TYPES AND METHODS OF TRANSLATION

TYPES AND METHODS OF TRANSLATION

The question whether a translation should be literal or free is as old as translation itself. The argument in favour of the spirit and sense as against the letter or the word has been going on at least from the beginning of the first century B.C. The view that translation was

imp ossible gained popularity when the cultural anthropologists suggested that languaue was culture bound. Walter Benjamin and Valdimir Nabokov who were considered the 'literalists' concluded that a translation must be as literal as possible. But in their argument the purpose of translation, the nature of readership, the type of text were not discussed.

Though several methods have been suggested for translation it is quite evident that a substantially good translation can not be produced by holding fast to any one of those methods. During the process of translation, depending on the type of the source language text, the translator resorts to the combination of these different methods,

Some of the methods mentioned by Peter Newmark, in his 'A Textbook ofi'Fanslalion ' are given below:

Word-for-word 'kPnslation :

This is often demonstrated as interlinear translation, with the target language immediately the source language words. The source language word order is preserved and the words translated singly by their most common meanings, out of context. Cultural words are

translated literally. The main use of word-for-word translation is either to understand the mechanics of the source language or to construe a difficult text as presentation process.

The mood also comes in the cohesive level. The nouns and the adjectives used throughout the text make a cohesion, The cohesion of such foregrounded elements gives the moodpositive or negative or neutral. The choice between words like pass away, and dead indicates the value of the person. This subtle difference in choice will make a translation good

or bad.

After passing through all theseminute details in the cohesivelevel, the level of naturalness has to be ensured. We must ensure whether the translation makes senseand if it reads naturally. This can be made out by disengaging ourselves from the source text, by reading the translation as though no original text existed. The naturalness has to be acquired by using most frequent syntactic structures, idioms and phrases and words that are likely to appear in that kind of stylistic context.

The heart of tramlation theory is translation problem and the translation theory broadly consists of a large number of generalities of translation problem. So, the translation problems shall be studies in the next chapter.

Literal trrmlatlon :

The source language grammatical constructions are converted to their nearest target language equivalents but the lexical words are again translated singly, out of context. As a

re-translation process, this indicates the problems to be solved.

Faithful translation :

A f a i W translation attempts to reproduce the precise contextual meaning of the original within the constraints of the target language grammatical structures. It 'transfers' cultural words and preserves the degree of grammatical and lexical 'abnormality' (deviation from the source language norms) in the translation. It attempts to be completely faithful to the intentions and the text realization of the source language writer.

Semantic translation :

Semantic translation differs fkom 'faithful translation' only in as far as it must take more account of the aesthetic value of the source language text, compromising on the 'meaning' where appropriate so that no assonance,word-play or repetitionjars in the finished version. Further, it may translate less important cultural words by culturally neutral third or functionalterms but not by culturalequivalents.It may make other small concessions to the readership. The distinction between 'faithful' and 'semantic' translation is that the first is uncompromising and dogmatic, while the second is more flexible admits the creative exception to 100% fidelity and allows for the translator's intuitive empathy with the original,

Adaptatton : This is the 'hest' form of translation. It is used mainly for plays (comedies)and poetry;the

themes, charactersand plots arc usually preserved, the source language culture converted to the target language culture and the text is rewritten. The deplorable practice of having a play or a poem literally translated and then rewritten by an established dramatist or poet has produced many poor adaptations, but other adaptations have 'rescued' period plays,

Free trmrlation :

Free translation produces the matter without the manner, or the content without the fonn of the original. Usually it isa paraphrase much longerthan the original.A socalled 'intralingual translation', often prolix and pretentious, and not translation at all.

Idiomatic tranrlatlon :

Idiomatic translation reproduces the 'message' of the original but tends to distort nuances of meaning by preferring colloquialisms and idioms where these do not exist in the original.

Commudcatlve tranrlatlon :

Communicative translation attempts to render the exact contextual meaning of the original in such a way that both content and language are readily acceptable and comprehensible to the reader.

There arc other methods of translation also. Service translation is a translation from one's language of habitual use into another language. The term is not widely wed but as the

practice is necessary in most countries, a term is required. Plain prose translation of poems and poetic drama initiated by E.V.Rieu for Penguin books. Usually staazas become paragraphs, prose punctuation is introduced, original metaphors and s o w laguage culture is retained, whilst no sound effects are reproduced. The reader

can appreciate the sense of the work without experiencing quivdent effect. Plain prose translation is often published in parallel with its oriyil~atlo which, after a carehl word-forword comparison, they provide ready and full access.

Information translation. This conveys all the information in a non-literary text some times reammged in a more logical fonn of a paraphrase.

Congnitive translation reproduces the information in a source language text converting the source language grammar to its normal target language transpositions, normally reducing any figurativeto literal language.

Academic translation. This type of translation, practised in some British Universities, re-

duces an original text to an 'elegant' idiomatic educated target language version which

follows a literary register. It irons out the expressivenessof a writer with modish colloquialisms.

Literal translation is the first step in translation, and a good translator abandons a literal version only when it is plainly inexact or, in the case of a vocative or informative text, badly written. A good translator will always do his best to avoid translating word for word. Recreativetranslationistranslatingthe thought behind the words, sometimesbetween the words, or translating the sub-text, is a procedure which some translation teachers regard as the heart of the central issue of translation. But the truth is the opposite. Interpret the sense, not the words.

J.C.Ca$ord definessome broad types of translation in t e r n of the extent, level and rank of

translation. *

A linguisrlc Theory of 7PansIation. (An assay in applied Linguistics) 0.U.P Orfrd 1965

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