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Microsoft Word Unit 1 DỊCH ĐẠI CƯƠNG docx 1 UNIT 1 BASIC FEATURES OF TRANSLATION The Main Contents What is the theory of translation? Definitions of translation The nature of translation Types of equi.
UNIT 1: BASIC FEATURES OF TRANSLATION The Main Contents - What is the theory of translation? - The relationship between meaning, style and culture - Definitions of translation - What does the translator do? - The nature of translation - Types of equivalents of correlated units What is the theory of translation? The surface meaning of the two will be approximately similar Now we have to take some general points of translation into consideration It is necessary to put forward the matter of meanings You have to make some comparison and contrast with the surface meaning of the two languages before rendering If possible, keep the original meaning of the text The theory of translation Basically, there are two competing theories of translation In one, the predominant purpose is to express as exactly as possible the full force and meaning of every word and phrase in the original, and in the other the predominant purpose is to produce a result that does not read like a translation at all, but rather moves in its new dress with the same ease as in its native rendering Definitions of Translation Part I Translation is basically a change of form When we speak of the form of a language, we are referring to the actual words, phrases, sentences, paragraphs, etc The forms are referred to as the surface structure of a language It is the structural part of language which is actually seen in print or heard in speech In translation the form of the source language is replaced by the form of the receptor/target language Translation is the expression in another language of what has been expressed in one language In this definition, you should preserve semantic and stylistic equivalencies You should be careful when you express the other people's ideas It is very easy to be erroneous Translation is the replacement of a representation of a text in one language by a representation of an equivalent text in a second language In this case you can understand that there must be an equivalent text in the second language You should try to find and create as many as equivalents as possible Translation is rendering a written text into another language in a way that the author intended the text You should bear in mind that it is important to understand the author's intention If you have no idea about the author's intention, you will be in the middle of the road Translating may be defined as the process of transforming signs or representations into other signs or representations If the originals have some significance, we generally require that their images also have the same significance, or, more realistically, as nearly the same significance as we can get Keeping significance invariant is the central problem in translating between natural languages Translation may be defined as follows: the replacement of textual material in one language by equivalent material in another language In this definition, translation is expressed in the most general aspect The replacement of the textual material is not really easy Definitions of Translation Part II To translate means “to produce a text in a target setting for a target purpose and target addressees in target circumstances" One of the most important factors determining the purpose of a translation is the addressee, who is the intended receiver or audience of the target text with their culture-specific world-knowledge, their expectations and their communicative needs Every translation is directed at an intended audience Translating consists in reproducing in the receptor language the closest natural equivalent of the source-language message In this aspect the reproduction of a language is put forward The natural equivalent is paid much attention to Of course, the translator has to spend much more time on the nature of the target language Translation leads from a source-language text to a target-language text which is as close an equivalent as possible and presupposes an understanding of the content and style of the original In translation the understanding of the content and style of the original is very necessary It is the key factor to render a text The presupposition is a must for the translation process Translation can be conceived as an integral communicative performance, which without any extratextual additions (notes, explanations etc.) When the translation is an end in itself, in the sense of simply seeking to extend an originally monolingual communicative process to include receivers in another language, it provides an insight into the cognitive meaning, linguistic form and communicative function of the SL text Translating as a code-switching operation With the more pragmatic reorientation at the beginning of the 1970s, the focus shifted from the word or phrase to the text as a unit of translation Equivalence as a basic concept or even constituent of translation was never really questioned The ideal translation would be one in which the aim in the target language is equivalence as regards the conceptual content, linguistic form and communicative function of a source-language text This means that the source-language content, form, style, function, etc must be preserved, or at least that the translation must seek to preserve them as far as possible THE NATURE OF TRANSLATION Reproducing the Message You should bear in mind that translating must aim primarily at “reproducing the message.” To anything else is essentially false to one’s task as a translator But to reproduce the message one must make a good many grammatical and lexical adjustments A meaningful equivalent is "tender compassion,” and it is precise in this manner that many translations attempt to reproduce the significance of this source-language expression Equivalence rather than Identity The translator must strive for equivalence rather than identity In a sense this is just another way of emphasizing the reproduction of the message rather than the conservation of the form of the utterance, but it reinforces the need for radical alteration of a phrase such as I think or in my opinion which may be quite meaningless Dynamic Equivalence over Formal Correspondence Equivalence in translation is considered mainly in terms of form and meaning