Translation as a Journey: Jessica Sequeira on Vlady Kociancich’s The Eighth Wonder

Vlady Kociancich's novel, The Eighth Wonder, intertwines the literary journey of translation with the cinematic experience of storytelling. Translating Joseph Conrad's The End of the Tether, Kociancich delves deeply into the text, not just translating words, phrases, and ideas but entire scenes and atmospheres. This transformation mirrors the protagonist's movement from the colonial world of Singapore to the contemporary world of Buenos Aires, reflecting the fluidity of life and the constant journey.

The novel's title, Con la soga al cuello, emphasizes the idea of being tethered to reality, suggesting that we all live translating our surroundings and experiences. This concept is echoed in the protagonist's realization while translating Conrad's work that she was not just rendering words but capturing the essence of Conrad's prose, creating her own version of the story.

The experience of translation, much like life, involves sentiments that cannot be fully translated, highlighting the inherent limitations of communication.

The novel's structure itself is a journey, mirroring the protagonist's travels from Villa del Parque to Berlin, through various airports and environments, all of which are shaped by books and dreams. This journey, too, has no definitive end, a theme that resonates with the idea of translation as an endless, disquieting process that can feel like a nightmare.

The novel's opening line, "Whalley could in a half hour of solitude live again all his life with its romance, its idyl, and its sorrow," sets the tone for a narrative that explores the transformative power of storytelling and the immersive nature of cinematic experiences.