Fashioning the Social: Shakespearean Translations in the Kannada Literary Polysystem

Shashi Kumar G K

doi:10.59045/nalans.2025.72

Authors

Shashi Kumar G K NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY SILCHAR Author https://orcid.org/0009-0006-9611-8186

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.59045/nalans.2025.72

Keywords:

Shakespearean Plays, Multiple Translations , English Literature , Literary Historiography, Modern Theatre

Abstract

Shakespearean plays have been the most widely translated and adapted texts into Indian languages, including the Kannada language. This essay focuses on the translations that occurred during the period between 1847 and 1930. This essay discusses the emergence of modern theatre and translations of English plays in the Kannada literary polysystem^[1] in particular and Indian literary tradition in general. The essay examines the transition from the traditional theatre, the emergence of the “company plays”, and transition from traditional theatre to the proscenium theatre, and the rise of plays as social criticism. It attempts to show how English textual practices have influenced Kannada theatre in multiple ways. Further, it explains how Kannada translations of Shakespeare played a significant role in local societal changes, argues that these translations brought modern thought into the Kannada literary tradition, and critically traces the trajectory of the journey of Western texts into the Kannada language through translations of English plays including Shakespeare.

Author Biography

Shashi Kumar G K, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY SILCHAR

Name of University, Country- National Institute of Technology Silchar, India

Fields of Study: Translation Studies, Postcolonial Studies, Interdisciplinary Studies

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-9611-8186

Corresponding E-mail: gkshashi2012@gmail.com

Alternative E-mail: shashi@hum.nits.ac.in

Mobile/Whatsapp contact info: 9398896015

Short Bio:

Dr. Shashi Kumar G.K. holds a Ph.D. in Translation Studies from the University of
Hyderabad, India. In his Ph.D., he explored the relationship between literary historiography,
the emergence of new genres, and the role of translations in the process. He holds a Master's
degree in English from The English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad, India,
and an M.Phil. from the University of Hyderabad. He has published research papers in
English in journals of national and international repute. He has travelled widely to present
papers at National and International Seminars and Conferences. Currently, Shashi Kumar
teaches as an Assistant Professor at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences,
National Institute of Technology Silchar, Assam, India.

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