Omschrijving
The Pillow Book is a collection of anecdotes and personal reflections on life in the Japanese royal court composed around the turn of the 11th century by a woman known as Sei Shonagon. Its lyrical style and compelling images have captured the imagination of readers worldwide.
Admirably rich in comment yet concise in treatment, this study of more than forty translations of a single passage from the Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon will engage and delight anyone who has an interest in translation and world literature. Translations of classical Japanese texts have had enormous impact on English and other European literatures, yet, outside of Japan, the classical Japanese language is studied only by a handful of specialists. With precision and clarity, this work unveils the complexities involved in the translation of that rare and beautiful language. - Sonja Arntzen, University of Toronto This fascinating collection offers a unique resource for courses in translation, in women's writing, and in East/West studies, and it is also a pleasure to read in itself: a gallery of reflections and refractions of Sei Shonagon's masterpiece through a kaleidoscopic array of translations across time, space, and culture. - David Damrosch, Harvard University
Valerie Henitiuk is senior lecturer at the University of East Anglia and director of the British Centre for Literary Translation. She is the author of Embodied Boundaries (2007, Gateway Press, Madrid) and co-editor of One Step towards the Sun (2010, Rupantar, India).