Translating Vietnam Practicing the Post-War Art of Literary Translation

Abstract

Abstract. This essay argues for the development of a consensus regarding best practices in the field of literary translation, with particular emphasis on the translation of Vietnamese texts into English. After reviewing the problems that would need to be understood on the way to such a consensus, the essay looks at three particular areas in which it might be applied: translation theory, building institutions, and, finally, the use of literary translation to promote cross-cultural understanding in the context of globalization. Drawing on his experience as a poet, translator, co-translator, and editorial consultant at Nhà xuất bản Thế Giới, as well as the translation theorists Edith Grossman and David Bellos, the author attempts to frame a discussion of literary translation that will be helpful to authors and translators of literary texts, with the ultimate beneficiaries of our heightened understanding of translation being the readers for whom such texts are produced.

Keywords: Translation; Literature; Vietnam; Vietnam Studies.