Subversive Transformations

In "Subversive Transformations: Translation, Orature and Multimodality in Selected Plays by Femi Osofisan", Ifeoluwa Aboluwade addresses the dearth of conceptual frameworks and theories on the phenomenon of Translation from African cultures and literatures by introducing perspectives from Nigerian (Yoruba) cultures. Through nuanced analyses and interpretations of fictional and performative representations of (oral) translation in selected theatre texts by renowned Nigerian playwright, Femi Osofisan and their transcontinental stage performances, she challenges the linear and binary-based assertions of Translation Studies. She demonstrates how translation involves a multidirectional process of transformation rather than a unidirectional process of transfer. Aboluwade's book ultimately contributes to the "fictional turn" in Translation Studies by shifting the focus from the prevalent comprehension of translation as an exclusively written textual and interlinguistic practice to a conception of translation as a verbal, visual and embodied event.