Abstract
This essay highlights the role translation plays in constructing Holocaust memory in fiction. Considering for example references to the work of Primo Levi in French texts, it shows how recent Holocaust novels have recourse to intertexts originally written in another language in order to evoke shared knowledge about the Holocaust. The translation of Holocaust novels therefore poses the problem of translating an intertext that is itself a translation. Analysis of recent novels by Fabrice Humbert, Boualem Sansal, and Sylvie Germain suggests that such translated intertextuality can produce complex and unpredictable reinterpretations. The essay argues that translation and multilingualism are rhetorical strategies used in Holocaust fiction to approach complex questions of identity and unrepresentability.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 185-196 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Translation and Literature |
Volume | 23 |
Issue number | 2 |
Early online date | May 2014 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jul 2014 |
Keywords
- Intertextuality
- Holocaust novel
- multilingualism
- Primo Levi
- Fabrice Humbert
- Boualem Sansal
- Sylvie Germain