‘Ryght as it is ymad in Fraunce’: Franco-English Poetic Translation(s), 1350-1550

St. Hilda’s College, University of Oxford, Saturday, 20 March 2010

Abstracts for papers are invited for a one-day colloquium on the translation of French poetry into English in the later Middle Ages, co-hosted by Queen’s University, Belfast and the University of Oxford, to be held on the 20th March 2010 at St. Hilda’s College. The conference will aim to investigate the concept of ‘translation’ between the two vernaculars during this period, taking into account linguistic concerns, but also questions of the bibliographical, cultural and formal shifts which may occur through the practice of translation.

Topics for discussion could include (but are not limited to):

– The translation of poetic form and structure from one language to another

– Precise lexical choices made by a translator or translators

– Translation as physical displacement; the movement of exemplars, manuscripts and books across the channel

– The translation of texts between different or similar codicological formats; e.g. manuscript to print, different manuscript presentations of the same text.

– The contemporary reception and demand for translated texts

– The implication of contemporary political discourses within acts of translation

Proposals for papers of approximately 20 minutes, in either French or English are invited; speakers from all disciplines are most welcome. Please send your proposed title and abstract (max. 300 words) to: liv.robinson@gmail.com and m.neilly@qub.ac.uk by 1st October 2009.

Confirmed conference speakers include Ardis Butterfield (UCL) and Juliette Dor (Université de Liège).