Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies

SUBMITINFORMATION
EnglishTürkçe

Research Article


DOI :10.26650/LITERA2020-0094   IUP :10.26650/LITERA2020-0094    Full Text (PDF)

A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House

Safiye Gül Avcı Solmaz

The sociology of translation provides a methodology which enables the researcher to focus on the agents who produce a translation product and their position-taking in the field by considering the interrelationships between the “field”, “habitus” and “capitals”. The approach adopted in the sociology of translation has been substantially shaped by the sociological concepts developed by Pierre Bourdieu. Habitus, which is one of the most important concepts in this respect, provides an important tool to researchers in terms of studying the agents and their roles in the field. This study examines the influence of the translational agents on the circulation of women-centred plays with a feminist perspective. Since theatre is a performing art which brings linguistic and non-linguistic elements together, drama translation also requires many points such as performability, speakability and playability to be taken into account which go beyond the textual and linguistic concerns. Considering this, it is possible to say that a drama translator with a “habitus” structured in the field of theatre will inevitably have an effect on the translation product. Hence, departing from this supposition, the study concentrates on Jale Karabekir’s “professional habitus” through the example of Nora-A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen. Nora-A Doll’s House, which universally questions gender roles, has been translated by different translation agents in Turkey before; however it has been constructed with a feminist dramaturgy for the first time by the founder and general art director of Tiyatro Boyalı Kuş Karabekir. Karabekir has also made the play available to a larger number of women audiences thanks to the performance carried out in different cities in Turkey.

Keywords: The sociology of translation, habitus, drama translation, feminist theatre, Nora-A Doll’s House
DOI :10.26650/LITERA2020-0094   IUP :10.26650/LITERA2020-0094    Full Text (PDF)

Nora-Bir Bebek Evi’ne Feminist Bir Yorum

Safiye Gül Avcı Solmaz

Çeviri sosyolojisi, bir çeviri ürününün ortaya çıkmasında rol oynayan eyleyicilerin alandaki konum almalarını “alan”, “habitus” ve “sermayeler” ilişkiselliği içinde irdelemeyi sağlayan bir metodoloji sunar. Çeviri sosyolojisinin ortaya koyduğu bu yaklaşım, büyük oranda Pierre Bourdieu’nün sosyolojik kavramlarıyla şekillenmiştir. Bu kavramlar arasında önemli bir yere sahip olan habitus, alandaki eyleyicileri ve oynadıkları rolü anlamak açısından, araştırmacılara katkı sağlamaktadır. Bu çalışma da, tiyatro çevirisi kapsamında, çeviri eyleyicilerinin sahip olduğu “profesyonel habitus”un, kadın merkezli oyunların dolaşımına ve bu oyunların feminist bir bakış açısıyla sahne taşınmasına etkisini irdelemektedir. Dilsel ve dil dışı öğeleri biraraya getiren performansa dayalı bir sanat dalı olarak tiyatro, çeviri aşamasında metin ve dil düzeyinin ötesine uzanan oynanabilirlik, konuşulabilirlik ve sahnelenebilirlik gibi konuları da dikkate almayı gerektirmektedir. Bu açıdan ele alındığında, tiyatro çevirmeninin tiyatro alanında yapılanmış bir “habitus”a sahip olmasının ortaya çıkacak çeviri ürününü etkilediğini söylemek mümkündür. Buradan hareketle, çalışmada, Henrik Ibsen tarafından kaleme alınan Nora-Bir Bebek Evi özelinde ve buradan yola çıkarak yapılan irdelemede, Jale Karabekir’in “profesyonel habitusuna” odaklanılmaktadır. Toplumsal cinsiyet rollerinin evrensel olarak sorgulandığı Nora-Bir Bebek Evi, Türkiye’de daha önce farklı çeviri eyleyicileri tarafından çevrilmiş; ancak feminist tiyatro topluluğu Tiyatro Boyalı Kuş’un kurucusu ve genel sanat yönetmeni olan Karabekir tarafından ilk defa feminist dramaturgiyle sahneye taşınmıştır. Karabekir aynı zamanda benimsemiş olduğu feminist duruşun bir sonucu olarak Türkiye’nin farklı şehirlerinde yaptığı gösterimlerle oyunun daha geniş bir kadın kitlesine ulaşmasını da sağlamıştır.

