Yiyun Li has been a prominent Chinese American writer who has produced eight fictions since 2003. She was originally known for her fusion of Chinese elements into her English writing, while for her latest collection published last year, the Anglophone critics start to appreciate its theme and narration, rather than its Chinese-ness. This research endeavors to look through the transformation of Yiyun Li’s writing, ranging from its theme, characterization, to its language style, and particularly, its transition from translation literature to writing for global English readers. The representations of changes, the reasons behind it, and a comparison between she and Geling Yan in terms of their Chinese-ness in their works, will comprise the complete project. There has been research from scholars on Li’s language style, but the focus has been mainly on the Chinese-ness shown in her works before 2018. Therefore, this research would be the first one that could be found pertaining to Li’s 21-year publishing career, from ‘A Thousand Years of Good Prayers’ to ‘Wednesday’s Child’. The methodology of literary linguistics derived from Geoffrey Leech’s ‘Style in Fiction: a Linguistic Introduction to English Fictional Prose’ will be employed to present more detailed and objective evidence.

This paper adopts a multidisciplinary approach, integrating literary analysis, psychoanalytic theory, and ecotherapy frameworks to examine the interwoven themes of the supernatural sublime, trauma, and healing in Rick Riordan’s The Lightning Thief. Drawing on key sources such as Jake Doberene’s exploration of monstrosity, Katerina Sarafidou’s essay “The Descent into the Hell of Self-Knowledge,” Carl Jung’s The Psychology of Kundalini Yoga, and Jack Voller’s discussion of the supernatural sublime—specifically the conservative mode of aesthetic recovery—this study provides a nuanced analysis of Percy Jackson’s journey of individuation and transformation.

Voller’s concept of the supernatural sublime illuminates the role of divine and natural forces in Percy’s narrative, revealing how encounters with the mythic and the monstrous serve as catalysts for psychological growth. Sarafidou’s insights into Hell as a reflection of the personal psyche deepen the analysis of Percy’s traumatic descent into the underworld to rescue his mother, who has been dragged to Hell by the Minotaur. This descent mirrors the Jungian process of confronting the shadow self, where Percy’s struggles with abandonment, marginalization, and self-doubt unfold in mythic dimensions.

Through an ecotherapeutic lens, this paper also explores the role of water as a vital restorative force in Percy’s healing journey. Historical and theoretical perspectives on hydrotherapy, as explored by Adams and Marks, underscore water’s regenerative power, both physically and symbolically, in Percy’s transformation. As the son of Poseidon, Percy’s affinity with water becomes a conduit for self-discovery and resilience, aligning with broader themes of elemental healing.

Further, the concept of the “serpent mind” in The Lightning Thief—representing the lack of awakened Kundalini energy in Jungian depth psychology—embodies Percy’s personal shadow, which encompasses his unresolved trauma, fears, and struggles with his biological father’s abandonment. His status as a marginalized learner, grappling with ADHD and dyslexia, reinforces this shadow, marking him as an outsider in both mortal and divine realms. However, the serpent also signifies latent potential—a force of enlightenment and transformation. Like the coiled Kundalini energy awaiting activation, Percy’s spirit is awakened by his purified buddhi—the organ of intuition, composed of insight—driven by the urge to save his mother. His ultimate sacrifice—choosing the greater good over personal desire—aligns with Kantian notions of the sublime, rewilding the hero through an encounter with the supernatural sublime’s transformative power.

By emphasizing Voller’s framework, this paper further explores the thematic ambivalence of traumatic familial love and divine encounters in Riordan’s The Lightning Thief, drawing intertextual connections to Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” Through this lens, Percy’s mythic journey as a twelve-year-old boy embodies the interplay of light and dark, trauma and healing, revealing the enduring power of personal myth in confronting the dualities of human experience.

The present study discusses the translation process and the role of translators in the literary adaptation from Russian to Bengali during the Soviet period, specifically after World War II. A long literary relationship developed between Russia and Bengal in the 20th century. While exploring the reasons for this relationship, it is noticed that the history of the revolution and political empowerment in the Soviet Union received worldwide publicity. The impact of this political event also reached the undivided Bengal. After the establishment of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1917, the external world became interested in how the ‘brand new’ social system was functioning and how the place of ideals in the political sphere was taking practical shape. That immense interest resulted in extensive literary reception. Subject to the research, this paper will try to focus on the interaction between Russian and Bangla in the post-World War II era where translation became the main tool to establish a literary contact.

The proposal for this paper is two-dimensional. One portion is conservation-based and another in parallel is analytical. The conservation-oriented part essentially results in formulating a literary history of the Russian-Bangla literary connection and filling up the vague areas of proper documentation. This paper will essentially focus on the inclusion of Russian literary studies in Bengali periodicals of the twentieth century. Included literary periodicals and magazines are: Prabasi, Bharati, Soviet Desh, Soviet Bangla Patrika, Harkara, Amritabazar Patrika, Induprakash, etc. All these periodicals and magazines were published in Kolkata and targeted an urban readership who were partially aware of international politics and literature. The analytical portion tries to comment on the qualitative approach adopted by the translators, publishers, and the Soviet governance during the translation process.

Relation between the Russian and Bengali languages contributes to a larger literary history of the twentieth century where Translation Studies become relevant to form a theoretical base.

The current paper is an attempt to converse, contest, and compare literary histories and translation theories which go hand in hand with the idea of Comparative as well as World Literature.