Translating contemporary literature: Translating parts of Elisabeth Sheffield's "Fort Da - a report" into German

Graduate Thesis Or Dissertation

Citations

Citeable URL: https://scholar.colorado.edu/concern/graduate_thesis_or_dissertations/n296wz35x

Abstract

Fort Da - A Report stands surely in the tradition of Lolita, and is a successful re-writing of Nabokov's work. Elisabeth Sheffield takes a modern approach to the subject matter. The object of desire in Fort Da - A Report is Aslan, a Turkish-Cyprian boy who lives in Germany. Aslan is desired by Rosemarie Ramee, an almost forty-year old american neuroscientist, who works and lives in Kiel, Germany. Translating the unfolding of this provocative story was motivated by its cultural context, its contemporary manner as well as experimental writing style, such as using footnotes, neologisms and passive voice. Approaching this translation, it was important to emphasize the closeness to the original text in terms of the detached writing style, word choices and foreign elements. Various translation theories have informed this work and the result is an engaging translation of the complex story of a male Lolita.

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