On the virtuality of translation in Orientalism

Abstract

The relationship between translation and Orientalism is usually reduced to a binary distinction in which the Orient is either domesticated or foreignized in translation. In fact, translation in the context of Orientalism entails a more complex problem of representation that involves the positioning of agency and the reversal of power between Orientalists and local scholars. In order to offer an explanation of such a relationship, this article borrows from Edward W. Said the notions of the inside/outside paradox and “sufficiency” in Orientalist representation. Accordingly, translation in Orientalism is seen as the process of virtualization – it seeks to produce a version that is endowed with sufficient “virtue” to represent, or even replace, the original. The term “virtual” used in this article combines three senses derived from its etymology – power, virtue and potentiality. These three senses are seen as joining forces at work in the Orientalist translation. Virtuality also accounts for the manipulation that occurs when local scholars “translate back”, by pointing out the paradox they encounter when facing the challenge of representing themselves through translation. The translation of the Sanskrit drama Śakuntalā in nineteenth-century Europe will be discussed as a case of the virtualization process in Orientalist translation.