Oct 17, 2020
Online
Mercè Rodoreda: Translating a Catalan Modern Classic, sponsored by the Institut Ramon Llull
Mercè Rodoreda: Translating a Catalan Modern Classic, sponsored by the Institut Ramon Llull
In 2009 Open Letter Books published Death in Spring by Mercè Rodoreda, considered by many to be one of the finest Catalan writers of all times. The English translation, masterfully rendered by Martha Tennent, has been Open Letter’s best-selling work ever since.
Tennent next received an NEA fellowship for her translation of The Selected Stories of Mercè Rodoreda, and she paired with her daughter, Maruxa Relaño, for the translation of two more Rodoreda novels for Open Letter: War, So Much War, and Garden by The Sea. Join the discussion between Open Letter’s publisher Chad Post and translator Martha Tennent about the complexities of translating in a mother-daughter tandem and the experience of rendering into English this classic author who wrote in Catalan and became a best-seller in English.
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Moderator
Chad W. Post is the director of Open Letter Books at the University of Rochester.
Presenter
Martha Tennent translates primarily from Catalan and Spanish, and has published 14 book-length translations. Born in the US, she has lived most of her life in Barcelona; she was Dean of the School of Translation at the University of Vic. Her work has appeared in Epiphany, Two Lines, Words Without Borders, A Public Space, World Literature Today, PEN America, and Review of Contemporary Fiction.