However, over the past years, translation scholars have focused more on the communicative function than on the notion of equivalence of the target text The translator is seen as a bilingual communicator in an intercultural situation, who can competently produce utterances which are also appropriate in the given sociocultural circumstances A Natural Equivalent Natural refers to three areas of the communication process: a natural rendering should fit the whole receptor language and culture, the context of the specific message, and the receptor-language audience Therefore the translation should bear no obvious trace of a foreign origin A natural translation would have to deal with two main areas of adaptation, that is grammar and lexicon THE RELATIONSHIP OF MEANING, STYLE AND CULTURE Significance of Meaning As the matter has already been indicated in the definitions of translating, meaning must be given priority, for it is the content of the message which is of prime importance in translating Working in this way we may have formal consistency of word, phrase, and clause order (word order is, however, more difficult to retain than phrase or clause order), length of sentences, and classes of words, e.g., translating nouns by nouns and verbs by verbs All of these formal features combine to produce what is called “formal correspondence.” However, when we speak of verbal consistency in translating, we focus primary attention upon the way in which specific words are translated, but words are not the only formal features involved in formal consistency The Significance of Style Though style is secondary to content, it is nevertheless important One should not translate poetry as though it were prose, nor expository material as though it were straight narrative In trying to reproduce the style of the original one must beware, however, of producing something which is not functionally equivalent The Importance of Culture Some difficulties can arise when translating One key factor is cultural sensitivity: Not only translators have to communicate the message from the source language into the target language, but they also have to take into account the culture of the target language In order to avoid misunderstandings, translators have to look out for the lexical content and syntax, as well as ideologies, value systems and ways of life in a given culture – translators need to know their audience in both languages and also consider the variants of the target language, like European French and Canadian French, among other things TYPES OF EQUIVALENTS OF CORRELATED UNITS Regular equivalents The structural similarity of ST and TT implies that relationships of equivalence are established between correlated units in the two texts Depending on the type of the language units involved regular equivalents can be classified as lexical equivalents, phraseological equivalents or grammatical equivalents The choice of the equivalent will depend on the relative importance of a particular semantic element in the act of communication Permanent equivalents You should know that there is a one-to-one correspondence between such units and their equivalents Thus Canada in Vietnamese is Canada, a machine-gun as súng máy and water is nước As a rule this type of correspondence is found with words of specific character, such as scientific and technical terms, proper or geographical names and similar words whose meaning is more or less independent of the particular contextual situation Non-permanent equivalents (variable equivalents) The existence of a number of non-permanent (or variable) equivalents to a SL units implies the necessity of selecting one of them in each particular case, taking into account the way the unit is used in ST and the points of difference between the semantics of its equivalents in TL Occasional equivalents (contextual substitutes) We have seen that words with regular equivalents are not infrequently translated with the help of contextual substitutes It is very important to find some related context clues in order to find out the true meaning of the text Types of context Linguistic context The linguistic context is made up by the other Sourse Language units in the Sourse Translation The linguistic context will enable the translator to make a correct choice among the Vietnamese equivalents to an English noun and vice versa Situational context The situational context includes the temporal, spatial and other circumstances under which Sourse Translation was produced as well as all facts which the receptor is expected to know so that he could adequately interpret the message WHAT DOES THE TRANSLATOR DO? Translators should be familiar with the source language You should have a perfect knowledge of the language from which you are translating and an equally excellent knowledge of the language into which you are translating At this point you must have a wide knowledge in both languages for getting the equivalence in the target language Translators should be familiar with: the target language The translator discovers the meaning behind the forms in the source language and does his best to produce the same meaning in the target language - using the forms and structures of the target language Consequently, what is supposed to change is the form and the code and what should remain unchanged is the meaning and the message Translators should be familiar with: the subject matter The translator should understand perfectly the content and intention of the author whom he is translating The principal way to reach it is reading all the sentences or the text completely so that you can give the idea that you want to say in the target language because the most important characteristic of this technique is translating the message as clearly and naturally as possible QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION I What is the aim of translating? Students yourselves have to make a contribution to the answer to the question Different students of you may bring out different ideas The matter is that you have to brainstorm What are the basic characteristics of translation, according to the definitions of translation given above? For this question you have to show your understandings on the characteristic features of translation activities You have to exchange your ideas What is the nature of translation? You have to take hold of the nature of translation Show your understandings among your friends QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION II What are the different kinds of equivalents in translation? If possible, show your strength in finding the equivalents in translation It is better for you to make use of this For more information you can look back at the previous parts of the collections of the lectures What qualities you think a translator needs to have to the job based on the characteristics described in your definition? You can choose to mention the things that you are able to It is better for you to visualize the tasks and responsibilities of the translator Try to adopt the qualities that suit you Point out the basic tasks the translator must perform in the job Give examples The tasks of translator are really heavy You can perform the most essential and basic ones first Reproducing the Message Aspects to be reproduce in translation It is necessary to reproduce the main ideas of the sourse texts You have to pay attention to the matter of how, when, what and where to reproduce the message Especially, the styles of writing and the genres of the texts The nature of the message In some messages the content is of primary consideration, and in others the form must be given a higher priority The purpose of the author and of the translator is to give information on both form and content; to aim at full intelligibility of the reader so he/she may understand the full implications of the message Equivalence rather than Identity Understanding equivalence Little attempt was made to objectify the subjective importance of equivalence as a concept It is one thing is to argue that substantial equivalence is an illusion, but quite another to understand why anyone should be prepared to believe in it Equivalence must be given a higher priority Only equivalence can create the value of the translation Identity is who we are The paradox of identity is that on the one hand it is about ‘sameness’; what we have in common with other groups, but on the other hand, identity is about being unique It doesn't help much for the translation Dynamic Equivalence over Formal Correspondence Dynamic Equivalence We can see that dynamic equivalence tends to favour a more natural rendering, for instance when the readability of the translation is more important than the preservation of the original grammatical structure Dynamic equivalence is the quality of a translation in which the message of the original text has been so transported into the receptor language that the response of the receptor is essentially like that of the original receptors Formal Correspondence Formal correspondence tends to emphasize fidelity to the lexical details and grammatical structure of the original language In some business settings people may insist on formal correspondence because they believe that fidelity to the grammatical structure of the language equals greater accuracy whereas in literature a novel might be translated with greater use of dynamic equivalence so that it may read well A Natural Equivalent at at different levels General points Equivalence that can appear at word level and above word level, when translating from one language into another Equivalence at word level is the first element to be taken into consideration In fact, when you start analyzing the ST, you look at the words as single units in order to find a direct 'equivalent' term in the Target Language This means that you should pay attention to a number of factors Grammatical equivalence We know that grammatical rules may vary across languages and this may pose some problems in terms of finding a direct correspondence in the Target Language Different grammatical structures in the Sourse Language and TL may cause remarkable changes in the way the information or message is carried across These changes may induce the translator either to add or to omit information in the TT because of the lack of particular grammatical devices in the TL itself Textual equivalence Texture is a very important feature in translation since it provides useful guidelines for the comprehension and analysis of the ST which can help the translator in his or her attempt to produce a cohesive and coherent text for the TC audience in a specific context It is up to you to decide whether or not to maintain the cohesive ties as well as the coherence of the SL text Pragmatic equivalence Implicature is not about what is explicitly said but what is implied Therefore, you need to work out implied meanings in translation in order to get the ST message across Your task is to recreate the author's intention in another culture in such a way that enables the readers to understand it clearly Meaning in translation General points Translation is not merely concerning on meaning as a unit of lexical meaning The process of rendering meaning involves some aspects as diction, grammatical structure, communication setting, and cultural context of the source text Meaning of the source and target texts must be equivalent The meaning of a given word or set of words is best understood as the contribution that word or phrase can make to the meaning or function of the whole sentence or linguistic utterance where that word or phrase occurs Referential Meaning Referential meaning is word as symbol which refers to an object, process, abstract thing, and relation We should know that referential meaning is also known as ‘the meaning of reference, is often referred to as the "referential" meaning, the "lexical" meaning, the "conceptual" meaning, or the "denotative" meaning’ Connotative Meaning Understanding meaning of aword is not merely based on the referred object of the word Sometimes, you need to give emotional reaction to the word The reaction might be strong, weak, positive or negative This kind of meaning is closely related to individual emotional reaction which, then, is named as connotative meaning Contextual consistency The linguistic reasons are that (1) each language covers all of experience with a set of verbal symbols, i.e., words to designate various features of experience, and (2) each language is different from all other languages in the ways in which the sets of verbal symbols classify the various elements of experience Style in translation Officialese Language Officialese or bureaucratese language is a derogatory term for language that sounds official It is the "language of officialdom" Officialese is characterized by a preference for wordy, long sentences; a preference for