ABSTRACT
The term travelling theory first appeared in the titles of Edward Said’s two essays in literary criticism, ‘Traveling Theory’ and ‘Traveling Theory Reconsidered’, which use specific examples to consider how and what changes occur when theories move across space and time, that is, from one geographical and historical location to another. Said’s influence has been significant, although to say that “Said’s essay is the inspiration behind a whole new school of cultural critics who practice ‘travelling theory’” is arguably something of an overstatement. The nod towards travelling theory, whereby scholars reference Said briefly or not at all, is also found in other fields. Both travelling theory and translation are key concepts in the extensive body of work by Min Dongchao on gender, feminism and women’s studies in China. Whether translation theory can offer useful insights for historians, for example, or whether history is used to study translation theory is a continuing debate among translation historians.
