From the Translator: On “A Tale of Redemption”

Translating Mona Sylviana’s story collection, “A Tale of Redemption and Other Stories,” has been something of a change of pace for me. Indonesian literature is often steeped in the exotic cultures, mythologies, and languages of the many ethnic groups of Indonesia. Hence it can be difficult at times for the translator to convey this “Otherness” to a Western readership. Sylviana’s stories, on the other hand, with their mostly contemporary settings and universal themes of love, redemption, and revenge, are readily accessible. At least on the face of it.

One of Sylviana’s stories that she gave an English title, “To Be or Not To Be,” presented me with an unusual problem. The story, about a young man who assumes a predestined relationship with a girl merely because he saw her by chance a couple of times, did not really relate to the Shakespearean quote familiar to Western readers. I opted to change the title to “Meant To Be” to reflect the theme of predestination. Another title proved untranslatable—“Kepala K”—referring to the heads of three animals in the story that all start with the letter k in Indonesian but not, of course, in English. The story revolves around the animal that provided the meat for a special barbecue to impress a girlfriend, so I had to retitle that one “The Saté Barbecue.”