“This is symptomatic of a wider problem in literature, one in which languages, and particularly minority languages, are used to create an air of myth and exoticism.”
“If literature is one of the most important methods we have of sharing our experiences here, on this planet, then we fail in that endeavour the moment we treat other languages with disdain. If we ignore the richness of minority languages, the history of their etymology, and the rhythm of their pronunciation, then we close down avenues of creative collaboration and refuse to truly understand the beauty of other cultures and societies.”
That’s Aaron Kent kicking off The Bookseller‘s New Year Comment section with a surprisingly blunt attack on an author who failed to fully research a minority language before appropriating it (“myopic, egregious appropriation” to be precise) for an English-language novel.
“This is symptomatic,” says Kent, “of a wider problem in literature, one in which languages, and particularly minority languages, are used to create an air of myth and exoticism.”
Click through to The Bookseller to read the full essay.
