Hi Yoshie,
Thanks for the French original and your translation of it, which does seem to make Han's translation the more accurate, at least in terms of following the structure of the original wording.
Regards,
Kevin.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: critical.montages@xxxxxxxxx
> Sent: Fri, 18 Jul 2008 08:53:45 -0400
> To: foucault-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [Foucault-L] translation question
>
> On Fri, Jul 18, 2008 at 6:38 AM, Kevin Turner <kevin.turner@xxxxxxxxx>
> wrote:
>> I have a query concerning a translation in "The Use of Pleasure."
>>
>> In the English translation, Foucault states that what he planned was
>> 'a history of the experience of sexuality' (UP: 4).
>>
>> In Beatrice Han's discussion of this text in "Foucault's Critical
>> Project,"
>> she modifies the translation so that it states that what Foucault
>> planned was 'a history of sexuality as an experience' (Han, 2002: 153).
>>
>> This may seem like a subtle difference but I think a lot hangs on
>> whether Foucault is understood to be doing "a history of the experience
>> of sexuality" or "a history of sexuality as an experience."
>>
>> Thoughts on which is the better translation, or whether both
>> translations are legitimate, or which translation best captures what
>> Foucault did, etc. would be most welcome.
>
> The most faithful translation (in the sense of following the structure
> of the original wording -- "une histoire de la sexualité comme
> expérience"* -- closely) may be "a history of sexuality as
> experience."
> Beatrice Han's way of putting it may help problematize the idea of
> "experience" as well as that of "sexuality" more sharply than Robert
> Hurley's.
>
> * "II s'agissait en somme de voir comment, dans les sociétés
> occidentales modernes, une « expérience » s'était constituée, telle
> que les individus ont eu à se reconnaître comme sujets d'une «
> sexualité », qui ouvre sur des domaines de connaissance très divers et
> qui s'articule sur un système de règles et de contraintes. Le projet
> était donc d'une histoire de la sexualité comme expérience - si on
> entend par expérience la corrélation, dans une culture, entre domaines
> de savoir, types de normativité et formes de subjectivité" (Le Souci
> de Soi, Gallimard, 1984, p. 10).
>
> Yoshie
>
> _______________________________________________
> Foucault-L mailing list
Thanks for the French original and your translation of it, which does seem to make Han's translation the more accurate, at least in terms of following the structure of the original wording.
Regards,
Kevin.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: critical.montages@xxxxxxxxx
> Sent: Fri, 18 Jul 2008 08:53:45 -0400
> To: foucault-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [Foucault-L] translation question
>
> On Fri, Jul 18, 2008 at 6:38 AM, Kevin Turner <kevin.turner@xxxxxxxxx>
> wrote:
>> I have a query concerning a translation in "The Use of Pleasure."
>>
>> In the English translation, Foucault states that what he planned was
>> 'a history of the experience of sexuality' (UP: 4).
>>
>> In Beatrice Han's discussion of this text in "Foucault's Critical
>> Project,"
>> she modifies the translation so that it states that what Foucault
>> planned was 'a history of sexuality as an experience' (Han, 2002: 153).
>>
>> This may seem like a subtle difference but I think a lot hangs on
>> whether Foucault is understood to be doing "a history of the experience
>> of sexuality" or "a history of sexuality as an experience."
>>
>> Thoughts on which is the better translation, or whether both
>> translations are legitimate, or which translation best captures what
>> Foucault did, etc. would be most welcome.
>
> The most faithful translation (in the sense of following the structure
> of the original wording -- "une histoire de la sexualité comme
> expérience"* -- closely) may be "a history of sexuality as
> experience."
> Beatrice Han's way of putting it may help problematize the idea of
> "experience" as well as that of "sexuality" more sharply than Robert
> Hurley's.
>
> * "II s'agissait en somme de voir comment, dans les sociétés
> occidentales modernes, une « expérience » s'était constituée, telle
> que les individus ont eu à se reconnaître comme sujets d'une «
> sexualité », qui ouvre sur des domaines de connaissance très divers et
> qui s'articule sur un système de règles et de contraintes. Le projet
> était donc d'une histoire de la sexualité comme expérience - si on
> entend par expérience la corrélation, dans une culture, entre domaines
> de savoir, types de normativité et formes de subjectivité" (Le Souci
> de Soi, Gallimard, 1984, p. 10).
>
> Yoshie
>
> _______________________________________________
> Foucault-L mailing list