This paper is a suggested translation of Part I of the book 21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Noah Harari. I chose to translate this book to make it easier for the reader to feel rewarding lessons, rather than advice. In addition, I also analyze some essential issues such as polynomial vocabulary, complex grammatical structures, or pronunciations in this section. Furthermore, through this graduate paper, I also discovered some difficulties in translation and offered some effective solutions.
INTRODUCTION
Rationale
During the time I have been studied at the Faculty of English at Duy Tan University I have given opportunities to approach and understand many types of interpreters related to several disciplines
Besides, the number of people pursuing the translation industry is quite large nowadays I have always noticed that the demand for interpreters and translators is increasing Moreover, a translator requires not only expertise but also proficiency skills Especially, translating a book related to history is not easy.
Because in fact, we don't know what happened in the past, we have had to go through so many historical processes, so there has been an increasing number of readers who want to know what happened in the past In order for readers to see that the world we live in is really complicated, with many global problems that people face, and there are so many things going on, so I decided to choose to translate Part I into Vietnamese of the book: 21 Lessons for the 21 st Century by Yuval Noah Harari
Hopefully, when translating this book can change the minds of readers about the world and the profound lesson that is the way we educate and the meaning of our lives.
Aims and Objectives
Improving translating skills through difficult vocabulary and grammar structures as well as unfamiliar idioms and expressions.
Increasing knowledge about method, process and identifying the steps of translation.
Understanding the idea of the author to express the content to the reader.
After completing the graduation paper, I had gained several noticeable purposes as follows:
Summing up the knowledge that I have learned for nearly 4 years at university. Analyzing difficult and complex vocabularies, phrases, or structures in the text.
Translating text more clearly, easy to understand and as natural as possible.
Getting to know how to deal with complicated sentence structures.
Mastering translating skills and the ways to express equivalent ideas in bothEnglish and Vietnamese.
The scope of study
There are many outstanding lessons to be studied in this book, the problems that people may face in the 21 st century However, given the scope of the paper and due to time constraints, this paper is focus only on the technology challenge in Part I with
The article will also point out and analyze the difficulties that I encounter when translating, how to use English grammatical and syntactic structures as well as the semantics of words in the translation process.
21 Lessons for the 21 st Century is a book written by bestseller Israeli author Yuval
Noah Harari and published in 2018 As the name of this book, the main content refers to 21 lessons for the 21st century in which we live and focuses on present-day issues and societal questions The author analyzes the lessons in-depth with sharp arguments and is accompanied by historical stories and humorous examples in the familiar style of Yuval Noah Harari.
The book “ 21 Lessons for the 21 st Century ” overall has 5 part The text I choose to translate belongs to Part I - with about 5014 words.
This book is divided into 5 parts and the text I chose belongs to part 1 of the book The text is divided into different sections and it is organized as follows:
The end of history has been postponed
When you grow up, you might not have a job
Big Data is watching you
Those who own the data own the future
The text is Part I from the book “ 21 Lessons for the 21 st Century ” written by Yuval
Noah Harari This book was published on 23th August, 2018
Source website: https://amauroboliveira.files.wordpress.com/2020/10/21-lessons-for- the-21st-century-1.pdf
Method of the Study
- Using scanning and skimming skills to understand the main content of the text.
- Identifying and noting polysemous words, specialized terms, and complex grammatical structures.
- Translating the text and paying attention to highlighted terms, idioms, and structures of the text.
- Using the dictionary to see the meaning of words and search for more information on the Internet to find the meaning that best fits the context of SL. b Analyzing methods
- Studying the polysemous words, the specialized vocabulary in the text.
- Analyzing the grammatical structures and determining the components of the sentence.
THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
Translation Theory
The main theory of translation has always been to understand the languages and subject involved and transfer the information, but there are two opposing theories on the best way to accomplish this In my experience, translation is one of the most misunderstood fields in the world Because each person will have different views on translation.
This is one reason why non-translators always assume that machines can easily do the translation work for us However, the reality is that translation is a much more complex operation Here are some definitions for us to better understand translation:
Translation is an act through which the content of a text is transferred from the source language (SL) in to the target language (TL) - Foster, 1958
Translation is the replacement of textual material in one language (SL) by equivalent textual material in another language (TL)” - J.C Catford, 1965
Translation is, on the other hand, a product since it provides us with other different cultures, to ancient societies and civilization life when the translated texts reaches us - Yowell and Mutfah, 1999
Translation is generally used to refer to all the process and methods used to convey the meaning of the source language (SL) in to the target language (TL) - Ghazala, 1995
According to J.C.Carford (1965), there are two categories of translation: full and partial.
