Vice versa

Edward Gauvin (Photo: Vince Passaro)

"It's about creating a market," claims Edward Gauvin, a free-lance translator now living in Brussels through the auspices of the Fulbright Commission. As a Fulbright fellow in Belgium, Gauvin has focused his research on the translation of Belgian Francophone fantastical fiction to English. Fantastical fiction ranges from ghost stories to folklore, a genre which he refers to as "an untapped vein." Though barely popularized in its country of origin, Gauvin hopes his translations will generate a following for Belgian fantastical fiction among English-speaking audiences: "I want to prove to the audience that they should be interested."

While his French language education began in school, Gauvin progressed while teaching in English in France, and mastered the language through the intricate process of translation, a labor of love for which he is now well-known. Gauvin was recently honored as a 2011 Best Translated Book Award Finalist for "A Life on Paper," a collection of 23 short stories written by French author Georges-Olivier Chateaureynard. Virtually unknown by Americans but well-renowned by followers of French literature, Chateaureynard's  works of speculative fiction are now available to English-speaking audiences for the first time thanks to Gauvin's comprehensive collection of translations. "A Life on Paper" introduces a distinctly French voice to an American market.

A similar logic led Gauvin to Belgium on the Fulbright program: "I consistently heard from Americans that Belgium is a hidden gem, unfairly overlooked. I feel the same way about Belgian fantastical fiction." Given that even the most successful of Belgian publishing houses are equivalent to the very smallest of their American counterparts, publicity for Belgian literature remains meek, at home and abroad. Consequently, many Belgian authors lose their identity to their neighbor to the South, who has more prominent presence in literary circles. Gauvin cites famed writer Amelie Nothomb as an example; the author, who belongs to a family of distinguished Belgian diplomats, is more frequently thought of as French. Gauvin hopes that English translations will forge an American market for Belgian fabulist literature, the diamond in the rough.

Beyond injecting American markets with Belgian authors, Gauvin hopes to quell notions that European literature is too `'high culture and not relatable" for Americans. His exploits in Belgium over the past several months have revealed "simultaneous and similar innovations" occurring between American and Belgian authors in this genre. Gauvin anticipates that translating Belgian works from French to English will open a dialogue between the literary communities of the two countries. By introducing Belgian authors such as Paul Willems, Andre-Marcel Adamek, Thomas Owen, and Bernard Quiriny, Gauvin defies the typical scrutiny of translation as a loss. Though some elements of the writings may be mislaid, transformed, or omitted in the conversion from French to English, Gauvin asserts that he translates for one primary gain: a new American audience for Belgian authors.

To learn more about the Fulbright program in Belgium, visit their website.

To contact Edward Gauvin, please visit his blog.