Research day – The reception of Belgian literatures in the German context (1945-present)

Description

How well do we actually know Belgium - a country with which Germany shares a national border? Not particularly well, according to studies. Belgian authors such as Amélie Nothomb or Georges Simenon are also often attributed to France. As a multilingual country, Belgium offers a wealth of literary works in French, Dutch and German, some of which do not find their way to Germany. Cultural and historical links between the two neighbouring countries also play an important role in the reception of Belgian literature in the German context. This is where the research day comes in and examines the functioning of Belgian-German cultural contacts using the medium of literary translation, including the various Belgian source languages.

The research day is divided into three parts: 1) The conceptual first part centres on Belgium as a complex object of an interdisciplinary focus within the framework of cultural translation processes. Possibilities for further research on the problem of Belgian-German literary translation will be presented, which may also be relevant for multilingual Europe. 2) In the specific second part, experts from Belgium and Germany will present current research on Belgian literatures in the German context. This is subdivided into the reception of francophone and Flemish Belgian literature. 3) Finally, the third part looks at Belgian-German translation in practice. A translation workshop with literary translator Bettina Bach will examine how "Belgium" can be translated into the German context. The programme concludes with a bilingual reading by the Flemish author Fikry El Azzouzi and his translator Ilja Braun.

Period	17 Nov 2023
Event type	Conference
Location	Düsseldorf, Germany, North Rhine-WestphaliaShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International