(i) Full translation: in the process of translation, every part of the entire text in the Source Language is submitted by the equivalent in the Target Language.
(1) Singapore is a cosmopolitan city and a premier destination for lifelong learning complemented with world-class educational institutions
→ Singapore là một thành phố quốc tế và là điểm đến hàng đầu cho việc học tập suốt đời với các cơ sở giáo dục đẳng cấp thế giới.
(2) Effective environmental protection is very important for the development of the country.
→ Bảo vệ môi trường hiệu quả là rất quan trọng đối với sự phát triển của đất nước
(ii) Partial translation: there are some parts of the SL that are not translated but only put into the TL.
(1) Mọi chuyện đã qua rồi.
(2) “Áo dài” từ lâu đã là trang phục truyền thống và là nét văn hóa đặc trưng của dân tộc Việt Nam.
→ “Ao Dai” has long been a traditional costume and a typical cultural feature of the Vietnamese nation.
(i) Total translation is defined that all levels of the SL text are replaced by
TL material However, actually, there is a misunderstanding here because of the term
“total translation” We can’t replace all the levels of the SL to the TL, though total replacement is involved.
→ Không có gì là không thể.
(ii) For J.C Catford (1965), restricted translation means the replacement of
SL textual material by equivalent TL one, but only in one level Maybe it is performed only at the phonological or at the graphological level, or at only one of the two levels of grammar and lexis.
Example: “Năm nay rét sớm hơn mọi năm u nhỉ?”
→ “This year feels colder than normal, mother?”
In the translation process, the translators also meet up with many problems that make them difficult to solve, for example phonological translation.
The phonological units of the SL are replaced by phonological units of the TL, leaving the grammar and lexis of the SL intact except for accidental changes => idealized category, based on the idea that the tranlator might want to give absolute priority to the phonological level, so that the choice of lexis and syntax in the TL is dependent on the criterion of sound alone
Principles and Methods Translation
Although this is not a theoretical work, I realize that teachers may appreciate some guidelines on how to help the students evaluate their own work Specific remarks are given in the Comments ‘after each activity Below are some general principles which are relevant to all translation:
The translation should reflect accurately the meaning of the original text Nothing should be arbitrarily added or removed, though occasionally part of the meaning can be transposed.
The ordering of words and ideas in the translation should match the original as closely as possible This is particularly important in translating legal documents, guarantees, contracts, etc But differences in language structure often require changes in the form and order of words When in doubt, underline in the original text the words on which the main stress falls.
Languages often differ greatly in their levels of formality in a given context, for example, the business letter To resolve these differences, the translator must distinguish between formal or fixed expressions and personal expressions, in which the writer or speaker sets the tone.
Idiomatic expressions are notoriously untranslatable These include similes, metaphors, proverbs and sayings, jargon, slang, and colloquialisms and (in English ) phrasal verbs.
If translators cannot directly translate the expressions, they should consider some followings:
Preserve the original word, in inverted commas.
Keep the original expression, with a literal explanation in brackets.
Use a non-idiomatic or plain prose translation.
The translator should not change the style of the original But if the text is sloppily written, or full of tedious repetitions, the translator may, for the reader's sake, correct the defects.
One of the most frequent criticism of translation is that it does not sound natural This is because the translator's thoughts and choice of words are too strongly moulded by the original text A good way of shaking off the SL influence is to set the text aside and translate a few sentences aloud, from memory This will suggest natural patterns of thought in the first language, which may not come to mind when the eye is fixed on the SL text.
The context influences the meaning of a phrase or sentence It is linked to the environment in which the communication takes place In translation, the context is very important: one word may mean a different thing depending on the context in which it is used
Word-for-word translation translates each word or phrase that it understands; however, it does not consider grammar and can be out of content, especially idioms and proverbs It is an effective method, which is to interpret a difficult text as a pre- translation process or comprehend the mechanics of the original language This method is frequently related to scientific, technical, or legal literature; therefore, it makes sense of a complex material before translating
Example: It was rained cats and dogs yesterday
→ Trời mưa như mèo với chó vào hôm qua
In terms of literal translation, as word-for-word translation, the lexical terms are translated singly and out of context, but the grammatical structures of the SL are converted to their nearest TL equivalents This illustrates the problems to be fixed as a retranslation process Compared with word-for-word translation, literal translation is more likely to focus on grammatical structures, but it seems not natural and comprehensive.