complex words, code words or buzzwords over simple, traditional ones; a preference for vagueness over directness and a preference for passive over active voice Official language An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction Typically a country's official language refers to the language used within government (e.g., courts, parliament, administration) The term "official language" does not typically refer to the language used by a people or country, but by its government Formal language A broad term for speech or writing marked by an impersonal, objective, and precise use of language A formal prose style is typically used in scholarly books and articles, technical reports, research papers, and legal documents Informal language A broad term for speech or writing marked by a casual, familiar, and generally colloquial use of language An informal writing style is often more direct than a formal style and may rely more heavily on contractions, abbreviations, short sentences, and ellipses Slang is the use of words that are not considered standard English It should never be used in academic or professional writing Often, these words are developed from fads or simple laziness Sometimes slang is used by a given group and those outside the group not understand it Slang can also be insulting to some people or groups Taboo Taboo words are those that are to be avoided entirely, or at least avoided in 'mixed company' or 'polite company.' Typical examples involve common swear words such as Damn! or Shit! The latter is heard more and more in 'polite company,' and both men and women use both words openly Many, however, feel that the latter word is absolutely inappropriate in 'polite' or formal contexts In place of these words, certain euphemisms that is polite substitutes for taboo words can be used Colloquial It is the characteristic style of writing that seeks the effect of informal spoken language as distinct from formal or literary English Colloquial language is a variety of language commonly employed in conversation or other communication in informal situations It is the variety of language that speakers typically use when they are relaxed and not especially self-conscious Culture in translation Untranslatability Untranslatability is a property of a text, or of any utterance, in one language, for which no equivalent text or utterance can be found in another language when translated Terms are, however, neither exclusively translatable nor exclusively untranslatable; rather, the degree of difficulty of translation depends on their nature, as well as on the translator's knowledge of the languages in question Adaptation An adaptation, also known as a free translation, is a procedure whereby the translator replaces a term with cultural connotations, where those connotations are restricted to readers of the original language text, with a term with corresponding cultural connotations that would be familiar to readers of the translated text Cultural elements The cultural elements are the name of a company or a product, humor, material culture such as names of food, the style of the language and the target audience, pictures, symbols, colors, gestures, habits, traditions as well as cultural references on which you can rely to correctly convey a cultural equivalent in the target language Regular equivalents in translation Lexical equivalence Lexical equivalence deals with translation of words and rendering their meanings which consists of two componenst – denotation and connotation There are a lot of differences in the range of denotational and pragmatic semantic units when comparing a lexical item with its equivalent in a different language Phraseological equivalence Phraseological units are lexical combinations, the meaning of which is defined by the whole expression The most distinctive feature of phraseological unit is its emotional expressiveness and conciseness of thought expression Phraseological units are functioning in the newspaper style It should be noted that defining phraseological units in the text and the ability to find an equivalent to it during the translation process is the most important stage for the translator Grammatical equivalence The choice of grammatical units in TT largely depends on the semantics and combinability of its lexical elements Therefore there are practically no permanent grammatical equivalents The variable equivalents in the field of grammar may be analogous forms in TL or different forms with a similar meaning As often as not such equivalents are interchangeable and the translator has a free choice between them Occasional equivalents in translation Loan-word usage We use loan-words imitating in TL the form of the SL word or word combination, or using an explanation to convey the meaning of the SL unit followed by a foot-note explaining the meaning of the equivalent-lacking word in ST Approximate substitute usage We use approximate substitutes (approximate translation) when we want to make use of a Targget Language form partially equivalent to the equivalent-lacking Sourse Language unit Transformation application We use transformations (transformational translation) (nouns into verbs, phrases into clauses…), when we want to make our translations more vivid and interesting Zero translations We use zero translations when the meaning of the grammatical unit is not rendered in the translation since it is non-existent in TL or practically identical to the meaning of some other unit and can be safely left out Tips for better translation Tip You should understand perfectly the content and intention of the author whom he is translating The principal way to reach it is reading all the sentences or the text completely so that you can give the idea that you want to say in the target language Tip You should have a perfect knowledge of the language from which you are translating and an equally excellent knowledge of the language into which you are translating At this point you must have a wide knowledge in both languages for getting the equivalence in the target language Tip You should avoid the tendency to translate word for word because doing so is to destroy the meaning of the original and to ruin the beauty of the expression Tip You should employ the forms of speech in common usage You have to bear in mind that the people to whom the translation will be addressed and use words that can be easily understood Exercises for practice 1: Translate