UQ Lecturers translation of wartime novel goes global

8 Dec 2016

German lecturer Dr Geoff Wilkes has received international recognition for his English translation of iconic wartime novel ‘The Greater Hope’ by Ilse Aichinger.

Dr Wilkes has become the first Australian to receive the translation prize from the Austrian federal chancellery.

His translation of the novel was launched in September with exerts from the novel being dramatized in English and German. The dramatizations will now go global with performances scheduled in London and Vienna in the near future.   

Aichnger’s novel which was released in 1948 was originally said to be too difficult to translate, however Dr Wilkes has been able to capture her unique style and use of language in order to bring this novel to the English speaking world.

An overview of the book launch incorporating an interview with Dr Wilkes is available here.

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