Process and Result of Translation

A turn-of-the-century Russian translator said, “Translation is like a woman, if she is beautiful, she is not faithful; if she is faithful, she is not beautiful.” Ignoring the blatant sexism in the statement, we find one of the kernels of truth in translation. Translators must strike a balance between fidelity to the source text and readability in the target language.

This is no easy trick. Imagine tightrope walking, blindfolded, during a wind storm, with people throwing heavy objects at you and shaking the rope. This represents the balancing act. Now, add to it the often unreasonable deadline which agencies require of translators by having someone behind you on the rope poking you in the seat of your pants with a pitchfork. Sound frustrating? It is. But, if you enjoy a challenge and know how to deal with your languages, it’s not too bad after you’ve been at it for a while.

The trick is to let your clients decide what they want. Since they have to live with the results of your work, let them choose. Patiently explain to them the options they have, how long each might take, and how much each possible version will cost. They’ll decide if they want a literal, if unreadable, translation or if they want a Pulitzer Prize-winning text.

If your client can’t decide, doesn’t know, or won’t tell you, then follow the advice of Buddha and take the middle path. This is easier with some languages and some subject areas than others. Although most people think that technical material is easiest for stylistic considerations, consider this. Academic style varies from nation to nation.

Another potential pitfall with technical translation is that sometimes the client cannot let you see or touch the object in question. If you are translating a computer system manual, then it’s very helpful to see and even work a little with the system. Sometimes that’s not possible, so you are effectively flying blind, trying to land yourself at a destination you’ve never seen. You might have to create terminology for the system, only to find that the client wants something else. You then have to go back and change everything you did.

The most difficult problem is when you encounter something in one language that doesn’t exist in the other. Financial instruments, legal procedures, government and business structures, and so on vary from nation to nation and culture to culture. Although standard glossaries exist for the most commonplace of these, translators are usually dealing with new material and information, so you might be stuck having to christen something on your own, or leave it in the A language and put in a translator’s note, explaining what the term means.