Keywords: Çeviri sosyolojisi, habitus, tiyatro çevirisi, feminist tiyatro, NoraBir Bebek Evi

EXTENDED ABSTRACT


Nora-A Doll’s House written by the Norwegian author Henrik Ibsen in 1879 is a universal play which centres on women’s problems. In the play, Nora represents the woman who is dominated by patriarchy and treated like “a doll” by her father when single and by her husband when married. However, although subjected to the domestic sphere and experiencing oppression due to her sex, Nora does not yield to the demands and pressure of patriarchy, and at the end of the play, she leaves “the doll’s house” to set out on a new life of her own. The final stage is of great importance in terms of feminist thought as it represents women’s emancipation from the domestic sphere and the patriarchal burden attributed to her. 

The play has received great attention all over the world since the day it was released, and has been translated into various languages and staged in many countries. In Turkey, the play was first translated and staged in the municipal theatre of İstanbul in 1929. Since then, it has also been translated by different translators, and staged in state and municipal theatres. The last translational agent of the play is Jale Karabekir, who is the founder and general art director of the Tiyatro Boyalı Kuş. 

As an alternative feminist theatre enterprise, the Tiyatro Boyalı Kuş won the Ibsen Scholarship Awards in 2009 for its project Nora. The project comprised the Kurdish translation of the play and bringing a feminist comtemporary perspective to it. To this end, the play was first retranslated into Turkish by Jale Karabekir and Feride Eralp, and then their translation was rendered into Kurdish by Aydın Orak. Their version was staged in various eastern cities in Turkey as well as the 17th International Istanbul Theatre Festival. 

Departing from the example of the Nora project and focusing on Jale Karabekir as a feminist dramaturgist and translational agent, the present study seeks to understand and explore the influence of “professional habitus” on the translation and circulation of women-centred theatre plays. As Christiene Zurbach (2009) emphasizes “[m]ore studies are needed […] especially on the position of the translator as participant in the artistic practice of the theatre and as theatrical specialist” (p. 280). Since theatre is a performing art which brings linguistic and non-linguistic elements together, drama translation also requires many points such as performability, speakability and playability to be taken into account which go beyond the textual and linguistic concerns. Considering this, it goes without saying that the drama translator needs to have qualifications and knowledge in the field of theatre, and it is supposed that the translator’s experiences in the field have a significant effect on the circulation and reception of the plays.  

Considering all these, in order to seek the traces of relationality in the field of theatre and drama translation, and the effects of “professional habitus” on drama translation, the study first provides general information about the sociology of translation and Bourdieusian concepts. In the second part, definitions and important concepts about theatre, drama translation and feminist theatre are covered. In the third part, after introducing Nora-A Doll’s House and giving short information about its history in Turkey, the study benefits from Jale Karabekir’s biography, various interviews she has given on different platforms and a personal e-mail interview based on three open-ended questions with a view to shedding light on her “professional habitus”. The study suggests that through her “structured” and “structuring” “professional habitus” in the field of theatre, Karabekir plays a key role in bringing a feminist perspective to women-centred plays which were previously staged in traditional theatre forms as well as contributing to establishing “feminist theatre habitus” among the Turkish audience.