Example: A large number of citizens are walking on the street now
→ Bây giờ có rất nhiều người đang đi bộ trên phố
The faithful translation tries to the exact contextual meaning of the original within the constraints of the TL about grammatical structures It also transfers cultural words and keeps the degree of grammatical and lexical deviation from SL so as to be fully faithful to the intentions and the text-realization of the SL writer. the faithful translation tries to the exact contextual meaning of the original within the constraints of the target language about grammatical structures It also transfers cultural words and keeps the degree of grammatical and lexical deviation from source language so as to be fully faithful to the intentions and the text- realisation of the source language writer
Example: I think he stole the bag.
→ Tôi nghĩ anh ta đã trộm chiếc túi đó.
Semantic translation requires the high value of aesthetic in the SL text It means in the translation process, translator must refine the completed version to avoid assonance, word-play or repetition jars This method is the most effective way to convey the meaning of the source text without adding, repairing or reduce words.
Example: My lover has a sunny smile on her face
→ Người yêu tôi có gương mặt với nụ cười tỏa nắng
In adaptation, the themes, characters, plots are preserved, and the SL culture is converted to the TL culture and the text is rewritten This translation method is often used in poem, stories or plays translations.
Example: Cyclisme (French) = football (UK) = baseball (US).
Free translation is translating a text in such a way that it reproduces the general meaning of the original text Unlike in literal translation, free translation does not involve rendering word to word meaning of a text Moreover, this type of translation may or may not closely follow the structure or organization of the original text.
Example: My dad is feeling blue
→ Bố tôi cảm thấy rất buồn
Idiomatic translation refers to achieving a target text that sounds natural in the TL, while idiomatic expressions or fixed expressions in a given language
Example: You are the apple of my eye
→ Bạn là người quan trọng nhất trong mắt tôi
This method attempts to render the exact contextual meaning of the original in such a way that both content and language are readily acceptable and comprehensible to the audience It’s often used for informative texts.
Example: Be aware of the dog!
→ Cẩn thận, có chó đấy!
SUGGESTED TRANSLATION
[1] Humankind is losing faith in the liberal story that dominated global politics in recent decades, exactly when the merger of biotech and infotech confronts us with the biggest challenges humankind has ever encountered.
Suggested version Thách thức về công nghệ
[1] Nhân loại đang dần mất niềm tin vào việc tự do rằng chính trị toàn cầu đã thống trị trong những thập kỷ gần đây, chính xác là khi sự hợp nhất của công nghệ sinh học và công nghệ thông tin khiến chúng ta phải đối mặt với những thách thức lớn nhất mà loài người từng gặp phải.
The end of history has been postponed
[2] Humans think in stories rather than in facts, numbers or equations, and the simpler the story, the better Every person, group and nation has its own tales and myths.
[3] But during the twentieth century the global elites in New York, London,
Berlin and Moscow formulated three grand stories that claimed to explain the whole past and to predict the future of the entire world: the fascist story, the communist story, and the liberal story.
[4] The Second World War knocked out the fascist story, and from the late 1940s to the late 1980s the world became a battleground between just two stories: communism and liberalism Then the communist story collapsed, and the liberal story remained the dominant guide to the human past and the indispensable manual for the future of the world– or so it seemed to the global
Sự kết thúc của lịch sử đã bị trì hoãn
[2] Con người cho là trong quá khứ hơn thực tế, những số liệu hay phương trình, và câu chuyện càng đơn giản thì càng tốt Mỗi người, nhóm và quốc gia đều có những câu chuyện và huyền thoại của riêng mình.
[3] Nhưng trong thế kỷ XX, giới tinh hoa toàn cầu ở New York, London, Berlin và Moscow đã xây dựng ba sự kiện vĩ đại rằng tuyên bố để giải thích toàn bộ quá khứ và dự đoán tương lai của toàn thế giới: sự kiện phát xít, cộng sản và tự do.
