Common difficulties in translation course among the third year english majored student and suggested recommendations

Therefore, I decided tochoose the study “Common difficulties in translation course among the third-yearEnglish majored student and suggested recommendations” which focuses on findingout

The trend of internationalization of the world economy has developed on thebasis of the increasing number of global economic demands In order to promotebilateral and multilateral cooperation among regions and the whole world, it isessential to develop ways to communicate between people English is now the mostpopular language in the world; however, not everyone speaks English, so translationhas emerged as a bridge between the nations of the world

Following in that trend, Vietnam has been implementing many open policies toexchange with other countries, especially culture exchange and economic activitieswhich play important roles in the country’s development

In order to meet the demands, translation has been teaching at ThuongmaiUniversity since English Faculty was found in 2005 with the hope to train high-qualified translators

Through the years, Translation is not only an interesting subject but also a hardtask for any students who want to master it Many common errors are made bystudents because of the difference between two cultures Therefore, I decided tochoose the study “Common difficulties in translation course among the third-yearEnglish majored student and suggested recommendations” which focuses on findingout common difficulties that students encountered when learning translation andsuggest some reasonable solutions for those problems

During my research with the help of my beloved teacher – Ms Phuong Mai, Ihave got more knowledge about the general overview of the subject of translation aswell as how to work with a thesis However, due to the limited time and knowledge,

my study may make some mistakes in content and layout I look forward to receivingcomments from teachers to perfect my paper

It is a great pleasure to thank everyone who helped me to complete thisgraduation paper successfully

First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere thanks to my supervisor –

Ms Phuong Mai for the valuable guidance and encouragement She greatly inspired

me to work on this thesis My thesis cannot come to end without her effort to read itagain and again to find out the problems and support me in all stages of the researchand writing this study

In addition, I am grateful to say thank you to all the teachers at English Faculty

of Thuongmai University for teaching and providing me a lot of advices, usefulinformation to complete this study

Moreover, I owe sincere and earnest thankfulness to all the students of Englishclass 2018 who helped me with valuable information by completing the conveyingquestions as well as answering interview questions and doing translation text

Finally, an honorable mention goes to my family and friends for their supports on

me in completing this thesis

Thanks for all!

Student

Tran Thi Tai

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS v

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES vi

CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW OF STUDY 1

1.1 Rationale 1

1.2 Previous study 2

1.3 Aims of the study 4

1.4 Research subject 4

1.5 Scope of the study 4

1.6 Research methodology 5

1.6.1 Research question 5

1.6.2 Research paricipants 5

1.6.3 Research procedure 5

1.6.4 Data collect instrument 5

1.6.5 Translated test analyst 6

1.7 Organization of the study 6

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 7

2.1 Definition of translation 7

2.2 Importance of translation 8

2.3 Types of translation 9

2.4 Some useful techniques for translation 11

2.4.1 Addition 11

2.4.2 Omission 11

2.4.3 Replacement 11

2.4.4 Expression 11

2.5 The factors influencing translation process 11

2.5.1 Culture influence 12

2.5.2 Ethical influence 12

2.5.3 Ideology influence 12

2.6 Common errors in written translation 13

2.6.1 Word order 13

2.6.2 Syntax/ Grammar errors 13

2.6.3 Vocabulary errors 13

2.6.4 Spelling/Punctuation errors 13

2.6.5 Culture errors 13

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH FINDINGS 14

3.1 Results 14

3.1.1 Results collected from the questionnaire 14

3.1.2 Results from interview questions 23

3.1.3 Results from test paper 25

3.2 Discussion 26

CHAPTER 4: RECOMMENDATION AND SUGGESTION 28

4.1 Suggestion in general on improving translation skills 28

CONCLUSION 32 REFERENCE

APPENDIX

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES

Table 1: The effects of translation on English skills 14

Table 2: Length of time for student to study at class 14

Figure 1: Kind aof translation text hard for students to translate 15

Figure 2: Difficult factors when learning translation 16

Figure 3: Grammar mistakes students encountered 17

Figure 4: Difficult aspects of vocabulary 18

Table 3: Effect of background knowledge and mother tongue to quality to translation 19

