The Politics of Representation: Gender, Caste, and Power in Translated Gujarati Novels

Abstract

Translation has never been devoid of power politics. Those civilizations that were in power made sure that their culture and way of life were proved superior over others. For imposing this power politics over other cultures and civilizations, they used translation to a great extent. Due to this political nature in the selection of the source texts to be translated into target texts, the process of translation has been condemned as ‘treachery,’ and translators were regarded as ‘traitors.’ It was also due to this viewpoint that the process of literary translation was considered inferior to that of creative writing. Nevertheless, the use of translation to impose power politics was a recurrent phenomenon throughout the history of colonization. However, the recent trend of literary translation of selected Indian literary works into English sets a narrative of ‘showing Indian culture and way of life in a regressive manner.’ The present research paper focuses on the selected Gujarati fictions (novels) in English translation with this set narrative. The selected Gujarati novels into English translation include: Joseph Mecwan’s Angaliyat translated as Angaliyat - The Stepchild by Rita Kothari, Nandshakar Mehta’s Karan Ghelo translated as Karan Ghelo – Gujarat’s Last Rajput King by Tulsi Vatsal and Aban Mukherji, and Kundanika Kapadiya’s Sat Pagala Akashma translated as Seven Steps in the Sky by Kunjbala and William Anthony. It is interesting that translators chose such Gujarati novels that show regression, partiality, and mistreatment of female and weaker sections of society. It is also interesting that these translations were sponsored and published by renowned national and international publications.