the following sentences into Vietnamese A man’s wife had scratched the side of their new car as she backed it out of the garage A man was injured in an accident aboard a bus, and his friends told him that he should sue for damages A crew was unloading a tank car of highly explosive chemicals when it exploded Her grandmother, willing to break her neck to please her little granddaughter, took away the cereal and went to work preparing a bacon and egg breakfast Even though he had made a lot of money with several inventions, some of his neighbours thought he was a bit of an oddball Being rich, they referred to him as eccentric My dad was fixing the roof and the ladder slipped out from under him and he is hanging from the eaves Suggested answers for the exercises Vợ người làm xước thành xe lúc lùi xe khỏi gara Bố tơi dọi lại mái nhà nhiên thang đổ ông bị lơ lửng xà nhà Một hành khách xe buýt bị thương lúc xe Bạn bè khuyên kiện địi bồi thường Một tốn cơng nhân bốc dỡ hàng dễ cháy xe bồn, xe nổ Sẵn lịng chiều cháu mình, bà cất bát cơm làm thịt hun trứng cho ăn sáng Mặc dù ơng kiếm nhiều tiền nhờ sáng chế mình, vài người hàng xóm cho đầu óc ơng ta khơng bình thường Thậm chí họ cịn bảo ơng dở người Exercises for practice 2: Translate the following sentences into Vietnamese By the end of the first quarter of the nineteenth century a number of our Eastern institutions – Harvard, Yale, Columbia, and Pennsylvania – had some of (1) the necessary ingredients of a university, but hardly yet the point of view They were (2) little clusters of schools and institutes Indeed, just after the Revolution, the schools of Pennsylvania and Harvard had assumed the somewhat pretentious title of university, and, shortly after, the University of Virginia was founded under the guidance of Thomas Jefferson (3) In the South, Georgia and later North Carolina began (4) to rise (5) The substance in all these was mainly lacking though the title was honored (6) There were rather feeble law, medical, and divinity schools, somewhat loosely attached to (7) those colleges It has been (8) commonly recognized, however, that the first decade after (9) the close of the Civil War, that is, from about 1866 to 1876, was (10) the great early flowering of the university idea in America Suggested answers for the exercises You may render it with the use of occasional equivalents as follows: (1) Một số phòng ban ban đầu You may render it with the use of non-permanent (variable) equivalents as follows: (2) cụm trường nhỏ lẻ You may render it with the combination of lexical equivalents and occasional equivalents as follows: (3) Tại miền nam nước Mỹ, trường … Bắt đầu (4) mọc lên (5) Cơ sở hạ tầng tất trường……… You may render it with the use of the lexical and grammatical equivalents as follows: (6) Ngày trước có nhiều …… (7) trường You may render it with the use of the lexical and occasional equivalents as follows: (8) Ai biết rằng… (9) kết thúc … (10) thời kỳ chớm nở huy hoàng ……… Exercises for practice 3: Translate the following sentences into English paying attention to the underlined and bold ones Sinh viên trường đại học Mỹ thường (1) chơi khăm bạn gái sinh viên (2) đến chơi lần đầu Thường họ mang tất đồ đạc khỏi phịng người sinh viên đó, (3) cô bạn anh đến vật để ngồi Ted Jones niên nông thôn, (4) nhận vào đại học, chưa rời quê Lần đầu đến trường nghe nói nghịch ngợm này, (5) tỏ khơng thích tun bố với sinh viên khác, “Tôi định điều khơng xảy với tơi Tơi khóa cửa phịng lại.” Các sinh viên khác (6) cười trước lời lẽ tự tin anh Lần Ted đưa bạn gái phòng, anh kinh ngạc thấy tất đồ đạc (7) cửa phịng bị lấy Suggested answers for the exercises Students at an American University often play tricks on each other when anyone's new girlfriend pays the first visit to his campus Normally all of the furniture is taken out of his room so that his girl friend won't have anything to sit on Ted Jones is a fellow countryman He has never left his home village until he is a university student It is the first time that he has ever heard of this trick He showed his annoyance and said to other students that".I am sure that it won't happen to me." "I will lock up my room " All other students laughed at his confidence For the first time when Ted took his girl friend to his room, he was very surprised to find that all the furniture remained untouched but the door dissapeared (was removed) SUMMARY In this lecture we have learned all the main points about the general concepts as well as the characteristic features of translation At least we have known something about the nature of translation together with its meaning, style and culture I hope that after this lecture you will get to know what you should and shouldn't when you face a task of doing the translating Finding the right equivalents for the translation is a really difficult task for most of you It is essential for you to pay attention to the style of writing and the culture of the target language Don't forget to have a look at the tasks of the translator Luck always stays with you! UNIT 2: ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN The Main Contents ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION THE FEATURES OF INTERPRETATION QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION INTERPRETING VS TRANSLATING THE FEATURES OF TRANSLATION EXERCISES ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION (The source language) The meanings Source Language as the name suggests is the language in which you will receive the document to translate into another language A tip, source language should be the language which you have learnt and not necessarily your native language This is the language which your client understands very well, so your expertise in this language can even be up to a moderate level If you can comprehend this language very well, but cannot think much in this language, then its fine Don’t worry about it Grammar Each language has its own system of grammatical structures It is important to analyze the grammatical structure of the source language first The basic character of any language is determined by features of a structural The usage rules help ensure that a language is used in formal writing and speaking so as to make our writings and speeches clear, efficient, and effective, given our purposes in communicating and the characteristics of our audiences Rules that tell us which forms to choose or what syntactic patterns to avoid or to use are