The Imperfect Translation of Women’s Suffering in The Tale of Kiều and The Sorrow of War
At the event,
Ha Trang will share with audience results of her research on two of Vietnam’s most important literary pieces that were translated into English: 'The Tale of Kiều' written by Nguyễn Du in early 19th century (translated by Huỳnh Sanh Thông) and 'The Sorrow of War', written by Bảo Ninh in 1987 (translated by Frank Palmos). Though separated by more than 150 years, both pieces examine the plight of women under the Confucian patriarchal society.
By comparing and contrasting the two figures of Kiều and Phương, Ha Trang will divulge the unchanging patriarchal oppression experienced by women in Vietnam despite a radical change of societal discourse from imperialism to communism. She will also discuss a related aspect of colonizing patriarchal disempowerment, the issues of translation from Vietnamese to English in 'The Sorrow of War'.
About speakers
Hà Trang
Graduated from Washington and Lee University, Virginia with double majors in English and Chinese in 2020, Hà Trang is currently the editor of Trạm Radio, a weekly podcast about Vietnamese literature. In 2019, she collaborated with Matca to publish Makét 01: A Vietnamese Photography Village.
Quyên Nguyễn
Quyên is an independent literature researcher based in Hanoi. In 2018, she founded Zzz Review - the first online literature journal in Vietnam.
This event is part of
Manzi & Zzz Review's series of talks on literature supported by
Goethe Institut.
Back