[4] Chiến tranh thế giới thứ hai đã phá hủy câu chuyện phát xít, và từ cuối thập niên 1940 đến cuối những năm 1980 thế giới đã trở thành một chiến trường giữa hai câu chuyện: chủ nghĩa cộng sản và chủ nghĩa tự do. Sau đó, câu chuyện cộng sản sụp đổ, và câu chuyện tự do vẫn là sự thống trị cho quá khứ của loài người và là cuốn sách hướng dẫn không thể thiếu elite.
[5] The liberal story celebrates the value and power of liberty It says that for thousands of years humankind lived under oppressive regimes which allowed people few political rights, economic opportunities or personal liberties, and which heavily restricted the movements of individuals, ideas and goods
[6] But people fought for their freedom, and step by step, liberty gained ground Democratic regimes took the place of brutal dictatorships Free enterprise overcame economic restrictions.
[7] People learned to think for themselves and follow their hearts, instead of blindly obeying bigoted priests and hidebound traditions Open roads, stout bridges and bustling airports replaced walls, moats and barbed-wire fences. cho tương lai của thế giới – hoặc dường như là vậy đối với giới thượng lưu toàn cầu.
[5] Câu chuyện tự do ca ngợi giá trị và sức mạnh của tự do Nó nói rằng trải qua hàng ngàn năm loài người đã sống dưới những chế độ áp bức, cung cấp cho người dân ít quyền chính trị, cơ hội kinh tế hoặc quyền tự do cá nhân, và điều này hạn chế nghiêm trọng các hoạt động của cá thể, ý tưởng và hàng hóa.
[6] Nhưng con người đã đấu tranh cho tự do của họ, và từng bước một, tự do đã giành được địa vị Các chế độ độc tài tàn bạo được thay thế bởi các chính phủ dân chủ Doanh nghiệp tự do đã vượt qua những hạn chế kinh tế.
[7] Thay vì mù quáng vâng lời các linh mục hèn nhát và truyền thống ẩn giấu, con người đã học cách suy nghĩ cho bản thân họ và làm theo cảm xúc của họ Những con đường mở, cây cầu dẻo dai và các sân bay nhộn nhịp đã thay thế những bức tường, vách
[8] The liberal story acknowledges that not all is well in the world, and that there are still many hurdles to overcome.
Much of our planet is dominated by tyrants, and even in the most liberal countries many citizens suffer from poverty, violence and oppression.
[9] But at least we know what we need to do in order to overcome these problems: give people more liberty We need to protect human rights, to grant everybody the vote, to establish free markets, and to let individuals, ideas and goods move throughout the world as easily as possible
[10] According to this liberal panacea – accepted, in slight variations, by George W Bush and Barack Obama alike – if we just continue to liberalise and globalise our political and economic systems, we will produce peace and ngăn và hàng rào dây thép gai.
[8] Câu chuyện tự do thừa nhận rằng không phải mọi thứ trên thế giới đều tốt đẹp, và vẫn còn nhiều trở ngại để vượt qua Phần lớn hành tinh của chúng ta bị thống trị bởi những kẻ bạo chúa, và ngay cả ở những quốc gia tự do nhất, nhiều công dân phải chịu cảnh nghèo đói, bạo lực và áp bức.
ANALYSIS
Vocabulary
Vocabulary is one of the main elements that play an important role in sentence formation A word can also have multiple meanings or metaphors, so the translator should rely on the context to come up with a suitable meaning for the translation To accurately translate a text requires translators to use many different translation methods, to select equivalent meanings of words in accordance with structure, grammar and idioms Moreover, in order to provide an accurate translation, it is essential to research documents on social networks In addition, the reference to the dictionary is also an important and beneficial factor for the translator During the translation process, I encountered some obstacles by some difficult vocabulary, the difficulties will be analyzed in detail as follows:
Multi-meaning words are words that have more than one meaning in the dictionary and they have different meanings in different contexts These words frequently cause problems for translators if they do not understand the meaning of the words or the context of the SL It's difficult to pick out a single meaning that best fits
TL As a result, in order to select the best meaning and one that is appropriate for the context, we should re-read the original text in order to come up with the appropriate meaning and help the sentence in TL more fluently.
Example 1 : According to Oxford Dictionary, the word “ story ” in the sentence: “Then the communist story collapsed, and the liberal story remained the dominant guide to the human past and the indispensable manual for the future of the world– or so it seemed to the global elite.” [P4] has many meanings:
[1] A description of events and people that the writer or speaker has invented in order to entertain people
[2] The series of events in a book, film, play, etc.
