11/2 Reading Comments

 

In Hearing Voices: My Encounters with Translation,Japanese professor Rebecca Copeland writes on certain difficulties while completing a translation. I liked how she included a quote from Edward Seidensticker, where he described translation as “a series of dilemmas.” This resonated with me, as when I am translating, I often find myself trying to decide between various words and formats, as translation is not as straightforward as it might seem. She then explains difficulties when translating pieces that come from different dialects. This can be difficult because as a translator, it is essential to capture the feel of a piece of writing and mirror it in the translation. However, when translating different dialects, it is often difficult to translate the feel of the dialect into English. As there are different dialects specific to Japan, it is nearly impossible to mirror the dialect into English. This is difficult because the dialect that a piece is written in can have a large effect on the overall feel and atmosphere of the writing. Finally, I found it interesting how Copeland included the bit about Sharon Sievers and her study of “Flowers in Salt.” As Copeland began to work through the piece, she noticed that there was no mention of salt in Kishida’s speech. She later contacted Sievers in hopes of clarification of the mistake in translation, and received an answer acknowledging the mistake. Sievers stated that although there was indeed no mention of salt in Kishida’s speech, but “the most important thing was really not a literal translation of that particular line, but the face that “flowers in salt” so powerfully conveyed the feelings of so many Meiji women I read.” This highlighted the point that a translation does not have to be accurate word-per-word, but it should capture the feeling of the original work. 

I found the Round-Table Discussion to be very interesting as it also emphasized translating different dialects and certain precautions that should come with doing so. I liked how Edward Seidensticker spoke on the many possibilities and routes one must take during translation. He stated that one must “frequently have tot choose between one or two-three-four possibilities, none of which is a perfect.” I agree with this statement, as although there can be various ways to translate a word or a phrase, it is important to consider the entire feel of the original work, and choose an option that fits in best with the given context. He then goes on to give an example of how he had problems dealing with translating a piece that was written in the Kansai dialect. He stated that although difficult, he decided to go about translating Osaka speech in a “formal kind of English without contractions.”