“Determined to prove a villain”: Disability, translation, and the narratives of evil in Shakespeare’s Richard III
EvaSpišiaková
Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra
Abstract
Shakespeare’s play Richard III represents a fascinating phenomenon from the perspective of critical disability studies. On the one hand, his portrayal stands at the root of the much-criticised link between evil intentions and a physical deformity; on the other, the play allows Richard to reclaim some of the agency of his own corporeality, as he uses his body to gain his political goals. Translations of this play inevitably mirror contemporary views of non-normative bodies, and the two Slovak versions of the play marking the immediate aftermath of World War II and the last years of the communist rule in former Czechoslovakia provide an ideal ground for observing these shifts against the backdrop of significant sociopolitical changes. This article explores how the subtle nuances in individual translated versions reshape Richard’s image, and ultimately highlights the changing historical narratives of disability translated for different generations of Slovak readers and theatregoers.
The newest James Bond movie is coming into cinemas as I am finalising this article, a fact that came to my attention through the deluge of disappointed voices from disability activists on my social media feeds. No Time To Die (Fukunaga 2021) features not one but two villains with prominent facial disfigurements, which is a frustrating choice after decades of criticism aimed at the franchise’s persistent association of villains with disabilities. Although the producers cite their adherence to the original Ian Fleming novels as their reason for using the disfigured villain trope (Lambie 2012), disability activist Jen Campbell (2021) points to the fact that the Bond movies have in recent years been visibly addressing some of the horrendous instances of misogyny included in the original books, without apparently compromising the Fleming heritage. Some traditions are simply not worth breaking, no matter how much harm they perpetrate — or perhaps, the disfigured villain is a too convenient and lucrative trope to give up on just yet.
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