The Translator as a Fictional Character in the Works of Arab Women Writers in Diaspora = شخصية المترجمة في أعمال الكاتبات العربيات في المهجر

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine the way in which the character of the translator is depicted in the works of two Arab women writers in diaspora. Specifically, I argue that the protagonist of Arab Australian novelist Nada Awar Jarrar's Dreams of Water (2007) and that of Arab British novelist Sabiha Al Khemir's The Blue Manuscript (2008) find in their profession as translators fertile grounds for questioning their hyphenated identities. In other words, living in-between cultures and working as translators give Jarrar's Aneesa and Al Khemir's Zohra an opportunity to explore the possibilities/limitations their in-between positions open for them to contribute to founding and maintaining a common ground for cross-cultural exchange and interaction. At the same time, Aneesa and Zohra are aware of the precarious position they occupy as cultural mediators: each protagonist undergoes processes of acculturation and hybridization that ultimately stimulate her to redefine her identity, reexamine her politics of location and negotiate the incongruities of her daily experiences. Their knowledge of their home cultures and their experiences in diaspora alongside their professional position as translators mediate their understanding of seemingly unfathomable fragmented and fractured lived experiences. The two translators in the two novels realize that their identities are as malleable and mutable as the texts they work hard to faithfully render as transparent, lucid and accurate as possible.

“Things” and the Diasporic Self in Mahjoub’s The Carrier and Hammad’s The Parisian

“…Arab writers in diaspora, like Mahjoub and Hammad, have vividly depicted how "things" crucially influence a character's identity which is an important component of his/her selfconcept. This is no surprise since the works of Arab writers in diaspora, as Awad (2012) illustrates, present identities as tentative products of the intersectionality of class, gender, race, religion, political affiliation, and ideological stances; identities become "racialized historical processes" where different geo-political contexts have great effects on them (39). The novels discussed in this paper portray how "Things" are important elements that shape one's diasporic identity and sense of self.…”

“…In other words, the "thing" becomes a part of the established dialogue between the different perceptions of the self: how one perceives oneself and how s/he is perceived by others. Examining novels written by diasporic Arab writers, as Awad (2012) remarks, "enriches our understanding of Arab identity in diaspora as it intersects with issues of immigration, settlement, citizenship and cultural hybridity" (16). The argument of this article is that the objects presented in Mahjoub's The Carrier and Hammad's The Parisian influence the protagonists' self-image and self-esteem; hence, they influence their self-concepts.…”

Arab Literary Representations of London: Cross-Cultural Romances as Social Spaces in Dabbagh’s Out of It and Jarrar’s Dreams of Water

“…When males fail to meet masculine norms, they blame themselves and are portrayed as insecure, worried, weak, fearful of being emasculated, hesitant to display their feelings, alienated, self-hating, and having an identity crisis (ibid). Yousef Awad (2016b) examines how Aneesa"s job as a translator helps her navigate a sense of identity and contends that "the (female) translator, by virtue of her work, is involved in a self-discovery process that takes the form of investigating her relationship with her cultural past, present, and future" (295).…”

Scrutinising the Moon: Randa Jarrar’s “The Lunatic’s Eclipse” Under a Postmodern Lens

“…In his Cartographies of Identities: Resistance, Diaspora, and Trans-cultural Dialogue in the Works of Arab British and Arab American Women Writers, Yousef Awad compares Arab British and Arab American women writers. Awad argues that Arab British writers -share a tendency to foreground and advocate trans-cultural dialogue and cross-ethnic identification strategies‖ (Awad, 2011). This means that they focus on representing the intercultural relationship of Arabs with their host culture.…”