Whither Translation? An Interview with Chelva Kanaganayakam

Abstract

What follows is the transcript of an informal interview conducted by Prof. Halpé with Prof. Kanaganayakam in his office at the University of Toronto, October 2011. The conversation took place in preparation for the panel “Translation in Sri Lankan Conflict Literature: Challenges, Opportunities and Implications” at the MLA (2013). It provides an overview of Prof. Kanaganayakam's trajectory as a translator of Sri Lankan Tamil literature into English, and deals with issues in translation in Sri Lankan literature in Tamil and Sinhala, and Sri Lankan anglophone literature.