Literature, power, translation, and Eritrea: in memoriam: Beyene Haile and Isayas Tsegai

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Periodical article

Title:	Literature, power, translation, and Eritrea: in memoriam: Beyene Haile and Isayas Tsegai
Author:	Cantalupo, Charles
Year:	2014
Periodical:	Journal of Eritrean Studies (Asmara)
Volume:	6
Issue:	2
Pages:	1-39
Language:	English
Geographic term:	Eritrea
Subjects:	literature African languages indigenous languages translation
About persons:	Bayana Hayla Isayas Tsegai
Abstract:	In most African countries, literature has often been written in the language of the country's former colonists. By embracing Gikuyu and Kiswahili for his own writings, Kenyan author Ngugi wa Thiong'o set a trend in motion. Eritrea, however, has a longstanding African language literary history, as was recognized by Ngugi wa Thiong'o. The author of this essay discusses why some African writers use European languages for their writing and analyses the question of where Eritrean literature stands in the scheme of things. He also examines the difficulty of translating and how translations of Eritrean literature influence the understanding of the African novel, especially the Eritrean novel. The essay derives from a lecture delivered in 2012 in Asmara and presents the work of Beyene Haile and Isayas Tsegai as prime examples of Eritrean literature. Bibliogr., notes, ref. [ASC Leiden abstract]