Multilingual Literature, Literary Studies and the Literary Field

Abstract

This article gives an overview of research on literary multilingualism during the past decades and explores some of the concepts and approaches that have been suggested by scholars. This also includes a definition or, rather, a discussion of the different possibilities to define literary multilingualism and/or multilingualism in literature. This leads to what can be called the "dark sides" of literary multilingualism, i.e. what lies beyond the celebration and idealisation of multilingualism, self-translation and hybridity. In this contribution, these "dark sides" are addressed both in terms of the literary field (or: fields) and in terms of research on literary multilingualism. To do so, positive and negative aspects of definitions, approaches and methodology are confronted.