[3] An account of past events or of how something has developed
[4] An account, often spoken, of what happened to somebody or of how something happened
[5] A report in a newspaper, magazine or news broadcast
[6] Something that somebody says which is not true
The word " story " has a lot of meanings in the dictionary, but the fourth meaning is the best in this context To interpret this word, we can use the fourth meaning, which means " câu chuyện " in Vietnamese.
Suggested version: “Sau đó, câu chuyện cộng sản sụp đổ, và câu chuyện tự do vẫn là sự thống trị cho quá khứ của loài người và là cuốn sách hướng dẫn không thể thiếu cho tương lai của thế giới – hoặc dường như là vậy đối với giới thượng lưu toàn cầu.”
Example 2: According to Oxford Dictionary, the word “mass” in the sentence:
“Others have concluded (rightly or wrongly) that liberalisation and globalisation are a huge racket empowering a tiny elite at the expense of the masses.”[P18]
In Oxford dictionary, the word “mass” is defined by some meanings:
[1] Large amount of a substance that does not have a definite shape or form
[2] A large amount or quantity of something
[3] A large number of people or things grouped together, often in a confused way
[4] A large number or amount of something
[5] The ordinary people in society who are not leaders or who are considered to be not very well educated
[7] The quantity of material that something contains calculating the mass of a planet
The sixth meaning is the best one for this sentence To interpret this word, we can use the fourth meaning, which means " quần chúng" in Vietnamese.
Suggested version: “Những người khác đã kết luận (đúng hay sai) rằng tự do hóa và toàn cầu hóa là một đòn bẩy khổng lồ mang lợi ích cho một giới thượng lưu nhỏ bé mà trả giá bằng sinh mệnh của quần chúng.”
Phrasal verb meaning: a group of words that functions as a verb and is made up of a verb and a preposition, an adverb, or both.
Example 3 : “Obama has rightly pointed out that despite the numerous shortcomings of the liberal package, it has a much better record than any of its alternatives.” [P91]
As you know, “ pointed out” means “point out (to somebody)/point something out (to somebody)” in the Oxford Dictionary and it means “chỉ ra” in Vietnamese in this sentence And my suggested version as follows:
Suggested version: “Tổng thống Obama đã đúng khi chỉ ra rằng, mặc dù có nhiều thiếu sót của sự kết hợp tự do, nhưng nó có thành tích tốt hơn nhiều so với bất kỳ lựa chọn thay thế nào.”
Example 4 : “Some discovered a liking for the old hierarchical world, and they just don’t want to give up their racial, national or gendered privileges.” [P18]
According to The Oxford Dictionary, give up has meaning: to believe that somebody is never going to arrive, get better, be found, etc./ to stop having a relationship with somebody I translated it with the meaning “từ bỏ”.
Suggested version: “Một số người nhận thấy thích thế giới phân cấp cũ, và họ không muốn từ bỏ các đặc quyền chủng tộc, quốc gia hay giới tính của mình.”
Example 5: “Having put Marxism–Leninism on the back burner, China seems rather happy with the liberal international order.” [P65]
According to Cambridge Dictionary, “on the back burner” as something is on the back burner, it is temporarily not being dealt with or considered, especially because it is not urgent or important, it means that “gạt cái gì đó sang một bên”
Suggested version: “Sau khi gạt chủ nghĩa Marx-Lenin sang một bên, Trung Quốc dường như khá hài lòng với trật tự quốc tế tự do.”
Example 6 : “People may give the system an angry kick in the stomach but, having nowhere else to go, they will eventually come back.”[P77]
"Kick in the stomach" is a phrasal verb that is defined as something that makes you feel very disappointed or upset, especially when you have been trying hard to achieve something in Macmillan Dictionary As a result, I decide to translate the sentence depending on the context and choose the meaning “tuyệt vọng”.
Suggested version: “Con người có thể làm cho bản thân họ tuyệt vọng, nhưng không còn nơi nào khác để đi, cuối cùng họ sẽ quay trở lại.”
Specific terms are one of the most difficult and difficult aspects of translating To solve these specific terms, translators must not only be fluent in two languages but also have extensive knowledge of all fields, particularly the one into which they are translating.
I also encountered numerous difficulties during the translation process because this text contains a large number of specific terms To translate correctly, I must read many specific documents to determine the most precise meanings.