prescriptive Ideally they prescribe what are taken to be the most generally used formal writing and speaking practices at a particular time Culture Language is more than just a means of communication It influences our culture and even our thought processes Language was viewed by many linguists and anthropologists as being more important than it actually is in shaping our perception of reality It was said that language predetermines what we see in the world around us In other words, language acts like a polarizing lens on a camera in filtering reality we see the real world only in the categories of our language ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION (The source text) Introduction The source text is the text which has been chosen for translation It means that a source text is a text (sometimes oral) from which information or ideas are derived In translation, a source text is the original text that is to be translated into another language General points It may well happen that the translator chooses a text either out of personal interest to translate or as a task given by another authority (teacher or test) or a publisher In most cases, the translator cannot, without a good reason, change any part of the source text The source language, as has been seen earlier, is not only the very central and initial point for the start of the translation process but also is the background for all translation processes A source text contains writer’s personal emotions, backgrounds, preferences, experiences, beliefs and other personal stuff One of the tasks for a translator in the translation process is to adjust the location of a source text between himself and a writer The rules of translation for the source text The first thing to remember is that translation is the transfer of meaning from one language to another It is not the transfer of words from language to language You must translate the meaning of what is being said, rather than it wordforword This is because languages are not just different words Different languages also have different grammar, different word orders, sometimes even words for which other languages not have any equivalents The English spoken by a scientist may have words which a simple farmer cannot even start to imagine And the farmer is likely to have words for things the technologist never dreamed of The translational norms of the source text Norms play a role in all the respects since they are related to assumptions and expectations about correctness and/or appropriateness Norms are defined as ‘the social reality of correctness notions’ That is, in each community there is a knowledge of what counts as correct or appropriate behaviour, including communicative behaviour In a society, this knowledge exists in the form of norms Norms are developed in the process of socialisation They are conventional, they are shared by members of a community ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION: The translator or the interpreter Definition You should bear in mind that the translator/ interpreter is a human agent who knows two languages or more and who can express the message(s) of a text from one language using the system(s) of the other The important element The translator/ interpreter is the most important element in translation, since the study of translation and the language of translation is no more than the study of the translator's linguistic ability and the translator's output of translated texts The translator is the initial knower of two languages, or more, who has the ability to move between two languages The main roles He/she is the interpreter of the source text, and the producer of the final interpretation which determines the meaning(s) which readers of the translation will read General qualities Besides being a bilingual, or a multilingual, individual, the translator/ interpreter is philosophically in a unique position between two cultures, since he/she is supposed to be beyond the influences of the social and cultural environment of any of the two languages In this sense, the translator, like the linguist who takes all human languages to be on an equal footing, is among the first candidate to be liberated from the dominance of one language/culture, no matter how old, great or powerful that language/culture may be ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION: To be a Good Translator/ Interpreter (1) Introduction We all know that theoretical knowledge and practical skills alone are not adequate to prepare you to face the developments in the field There is a need for ability to adapt; therefore, it is necessary to focus on your self-updating and to develop your relevant mental, communicative, and planning skills Training translators/ interpreters is an important task which should be given a high priority The service that translators render to enhance cultures and nurture languages has been significant throughout history Step The first step is extensive reading of different translations of different kinds of texts, since translating requires active knowledge, while analyzing and evaluating different translations requires passive knowledge Therefore, receptive skills should be developed before the productive ones; i.e by reinforcing their passive knowledge, you will eventually improve your active knowledge Receptive skills improve your language intuition and make you ready for actual translating Step "Writing" skills, the ability to write smoothly and correctly in both source and target languages, are also important Writing is in fact the main job of a translator You should become familiar with different styles of writing and techniques and principles of editing and punctuation in both source and target languages Editing and punctuation improve the quality and readability of the translation Step Moreover, translation trainees should have a good ear for both source and target languages; i.e they should be alert to pick up various expressions, idioms, and specific vocabulary and their uses, and store them in their minds to be used later This is in fact what we call improving one's "intuition." Intuition is not something to be developed in a vacuum; rather, it needs practice and a solid background It needs both the support of theory and the experience of practice Language intuition is a must for a competent translator Step One of the most important points to consider in the act of translating is understanding the