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Women and the Politics of Translation in/of the Middle East. Encounters, dynamics, and Prospects, Date: 2023/10/19 - 2023/10/20, Location: Brussels

Publication date: 2023-11-17

Author:

Lanslots, Inge

Abstract:

Takoua Ben Mohamed (b. 1991) is a young Roman graphic journalist with Tunisian roots. In her works she addresses issues related to migration and human rights. Woman Story (2015), portrays the daily life of a young Muslim woman in Rome who wears a hijab and Sotto il velo (2016, Beneath the hijbab) is an ironic re-interpretation of that same autobiographic depiction. In her early works, Ben Mohamed plays with biases and stereotypes that influence perceptions of the self and the other: whereas her fellow Romans see the hijab as a sign of oppression, it is her claim that wearing a hijab symbolizes her freedom and emancipation. In her more recent graphic narratives, readers note a shift towards a more broader scope: she abandons the format of the short gag strip switching to a longer narrative in which she addresses more current topics. (2020, Another way to Cambodia) and Crescere in Mozambico (2022, Growing up in Mozambique) are reportages on the engagement of activists against human trafficking, modern types of exploitation, and climate change. However, Ben Mohamed continues to write on the topics that originally prompted her authorship. La rivoluzione dei gelsomini (2018, Jasmin Revolution), for instance, is both a reconstruction of her father’s flight to Italy and the journey to their motherland after the Jasmin Revolution. Il mio migliore amico è fascista (2021, My best friend is a fascist) describes how she had to share a classroom with a Roman neofascist bully. The present paper explores a young Muslim graphic journalist’s transnational take on migration and human rights. Blurring fact and fiction in her typical child-like, economical style, she “translates” the identity of “the other” and her/his/their representation (Meneses 2014) to a western audience. Central in my approach to the representation of migration is the concept of cultural transfer, as defined by Lieven D’hulst (2012) within Translation Studies. In her graphic narratives, Ben Mohamed visualizes cultural spheres which enhance a societal dialogue on human migration overtaking binaries and stereotypes. Inge Lanslots is associate professor at KU Leuven (Translation Studies) of Italian culture and Translation Studies. Her most recent research focuses mainly on the representation of cultural memory, such as migration, in contemporary narratives, which range from literary texts over (documentary) film to comics-graphic novels and Street Art. She is co-editor of the Moving Texts/Testi mobili-series (Peter Lang). (inge.lanslots@kuleuven.be ; http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9369-4958) Cited works Ben Mohamed, T. (2015) Woman Story. Olbia: Taphros Editrice. (2016) Sotto il velo. Padova: Beccogiallo. (2018) La rivoluzione dei gelsomini. Padova: Beccogiallo. (2020) Un’altra via per la Cambogia. Padova: Beccogiallo. (2021) Il mio migliore amico è fascista. Padova: Beccogiallo. (2022) Crescere in Mozambico. Padova: Beccogiallo. D’hulst, L. (2012) “(Re)locating translation history: From assumed translation to assumed transfer,” Translation studies, 5-2, p. 139-155. Meneses, J. (2014) “Reconsidering international comics: foreignness, locality, and the third space,” Journal of graphic novels & comics, 5-1, p. 58-69.