Structures
Structure is important in the meaning of sentences when translating a document One way to begin studying basic sentence structures is to consider the traditional parts of speech (also called word classes): nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, articles, and interjections To know for sure what part of speech a word is, we have to look not only at the word itself but also at its meaning, position, and use in a sentence Furthermore, there are some differences between
Vietnamese and English grammar Therefore, the translator must master the grammatical structure for the text to make sense During the translation process, I encountered many difficult structures that required careful analysis in order to properly transfer the meaning into Vietnamese.
A compound sentence contains at least two independent clauses linked by a coordinating conjunction An independent clause is a clause that can stand alone as a sentence.
Example 8: “We knew how to build a dam and stop a river from flowing, but we did not know how to stop the body from ageing.” [P29]
In this sentence, “but” is used as a conjunction to match two independent clauses that show contradictory ideas And it uses the form as follows:
Independent clause, (comma) + conjunction + independent clause
Suggested version: “Chúng ta biết làm thế nào để xây dựng một đập nước và ngăn chặn một dòng sông chảy, nhưng chúng ta không biết cách ngăn cơ thể khỏi lão hóa.”
This is a compound sentence with the conjunction "but", it contains two independent clauses and has a comma before the conjunction "but", it also has the function of expressing two opposite ideas.
Example 9 : “The revolutions in information technology and biotechnology are still in their infancy, and it is debatable to what extent they are really responsible for the current crisis of liberalism.” [P102]
This sentence is identified as a compound sentence by identifying signs that use the coordinating conjunction "and" to connect two independent clauses and express additional opinion My suggested translation is as follows:
Suggested version: “Các cuộc cách mạng trong công nghệ thông tin và công nghệ sinh học vẫn còn ở giai đoạn đầu, và vấn đề là chúng thực sự chịu trách nhiệm ở mức độ nào cho cuộc khủng hoảng chủ nghĩa tự do hiện nay.”
A compound-complex sentence has two or more independent clauses and one or more subordinate clauses.
If mosquitoes buzzed in our ears and disturbed our sleep, we knew how to kill the subordinator Dependent clause Independent clause mosquitoes; but if a thought buzzed in our mind and kept us awake at night, most of us coordinator Dependent clause did not know how to kill the thought [P30]
This compound-complex sentence has two independent clauses and two dependent clause It linked by subordinator “If” and coordinator “but” And my suggested version as follows:
Suggested version: “ Nếu muỗi vo ve bên tai và quấy rầy giấc ngủ của chúng ta, thì chúng ta biết cách diệt muỗi; nhưng nếu một ý nghĩ cứ lởn vởn trong đầu và khiến chúng ta thao thức cả đêm, thì hầu hết chúng ta đều không biết làm cách nào để dập tắt ý nghĩ đó.”
Example 1 1 : “According to this liberal panacea – accepted, in slight variations,
Independent clause by George W Bush and Barack Obama alike – if we just continue to liberalise and subordinator Dependent clause globalise our political and economic systems, we will produce peace and prosperity for
This compound-complex sentence has two independent clauses and one dependent clause It linked by subordinator “If” And my suggested version as follows:
Suggested version : “Theo phương thức panacea tự do này – được chấp nhận trong các biến thể nhỏ bởi George W Bush Bush và cả Barack Obama– nếu chúng ta tiếp tục tự do hóa và toàn cầu hóa hệ thống chính trị và kinh tế của chúng ta, chúng ta sẽ tạo ra hòa bình và thịnh vượng cho tất cả mọi người.” [P10]
Complex sentences are one of the difficult problems that we can’t avoid when translating Grammatically, a complex sentence is a sentence with one independent clause and at least one dependent clause It works best when you need to provide additional information to explain or support the main idea of a sentence So, if we don't have knowledge of grammar and if we don't analyze sentences carefully, we are easy to mistranslate There are three types of dependent clauses commonly used in complex sentences: noun clauses, adjective clauses, and adverb clauses For clarity, I will give many examples of complex sentence types below:
4.2.3.1 Complex sentence with Noun clause
It is difficult to translate sentences that contain a noun clause The noun clause is a challenging part of English grammar because it frequently causes us to misunderstand the meaning of the sentence if we incorrectly define the noun clause as well as its function I had a lot of problems transferring this document when I was translating it It is necessary to be cautious when analyzing Here are some examples of noun clauses and my suggested translation.
