Whenever I first found out that people translated texts other than political or religious scriptures, I found it rather odd. I found it particularly bizarre because languages, to me, significantly embody their respective cultures; thus the idea of translation seemed needless because you can't translate culture, can you?
However, after our lesson and our readings, I became aware of the benefits that come with translating literature, as well as the implications that come with the translation process. I came to realise that translating a body of work requires more than literal translations; languages have spices that are almost exclusive to the language itself. By which we would be at a loss if they were to be lost in translation. This, in fact, is what I feared that would come from translating literature, however, through our analysis I concluded translations translate the energy that the language is trying to portray, which is successful to a high degree.
The first text I tackled really opened my mind up to the possibilities as well as the difficulties that arise with translating a body of text. The translators, in the text, explained the process of translation as well as their opinion on translation. The first statement that resonated with me was the fact that they believed that it was impossible to translate poetry. Having undergone the unit on Sylvia Plath's poetry. I was able to truly connect the proposed reasonings behind this statement to my newfound knowledge about poetry, from both a literary aspect as well as the intentional aspects of poetry. Literary devices such as assonance, alliteration and allegories (and more) are impossible to recreate in different languages.
However, when it comes to literature that can be translated, Fahmida Riaz brought up a real-life example, of the Urdu word: sharmana. A word that describes an experience that cannot be translated into an English word, and so instead of settling for words like blushed or embarrassment for the lack of a better word would be the incorrect approach to translation. Instead, translators would opt for explaining the experience to ensure that the authors intended meanings are not lost in translation to the best of their abilities.
Moreover, text A opened my eyes to the fact that translating text helps dissolve preconceived negative notions that individuals may develop upon other cultures due to the media diverting attention to focusing only on wars, battles and other adverse events. Whereas translating literature invites international readers to understand the culture of the text and challenging incorrect preconceptions. In addition to that, different cultures embody varied and at times contrasting mentalities and thus reading translated books could enable individuals to develop open-mindedness, or even enable them to adopt useful foreign concepts. However, at times, conflict may arise from translations that do not account for cultural sensitivities such as what happened to Feng Tang, an author, that got pulled out of a book fair because his translations were culturally inappropriate and supposedly misinterpreted.
This entire lesson, as well as the readings provided, opened my eyes to the possibilities that could come with exploring translating literature.
