Sarah Maitland
Department of English and Comparative Literature Goldsmiths, University of London New Cross London SE14 6NW United Kingdom s.maitland@gold.ac.uk
Academic appointments Senior Lecturer in Translation Studies, Goldsmiths University of London, December 2015-present;
Lecturer in Translation Studies, Programme Leader, MA in Translation Studies and MA in Translation Studies with TESOL, School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures, University of Hull, May 2012-December 2015;
Lecturer in Translation Studies with Spanish, Department of Languages, Translation and Communication, Swansea University, September 2011-May 2012;
Teaching Assistant in Translation, School of Modern Languages, Queen’s University Belfast, 2008-2011.
Education PhD in Translation, December 2011, Queen’s University Belfast;
MSc in Translation and Technology with Spanish and French, December 2004, Heriot-Watt University;
BA Joint Honours French and Spanish, July 2003, Queen’s University Belfast.
Research statement My research focuses on translation as a form of cultural production, a metaphor for cultural encounter and a means for understanding the world. I am interested in questioning how translation can be thematised along philosophical and political lines, enabling exchange and debate across rival positions and addressing problems that go beyond interlingual conceptualisations. I conceive of translation as a practice located at the nexus of cultures, ideas, history and politics, requiring multiple negotiations with and across difference. The subjective work these negotiations require offers a powerful lens through which to examine the creation and representation of knowledge. By exploring the territory between translation and a range of cognate frameworks drawn from literary and cultural theory, political philosophy and philosophical hermeneutics, my research is concerned with advancing approaches rooted in the understanding of issues of ethics, justice, identitydevelopment, community relations and political recognition at the heart of intercultural practice. I am interested, above all, in exploring how the scrutiny of translation as a creative practice can enable us to theorise alternative ways in which we might construct and enhance equitable exchange in multicultural society.
Publications Maitland, S. (Forthcoming) What is cultural translation? (Monograph contracted for publication with Bloomsbury Academic);
Maitland, S. (Forthcoming) ‘A Review of Textbooks in Translation Studies’ in Lawrence Venuti (ed.) Teaching Translation: Programs, Courses, Pedagogies. Abingdon: Routledge;
Maitland, S. (2015) ‘In-between’ a rock and a ‘third space’? On the trouble with ambivalent metaphors of translation. Translation Studies. [Online] Taylor & Francis Online. Available from: [Accessed: 1 November 2015];
Maitland, S. (2015) Culture in translation: the case of British Pathé News. Perspectives: Studies in Translatology. [Online] Taylor & Francis Online. Available from: [Accessed: 8 September 2015];
Maitland, S. (2015) Performing recognition: El castigo sin venganza and the politics of the literal translation. Bulletin of the Comediantes. 67 (1). p.37-56;
Maitland, S. (2012) Performing difference: Bodas de sangre and the philosophical hermeneutics of the translated stage. Quaderns: Revista de traducció. 19. p.53-67;
Maitland, S. (2012) Staging and Performing Translation: Text and Theatre Practice by Roger Baines, Cristina Marinetti and Manuela Perteghella reviewed in Translation Studies. 5 (3). p.379-382;
Maitland, S. (2011) Dictionary-guide Spanish-English translation, English-Spanish (Dictionaries UB) by Brian Mott and Marta Mateo reviewed in Jostrans: The Journal of Specialised Translation. 16. p.258-259;
Maitland, S. (2010) ‘Objects in the midst of other objects’: Cultural translation and the anxieties of otherness. International Journal of the Humanities. 8 (7). p.77-86.
Current book project The concept of ‘cultural translation’ is one of the most alluring yet elusive concepts in the contemporary humanities. Since its introduction in cultural anthropology, the concept has been deployed across the social disciplines to challenge binary views of cultural identity, to reinforce ideas of communication based on the principle of exchange between the peoples of the world and to theorize the ethical, political and cultural challenges posed by the increasingly interconnected nature of our communities. But despite its de rigueur status and promise of a new paradigm for understanding the problematics of cultural difference, the presence of cultural translation is often taken as a self-evident and accounts have tended towards the diffuse. By providing the first book-length study of cultural translation based on an in-depth engagement with both the dominant theoretical dialogues on the subject and their realization in a real-world context, the book advances thefirst critically grounded definition and is shaped as an extended critical response to the dizzying array of contributions on the subject from translation studies and beyond. I draw on diverse case studies from across the cultural domain, including works of theatre, film, television and literature, the built environment, current affairs, international relations and online media, to uncover processes of negotiation and adaptation most closely associated with the translation of texts behind the production and contestation of everyday cultural phenomena. I urge readers towards a view of translation in its broadest understanding, both as a means for understanding how we shape the cultural realms in which we live and as a touchstone for what we see, do and say in public life.
