Kathleen Zhou
on translating Amélie Nothomb
I translated this snipped of Amélie Nothomb’s autobiographical novel Métaphysique des tubes for a French-to-English translation course I audited while abroad in Lyon, France. I remember this particular excerpt fondly for two reasons: a) as one of the first pieces I worked on, it required Google Translate every third word or so, which was a useful ego check, and b) Nothomb’s irreverent aside masks a deeper understanding of the power of language. Language is a crude tool to communicate indescribable meanings. To name something is to recognize it (and its existence), but also to depict a whole, complex system of emotions (kinship, love, disdain, etc). This excerpt captures both that crudeness and complexity of language.
about the author
Amélie Nothomb is a Belgian writer who works in French prose. Growing up, she lived in Japan, China, Bangladesh, and Myanmar. Stylistically, her writing is at the crossroads of medieval Japanese literature and Western literature. Principal themes in her work are the human condition and the role of the writer in a story. Some of her works, including Métaphysique des Tubes, feature an autobiographical element with the narrator as the principal character. She has received numerous awards and recognitions for her works, including the Grand Prix du Roman from the Academie Française and an appointment to the Belgian Royal Academy of French Language and Literature.
about the translator
Kathleen Zhou is a senior in the Wharton School and regrets it only 40% of the time.
