Touch, Taste, Smell, and Transformation in Contemporary Canadian and Japanese Fiction

Minority writings in Canada since the turn of the 21st century have become more experimental, diverse, and “performative” in an attempt to go beyond autobiographical stories of victimization that would once again be “consumed” by the dominant discourse. Stories are no longer written in a realistic autobiographical mode but explored using diverse forms, themes, and modes. Among such works, Larissa Lai’s Salt Fish Girl and Hiromi Goto’s Kappa Child use the theme of transformation derived from ancient myth and folklore, and language expressed through the body, in particular, of the human senses of smell and taste. Interestingly, similar themes and modes are conspicuous in works by contemporary Japanese writers like Yoko Tawada’s The Bridegroom Was a Dog and Hiromi Kawakami’s Tread on a Snake. Despite the difference in sociopolitical environment, transformation in these texts effectively depicts characters who defy simple labeling or categorization defined by the social norm and opens up new ways of probing female agency and sexuality. At the same time, a comparative study will elucidate interesting differences in political concerns and sociocultural specificity found in their respective regions. Salt Fish Girl and The Bridegroom Was a Dog will be specifically examined in the talk. Yukiko Toda teaches English literature at Sugiyama Jogakuen University in Nagoya, Japan. Her research interests include contemporary fiction, African American literature, and Asian Canadian literature. She also works on literary translation.
Location:
Social Sciences 1114
Speaker:
Dr. Yukiko Toda, Sugiyama Jogakuen University, Nagoya, Japan.
More information at http://www.ucalgary.ca/events/calendar/touch-taste-smell-and-transformation-contemporary-canadian-and-japanese-fiction