THANK YOU FOR THE INTERVIEW, DR MOURAD ALKHATIBI.

 

MOURAD AL KHATIBI

 Five questions to the Moroccan writer and translator Mourad El Khatibi, author of the book “Literary translation…the possible and the desired”

Saturday, March 6, 2021 at 2:10 PM

Interview by Abdellatif ABILKACEM

Rabat – The writer Mourad El Khatibi, returns in an interview with MAP to his latest book “Literary translation… the possible and the desired” which deals with the different characteristics of this specialized translation, the challenges faced by professionals in the sector, the Moroccan contribution to the movement of literary translation in the Arab world as well as the means of its promotion.

1. What are the main issues dealt with in your latest book “Literary translation…the possible and the desired”?

The book addresses a series of problems and difficulties encountered by professionals when translating and nevertheless offers solutions to overcome them.

It highlights the importance of translation and its ability to dust off certain forgotten creations, give them new life to reopen the debate on their artistic, intellectual and cultural aspect.

The book also addresses the creative side in translation, which to use the words of the French philosopher Maurice Blanchot, “translation is therefore writing, it is creation and literature in the same way as the text it translates”.

It should be remembered that translation theories have contributed to establishing a set of translation mechanisms and strategies, the usefulness and effectiveness of which have been proven by scientific studies.

A large number of translators use these methods without realizing it or being already aware of them, due to a lack of academic training in the field or their unfamiliarity with the theories of translation in general.

In addition, this book examines the process of translation, taking up a series of studies on poetic translation, novel translation, and “haiku” translation.

Because of the close link existing between philosophy and literature, the work offers in its first chapter, a simplistic theoretical introduction, raised by questions on the translation between the philosophical contribution and the theological interpretation, thanks to a reading in the projects of the two Moroccan philosophers Abdesalam Benabdelali and Taha Abderrahman.
2. Literary translation is a specialized genre of translation. What are its characteristics and its difficulties?

Translation is of great importance as it is fraught with difficulties. It plays a cultural, social, political and civilizational role and contributes to dialogue in various fields, particularly those related to knowledge, politics and diplomacy.

However, its difficulty is mainly reflected at the linguistic level, characterized by a complexity that is difficult to solve.

For Professor Abdeslam Benabdelali, despite these obstacles, translation is an exercise within reach. “It is an enrichment of meaning and language opening up new possibilities.”

Moreover, literary translation is quite demanding, since its difficulties go beyond construction, to touch on creation. This is how the challenge of the literary translator can be summed up in his ability to preserve the aesthetic elements of the original text, taking into account the cultural specificities of the two languages.

Emphasizing to this effect that literary translation encompasses poetry, narrative, history and drama, written in a foreign language. Its difficulty lies in its creativity, which takes symbolism, metaphor and, at other times, ambiguity as its essence.

The German philosopher Nietzsche explains that each word, each designation, each concept was first a metaphor, a kind of artistic creation.

Literary translation is determined on several levels and in different forms, which encompass cultural, linguistic and construction challenges of the text to be translated. All these levels are convergent, interrelated and inseparable. They are essential as a feature of the original text. However, the translation process must be accompanied by knowledge of the important theories in the matter to overcome the difficulties encountered.

This is illustrated, for example, by the German philosopher, Walter Benjamin, who affirms that the literary text would be “translated” into two new forms which invent two languages, modifying the initial relationship between language and its content. In doing so, the translator contributes to the creative effort of the author, reproducing all the content of the original text, preserving its literary value and its acceptability by the reader of the target language, which requires a thorough knowledge of history. literature and culture of the source language and the target language.
3. Some find it difficult to understand international literary works translated into Arabic as if they are hastily translated into soulless paragraphs. What do you think?

Some creative texts are translated to the same degree as general texts, except for questions related to their cultural context, their creative specificity and the preservation of metaphorical and aesthetic characteristics.

Indeed, such laxity, based on a literal translation, results in texts that are unstructured, damaged and stripped of their spirit and aesthetics, one of the important characteristics of creative text.

4. To have competent translators, academic training remains an essential step. In your opinion, do Moroccan university institutions offer qualifying training in the field of literary translation?

I do not believe. There may be some individual initiatives, literary translation, launched by academics, who invite their students to engage in a translation project of a novel or a poetic collection. These initiatives often come from literary scholars or generally passionate about literary translation.

Thus, greater attention should be paid to literary translation of creative works during the academic year, without neglecting the teaching of theories.

5. How do you assess the contribution of Moroccans to the literary translation movement in the Arab world, especially since many believe that these are essentially individual initiatives, generally based on market demand? What do you propose to advance this contribution?

The contribution of Moroccan translators to the literary translation movement in the Arab world should be commended. These are individual initiatives motivated by the passion of the translator himself, by the request of the original author or, in some cases, by the publishing house.

However, in order to promote this contribution, it is necessary to regroup these individual works which are dispersed, at the level of a public institution specialized in translation, while placing at its disposal the necessary material and human resources, in addition to a program annual.

I also believe that it is important to work on a translation project to promote everyone's work. According to Professor Benabdellah, translation enlivens the text, therefore greater importance should be given to translation in Morocco, including that relating to literature.