Emily Apter
Against World Literature: On the Politics of Untranslatability, argues for a rethinking of comparative literature focusing on the problems that emerge when large-scale paradigms of literary studies ignore the politics of the â€œUntranslatableâ€â€”the realm of those words that are continually retranslated, mistranslated, transferred from language to language, or especially resistant to substitution.,In the place of â€œWorld Literatureâ€â€”a dominant paradigm in the humanities, one grounded in market-driven notions of readability and universal appealâ€”Apter proposes a plurality of â€œworld literaturesâ€ oriented around philosophical concepts and geopolitical pressure points. The history and theory of the language that constructs World Literature is critically examined with a special focus on ,Weltliteratur,, literary world systems, narrative ecosystems, language borders and checkpoints, theologies of translation, and planetary devolution in a book set to revolutionize the discipline of comparative literature.
Philosophy,Theory,Philosophy,Nonfiction,Criticism,Literary Criticism,Humanities,Language,Politics,Literature,Literature,American,Criticism,Cultural
Against World Literature: On the Politics of Untranslatability