The Space Race di Alex Latimer. Traduzione del romanzo di un autore sudafricano.

In the following thesis I present the book The Space Race from South African author Alex Latimer and my translation of some chapters, from English into Italian. Alex Latimer is an illustrator and author based in Cape Town, known mostly for his picture books for children, although his works also appear in magazines and advertisements. The Space Race is his first novel, but it immediately had a good reception amongst readers and critics. The author, his work and his novel The Space Race will be presented in depth in Chapter 1 of the thesis. Then, an overview on the South African fictional production will follow in Chapter 2, focusing mainly on the contemporary trends and trying to understand if and how The Space Race fits. Before presenting my translation and my reflections on the translating process itself, I will outline in Chapter 3 my general approach to the text and its translation, as well as explain the reasons why I chose those specific parts of the book. The original texts and their translations are presented in Chapter 4, preceded by a short introduction to better understand the position of the chapter in the plot and the elements of interests contained in it. A commentary on the translating process will follow in Chapter 5, about problems or just remarks on aspects of interest; also, further elements of complication in the text are described and my solutions presented. The thesis ends with a conclusion on the work done.

"Dar voce a una voce": diversità e rappresentazione nella letteratura young adult. Proposta di traduzione di Gabi, a Girl in Pieces di Isabel Quintero.

In this dissertation, I will present my translation into Italian of several excerpts from Gabi, A Girl in Pieces, a young adult (YA) novel by Mexican-American author Isabel Quintero, along with examining the issues of diversity and representation in YA literature. This study aims to demonstrate the benefits of multicultural literature for young readers and the importance of publishing stories that reflect the diversity of the world we inhabit. The translation of the novel is accompanied by an analysis of its social, cultural, and literary context. The first chapter provides an overview of Chican@ history, literature, and culture, focusing on the concepts of identity and hybridity. The second chapter describes YA literature and its characteristics, outlines its history, and discusses the value of diverse books in the lives of teenage readers. Additionally, it cites relevant studies and statistics proving the dearth of diverse literature for young readers in the United States. The third chapter focuses specifically on the representation of Latin@s and Chican@s in literature for young readers, examining the main stereotypes that have plagued the depiction of this community and the new perspectives offered by Mexican-American YA authors. In the fourth chapter, I introduce Isabel Quintero and her novel Gabi, A Girl in Pieces, analyzing its plot, style, format, and main themes. In the fifth chapter, I provide my translation, which is then analyzed in the sixth and final chapter. The translation commentary details some of the problems I encountered and the strategies I applied. The sixth chapter also includes some observations on the translation of teenage speech, of multilingual texts, and of children’s and YA literature.

Sul sentiero meno battuto: Proposta di traduzione di sei albi illustrati che si allontanano dagli stereotipi sui temi di genere, multiculturalismo e disabilita

This thesis focuses on the translation of six picture books that challenge and subvert – each one in its peculiar way – typical stereotypes found in Children’s Literature. I think that stereotyping is an all-important theme in picture books because these books are the ones that will introduce children to literature and young readers have the right to find in it every kind of model. Showing children a variety of characters that reflects the multiple forms of reality will allow them to choose which kind of person to be. In my opinion, this freedom is much needed especially here, in Italy, in this moment of history. This work also studies the stereotypes that have appeared – and are still present, to some extent – in Children’s Literature, the ways in which they are dangerous for young readers, and how they have changed over time. I centered my research on three major themes that have been subject to stereotyping: race, disability and gender. I searched for the right books to translate paying attention not only to the themes they focused on but also to how they dealt with such themes, the tone of each picture book and, obviously, its quality. The selection resulting from my research reflects a diverse world and a celebration of difference. Before actually translating them, I engaged in a deep analysis of their structures, themes and meanings, so that I would be able to enter the ‘world’ of the book and to understand its ‘secrets’ better. This analysis proved to be fundamental during the translation phase and allowed me to make conscious translation choices that I have explored in the part dedicated to the commentary of the translation.

The languages of postcolonial ireland and their potential for cultural expression

Ireland is a country in which two languages are spoken: English and Irish. This thesis analyzes the historical relationship between the languages, the cultural codes and meanings attached to each of them, as well as how much of the culture of its speakers each is able to carry. Beyond that, the influence the two languages have exercised on one another and their mutual entwinement is taken into closer examination.