Doublespeak: The Art of Translation

The word “translation” comes from the Latin for “bearing across”—a bridge from one language to another. But a look at Penn’s student-run magazine DoubleSpeak reveals it can also mean much more than that.

DoubleSpeak features original translations of poetry and essays about translation, culture, and bilingualism. It was launched in 2011 by a group of undergraduates led by Ross Karlan, C’14.

“The students were studying languages and were also interested in writing,” explains Meg Pendoley, C’16, DoubleSpeak’s editor-in-chief. “And while there were a lot of publications on campus, there was nothing specifically for translation.”

Currently DoubleSpeak is published twice each year—fall online and spring in print. Pendoley developed the magazine’s website, doublespeakmagazine.com, which features current and archived content, a blog, and podcasts. Kelly Writers House provides funding for the magazine, space for meetings, and recording equipment. Future plans include events, interviews with Penn faculty members who translate, and a series of personal essays by bilingual students.

English lecturer Taije Silverman is a poet and DoubleSpeak’s faculty advisor. She came to Penn in 2012 specifically to teach translation. Since then, all of the magazine’s editors have come out of the course she developed.

Silverman says Penn’s student body makes a project like DoubleSpeak especially relevant. “I couldn’t be teaching this translation course at another school,” she says. “Penn is incredibly international and diverse, and this generation of students is deeply global.”

Trask Roberts, GR'25, a Ph.D. candidate in French studies, recites his translation of Baudelaire's "Au Lecteur" at a reading hosted by DoubleSpeak.

Photo credit: Brooke Sietinsons