A noun clause is a dependent clause that functions as a noun It can be a subject, object, or subject complement A noun clause can function as a subject or an object of a sentence.
The liberal story acknowledges that not all is well in the world, and that there are
N clause still many hurdles to overcome [P8]
There were two noun clauses, which act as objects for the verb “acknowledges” Noun clause 1: “that not all is well in the world”
Noun clause 2: “that there are still many hurdles to overcome”
Suggested version: “Câu chuyện tự do thừa nhận rằng không phải mọi thứ trên thế giới đều tốt đẹp, và vẫn còn nhiều trở ngại để vượt qua.”
Example 1 3 : “Donald Trump warned voters that the Mexicans and Chinese will
S V O C (N clause) take their jobs, and that they should therefore build a wall on the Mexican
In this sentence, the author also uses two noun clause “that the Mexicans and
Chinese will take their job” and “that they should therefore build a wall on the Mexican border” as a object compliment of verb “warned” So, I translated it into
Suggested version: “Donald Trump cảnh báo cử tri rằng người Mexico và Trung Quốc sẽ cướp đi công việc của họ, và vì vậy họ nên xây dựng một bức tường trên biên giới với Mexico.”
4.2.3.2 Complex sentence with Relative clause
In a complex sentence, the relative clause can be anywhere in the sentence It can be independent or immediately after the noun to which it adds meaning Therefore,when translating, it is necessary to pay close attention to analysis Furthermore, the relative clause is not used in Vietnamese, making it difficult for translators to translate the text into the target language To address this issue, I frequently ignore the relative pronoun or convert it into another form to make the translation more familiar to readers.
Example 1 4 : “For every Muslim youth from Germany who travelled to the
East to live under a Muslim theocracy, probably a hundred Middle Eastern youths would have liked to make the opposite journey, and start a new life for themselves in liberal Germany.” [P76]
DIFFICULTIES AND SOLUTIONS
Difficulties
During my 4 years studying at Duy Tan University, I have learned a lot of translation skills through theoretical as well as practical subjects These subjects gave me a lot of background to deal with a text, and that made me more proficient with translation However, each language has its own characteristics and expressions In addition, grammar, vocabulary, or specific terms also affect the quality of the suggested translation In order to obtain a translation that matches the source text, is natural, fluent, and conveys the author's intent, a translator requires a deep understanding of both grammar and culture Translators need to know the rules of a language as well as the habits of the people who speak it And even for the most experienced professionals, confusion and frustration are familiar feelings Therefore, for an amateur translator like me, it is inevitable to encounter difficulties in the translation process:
The first difficult factor that we have to mention is structure, in the process of doing my graduation thesis, I encountered some difficult terms related to history, making it difficult for us to define the exact definition Especially spending a lot of time looking up words, reading on the Internet and consulting many different dictionaries to find the right terms Because the same word can have multiple meanings depending on where it is and how it is used in the sentence.
Secondly, issue that I encountered is structures of many sentences Every language sits inside a defined structure with its own agreed upon rules The complexity and singularity of this framework directly correlates to the difficulty of translation As a result, translators frequently have to add, remove and rearrange source words to communicate effectively in the target language.
Thirdly, grammar is also a factor that we have to pay close attention to because there are grammatical differences between languages, so I faced some tough cases problems grammar in the text There are many structures that are very common in English but do not exist in Vietnamese, making it an obstacle for translators.
In conclusion, to successfully translate a text is a challenging problem In order to avoid making the same mistakes, translators must not only have extensive knowledge of theory, but also need to have practical knowledge such as culture and life.
Solutions
Just like in every other field there will be problems to be faced and so is in translation However, each person will have their own way of dealing with these issues. Although I cannot give a solution that fits every single problem of translation entirety,
I can offer some of the experiences I've learned.
Firstly, I did was improve my vocabulary to be able to use words better, especially in a language as diverse and colorful as Vietnamese During this translation,
I found the right word in the target language for the whole phrase or verb instead of trying to translate literally to avoid literal translation Besides, I use many dictionaries such as: English-Vietnamese Dictionary of Institute of Linguistics, The Free Dictionary, Cambridge Dictionary, Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary, Lingoes Essential Dictionary, etc…and to find out the best meaning with the context.