Creative outputs: professional translation and public performance of translations Bezerra, P. (Forthcoming) Inside the Earth. Translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland. Madrid: Caos Editorial;
Cabal, F. (Forthcoming) Agrippina. Translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland. Madrid: Caos Editorial;
Ramón Fernández, J. (2015) Nina. [performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland] Andy Dickinson (dir.) London: Spanish Theatre Company, Canada Water Cultural Space, 22 May;
Mayorga, J. (2014) The Cartographer. Warsaw, 1:400.000 By Juan Mayorga. In its first English translation by Sarah Maitland. In: Estela Schindel and Pamela Colombo (eds.) Space and the Memories of Violence: Landscapes of Erasure, Disappearance and Exception. Translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan;
de Vega Carpio, L. (2014) Punishment Without Revenge. [performance of adaptation of English literal translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland] Laurence Boswell (dir.) Coventry: Belgrade Theatre, 28 March-19 April;
de Vega Carpio, L. (2014) Punishment Without Revenge. [performance of adaptation of English literal translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland] Laurence Boswell (dir.) London: Arcola Theatre, 11 January-15 March;
de Vega Carpio, L. (2013) Punishment Without Revenge. [performance of adaptation of English literal translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland] Laurence Boswell (dir.) Bath: Theatre Royal Bath, 26 September-21 December;
Castro Gutiérrez, F. (2012) Rituals of Defiance: Past Resistance, Present Ambiguity. In: John Gledhill and Patience Schell (eds.) New Approaches to Resistance in Brazil and Mexico. Translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland. Durham NC: Duke University Press, p.44-62;
Bezerra, P. (2011) Inside the Earth. [performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland] Colin Ellwood (dir.) London: The New Diorama Theatre, 3 June;
Bezerra, P. (2011) Inside the Earth. [performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland] Colin Ellwood (dir.) Sidcup: Rose Theatre, 31 May-2 June;
Caballero, E. (2010) On the Rock. [performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland] Sarah Maitland (dir.) Belfast: Brian Friel Theatre, 26 November;
Mayorga, J. (2009) The Cartographer. Translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland. [translation commissioned by the Centro Dramático Nacional, Spain];
Cabal, F. (2009) Agrippina. [performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland] Colin Ellwood (dir.) London: Unicorn Theatre, 16 October;
Cabal, F. (2009) Agrippina. [performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland] Colin Ellwood (dir.) Sidcup: Rose Theatre, 13 October;
Ortiz, L. (2008) Mad King Ludwig. Translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland. Madrid: Caos Editorial;
Fernández, J. (2007) Nina. Translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland. Madrid: Caos Editorial;
Ramón Fernández, J. (2006) Nina. [performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland] Iain Reekie (dir.) Sidcup: Rose Theatre, 11 May;
Caballero, E. (2005) On the Rock. Translated from Spanish by Sarah Maitland. Madrid: Caos Editorial;
Conference presentations, public addresses and invited speaker engagements Maitland, S. (2015) The case for ‘cultural translation’: A response to Harish Trivedi. [conference presentation] Atlantic Communities, Universidad de Vigo, Spain, 17 September;
Maitland, S. (2015) Saving us from ourselves? Translation, hermeneutics and the ethics of multiculturalism. [invited speaker contribution] Queen’s University Belfast, 23 February;
Maitland, S. (2013) Performing recognition: El castigo sin venganza and the politics of English translation. [conference presentation] 2013 AHCT/Out of the Wings Golden Age Theatre Symposium, Theatre Royal Bath, 26 November;
Maitland, S. (2013) Translation and the future of the humanities. [introduction to conference panel chaired by Sarah Maitland] 7th Congress of the European Society of Translation Studies, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Germany, 30 August;
Maitland, S. (2013) Cultural translation ‘Gangnam style’: What memes can tell us about cultural translation. [conference presentation] Cultural Translation in Popular Music, University of Central Lancashire, 12 April;