PDF View

References

  • Aaltonen, S. (1995). Translating plays or baking apple pies: a functional approach to the study of drama translation. In M. Snell-Hornby, Z. Jettmarová & K. Kaindl (Ed.), Translation as intercultural communication (p. 89-97). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. google scholar
  • _____. (2000). Time-Sharing on stage: Drama translation in theatre and society. Great Britain: Multilingual Matters. google scholar
  • And, M. (2015). Başlangıcından 1983’e Türk tiyatrosu tarihi. İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları. google scholar
  • Bassnett, S. & Lefevere, A. (1990). Translation, history, culture. London and Newyork: Pinter Publishers. google scholar
  • Bassnett, S. (1991). Translating for the theatre: The case against performability. TRR, 4(1), 99-111. google scholar
  • _____. (1981). Ways through the labyrinth: Strategies and methods for translating theatre texts. In T. Hermans (Ed.), The manipulation of literature (p. 87-102). London: New York. google scholar
  • Boal, A. (2011). Ezilenlerin tiyatrosu. (N. Hasgül, Çev.). İstanbul: Boğaziçi Üniversitesi Yayınevi. google scholar
  • Bogenç Demirel, E. (2014). Çevirinin Bourdieu sosyolojisiyle yapılanan yüzü. Cogito: Bourdieu içinde (s. 402-416). İstanbul: Yapı Kredi Yayınları. google scholar
  • Bourdieu, P. & Wacquant, L. (2014). Düşünümsel bir antropoloji için cevaplar. (N. Ökten, Çev.). İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları. google scholar
  • Bourdieu, P. (1995). Pratik nedenler. Eylem kuramı üzerine. (H. Tufan, Çev.). İstanbul: Kesit Yayıncılık. google scholar
  • _____. (2015). Bilimin toplumsal kullanımları: Bilimsel alanın klinik bir sosyolojisi için. (L. Ünsaldı, Çev.). Ankara: Heretik Yayıncılık. google scholar
  • Çakmak, B. (2013). Batı’da feminist tiyatronun oluşum süreci. Yedi: Sanat, Tasarım ve Bilim Dergisi, 9, 23-33. google scholar
  • Canbaz, Ç. (2018). Tanzimat’tan Meşrutiyet’e Türk tiyatrosunda kadın temsili. Ö. Belkıs ve D. Kankaytsın (Der.), Sanatın gölgedeki kadınları içinde (s. 258-272). İstanbul: Ayrıntı Yayınları. Case, S. (1998). Feminism and theatre. London: MacMillan. google scholar
  • Chesterman, A. (2006). Questions in the sociology of translation. In J. F. Duarte, A. A. Rossa & T. Seruya (Ed.), Translation studies at the interface of disciplines (p. 9-27). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. google scholar
  • _____. (2007). Bridge concepts in translation sociology. In M. Wolf & A. Fukari (Ed.), Constructing a sociology of translation (p. 171-187). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. google scholar
  • Çubukçu, M. (2019). “Nora, bir bebek evi” oyununun ilk altmış yılının sahnelenme tarihçesi. Görünüm, 7, 49-63. google scholar
  • Düzgün, Ş. (2018). A cultural materialist approach to gender relations in Ibsen’s a doll’s house. Hacettepe Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi, 35(2), 85-94. google scholar
  • Erkazancı Durmuş, H. (2020). Türk tiyatro alanında çevirinin rolü ve Dostlar Tiyatrosunun konumu. İstanbul: HiperYayın. google scholar
  • Ertuğrul, M. (1956). Henrik Ibsen. Devlet Tiyatorusu Aylık Sanat Dergisi, 22, 25-28. google scholar
  • Gostand, R. (1979). Verbal and non-verbal communication: Drama as translation. In O. Zuber (Ed.), The languages of theatre: Problems in translation and transposition of drama (p.1-6). Oxford: Pergomen Press. google scholar
  • Gouanvic, J.-M. (2005). A Bourdieusian theory of translation, or the coincidence of practical instances. The Translator, 11(2), 147-166. google scholar
  • Hale, T. & Upton, C. (2000). Introduction. In C. Upton (Ed.), Moving target theatre translation and cultural relocation (p. 1-13). London ve New York: Routledge. google scholar
  • Haleva, B. (2011). Tiyatro çevirisi bağlamında Bernard-Marıe Koltès oyunlarının Türkiye’deki dolaşımı. (Doktora Tezi). Yıldız Teknik Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, İstanbul. _____. (2012). Çağdaş bir klasik. Bernard-Marie Koltés. İstanbul: Mitos-Boyut Yayınları. google scholar
  • _____. (2014). Disiplinler kavşağında bir durak: Çeviri. İstanbul: Ofis 2005 Yayınevi. google scholar
  • Heilbron, J. & Sapiro, G. (2007). Outline for a sociology of translation. In M. Wolf & A. Fukari (Ed.), Constructing a sociology of translation (p. 93-107). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. Ibsen, H. (1959). Nora bir bebek evi (2. bs). (C. M. Altar, Çev.). İstanbul: Maarif Basımevi. google scholar