Table 4: Ways to deal with new words of students 20

Figure 5: Common mistakes made by students 20

Figure 6: Length of time that student spend on practicing translation 21

Table 5: Effect of teaching methods to students 21

Table 6: Ways to improve translation skills 22

Table 7: Benefits of bettering vocabulary and practicing 22

CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW OF STUDY

1.1 Rationale

Since primitive time, labor gradually appeared; our ancestors had to invent ways

to understand each other, to unite and co-ordinate for the common goal of hunting andcollecting

As time passed, little by little, human brains has grown exponentially, peoplehave increased higher demands; communication ways also develop to meet the needs.The development according to each group of individuals in private areas willform the language in isolation Each community developed in a region with an ownvoice and imbued with national identity thus created the diversity in language, cultureand communication methods

Society has grown and as people began to expand cooperation, integration witheach other, and exchanged goods cross country and continent, it was inevitable thatthey must communicate to understand each other and work together Therefore,translation was born as a bridge among the nations of the world

Years later, as wars took place in the world, with the advancement of the navy,the British Empire annexed, invaded, ruled and influenced in many countries aroundthe world As a result, the cultural and linguistic influenced in these places is huge.Especially, from the 80s of the last century, the introduction of the Internet contributed

to the spread of English to every corner of social life It is estimated that over half theonline information is written in English

On the other hand, cultural, film and entertainment products have a great impact

on the world Hollywood blockbuster hits, hit singles (mostly in English) have alwaysbeen welcomed by young people and art lovers around the world That has madeEnglish the most popular language in the world

Nowadays, English brings us the opportunity to have better education and betterjob Studying English is a good way to contact with the huge world and approach aboundless source of information

Although English is popular, not all people in the world understand and useEnglish fluently In addition to the difference between the culture and the expressions

of each language, the interpreter must try to translate the sentence correctly.Translating to correct grammar but still retaining the style of the sentence is a greatchallenge set for the learner So, this topic of mine points out the difficulties inlearning translation and suggests some solutions to help you achieve your desire whilelearning this subject!

1.2 Previous study

Translation is a science in the applied linguistics field, so it is easy to understandthat translation receives a lot of attention from researchers in the world Numerousstudies have been conducted and several books have been published that offerinteresting insights related to translation theory and provide translators with additionalknowledge to improve their translation skills

Firstly, “In Other Words” written by Mona Baker and published in 2011, this

book emphasizes on equivalence of grammar, word level and pragmatic The book’sstructure is very good as it starts off with basic theories about translation and goes on

to more complicated issues The book provides a solid base to inform and guide manykeys decision trainee translator have to make Each chapter offers an explanation ofkey concepts, identifies potential sources of translation difficulties related to thoseconcepts, and illustrates various strategies for resolving these difficulties Authenticexamples of translated texts from a wide variety of languages are examined, andpractical exercises and further reading are included at the end of each chapter.However, this book is will be perfect for a university student or if you have previouslystudied translation theory in other settings

Secondly, the book “Translation: A Very Short Introduction” written by Mathew

Reynolds and published in 2016 This book offers an authoritative account of the field

of translation, covering the whole history of translation It also provides a range offascinating examples from many languages Puts forward fresh arguments about whytranslation matters and how it is changing in the digital age

The book, “Teaching and Researching Translation” by author Basil A Hatim,

this book provides an authoritative and critical account of the main ideas and concepts,competing issues, and solved and unsolved questions involved in Translation Studies.This book provides an up-to-date, accessible account of the field, focusing on the main

challenges encountered by translation practitioners and researchers Basil Hatim alsoprovides readers and users with the tools they need to carry out their own practice-related research in this burgeoning new field This book, however, is not mentionedtoo much in the reasons leading the mistakes in the translation process.