Maitland, S. (2012) The politics of recognition and the ethics of the intercultural stage. [conference presentation] 8th Annual Conference of the Theatre and Performance Research Association, University of Kent, 6 September;
Maitland, S. (2012) Theatre translation. [conference presentation] 4th Conference of the International Association for Translation and Intercultural Studies, Queen’s University Belfast, 24 July;
Maitland, S. (2011) The ethics of aesthetics: Translating dialect in Paco Bezerra’s Dentro de la tierra. [conference presentation] Invisible Presences: Translation, Dramaturgy and Performance, Queen’s University Belfast, 20 April;
Maitland, S. (2011) Inside the Earth. [interview and roundtable contribution] Performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland of play by Paco Bezerra, The New Diorama Theatre London, 3 June;
Maitland, S. (2011) Inside the Earth. [interview and roundtable contribution] Performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland of play by Paco Bezerra, Rose Theatre Sidcup, 31 May-2 June;
Maitland, S. (2010) On the Rock. [public address and introduction] Performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland of play by Ernesto Caballero, Brian Friel Theatre Belfast, 26 November;
Maitland, S. (2010) The hospitality in the representation: translation and intercultural scenario. [Conference presentation] Translation and the Scenic Arts: Opera and Theatre, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain, 15 April;
Maitland, S. (2009) First do no harm: Power, agency and cultural translation in the post-colonial context. [conference presentation] Interdisciplinary Conference on Cultural Translation, University of Cardiff, 11 December;
Maitland, S. (2007) Agrippina. [interview and roundtable contribution] Performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland of play by Fermín Cabal, Unicorn Theatre London, 16 October;
Maitland, S. (2007) Agrippina. [interview and roundtable contribution] Performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland of play by Fermín Cabal, Rose Theatre Sidcup, 13 October;
Maitland, S. (2008) Translation and the cultural ‘other’. [conference presentation] International research symposium, Soka University Japan, 1 May.
Maitland, S. (2007) Mad King Ludwig. [interview and roundtable contribution] Performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland of play by Lourdes Ortíz, Rose Theatre Sidcup, 26 October;
Maitland, S. (2005) On the Rock. [interview and roundtable contribution] Performance of translation from Spanish by Sarah Maitland of play by Ernesto Caballero, Rose Theatre Sidcup, 28 April;
Doctoral research Supervisors: Professor David Johnston, Dr Anthony Soares; External examiner: Professor Catherine Boyle, King’s College London; Thesis title and summary: ‘Cultural translation and the anxieties of otherness’.
Since the cultural ‘turn’ in Translation Studies, the concept of ‘cultural translation’ has received considerable attention. Conceptualised in a diverse range of ways, its popularity has given rise to a proliferation of conflicting accounts. Scholars have signalled the lack of in-depth analysis to provide a fuller understanding of cultural translation, its limits, assumptions and opportunities. My thesis responds to this need by providing a study of cultural translation in its diverse emanations and discerns four broad themes arising from its multiple configurations: as an ethnographic ‘encounter’ with cultural difference; as a mobile practice that displays a ‘migrant’ doubleness of identity as a form of textual production that refuses to belong securely in its place of reception; as a mode that constructs a hybridised text that, in its refusal to be placed firmly within one ‘side’ or the other, occupies a space ‘in-between’ original and reproduction; and, in recognition of theappropriative forms of interpretation upon which translation is predicated, as a resistant practice that seeks ways to rectify translation’s limited appraisal of cultural difference. The thesis tests these theoretical possibilities within the practical context of literary translation and argues for a view of cultural translation as an encounter between the cultural world of the foreign text and the subjective world of a translator, in which the relationship between translator and text is never dissociated from broader matters of power, representation and positionality.
