post-colonial_translation

Chapter 8
Shifting grounds of
exchange
B.M. Srikantaiah and Kannada
translation
Vanamala Viswanatha and Sherry Simon
Like other forms of cultural traffic which follow in the wake of
colonial contact, translations are objects of suspicion. As vehicles
of colonial influence, as purveyors of foreign novelty to the
metropolis, they travel the routes opened by conquest. But they also
enter into relations of transfer whose results are not entirely
predictable. It is because they are products of the interaction between
cultures of unequal power, bearing the weight of shifting terms of
exchange, that translations provide an especially revealing entry
point into the dynamics of cultural identity-formation in the colonial
and post-colonial contexts.
This chapter will highlight the work of writer/translator B.M.
Srikantaiah (1884–1946). We want to look at his work with several
views in mind: to understand the ways in which translation has
contributed to the specific history of Kannada literature (in
comparison with the experiences of Western literary cultures, as well
as of other Indian literatures such as Hindi and Bengali, for instance),
to consider more generally the way translations can enrich – or impede
– the development of a literary identity, and to investigate the
ideological grounds which condition the production and reception
of translations. What are the operative political and cultural forces
which, in specific contexts, determine the value given to translations
What kinds of power can translations exercise While translations
during the colonial period are often considered to be wholly derivative
forms of writing whose impact was largely negative, the work and
influence of B.M. Srikantaiah suggests a much more complex and
productive role for translations.