CAS student and professor publish translation of poetry collection

Tuesday, April 18, 2023

Media Contact: Elizabeth Gosney | CAS Marketing and Communications Manager | 405-744-7497 | egosney@okstate.edu

Oklahoma State University French major Hannah Farris and Languages and Literatures professor Eric Turcat recently published an English translation of a book of poetry titled Chance Freedom by Giovani Dotoli.

Farris and Dr. Turcat worked the entire fall 2022 semester translating Chance Freedom, which is now available online and at the Edmon Low Library. 

Turcat suggested translating the book because he personally knows the author and thought both he and Farris would enjoy the aesthetic. The aspects of religion within Dotoli’s work sparked interest in Farris due to her religious studies minor.

“It honestly feels surreal to have a book published,” Farris said. “I never would have dreamed to have been in this situation even just a year ago, so to look on my shelf today and see my name on a book feels like a dream.”

Every week during the fall semester, Farris translated a certain number of assigned pages and took her drafts to a weekly meeting with Turcat. He would review her drafts, make notes or suggestions, and then the two of them would discuss each correction. This collaborative process allowed both student and professor to research and communicate on the best words or phrases to use. Once all the pages were completed, Turcat added his own introduction where he emphasized the difficulties Farris and he encountered while translating.

“Working with Hannah was one of the most rewarding collaborative experiences I have had in my 30 years of teaching,” Turcat said, adding that Farris worked efficiently and surprised him with her quantity of work and quality of discussion.

Farris and Turcat’s English translation of Chance Freedom is available in the OSU library and can be purchased online. 

Story By: Sydney Holder, CAS graduate assistant | sydney.r.holder@okstate.edu