Translating african diasporic literature to brazilian portuguese: the local, the post-colonial and the global

Abstract

The present article presents a brief reflexive synthesis of a relevant aspect raised by recent trends in Translation Studies in their intimate relationship with Literary Studies. Departing from studies from the last decades, which have been showing that translation is not just an interlingual process, but basically, an intercultural activity, this article aims at raising elements for the understanding of how blackness – or the black subject – is translated into different contexts and geographical spaces. In lusophone areas, the issue is full of colonial and postcolonial traits. Focusing on Brazilian Portuguese, we look for answers to questions such as “Which are the implications of translating contemporary African-American Literature from English, with its specific forms of questioning identity, into Brazilian Portuguese?” (or vice-versa), or still, “Which are the assumptions about Afro-descendant Literature in Brazil and in the United States?” Having in mind that such questions are much broader and deep than they actually seem, new questions turn up about the construction of identities in different geographical spaces. Aspects related to the translation of African-American works into Brazilian Portuguese (and vice-versa), as well as political and cultural aspects that shape selection, translation, and reception of translated literature will be central in the discussion.