The ‘solitary mallard’: On Sebald and translation

Using theories of translation, this essay defines and distinguishes between the multiple levels of translation in W. G. Sebald’s fictional works and examines how they present different challenges to the translator. I shall begin by discussing problems of textual translation such as Sebald’s syntax, style, tone and deployment of specialized terminology. I shall then discuss questions of intra- and intertextual translation, and the complicating factor of Sebald’s use of intermediality. Third, I shall consider the issue of metaphorical translation, conceptualized as the root of representation, because it is the overarching concern of all Sebald’s writing. Also using comments made by Sebald’s translators and his own changes and ‘corrections’ to their translations, this essay considers how these levels of translation further elucidate both the specificity of Sebald’s poetics and the particularity of the literary discourse to enact, thematize and reflect upon processes of translation that occur when capturing experience in writing.