Making connections: Latin American literature in China

(Originally posted 4 February 2014)

This academic year I have been co-organising our departmental seminars (www.splas-seminars.com) with a fellow PhD candidate. These seminars give current students a chance to try out their research in an informal setting, usually before a big scary conference, and get constructive feedback. Other weeks we get a external speakers in to share their expertise. I love the opportunity these seminars afford to learn about other aspects of my field that I never usually encounter, but this week’s was a particular joy.

Last Wednesday we welcomed Tianai Wang to the department to talk about the influence of Spanish language literature in translation in her native China. Tianai has recently graduated from the MA in Comparative Literature here at KCL so her presentation was also a homecoming, as staff were certainly very happy to see her back.

What I most enjoyed was the opportunity to learn about a culture that I know shamefully little about and the surprise of how much Latin American literature (my own speciality) has influenced contemporary Chinese writers. Mo Yan, for example, was praised for his ‘hallucinatory realism’ when awarded his Noble Prize in 2012 in much the same way that Gabriel Garcia Márquez was for his ‘magical realism’ upon winning the prize in 1982. Tianai’s presentation therefore gave me a new way of thinking about literature that I am very familiar with, as well as an entrance to a whole new literary world.

Tomorrow’s seminar is Dr Juliet Perkin’s talking about translating the 15th century chronicles of Fernao Lopes, worlds away from contemporary Chinese literature, but another topic that I look forward to learning more about.

Los Miercoles Al Cine... Los Lunes Al Sol @ Instituto Cervantes

A week and a half in, and I'm starting to feel like a real Londoner again, especially last night when I went for a wander through Belgravia, to reach the Instituto Cervantes. Created by the Spanish government in 1991, the Instituto serves two purposes: it both provides Spanish language teaching at all levels for all ages, and promotes Hispanic culture through free film screenings, concerts, discussions and exhibitions.

 

My first trip to the Instituto was as part of the 8th London Spanish Film Festival, which runs until 10 October. The festival offers a packed programme of films and Q+A sessions, held mainly at the Ciné Lumière at the Institut Français. While I was tempted by far too many of the films, Los lunes al sol (Mondays in the Sun) at the Instituto Cervantes had a major bonus: it was free.

Showing as part of the Luis Tosar special feature, Los lunes al sol (2002, dir. Fernando León de Aranoa) was hugely successful on release, winning five Goyas (the Spanish equivalent of Oscars), including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor for Javier Bardem. It tells the story of a group of shipworkers who are laid off so the shipyard can be turned into luxury waterside apartments, and the degrading effects of unemployment. Although I - and the rest of the viewers - laughed a lot, this is no comedy; rather a scathing social commentary. Opening with scenes of violent protest at the shipyard, the film highlights issues such as the humiliation of competing with much younger people for a job you do not understand, the breakdown of marriages when one partner can no longer contribute financially, and the descent into alcoholism of those with nothing better to do all day - issues all the more pertinent given that Spain's financial situation has only gotten far worse in the last decade. At times, I found it difficult to identify with the characters because their discussions sounded more like political propaganda than a group of blokes down the pub - especially when Bardem's character Santa discusses the effect of some workers crossing the picket line and making deals with the company that left the others with nothing - but Santa's cheeky personality is endearing and saves the film from becoming too bleak. As a film, it is a bit too slow and not quite engaging enough, but as an insight into an important aspect of Spain's recent history, I recommend it. 

Day Two @ KCL - Departmental Induction

Back to King's again today for my Departmental Induction, and finally a chance to meet the rest of the Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies postgraduates. There are seven of us starting PhDs, which is about half the SPLAS research students now, as many of the older students have just finished. I met four of the others today, as well as the five new Masters students and many of the staff.

One of my main reasons for choosing King's was that the department seemed so welcoming, supportive and friendly, and I definitely got a taste of that today. The lecturers completely put our minds at rest after the 'Efficient Researcher' booklet we received yesterday had terrified us all by suggesting we won't have a moment free for fun and will be horribly stressed until we finally retire. That may be true of scientists in their labs, but it seems like in SPLAS at least we know how to enjoy ourselves.

With that in mind, I must recommend the Arts and Humanities Festival, from 13-27 October at KCL (also visit their fascinating blog). The festival brings together academics and artists from across all the Arts and Humanities disciplines to share their work with the wider public in interactive ways along the theme of Metamorphoses. This can be everything from adaptations of a play to social change in the Middle East, as well as a particular focus on how the Arts and Humanities are changing in twenty-first century academia. Unfortunately, while I'd written all sorts of events in my diary, I hadn't actually thought to book them, so many are already booked out. There are still lots intriguing events available though - I'm particularly interested in the Digital Humanities Pecha Kucha and Metamorphoses and Languages - so book quickly a ahfest2012.eventbrite.co.uk. Plus don't miss the SPLAS showcase on 22 October to learn all about what us research students are up to!

There seems to be an incredible range of topics studied within my department, which is another of the factors  that drew me to King's. Just from the people I met today, there is a student investigating music in Lusophone Africa (Cape Verde and Mozambique), another looking at the Brazilian lyrical novel, another analysing changes in representations of the family in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay, and another focusing on the translation of Spanish plays into English. I can't wait to learn more about their subjects as well as my own.

Maughan Library on Chancery Lane

After meeting the department, I made a brief visit to the Maughan Library which struck me as exactly how a library should be. I'm not sure how it compares to other university libraries in terms of the number of books available, but the setting is magnificent. Sadly the Venezuelan literature section is still only about half a shelf though!

The spectacular Humanities reading room.

There is now only one more afternoon of inductions to go, on Tuesday, and then I'll be a fully fledged research student. Whoo!