Secondly, reviewing the learned grammar structures is a good solution for me,from which to analyze carefully to identify the elements in the sentence This is an important step to avoid confusion when determining the sentence type If I were not sure about my version, I would ask my supervisor or my friend to get some advice.Furthermore, I also studied the graduation papers of the predecessors with the aim of learning and inheriting their ways of translation, analysis and presentation From my personal perspective, this is one of the most useful methods which I applied in this paper
Last but not least, I improve my general knowledge by immersing myself in the culture, reading articles, stories and books related to the key characters or events in my translation.
Translators frequently face numerous challenges during the translation process.They are prone to making mistakes if they do not have a solid understanding of structure as well as specific structure, and I am no exception This text was also difficult for me to translate However, I tried my hardest to come up with a workaround and came up with the best-suggested version.
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS
Conclusion
During the course of my graduation, I have accumulated a lot of knowledge as well as valuable experience, but besides that, I still have many shortcomings that need to be improved.
Throughout the translation process, I have realized that my vocabulary is limited; There are many words that I don't understand the meaning of, leaving me confused as to which meaning to choose to fit the context As a result, not conveying the author's ideas completely and unnaturally Therefore, expanding one's vocabulary is critical. Furthermore, when translating in a specific field, it is necessary to have specialized knowledge of that field in order to provide an accurate translation, particularly when encountering specific specialized phrases Therefore, translators need to study carefully to have a good knowledge base to convey the author's ideas in the best way The translation is related to the historical perspective, so it also makes it difficult to translate After a period of searching and researching information in this field, I am now able to correctly translate some specific terms and express my ideas. This graduation paper also shows that my grammar is not really good I was confused and misunderstood the structure in many cases I went over old information to help me make a decision This is an opportunity for me to acknowledge my shortcomings and consolidate my knowledge.
In addition, this book has broadened my knowledge and opened my mind It brings to mind the emerging issues of the 21st century what people should do and a look at history Since then, my translation ability has improved, it is easier to solve the problems I encountered in the translation process, as well as the use of words in the SL context.
On the other hand, I have strengthened my knowledge of sentence structure, which is one of the most difficult challenges for translators However, after I finished my graduation essay, I became more proficient at handling sentences.
In conclusion, I think that I need practice translating more and more in different fields to have more experiences as well as skills to become a good translator There might be many drawbacks in my paper but I hope all of my effort would be recognized and appreciated by the teachers as well as the readers.
Suggestions
To become a good translator, students must have diverse knowledge, practice regularly to improve and hone their English as well as their mother tongue by reading a lot of books, newspapers and magazines, and bilingual documents This is not only a way for students to gain more knowledge, but also a way for them to learn how to use words in a variety of situations From there, your language will improve, reduce difficulties in the translation process and help your translation become more natural and fluent.
Last but not least, good reading comprehension skills will help the translator easily grasp the main idea of the author.
To achieve today's knowledge and skills, I cannot help but mention the contribution of the teachers from Duy Tan University, especially Faculty of English. But besides that, I would like to contribute some ideas to contribute to the development of the department as follows:
Firstly, like other students, I hope the school will sponsor the Faculty of English in terms of funding which organizes many exchanges between students and businesses (resorts, companies, so on), the school will hold many meetings and exchange students from other schools.
Secondly, I think translation is an important topic Therefore, the faculty should open talk shows with foreigners so that students can practice their skills, consolidate their knowledge and improve their translation skills.
Thirdly, cultural subjects must be extended to students' understanding of different cultures As a result, the translation process is more successful.
Finally, due to the limited time to complete the graduation thesis, errors cannot be avoided I hope the above suggestions are useful to both students and teachers This report was a real challenge for me, but I have gained valuable experience after completing this graduation report.
[1] Catford, J.C (1965), A Linguistic Theory of Translation, Oxford
[2] Hasan Ghazala (1995) Translation as Problems and Solutions: A Textbook for University Students and Trainee Translators
[3] Foster, M (1958) Translation from/into Farsi and English.
[4] Nguyen Manh Quang (2011), Translation Theory, Department of Foreign
[5] https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/aug/15/21-lessons-for-the-21st- century-by-yuval-noah-harari-review
[6] https://translationjournal.net/October-2017/definition-of-translation.html
[7] https://prowritingaid.com/compound-complex-sentence
[8] http://qutranslation.weebly.com/principles-of-translation.html
[9] Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, Oxford University Press