Watch him when he opens
His bulging
words – justice
Fraternity,
freedom, internationalism, peace,
peace, peace.
Make it your custom
to pay no heed
to his frank
look, his visa, his stamps
and signatures.
Make it
your duty to
spread out their contents
in a clear light
Nobody with such language
Has nothing to
declare
Norman MacCaig (1910-1996)
As usual, the last
post – explaining the blog’s strange title - got a bit out of hand…
I was trying to
make the point that boundaries – whether
between countries, fields of study, professions, classes, religion or political
party – are usually heavily protected.
But that those able and willing to cultivate cross-border connections
are often hugely rewarded – not just with monetary profit but with new insights.
Just look at
the Hanseatic League and the intellectual and cultural – let alone commercial -
richness of towns and cities which lay on trading routes.
The first table
in the last post looked at a small number of academic fields and then identified
no fewer than ten separate sub-fields in a single one of them (Economics). That
second table goes into important detail
about the distinctive operational assumptions each of these ten sub-fields of Economics tends
to bring to the subject. Most practitioners in each of these specialisms are trapped in their particular intellectual bubble
Another recent
post – 57
Varieties of Capitalism – looked at the very different treatment three
broad schools in 11 different academic disciplines gave to the subject of
capitalism.
That’s another 33 intellectual bubbles!
My argument is that bacademic disciplines (and their sub-fields) are
like countries – protected generally with barbed wire, passports, visas,
customs etc.
This is why I honour those who try to break out from their narrow specialisms and to look at the world with a different lens
This is why I honour those who try to break out from their narrow specialisms and to look at the world with a different lens
Of course, straddling borders can be painful and it can arouse suspicions – with loyalties often being questioned. Consider the Jews!
Journalists too
(some of whom are to be found in academia) are often treated with suspicion
when they enter a country undergoing turmoil. But, as generalists rather than
specialists, they offer us fresh vistas…
The coverage of
recent years of the centenary of the First World War has given “No-man’s Land” the
image of devastation and the term,
of course, contains the implication of dispute. “Trespass”, equally, carries a
connotation of illegality. And, in these days of EasyJet, it is usually
capitals we visit – rather than borderlands….
But is there a better metaphor for venturing into territory where you're a bit of an outsider?
But is there a better metaphor for venturing into territory where you're a bit of an outsider?
Crossing
Borders – stories and essays about translation; ed LS Schwartz (2018) - the link gives a rather jaundiced review of the book from LARB
Essays
on Trespassing – economics to politics and beyond; AO Hirschmann (1981) A master of the craft
Border
– a journey to the edge of Europe; Kapka Kassabova (2017) very poetic exploration of the borderland between Bulgaria and Greece
A Seventh Man; John Berger and Jean Mohr (1975) The classic and prescient book about migrants some excerpts of which are here and a recent updated analysis here
A Seventh Man; John Berger and Jean Mohr (1975) The classic and prescient book about migrants some excerpts of which are here and a recent updated analysis here
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/jul/24/subtle-art-of-translating-foreign-fiction-ferrante-knausgaard
https://aeon.co/essays/is-the-translator-a-servant-of-the-text-or-an-original-artist
