NOVEMBER 22! Asia Talks: The Place of the World's First Novel, The Tale of Genji, in World Literature and its Journey of Translation into Turkish (Prof. Dr. Oğuz Baykara)

Dear all,

We cordially invite you to the talk, “The Place of the World's First Novel, The Tale of Genji, in World Literature and its Journey of Translation into Turkish,” to be delivered by Prof. Dr. Oğuz Baykara as part of the Boğaziçi University Asia Talks series.

The event will take place on Saturday, November 22, 2025, from 13:00 to 15:00, at the İbrahim Bodur Auditorium in the Natuk Birkan Building, South Campus of Boğaziçi University.

Participants who are not students or staff of Boğaziçi University are kindly requested to register in advance by writing to the following email address: kamil.gadirli@std.bogazici.edu.tr

The language of the event is Turkish.

Bio

Prof. Dr. Oğuz Baykara is a faculty member in the Department of Translation and Interpreting at Yeditepe University, Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Prof. Baykara, who is also the Vice President of the Japan Studies Association (JAD), teaches in the Asia Studies Master's Program at Boğaziçi University.

He wrote his first master's thesis on “The Comparative Phonology of Japanese and Turkish.” To specialize in Japanese language and literature, he moved to Japan in 1992 and began his studies at Kyōrin University in 1996. In 1998, he completed his second master's thesis, “The Problematic of Translation Dictionaries and Lexicography.” He finished his doctoral dissertation at the same university in 2004, focusing on the Taisho Era writers Jun’ichiro Tanizaki and Ryūnosuke Akutagawa. Upon returning to Turkey, he served as a faculty member in the Department of Translation and Interpreting at Boğaziçi University for fifteen years, from 2004 to 2019. Since 2019, he has been a faculty member in the Department of Translation and Interpreting at Yeditepe University, Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

Abstract

The Tale of Genji, written in the 11th century during the Heian Period, achieved recognition and prestige in the West in the 20th century. However, this process took much longer in Japan, where the work embarked on a thousand-year journey in its own country. Understanding the process by which The Tale of Genji, admired worldwide for its rich character development and deep psychological insight, gained prestige in Japan is crucial for appreciating its significance in world literature.

In this seminar, we will first address the stages the novel underwent in Japanese during its canonization as a fictional genre. Following this, we will discuss the work's journey of translation into Turkish, with examples provided from both the poetry and prose translations.