Professional service and consultancy Member of Executive Council of the International Association for Translation and Intercultural Studies, December 2015-present;
Spanish interpreting and restorative justice consultancy to the Spanish Government of Catalonia Generalitat de Catalunya Centre d’Estudis Jurídics i Formació Especialitzada, March 2014;
Project lead, ‘Transcast: Making Translation and Interpreting Research Public’, dissemination of research through podcasting for digital download, 2011-present;
Reviewer, Jostrans: The Journal of Specialised Translation, 2014;
Dramaturgical and subject area support, Theatre Royal Bath rehearsal process as part of 2013-2014 Spanish Golden Age Season, 2013;
Project lead, ‘European Commission Visiting Translator Scheme at University of Hull’, 2013;
Panel chair, Translation and the future of the humanities. [conference panel] 7th Congress of the European Society of Translation Studies, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Germany, 30 August 2013;
Panel chair, Making classical popular. [conference panel] Cultural Translation and Popular Music, University of Central Lancashire, 12 April 2013;
Panel chair, Theatre translation. [conference panel] 4th Conference of the International Association for Translation and Intercultural Studies, Queen’s University Belfast, 24 July 2012;
Reviewer, submissions to 4th Conference of the International Association for Translation and Intercultural Studies, Queen’s University Belfast, 2012;
Associate Editor, International Journal of the Humanities, 2010.
Professional affiliations Member of the International Association for Translation and Intercultural Studies;
Member of the American Comparative Literature Association;
Member of the Modern Language Association of America;
Member of the Society of Authors Translators’ Association;
Member of English PEN.
Teaching experience: postgraduate courses designed and taught Specialist Translation Skills: Legal, Medical and Technical Translation, MA in Translation Studies, School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures, University of Hull, Spring 2013-Spring 2015;
Specialist Translation Skills: Translation for Stage and Screen, MA in Translation Studies, School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures, University of Hull, Autumn 2012-Autumn 2014;
Issues in Translation Studies, MA in Translation Studies, School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures, University of Hull, Autumn 2012-Autumn 2014;
Dissertation (research methods and professional development), MA in Translation Studies, School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures, University of Hull, Autumn 2012-Autumn 2014;
Language Transfer in Relation to Film, Television and Media, MA in Translation Studies, School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures, University of Hull, Spring 2013;
Introduction to Literary Translation, MA in Translation Studies, School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures, University of Hull, Autumn 2012;
Language Technology, MA in Translation and Language Technology, Department of Languages, Translation and Communication, Swansea University, Spring 2012;
Language Technology, MA in Translation and Language Technology, Department of Languages, Translation and Communication, Swansea University, Autumn 2011;
Advanced Translation Theory and Practice, MA in Literary Translation, Department of Languages, Translation and Communication, Swansea University, Autumn 2011;
Persuasive discourse translation (workshop), Advanced Translation 2: Text and Contexts, MA in Translation, School of Modern Languages, Queen’s University Belfast, Autumn 2009, Spring 2009;
Performance translation (workshop), Translating for Stage and Screen, MA in Translation, School of Modern Languages, Queen’s University Belfast, Spring 2009.
University of Hull, May 2012-December 2015 Lecturer in Translation Studies, Programme Leader MA in Translation Studies and MA in Translation Studies with TESOL;
Leadership, coordination, continuous improvement and delivery of the MA in Translation Studies and MA in Translation Studies with TESOL and undergraduate programmes in Translation Studies;
Implementation of a comprehensive curriculum redevelopment programme and continuous development and quality monitoring;
Recruitment and coordination of Translation Studies teaching staff;
Development and continuous monitoring of teaching and learning strategy across the MA in Translation Studies/MA in Translation Studies with TESOL and undergraduate programmes in Translation;
Module leadership, teaching and assessment across the MA in Translation Studies/MA in Translation Studies with TESOL and undergraduate programmes in Translation;
Development of assessment strategy across the MA in Translation Studies/MA in Translation Studies with TESOL and undergraduate programmes in Translation and coordination of assessment procedures, External Examiner liaison and quality assurance processes at School, Faculty and University level;
Supervision of student dissertations and postgraduate research supervision;
Development and delivery of a student recruitment and external marketing strategy for the MA in Translation Studies/MA in Translation Studies with TESOL;
Outreach activities with external partners across the translation industry to secure work experience opportunities for students and industry mentoring programme;
Student Welfare and Progress Officer on Undergraduate Committee, September 2014-June 2015;
Member of Postgraduate Studies Committee, May 2012-September 2014;
Project Manager, Global Peacebuilders, Springboard Opportunities Limited, Belfast, 2007-2008 Project and financial management, administration and delivery of £100,000 project funded by the European Union Peace and Reconciliation PEACE II Fund;
Planning, organisation and delivery of an international conference;
Publication of a project research report entitled International Approaches to Peacebuilding and recruitment, development and line-management of a volunteer network.