  • _____. (1998). Nora bebekevi. (A. S. Ersin, Çev.). Ankara: Kültür Bakanlığı. google scholar
  • _____. (2007). Ibsen oyunları - iki. Nora bir bebek evi. Hedda Gabler. Rosmersholm. (B. Rovesti ve B. Güçbilmez, Çev.). Ankara: Deniz Kitabevi. google scholar
  • _____. (2011). Toplu oyunları 2. Nora, bir bebek evi. Hedda Gabler. (T. Y. Öğüt, Çev.). İstanbul: Mitos-Boyut Yayınları. google scholar
  • _____. (2012). Bir bebek evi (Nora). (J. Karabekir ve F. Eralp, Çev.). İstanbul: Agora Kitaplığı.Inghilleri, M. (2005). The sociology of Bourdieu and the construction of the ‘object’ in translation and ınterpreting studies. The Translator, 11(2), 125-145. google scholar
  • ______. (2014). Bourdieu’s habitus and Dewey’s habits: Complementary views of the social? In G. M. Vorderobermeier (Ed.), Remapping habitus in translation studies (p. 185-201). Amsterdam-New York: Rodopi Publishing. google scholar
  • Jenkins, R. (1992).Key sociologists- Pierre Bourdieu. London-New York: Routledge. google scholar
  • Kankaytsın, D. (2018). Türk modernleşmesi odağında Afife’den Macide’ye kadın oyuncu. Ö. Belkıs ve D. Kankaytsın (Der.), Sanatın gölgedeki kadınları içinde (s. 272-287).İstanbul: Ayrıntı Yayınları. google scholar
  • Mateo, M. (1995). Constraints and possibilities of performance elements in drama translation. Perspectives, 3(1), 21-33. google scholar
  • _____. (1995). Translation strategies and reception of drama performances: A mutual ınfluence. In M. Snell-Hornby, Z. Jettmarová & K. Kaindl (Ed.), Translation as intercultural communication (p. 99-110). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. google scholar
  • Meylaerts, R. (2008). Translators and their norms: towards a sociological construction of the ındividual. In A. Pym, M. Shlesinger & D. Simeoni (Ed.), Beyond descriptive translation studies: investigations in homage to Gideon Toury (p. 91-102). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. google scholar
  • Niranjana, T. (1992). Sitting translation. history, poststructuralism and the colonial context. Berkeley, Los Angeles and Oxford: Oxford University Press. google scholar
  • Nutku, Ö. (1999). Atatürk ve Cumhuriyet tiyatrosu. İstanbul: Özgür Yayınları. google scholar
  • _____. (2020). Oyun çevirilerinde konuşma dilinin önemi ve bir model: Göktaşı. Kolektif, Dikmen Gürün’e yazılar içinde (s. 429-438). İstanbul: Doğan Kitap. google scholar
  • Pavis, P. (1990). Le théâtre au croisement des cultures. Paris: Librairie José Corti. Savaşkan Gedik, T. (1998). Feminist tiyatro (I). Tiyatro Dergisi,77-78, 50-57. google scholar
  • Sela-Sheffy, R. (2008). The Translator’s personae: Marketing translatorial images as pursuit of capital. Meta LIII,3, 609-622. google scholar
  • Simeoni, D. (1998). The pivotal status of the translator’s habitus. Target, 10(1), 1-39. google scholar
  • Simon, S. (1996). Gender in translation: Cultural identity and the politics of translation. London and New York: Routledge. google scholar
  • Sönmez, A. (2007). İlk dönem amerikan feminist tiyatrosu: o dönüşü. Kültür ve Siyasette Feminist Yaklaşımlar, 2, 168-189. google scholar
  • Şener, S. (1999). Cumhuriyet’in 75. yılında Türk tiyatrosu. İstanbul: Türkiye İş Bankası Kültür Yayınları. google scholar
  • Tahir Gürçağlar, Ş. (2018). Türkiye’de çevirinin politikası ve poetikası 1923-1960. (T. Demirel, Çev.). İstanbul: Türkiye İş Bankası Kültür Yayınları. google scholar
  • Toury, G. (1995). Descriptive translation studies and beyond. Tel Aviv: Porter Institute for Poetics and Semiotics. google scholar
  • Upton, C. (2000). (Ed.). Moving target theatre translation and cultural relocation. London ve New York: Routledge. 2000. google scholar
  • Varlı, G. (2010). Üçüncü tiyatro ve Türkiye’de kadın tiyatroları. (Yüksek Lisans Tezi). Ankara Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Ankara. google scholar
  • Venuti, L. (1995). The translator’s invisibility. A history of translation. London and New York: Routledge. google scholar
  • Wolf, M. (2010). Sociology of translation. In Y. Gambier & L. van Doorslaer (Ed.), Handbook of translation studies volume I (p. 337-342). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. google scholar
  • Zuber, O. (Ed.). (1979). The languages of theatre: Problems in translation and transposition of drama. Oxford: Pergomen Press. google scholar
  • Zurbach, C. (2009). The theatre translator as a cultural agent. A Case Study. In J. Milton & P. Bandia (ed.), Agents of translation (p. 279-298). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. google scholar