value of the source text within the framework of the sourcelanguage discourse To develop this understanding, you must be aware of the cultural differences and the various discoursal strategies in the source and target languages Therefore, the hidden structure of the source text should be discovered through the use of various discoursal strategies by the translator A good translator should be familiar with the culture, customs, and social settings of the source and target language speakers She should also be familiar with different registers, styles of speaking, and social stratification of both languages Step You have to be aware of various information-providing sources and learn how to use them These sources include: different monolingual and bilingual dictionaries, encyclopedias, and the Internet Using dictionaries is a technical skill in itself Not all of you know how to use dictionaries appropriately Words have different meanings in different contexts, and usually monolingual dictionaries are of utmost value in this regard You need a great deal of practice to find the intended meaning of words in a particular context, using monolingual dictionaries Step You also need to be familiar with the syntax of indirect speech and various figures of speech in the source language such as hyperbole, irony, meiosis, and implicatures Awareness of these figures of speech will reinforce your creativity and change your passive knowledge into active skill Step While there is a strong emphasis on developing source and target language competencies, the ways in which you can develop them should not be neglected Group work and cooperation with peers can always lead the translating process to better results Anyone who practices translation with his/her peers will be able to solve problems more easily and will also more rapidly develop self-confidence and decision-making techniques Although there is a possibility of making mistakes during group work, the experience of making, detecting, and correcting mistakes will make your minds open and alert Step Another important point is that successful translators usually choose one specific kind of texts for translating and continue to work only in that area; for example a translator might translate only literary works, scientific books, or journalistic texts Even while translating literary works, some translators might choose only to translate poetry, short stories, or novels Even more specific than that, some translators choose a particular author and translate only her or his works The reason is that the more they translate the works of a particular author, the more they will become familiar with her or his mind, way of thinking, and style of writing And the more familiar is the translator with the style of a writer, the better the translation will be ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION (Attributes that make a Good Translator) Native Speaker This is perhaps the most important thing to look for in a translator The translator must be a native speaker of the target language This ensures a thorough knowledge of the language’s culture The art of translation is not limited to linguistics It also requires cultural adaptation that only a native speaker can provide A fluent, non-native speaker may be able to produce a “good” translation, but a native speaker will be capable of producing a natural translation every time English Skills Assuming English is the source language, it is equally important that the translator have a near-native command of the English language Without near flawless English, a translator may miss some of the nuances in the source text, and thus will leave them out of the translation Pricing & Rates You must always be mindful of the project budget A translator should be mindful of the going rate for their language combination and expertise, otherwise they may price themselves out of work that is suited for them It is also important for the translator not to under-value themselves, as a too-low price should make you question the quality of work that the translator might deliver Experience A translator’s experience is a factor in deciding if the translator is qualified, and determining a reasonable rate for services Both years of experience and type of experience are important for you to consider Education and work experience related to linguistics, language teaching, and translation are all desirable Years of experience doing translation work are also desirable, but too many years can sometimes be something to take an extra look at ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION (Attributes that make a Good Translator) Certifications Your project may require a certified translator Collecting certifications from organizations with national or state recognition is a good idea in order to expand the number of projects a translator is eligible to work on If there are no specific requirements for certifications for a certain project, a translator with good experience can be considered Flexibility Once the terms are negotiated, it is important for a translator to be openminded to a flexible pay-scale for special scenarios Special scenarios can include high-volume projects and other unique situations Location Location can also be important for the quality of the translations – the translator should be a native speaker of the target language and an expert in the target culture, and familiar with colloquialisms and linguistic standards for the target audience Knowledge of CAT Tools (Computer-Assisted Translation) If you are working with a language service company, that company will almost surely be working with one or more CAT tools on a regular basis, funneling all their projects through them Depending on the size of your organization, you may also have in-house CAT tools ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION (Attributes that make a Good Translator) Specialization It’s important to have a pool of translators for everyday projects But many projects require specialized knowledge that a general translator cannot provide You should focus on specializing in your particular field Being a qualified translator is the only way to guarantee high-quality translations Honesty A translator shows that he is credible and professional when he only accept assignments that he is truly a good fit for It is always better for a translator to decline a project if he is uncomfortable with it or does not have