Author and Translator Talks: The Power of Literature and Translation in an Age of Conflict with Yu Miri and Morgan Giles

About the Event:

Join us for an engaging conversation with award-winning author Yu Miri and internationally acclaimed translator Morgan Giles. Yu Miri will discuss her evocative novel The End of August, offering insights into her exploration of diaspora and identity as a Korean resident in Japan. Morgan Giles will share the challenges and stories behind translating this expansive and powerful work. Together, they will explore an ever more pressing question: what are the roles of literature and translation in today’s age of global conflict? This event welcomes both in-person attendees and virtual participants via Zoom. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to connect with a literary luminary!

Opening Remarks: Dr. Stephen Snyder, Interim President of Middlebury College

Moderator: Prof. Hideko Russell, Program Head of Japanese Translation and Interpretation

MC: Prof. Junko Matsuda, Program Head of Japanese Studies

Note: Simultaneous interpretation will be provided.

Registration:

In-person Registration              

Zoom Registration           

Recording

About the Speakers:

Yu Miri: A Korean author writing in Japanese, Yu Miri has over twenty books to her name. She received Japan’s most prestigious literary award, the Akutagawa Prize, and her novel Tokyo Ueno Station won the 2020 National Book Award for Translated Literature. After the earthquake and tsunami in Fukushima, she relocated there and has opened a bookstore and theater space.

Morgan Giles: Morgan Giles is a literary translator from Japanese to English. Her translation of Yu Miri’s Tokyo Ueno Station won the National Book Award for Translated Literature and the American Literary Translators Association’s First Translation Prize. Other contemporary authors she has worked with include Junko Takase, Hideo Furukawa, and Nao-cola Yamazaki, as well as modern authors such as Chiyo Uno and Edogawa Rampo. Originally from Kentucky, she now lives in London.