Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In this dissertation I investigate how aesthetics, politics and ethics intersect as material flows in translation, and how these actualise in the oeuvre of Lettie Viljoen/Ingrid Winterbach. With the emphasis on praxis, I explore these three threads through the philosophy of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari in particular, though not exclusively.
With reference to Deleuze and Guattari’s project on ‘minor literature’, I demonstrate that Viljoen/Winterbach’s oeuvre contains a high degree of deterritorialisation through methods such as thematic refrains, stylistic devices and her use of Engfrikaans. In translation these methods are investigated in terms of the ethico-aesthetic framework developed by Guattari, the role of capitalism in its relation to translation and the publishing industry (i.e. the political), and how translation and/as praxis may begin to develop a nomadic ethics.
Aesthetics, from a Deleuzo-Guattarian perspective is shown to be not about the value produced by capitalism, but rather about that which deterritorialises as a singularity. Such a singularity in literature may be said to actualise as a minor literature or, more accurately, a becoming-minor. With regards to politics in translation/translation in politics, I argue that the question of translation should no longer be What does this word/text mean? but rather What is the word/text/translation doing? When the emphasis moves from semantics to praxis I argue that translation, like other forms of literature, has the potential to affect social transformation. I put forth as part of my argument that this is possible through deterritorialising practices like écriture féminine and Viljoen/Winterbach’s use of Engfrikaans and the trickster figure, as such methods allow for bifurcations away from State territorialisations. And finally, I examine how translators might begin to develop a praxis informed by a nomadic ethics which is not reliant on a normative morality, but rather constitutes an orientation founded on heterogeneity and the repudiation of universality. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: In hierdie proefskrif word daar ondersoek hoe estetika, politiek and etiek as reële elemente saamvloei in vertaling, en hoe dit aktualiseer in the oeuvre van Lettie Viljoen/Ingrid Winterbach. Met die klem op praxis ondersoek ek dié drie elemente in besonder in terme van die filosofie van Gilles Deleuze en Félix Guattari, alhoewel nie eksklusief nie. Met verwysing na Deleuze end Guattari se projek aangaande ’n ‘klein (mindere) literatuur’, demonstreer ek dat Viljoen/Winterbach se oeuvre ’n hoë graad van deterritorialisasie weerspieël wat uit haar gebruik van metodes soos tematiese refreine, stilistiese instrumente en die gebruik van Engfrikaans voortspruit. In vertaling word hierdie metodes ondersoek in terme van die eties-estetiese raamwerk wat deur Guattari ontwikkel is asook die politieke rol van kapitalisme in verhouding tot vertaling en die publikasiebedryf, sowel as hoe vertaling as praxis daartoe mag bydra om ’n nomadiese etiek te ontwikkel. Vanuit ’n Deleuzo-Guattariaanse perspektief word daar aangetoon dat estetika nie handel oor die waarde wat kapitalisme voortbring nie, maar eerder oor die enkele-uniekheid (“singularity”) wat deterritorialisering meebring. Dit kan gestel word dat in literatuur sodanige enkele-uniekheid as mindere (“minor”) literatuur gesien kan word of, om meer akkuraat te wees, die voortbring daarvan kan aktualiseer. Betreffende politiek in vertaling/vertaling in politiek word daar aangevoer dat die vraagstuk van vertaling voortaan nie moet wees Wat beteken hierdie woord of teks? nie, maar eerder Wat vermag ’n woord of teks in die vertaling? Daar word verder aangevoer dat wanneer die klem vanaf semantiek na praxis verskuif vertaling, soos ander vorme van literatuur, die potensiaal inhou om sosiale transformasie te beïnvloed. As deel van die onderliggende argument word daar gepostuleer dat die voorgenoemde inderdaad moontlik is deur deterritorialiserende paraktyke soos écriture féminine en Viljoen/Winterbach se gebruik van Engfrikaans asmede die triekster-figuur omdat sulke metodes die geleentheid skep vir splitsing (“bifurcation”) weg van Staatsterritorialisering af. Ten slotte word ondersoek ingestel na hoe vertalers ’n praxis sou kon ontwikkel wat deur ’n nomadiese etiek en nie’n normatiewe moraliteit gelei word nie, maar wat eerder op ’n orientasie van heterogeniteit en die verwerping van essensie gebaseer is.
Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:sun/oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/95842 |
Date | 12 1900 |
Creators | Gray van Heerden, Chantelle |
Contributors | Steiner, Tina, Roux, Daniel, Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of English. |
Publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
Language | en_ZA |
Detected Language | Unknown |
Type | Thesis |
Format | 195 p. : ill. |
Rights | Stellenbosch University |
Page generated in 0.0018 seconds