Next, “Dịch thuật: Những tri thức cần thiết” written by Nguyễn Thượng Hùng

(2014), The book deals with the translation, generalization and systematization of theknowledge that the translator needs to know, in order to provide the translator with abasic understanding of the translation and how to apply that knowledge into thepractice of translation which help improve their translation skills and know how toapply common principles of translation to their work, thereby producing good qualitytranslations The issues raised in the book include the translator's native and foreignability, comprehension, writing ability, communicative competence, original rewriting,translation methods and procedures, and Interpreting the text from the originallanguage into the target language, taking into account the difference between theculture of the original and the culture of the translated language Concepts, methods,solutions, solutions and comments are easy to understand and illustrated by specificevidences drawn from books and literary works However, the book does not provideclear solutions for readers so that they can deal with errors they often made

In addition, translation is being taught at universities so many studies werecarried out by students of nationwide universities

Firstly, “Common mistakes in learning translation subject by the second-year English majors at Dong Thap University” (The B.A thesis), Duong Thi Thuy Hang

and Nguyen Thi Cam Xuyen, 2010 This study was conducted to find out the student’sdifficulties as well as their expectations when they begin to learn written translation inorder to make suggestions that can partly help them overcome these obstacles instudying this course Besides that, the study also aims at making some suggestions as auseful reference helping adjust learning and teaching method to get a better result inlearning and teaching process

However, this study also has some shortcoming because of the lack of explainingtranslation theory and listing citations which make it less countable

Secondly, “Common translation errors (Vietnamese - English) committed by the third-year English majored A case at Dongnai technology University”, Tran Thi Hoai

Nam, 2014 This research was conducted with two main objectives which areidentifying the common errors when translating from English to Vietnamese andfinding out possible causes for those errors However, this study was not pointing outand clearing all given errors And the researcher have not given the possible causes forthose problems

Finally, “An investigation into common errors in Vietnamese – English translation made by third –year English majored student at Thu Dau Mot University”,

Nguyen Ngoc Tran, 2016 This study aims to investigate students‟ common errors inVietnamese-English translation and the causes leading to those errors However, partswhich included in this are not arranged clearly and logic That made reader difficult toreceive the messages

1.3 Aims of the study

Learning a language is difficult, translating that language into your own language

is even harder because of the difference about grammar, word use,etc between twolanguages

This thesis was done to point out the common difficulties of learning translation

in order to guide new learners at Thuongmai university who begins to learn thissubject at second year In this research, I aim to give some valuable recommendations

to help students cope with the problems they encounter while study translating

In other words, I will point out some errors when they translating from English toVietnamese and Vietnamese to English Thus, this thesis helps them to avoid the basicerrors and finished better translation

1.4 Research subject

This thesis focuses on difficulties students at Thuongmai university encounter inprocess of learing tranlation and suggests some recommendation to improve theirability to finish the fnal translation test

1.5 Scope of the study

This research will focus on errors made by student during translating process.Based on that, it points out difficulties when learning this subject and suggests somepossible recommendations

- What is the main difficulties you have to cope with when learning translation?

- What is more difficult for you? Translate English to Vietnamese or TranslateVietnamese to English Why?

- What are your expectation when learning translation?

1.6.2 Research paricipants

- The researcher of this thesis is Tran Thi Tai – a fourth year student of Englishfaculty, Thuongmai university

- The target subjects of the thesis are the second- year students of English major

at Thuongmai university This year is the first time for them to study writtentranslation subject They have 2 periods of translation per week

1.6.3 Research procedure

It took about 1,5 month to carry out and finish the research at Thuongmaiuniversity From the beginning, the researcher started to choose the topic and getapproved by supervisor, then collected the previous study, information from theinternet and the advices from supervisor to create the standard outline

After that, the questionnaire was designed and delivered to the students of secondyear of English major at the end of March The interviewed questions were alsodesigned and implemented interviewing was also on statistic to collect data for thestudy

Finally, I aggregated all data and started writing this thesis to point out commondifficulties in learning translation and suggested some recommendations

1.6.4 Data collect instrument

- The questionaire: A questionnaire is a research instrument consisting of a series

of questions (or other types of prompts) for the purpose of gathering information fromrespondents

This research consists of 15 questions written in English.

