Professor Dr. Melek Ortabasi

Biography

Melek Ortabasi specializes in modern Japanese and German literatures and popular culture. She is the author of the book 'Undiscovered Country: Text, Translation and Modernity in the Work of Yanagita Kunio,' published in 2014 by Harvard University Asia Center. Currently, she is working on a book manuscript focusing on transnationalism in modern Japanese children's literature, tentatively titled 'A World of Friends: Transnational Stories in Modern Japanese Children's Literature.' Melek teaches courses on World Literature that reflect her research interests, which include translation theory and practice, popular culture, transnationalism, internationalism, and children’s literature.

Research Interests