Maya Angela Smith, Associate Professor of French, recently was featured in episode 8 of “Ways of Knowing”. The podcast, produced through a partnership between The World According to Sound and the University of Washington, highlights how studies of the humanities can reflect everyday life.
In Episode 8: Translation, Maya Angela Smith introduces translation studies through the lens of the song “Ne Me Quitte Pas.” Originally recorded by Jacques Brel — a French-speaking Belgian man — the song has been covered multiple times, including by American singer and pianist Nina Simone. Smith discusses how the artists “bring different identity markers” to the piece, so each version of the same song highlights distinct political, social and cultural narratives. “Everything is a translation,” Smith says. “This notion that people have original ideas, that’s not really true.”
To listen to the podcast, visit the UW News article discussing the podcast. The page includes a full transcript of the episode as well as the other episodes of the podcast.