time for it than to accept when the circumstances aren’t right A project that is rushed due to a translator’s overloaded schedule, or a project that is done by a translator who is not familiar with the topic, will inevitably be of low quality Responsiveness You may have different expectations for a reasonable response time depending on the project – but faster is always better A translator should check his email several times a day and should respond immediately to decline or accept a project once he has made his decision Availability A translator who is always available moves to the top of the list very quickly Turning down projects due to heavy workload or not being familiar with a topic is a good thing, but rejecting too many projects may lead others to believe that the translator is uninterested in working with them If they are always sending projects for topics the translator is uncomfortable with, the translator should remind them of his areas of expertise QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION QUESTION 1: How the elements of translation interact with each other? You have to remember that all the elements of translation are related to each other In some aspects they are like the two sides of a matter; the right side and the wrong side The existence of one element depends on the other ones QUESTION 2: In translating, is the source text the main basis or the target source is? Why? You have to rely on the characteristic features of the source text and the target text in order to find out the clues for the answer to the question The main basis belongs to the one that is unchangeable QUESTION 3: What is/are the role(s) of the translator in translation? The roles of the translator are just the kinds of activities that the translator does when translating texts For example: the analyst, writer or editor etc … QUESTION 4: Point out the basic differences between oral and written translation You should have a look at the part "INTERPRETING VS TRANSLATING " in the lecture in order to find out the clues QUESTION 5: What are the qualities/ skills of the translator/ interpreter? You can choose some of the following ones for the qualities of the translator: vocabulary, pronunciation, hand writing, reading skills mobility, flexibility and creativity, linguistic competence (grammar, syntax, semantics ), fluency, analytical thinking, sense of humor, spelling/reading ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION (Attributes that make a Good Translator) Communication Translators who communicate well are significantly easier to work with Communication about availability, such as travel plans, is just as important as project-related communication Project-related communication should be timely and clear Manners It may sound like common sense, but it is important to have good manners This topic can be sensitive and uncomfortable for both parties It is important for a translator to stand up for himself and not settle for less than he is worth, but there is a way to that Attention to Details Attention to detail is one of the main components of a solid quality assurance process Things like numbers, formatting and punctuation are paid close attention Translators who make mistakes in these areas stand out – in a bad way – and may be excluded from future projects if the mistakes are too frequent Response to Feedback When there is feedback, a translator is expected to review the feedback and provide his professional recommendations as to how to proceed A translator should be professional and open-minded, but also his best by providing a clear explanation for his mistakes ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION: The translated text General points If the source text is taken to be the starting point of the translation process, then the translated text is the text which results from the translation process Thus, the translated text is the actual definite material, which has been produced by conveying the meaning of a source text in terms of another language and culture Translated text properties Translation properties owing to the translation process were only investigated in the light of the psycholinguistic experiment, but also on the basis of examples in the context of the cross-linguistic and the psycholinguistic analyses This leads to the description of the nature of translated text The changes of the translated texts In addition to the changes resulting from the movement from one language to another, translation necessarily changes the receiver or addressee of the text While the source text is addressed to a certain readership, the translated text changes this factor in the situation of the language event to new readers in a new language This change in the addressee has far-reaching implications for the equivalence of the translated text at different levels of meanings, grammar and culture of the target language ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION: The nature of translated text Normalization English translated fiction is more narrative and situationdependent than English original fiction texts (the typical features being overused) At the same time, English translated fiction is more abstract and less edited than original texts (the untypical features being overused) Thus, English translated narrative texts are more typical than English original narrative texts as regards the use of typical features, whereas they point towards a more neutral register owing to the extensive overuse of untypical fiction features Anti-normalization Anti-normalization of the untypical fiction features and normalization of the typical fiction features are mainly due to re-metaphorization and, in second and third place, due to de-metaphorization and metaphorization This means that in most cases the typical and untypical fiction features are re-metaphorized since, to realize the register of fiction, the same constructions are used in the SL texts and the TL texts ELEMENTS OF TRANSLATION: The language of translation Fidelity (or faithfulness) Fidelity is the quality of being faithful or loyal Faithfulness is the extent to which a translation accurately renders the meaning of the source text, without distortion Its original meaning regarded duty in a broader sense than the related concept of fealty Both derive from the Latin word fidēlis, meaning "faithful or loyal" Fidelity also denotes how accurately a copy reproduces its source Transparency 10