Citations

Copy and paste a formatted citation or use one of the options to export in your chosen format


EXPORT



APA

Avcı Solmaz, S.G. (2020). A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House. Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies, 30(2), 719-752. https://doi.org/10.26650/LITERA2020-0094


AMA

Avcı Solmaz S G. A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House. Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies. 2020;30(2):719-752. https://doi.org/10.26650/LITERA2020-0094


ABNT

Avcı Solmaz, S.G. A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House. Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies, [Publisher Location], v. 30, n. 2, p. 719-752, 2020.


Chicago: Author-Date Style

Avcı Solmaz, Safiye Gül,. 2020. “A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House.” Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies 30, no. 2: 719-752. https://doi.org/10.26650/LITERA2020-0094


Chicago: Humanities Style

Avcı Solmaz, Safiye Gül,. “A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House.” Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies 30, no. 2 (Jan. 2021): 719-752. https://doi.org/10.26650/LITERA2020-0094


Harvard: Australian Style

Avcı Solmaz, SG 2020, 'A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House', Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies, vol. 30, no. 2, pp. 719-752, viewed 23 Jan. 2021, https://doi.org/10.26650/LITERA2020-0094


Harvard: Author-Date Style

Avcı Solmaz, S.G. (2020) ‘A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House’, Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies, 30(2), pp. 719-752. https://doi.org/10.26650/LITERA2020-0094 (23 Jan. 2021).


MLA

Avcı Solmaz, Safiye Gül,. “A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House.” Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies, vol. 30, no. 2, 2020, pp. 719-752. [Database Container], https://doi.org/10.26650/LITERA2020-0094


Vancouver

Avcı Solmaz SG. A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House. Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies [Internet]. 23 Jan. 2021 [cited 23 Jan. 2021];30(2):719-752. Available from: https://doi.org/10.26650/LITERA2020-0094 doi: 10.26650/LITERA2020-0094


ISNAD

Avcı Solmaz, SafiyeGül. “A Feminist Perspective to Nora-A Doll’s House”. Litera: Journal of Language, Literature and Culture Studies 30/2 (Jan. 2021): 719-752. https://doi.org/10.26650/LITERA2020-0094



TIMELINE


Submitted03.07.2020
Accepted08.10.2020
Published Online24.12.2020

LICENCE


Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC)

This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon your work non-commercially, and although their new works must also acknowledge you and be non-commercial, they don’t have to license their derivative works on the same terms.


SHARE




Istanbul University Press aims to contribute to the dissemination of ever growing scientific knowledge through publication of high quality scientific journals and books in accordance with the international publishing standards and ethics. Istanbul University Press follows an open access, non-commercial, scholarly publishing.

© Istanbul University 2020. All Rights Reserved