Against World Literature: On the Politics of Untranslatability

By Emily Apter

Book Overview

Against World Literature: On the Politics of Untranslatability argues for a rethinking of comparative literature focusing on the problems that emerge when large-scale paradigms of literary studies ignore the politics of the "Untranslatable"--the realm of those words that are continually retranslated, mistranslated, transferred from language to language, or especially resistant to substitution. In the place of "World Literature"--a dominant paradigm in the humanities, one grounded in market-driven notions of readability and universal appeal--Apter proposes a plurality of "world literatures" oriented around philosophical concepts and geopolitical pressure points. The history and theory of the language that constructs World Literature is critically examined with a special focus on Weltliteratur , literary world systems, narrative ecosystems, language borders and checkpoints, theologies of translation, and planetary devolution in a book set to revolutionize the discipline of comparative literature.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1844679705
• ISBN13: 9781844679706
• Release Date: April 2013
• Publisher: Verso
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.1" x 9.2"