Holocaust which implied forms of enforced mobility and have become associated with cultural memory/ies. Whereas the seminar focuses on texts which deal with the representation of scenarios of dislocation, violent assimilation, and genocide,   Prof. Polezzi’s lecture explored the link between a specific kind of transnational memory –the memory of migration– and processes of linguistic as well as cultural translation. Drawing on the recent work of scholars (Erll, 2009; De Cesari and Rigney, 2014) who have pointed out that memory needs to be understood as a transnational phenomenon, Prof. Polezzi talked about the way in which the memory of migration is passed on and represented across generations through forms of writing and visual representation which are deeply informed by practices of translation.  She concentrated on women writers/visual artists/performers in the context of migration and discussed the treatment of migration and its memory both in relation to trauma and desire. More info: netec.webs.uvigo.es/en/news/trauma-desire-translating-memory-migration.

Loredana Polezzi is Professor in Translation Studies at the School of Modern Languages of Cardiff University. Her main research interests are translation studies, comparative literature, and the history of travel and migration. Her recent work focuses on how geographical and social mobilities are connected to the theories and practices of translation and self-translation. With Rita Wilson, she is co-editor of The Translator, a leading international journal in Translation Studies. She is also a co-investigator in the research project “Transnationalizing Modern Languages”, funded by the AHRC’s Translating Cultures scheme, as well as a founding member of the “Cultural Literacy in Europe” network. This lecture received funding from the International Doctoral School in Vigo (EIDO) and the Department of English, French and German in Vigo.