Islamic State in Translation: Four Atrocities, Multiple Narratives

Description

Offering an in-depth, interdisciplinary analysis of Arabic and English language narratives of the Islamic State terrorist group, this book investigates how these narratives changed across national and media boundaries. Utilizing insights and methodologies from translation studies, communication studies and sociology, Islamic State in Translation explores how multimodal narratives of IS and survivors were fragmented, circulated and translated in the context of the terrorist action carried out by Islamic State against the people and culture of Iraq, as well as against other victims around the world. Closely examining four atrocities, the Speicher massacre, the enslavement of Ezidi women, execution videos and videos of the destruction of Iraqi cultural heritage, Balsam Mustafa explores how the Arabic and English-language narratives of these events were translated, developed, and fragmented. In doing so, she advances a socio-narrative theory and reconsiders translation in the new media environment, within a broader socio-political field of inquiry.

Balsam Mustafa is a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at the University of Warwick, UK

Mustafa's knowledgeable and unflinchingly honest analysis offers a unique perspective on the narratives created and circulated by 'IS' and the responses in the media. Theoretically rigorous, the book contributes fresh insights into the translation of extremist political and religious narratives in multimodal contexts. -- Gabriela Saldanha, Lecturer in Translation Studies, University of Oslo, Norway Balsam Mustafa's book is a triumph not only of scholarship but also of understanding and decency. Through her navigation of the Islamic State in political, social, and cultural contexts -using ISIS's words, videos, and the cruelest of its actions - she offers a comprehension that points us to a response for humanity against violence and killing. -- Scott Lucas, Professor of American Studies, University of Birmingham, UK