In the last two decades, a more worldly comparative literature has emerged in the US by centering literary translation and translation studies as philosophical and methodological principles in both scholarship and pedagogy. The canon of literary theory, however, remains surprisingly Eurocentric. This paradox persists for at least three reasons. First, the canon and genre of literary theory are, in many respects, vestiges of an earlier form of comparative literature anchored in a few dominant European cultural and literary traditions. Second, translating theory is less rewarding than translating literary texts, in part because of its relatively limited readership. Third, the continued circulation and citation of established theoretical texts through anthologies, scholarships, and classroom teaching have diminished the urgency of producing/finding/birthing “new” theories that would require not only linguistic but also cultural translation of unfamiliar theoretical paradigms, and literary texts that inherently form the backbone of theoretical texts.

This seminar seeks to intervene in this situation by fostering a conversation between abstraction and practice, between the task and philosophy of translating theory, and between the stakes of such translation for comparatists working in languages that have not traditionally served as sites of theoretical production. We invite papers from scholars who have used – or have themselves translated – works from such languages, and who would like to reflect on how these works can change our understanding of the nature of theory, and to consider the implications of theory for local, national, and global frameworks as comparatists.

Participants are especially encouraged to consider how translated theory reshapes and thickens the field of literary texts, both in translation and in the original, synchronically and diachronically, within a complex quadripartite system of global, national, (pre)colonial, and local literary formations. Selected presentations may be considered for publication as a special issue in a journal or as an edited volume.