Staff from the German Section at the School Arts, Culture & Language, at 最新麻豆影音视频 instigated a project to translate and adapt German-language writer Franz Kafka鈥檚 鈥楳etamorphosis鈥 into an easy-reader for learners of Welsh.
Dr. Sarah Pogoda, Senior Lecturer in German Studies said,
鈥淜afka鈥檚 鈥楳etamorphosis鈥 is often studied in modules for learners of German, and it is a core reading in most German schools. Although the work is known for its quirky story line (the main character wakes up to find that they have turned into a terrible bug!) it鈥檚 a short piece with lots of repeated vocabulary and verb tense patterns, ideal for language learners. My colleague, German tutor Lana Feldmann (now at University of Bristol) and I had just started learning Welsh here with the University鈥檚 Welsh Language Training programme and thought 鈥楳etamorphosis鈥 could also be turned into a useful resource for learning Welsh.鈥
Lana Feldmann added,
鈥淪arah and I worked closely with Huw Jones, the Welsh translator, as part of the project team. We gave lots of thought how the design of the book might best help the language learner. Left hand pages have vocabulary and grammar explanations to help guide the learner through each paragraph of the main text opposite. It is really handy and does not disrupt the reading flow.鈥
Published in 2020, 鈥Metamorffosis鈥 has since sold about 500 copies and has been used by Welsh tutor Jenny Pye at the University鈥檚 Canolfan Bedwyr, as part of her sessions for intermediate and advanced level learners.
Jenny said,
鈥楳etamorffosis鈥 is an amazing story and it鈥檚 been really good to read with Welsh learners. Its very useful to include language patterns and vocab on the opposite page and this helps a lot to follow the story. There are questions available on each chapter, and this gives the opportunity to learners to talk about the story in Welsh in their sessions鈥.
The translation of Kafka鈥檚 work is also a welcome contribution to diversity in Welsh language publishing. Well known works of world literature were translated into Welsh in the past, however few have appeared in the last few decades.
100 years after Franz Kafka鈥檚 death his legacy is being considered and analysed across the academic and literary world. Nathan Abrams Professor of Film Studies, recently contributed to the Conversation鈥檚 鈥楰afka 100鈥 - .