10 first question to find out the difficulties in learning English and 5 questionlater to give some reasonable solutions

The questions and answers are reported in chapter 3

1.6.5 Translated test analyst

Translation test in English and Vietnamese will be given to 50 students totranslate to Vietnamese and English Their translation will provide me with an ideaabout their level and problems I would try to find out the solutions adopted by them tosolve their difficulties

The statistics will be listed in chapter 3

1.7 Organization of the study

The study consists of 4 main parts:

Chapter 1: Overview of the study

Chapter 2: Literature review

Chapter 3: Research findings

Chapter 4: Recommendations and suggestions

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Definition of translation

Translation is a familiar term to anyone who either studies English or not But wecannot define it in a way that clear We simply understand that translation is theprocess of translating words or text from one language into another However, eachlinguist has their own definition of translation

Translation is a mental activity in which a meaning of given linguistic discourse

is rendered from one language to another It is the act of transferring the linguisticentities from one language in to their equivalents in to another language Translation is

an act through which the content of a text is transferred from the source language in tothe target language (Foster, 1958) The language to be translated is called the sourcelanguage (SL), whereas the language to be translated into or arrived at is called thetarget language (TL)

According to Ghazala (1995), "Translation is generally used to refer to all theprocess and methods used to convey the meaning of the source language in to thetarget language" (P.1 Ghazala's definition focuses on the notion of meaning as anessential element in translation That is, when translating, understanding the meaning

of source text is vital to have the appropriate equivalent in the target text thus, it ismeaning that is translated in relation to grammar, style and sounds (Ghazala, 1995).Translation is a process and a product According to Catford (1995), “Translation

is the replacement of textual material in one language (SL) by equivalent textualmaterial in another language (TL) ", (p 20) This definition shows that translation is aprocess in the sense that is an activity performed by people through time, whenexpressions are translated into simpler ones in the same language (Rewording andpara-phrasing) It can be done also from one language into another different language

“Translation is, on the other hand, a product since it provides us with other differentcultures, to ancient societies and civilization life when the translated texts reach us”(Yowell and Mutfah, 1999)

E.A Nida, 1969 “The Theory and Practice of Translation” states that:

“Translation consist of reproducing in the receptor language the closest natural

equivalence of the source language message, first in terms of meaning and secondly interms of style” Newmark in Rudi Hartono states that: “Translation is rendering themeaning of a text into another language in the way that the author intended the text”.From the definitions above the translation has the same term “equivalence” Themeaning, context, though, or message of both source of reproducing in the receptorlanguage, the closest natural are equivalent to the message of source language Thefirst is meaning and secondly is style The message of source language mustequivalent The reader of translation who knows the target language only will beconfused if the target language is influenced by the source language.

Meanwhile the result of translation must be transferring the meaning of thesource language clearly In order to make the clear meaning of source language, it isexpected that the meaning of target language can be understood by the readers So, theresult of translation must be readable In target language, readability is needed,because it makes the readers easier to catch the content of the translation text,conversely when the translation text is not readable It will make the readers difficult

to understand the content of the text well

Based on many definitions above, the writer assumes that the translation is aprocess of transferring thoughts and message from the source language to the targetlanguage, in the form of written or spoken

2.2 Importance of translation

Nowadays, translation plays a very important role as a mediator betweencultures On a serious note, translation is one of the most critical jobs in modernsociety As the whole globe is coming together based on information sharing andcommunicative advances, it is only natural that there has been a constant demand and

an unprecedented need for translation of ideas from one language to another

Translation is no longer just the process of translating words, but has evolvedinto the transformation of meaning and intentions Here we have listed some pointsrelating to importance of translation

“An idea does not pass from one language in to another without change” Miguel

de Unamuno y Jugo, 1913, The Tragic sense of Life This speaks how importance of

translation in our life

(Brill, 1964) stated that “Translation is a cultural interchange Translation ofvarious art forms like music, films and literature from a region is necessary for globalunderstanding of a region and its life The plight of Palestine refugees, the poverty inBrazilian streets, the colorful life in Spanish cities and the myths and legends ofancient India are spreading across the world, riding on the shoulder of goodtranslation” Translated films and subtitled films generate more revenue for globalfilm industry, while translated music and literature provides added royalties to theartists Recognition from the world stage and international fame is an added bonus.

