Translators, who is your target audience?

[Stevie B]

I'm currently reading Robert Musil's dark autobiographical novel The Confusions of Young Torless. Although the novel is set in Austria, it is reading like a British schoolboy novel because the translation by Eithne Wilkins is so chock full of Briticisms. I've never encountered such a jarring translation that seems to so geared to a particular English-speaking audience. I'm not debating the pros and cons of American English or British English, it's just makes more sense to me to aim for English-neutral options (if that term I just made up makes any sense). It's difficult for me, as an American reader, to get the sense of Austrian schoolboys when they're always referring to one another as "chaps" and "lads". I'm sure Brits would find it just as distracting if they called one another "dudes". And it's not just certain terms in Wilkins' translation, its the very distinctive idiomatic expressions that appear every few pages. If I weren't on the road (at a convention in very toasty Fort Lauderdale, Florida ), I'd find myself a different translation.

I'm sure this issue also arises for translators of other languages such as Spanish, French, and Arabic. My question for translators is as follows: Do you typically aim your translations for a particular audience or do you translate in a way that your books can be read by a much wider audience?

 

[Daniel del Real]

This is a big issue in Spanish publishing groups. Most of of them are Spaniards and rely on translators of the same nationality who they don't care about a neutral spanish translation at all. Not only it is a complain from us, Latinamericans, but I've also heard it from Spaniards that these translations are not to Spanish but to Madrileño, meaning they use wording mostly from the Capital.

There's even a joke among literary publishers and readers about translations coming from Anagrama group, calling them translated to "Anagramés", so sad because they have an amazing catalogue of worldwide contemporary literature. For example it has been a pain in the arse to read Knausgard's My Struggle in this translation as sometimes, by the language, I almost forget I'm in Bergen and I think I'm in Madrid. Sometimes it is so uncomfortable that I have to go back and read the whole paragraph replacing words with a more neutral or even Mexican use of Spanish language so I can get back to the original story and scenery.

 

[Stevie B]

Sometimes it is so uncomfortable that I have to go back and read the whole paragraph replacing words with a more neutral or even Mexican use of Spanish language so I can get back to the original story and scenery.

I'm having the same reaction with this book. Certain phrases really stick out and make me think about the translator's choices rather than the author's intent and the story line itself. I suppose it's surprising that I've never read a translation that has really distracted me in the past. It sounds like this is something you experience regularly, Daniel. Would it be uncommon to have a choice of translators, one from Spain and one from Latin America?

 

[Daniel del Real]

I'm having the same reaction with this book. Certain phrases really stick out and make me think about the translator's choices rather than the author's intent and the story line itself. I suppose it's surprising that I've never read a translation that has really distracted me in the past. It sounds like this is something you experience regularly, Daniel. Would it be uncommon to have a choice of translators, one from Spain and one from Latin America?

Yes Stevie, highly unusual to have both. Most of the times you have no option. That is why I've never lived in Spain but I know many words they only use over there

 

[SpaceCadet]

Strangely, it is with Chinese literature that this issue was first brought to my attention. I started reading "Outlaws of the Marsh (Water Margin)" in one translation into English which got me so confused that at one point I started wondering if my English was failing me... But once I had switch to an other English translation of the same book, I had no problem reading the book.

Then with french translations I found that in some instances, they even translate the names of the characters, thus eliminating all Chinese names from the story!!! Why they feel the need to do that is beyond my understanding.


More recently, I have noticed that in some cases the translator (into English) would also 'translate' references made with regards to measurements from the original metric system into English or american imperial units. So you've got a story set somewhere in a country where everyone knows they use the metric system, but the measurements are given in feet and pounds; it simply does not fit with the context, but never mind that, the translation and edition will go for it!

 

[Stevie B]

More recently, I have noticed that in some cases the translator (into English) would also 'translate' references made with regards to measurements from the original metric system into English or american imperial units. So you've got a story set somewhere in a country where everyone knows they use the metric system, but the measurements are given in feet and pounds; it simply does not fit with the context, but never mind that, the translation and edition will go for it!

The next thing you know, American and British translators will be converting riyals and rupees into dollars and pounds.

 

[Harry Haller]

I've read German translations of a few R.A. Salvatore books from different translators. I remember one of the translators being difficult for me (as a non-native speaker; I wanted to read them for fun and foreign language experience) while the others were no problem. I suspect that some translators struggle to appreciate dialects and regional expressions sufficiently to avoid such problems with audience understanding and enjoyment of the text. "Dudes" sounds as culturally specific to me as "lads," though, I must add. How can one write a "universal" English text when such words are invariably regional in their usage and meaning? The more colloquial the source text is, the more difficult it will be to render a translation that is universal in audience while still retaining any of the character of the original text.

So, bottom line, I can only recommend seeking out an American translation of the book, or learning German. I chose the latter option

 

[SpaceCadet]

The next thing you know, American and British translators will be converting riyals and rupees into dollars and pounds.

Stevie, I would not be surprise to learn it's already being done!

 

[SpaceCadet]

I've read German translations of a few R.A. Salvatore books from different translators. I remember one of the translators being difficult for me (as a non-native speaker; I wanted to read them for fun and foreign language experience) while the others were no problem. I suspect that some translators struggle to appreciate dialects and regional expressions sufficiently to avoid such problems with audience understanding and enjoyment of the text. "Dudes" sounds as culturally specific to me as "lads," though, I must add. How can one write a "universal" English text when such words are invariably regional in their usage and meaning? The more colloquial the source text is, the more difficult it will be to render a translation that is universal in audience while still retaining any of the character of the original text.

So, bottom line, I can only recommend seeking out an American translation of the book, or learning German. I chose the latter option

Harry Haller, I think it's not always that simple. When faced with several translations of the same book, one has to do their homework before choosing the translation that would best fit their expectations. I mean... American translations are not more 'neutral' than other translations per se.

 

[Stevie B]

When faced with several translations of the same book, one has to do their homework before choosing the translation that would best fit their expectations.

I recall starting to read a very old translation of a classic novel that just seemed disjointed right from the start. I found a much newer translation by a well-regarded translator that was available from an in-state university library. When I tried to use the inter-library loan service, I was initially told I couldn't borrow the book because my school already owned a copy (the older translation I previously noted). The librarian acted like I was being picky because I wanted the newer translation, but she eventually relented. I have no doubt I enjoyed a much better reading experience because I opted for the superior translation.

 

[Harry Haller]

Harry Haller, I think it's not always that simple. When faced with several translations of the same book, one has to do their homework before choosing the translation that would best fit their expectations. I mean... American translations are not more 'neutral' than other translations per se.

That is exactly what I said. American translations are not more neutral, just more likely to be what an American reader is looking for.

 

[SpaceCadet]

That is exactly what I said. American translations are not more neutral, just more likely to be what an American reader is looking for.

Oooo.... Sorry for that... I did not read it that way.