From Polyphony to "Dual Authorship": Transfictional Voices in Benden’iz James Joyce

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the role of the fictional translator and reader in Benden’iz James Joyce [It is Me, James Joyce], a transfictional novel penned by Fuat Sevimay as a paratextual commentary on Joyce’s oeuvre. Drawing on the Bakhtinian conception of polyphony, the study first notes that the polyphonic discourse in the novel provides not only the fictional translator but also the fictional reader with a discernible voice, which carries equal weight as Joyce’s own literary voice. Second, the study argues that the concept of “dual authorship” as used by Sevimay serves to indicate significant ethical implications within the field of Translation Studies. Third, the study draws on Roland Barthes’s concept of the “death of the author” in order to explore how Sevimay’s utilization of “Reader-God” may reveal his conception of translatorial agency. The study concludes that transfiction endows translators with a fertile ground through which they can showcase their paratextual and extratextual visibility, thereby emphasizing their agency. Ultimately, the study suggests that transfictional narratives crafted by translators constitute part of translators’ archives that constitute an integral part of microhistorical research within translator studies.

Keywords

• Transfiction
• polyphony
• translator’s voice
• translator’s microhistory
• Benden’iz James Joyce

Çokseslilikten “Çifteyazarlığa”: Benden’iz James Joyce Adlı Eserde Çevirikurgusal Sesler

Abstract

Bu çalışma, Fuat Sevimay tarafından yazılan ve Joyce’un yapıtlarına yanmetinsel bir bakış açısı getiren Benden’iz James Joyce adlı eserde kurgulanan çevirmen ve okurun rolünü araştırmayı amaçlamaktadır. Bakhtin’in çokseslilik kavramından yola çıkan çalışma, romandaki çoksesli söylem sayesinde kurgulanan çevirmen ve okurun, Joyce’un yazınsal sesi ile eşit derecede önem taşıyan bir görünürlüğe sahip olduğunu vurgulamaktadır. Çalışma, ayrıca, romanda kullanılan “çifteyazar” kavramının çeviribilim alanında önemli etik çıkarımlara ışık tutabileceğini belirtmektedir. Roland Barthes’ın “yazarın ölümü” anlayışından yararlanan çalışmada, Sevimay’ın odak noktasını oluşturan “Tanrı-Okur” kavramının çevirmenin eyleyici rolüne ışık tutabileceği vurgulanmaktadır. Çalışma, çevirikurgu eserlerin çevirmenlere yanmetinsel ve metindışı görünürlüklerini sergileyebilecekleri verimli bir zemin hazırladığını ve çevirmenlerin eyleyici rolünü ön plana çıkardığını belirtmektedir. Sonuç olarak, çalışma, çevirmenler tarafından oluşturulan çevirikurgu anlatıların, mikro-tarihsel çevirmen araştırmalarının ayrılmaz bir parçasını oluşturan çevirmen arşivlerine dâhil edilebileceğini ortaya koymaktadır.

Keywords

• Transfiction
• polyphony
• translator’s voice
• translator’s microhistory
• Benden’iz James Joyce

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