“Translation is a transfer of news World events can only be transmittedaccurately if the correct information is received by news agencies This involvesproper translation of news coming from local bodies and regional centers Unlessproper translation is done, the news will be ambiguous and unreliable An example forthis can be seen when the government of China recently banned international newsagencies from entering local regions for covering a major problem” according to

Nelson, 1986 “From One Language to Another” However, information was still

passed on to the world Insiders covered all the important news, which was latertranslated and presented to the world

There also some experts stated about the importance of translation Translation is

a tool for the realization of global village The global citizenship can only be achievedthrough sharing and caring We need to be able to communicate our ideas and thoughtswithout delay or ambiguity Different people around the world use different languagesand are most comfortable handling their online activities in their own regionallanguages, but they translate their thoughts in English, so that global friends canunderstand them

2.3 Types of translation

According to the purpose, translation can be divided into four types: pragmatic,aesthetic-poetic, ethnographic, and linguistic translation (Brislin, 1976: 3-4)

- Pragmatic translation

Pragmatic translation is the translation of a message with an interest in accuracy

of the information meant to be communicated in the target language form Belonging

to such translation is the translation of technical information, such as repairinginstructions (Brislin 1976)

According to George Keith, 1997: “Pragmatics is all about the meanings betweenthe lexis and the grammar and the phonology Meanings are implied and the rulesbeing followed are unspoken, unwritten ones

- Aesthetic-poetic: The second type is aesthetic-poetic translation that does not

only focus on the information, but also the emotion, feeling, beauty involved in theoriginal writing

- The third is ethnographic translation that explicates the cultural context of the

source and second language versions

- Linguistic translation: The last type is linguistic translation, the one that is

concerned with equivalent meanings of the constituent morphemes of the secondlanguage and with grammatical form Seen from this classification, the translation ofliterary work should be the aesthetic-poetic one

Otherwise, Jakobson (1969) in Venuti (2000:114) states that the kind oftranslation is divided into three differently labeled:

- Intralingua translation or rewording is an interpretation of verbal signs by

means of other signs of the same language

- Interlingua translation or translation proper is an interpretation of verbal signs

by means of some other language

- Inter semiotic translation or transmutation is an interpretation of verbal signs

by means of signs of nonverbal sign systems

According to Larson (Larson, 1984), “translation is classified into two maintypes, namely form-based and meaning-based translation Form-based translationattempts to follow the form of Source Language and is known as literal translation,while meaning-based translation makes every effort to communicate the meaning ofthe SL text in the natural forms of the receptor language Such translation is calledidiomatic translation.”

He also said that “idiomatic translations use the natural forms of the receptorlanguage both in the grammatical constructions and in the choices of lexical items Atruly idiomatic translation does not sound like a translation It sounds like it was

written originally in the receptor language Therefore, a good translator will try totranslate idiomatically.”

2.4 Some useful techniques for translation

Based on many professionals in translation There are some useful techniques fortranslator to perfect their translation The list extracted from the translation coursebook at Thuongmai University (Coursebook, 2011) reflects only the main issues that:

2.4.1 Addition

Addition technique is the way when doing translation, translators can add somewords, which are not found in the source text to make the translation text lookssmoother, and more comprehend

2.4.2 Omission

Omission is the way when translating; translators can omit some redundantwords, which do not really change the meaning of the version Hung (1986:15) hasmentioned: “Omission are the reversion of additions and are used to ensure a greaterdegree of what is called “compression” that is reducing the redundancy of the text byomitting words which can be easily restored from the context”

2.4.3 Replacement

When translate a text, translator ought to get insights about two common types oflinguistic units: word forms and parts of speech, which has considerable influence ongrammatical transformations between the source language and the target language

2.4.4 Expression

It should be borne in mind that translators, when applying the expressions toproverb, ought to find in the target language utterances or word combinations whichhave an equivalent meaning to those in source language

