ABSTRACT
This chapter assesses the advantages and problems of teaching texts translated from other languages, especially Indian languages, as: (a) English courses; (b) stand-alone texts; and (c) comparative literature courses. I argue that teaching such texts along with texts written in English in the same course results in: (i) making the translated texts seem less well-written; (ii) most students being unable to appreciate the texts, both English and translated, within their particular literary contexts, canons, genres, and poetics; (iii) most students failing to develop a sense of chronology or of how texts speak to one another; and (iv) most students being able to evaluate the texts only on the basis of preformed ideological and political perspectives and judgements.