2.5 The factors influencing translation process

In the process of translation variation, there are many factors influencing thetranslation activities, which can be called the manipulation phenomenon Thefollowing discussion of Dongfeng Wong and Dan Shen (1999) will look at howintercultural and factors influence the translation process

2.5.1 Culture influence

It is true that different peoples live on the same planet in relatively similarmaterial surroundings and that each language contains expressions to describe thismaterial world—sun, river, rain, mountain, father, etcetera But through long andunique evolution, each culture develops distinct conceptions about the world.Language is the carrier of culture as well as an important fragment of it For successfultranslations, being familiar with two cultures is more important than having a goodknowledge of two languages That is because words are only meaningful incorresponding cultural backgrounds A translator who fails to take the cultural contextinto account is likely to commit some errors The very existence of a cultural gap canact on the process of translating by interfering with the translator’s logical judgmentand linguistic selection

2.5.3 Ideology influence

Firstly, ideology has affected on the selection of text in the process of translation.Generally speaking, which kind of text of translation translators choose depends on theideology of the target language The information conveyed by the original text shouldaccords with or basically accords with the requirements of the ideology of the targetlanguage

Secondly, ideology has an impact on the understanding of the original text in theprocess of translation variation After selecting materials of translations, readers astranslators should have interpretations of the original language at the beginning Andthe process of interpretation is destined to be influenced by translators’ stance ofideology and cultural identities

In conclusion, there are many factors influence the process of translation In amore detailed way, firstly, the influence of cultural difference on translation includes

the difference of thinking models, the difference of religions and beliefs, the difference

of customs and the difference of myths and legends and classic works; secondly,ideology influences the selection of text, the understanding of the original text and thestrategies of translations respectively

2.6 Common errors in written translation

2.6.1 Word order

The order of words in a sentence also has a great influence on its meaning Thedifferent order will lead to the very different meaning of a sentence

2.6.2 Syntax/ Grammar errors

Grammar errors are some common errors related to tenses, the form of words, thesentence structures found in the translated text These errors are caused by the misuse

of verb forms, the misuse of relative pronoun and the misuse of part of speech

2.6.3 Vocabulary errors

Beginner translators oftentimes use vocabularies in wrong context There arecertain words which cannot be translated into other language Since these words areassociated with cultural and religious process, you cannot interpret them in context ofother religions

2.6.4 Spelling/Punctuation errors

Spelling errors in translation are also the common errors like spelling errors inwriting When people have to translate a text from Vietnamese into English in a shortperiod of time, certainly they do not have much time to reread and check theirtranslation products before submitting it Sometimes, people are so careless to writeout the words which they have not used for a long time Moreover, the misuse of thetwo similar words in written form can also lead to spelling errors Thanks to checkingspelling errors tool in computer, translators can limit their spelling errors, however itonly when translator tend to use computer but write on paper

2.6.5 Culture errors

The misunderstanding about culture can lead to many errors in translationbecause each culture has their own way to express things or feelings

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH FINDINGS

3.1 Results

3.1.1 Results collected from the questionnaire

The questionnaire was carried out in order to find out the common difficulties oflearning translation and ways to deal with these problems 100 copies was sent to 100English-majored students of Thuongmai University to answer then collected andanalyzed by the researcher as follow:

- The effect of translation on English skills

Table 1: The effects of translation on English skills Question 1: Do you think that translation affect to your English skills?

on their English skills

- Length of time that student want to learn translation at class

Table 2: Length of time for student to study at class Question 2: How much time do you want to learn translation at class per

37% students are satisfied with quantity of translation lesson at school 5% ofthem think that the quantity of translation lesson should be increased to give studentmore time to learn ways dealing with difficult phrases and idioms 40% of the studentsshare the opinion of flexible time of learning translation at school is 6 lessons Theythink that it not only provides appropriate time but also helps students avoid gettingstress when learning translation.

Main difficulties that student encountered when learning translation

Question 3: What kind of text is more difficult to translate?

Figure 1: Kind of translation text hard for students to translate

Figure 1 showed that all the students found it difficult to translate fromVietnamese to English rather than English to Vietnamese The main reason for this isthat Vietnamese is their mother tongue; they can easily choose words to match the