Translating misquotes in a literary work Inițiatorul discuției: Laura Meyerovich
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I am facing an interesting challenge: translating and back translating misquoted passages. I will appreciate your thoughts on the topic.
The author several times seriously misquoted (using quotation marks) rather obscure texts of well known writers in both source and target language. I do not mean translator's license, these are serious misquotes that change the meaning. In one case, he combined words and phrases extracted from two pages of original text into a single sentence! ... See more I am facing an interesting challenge: translating and back translating misquoted passages. I will appreciate your thoughts on the topic.
The author several times seriously misquoted (using quotation marks) rather obscure texts of well known writers in both source and target language. I do not mean translator's license, these are serious misquotes that change the meaning. In one case, he combined words and phrases extracted from two pages of original text into a single sentence!
To the best of my knowledge, it was never caught before in any edition of his books.
In all of these cases the result was more compact, effective, and in my mind, better prose. The quotes are tightly integrated with the surrounding text, so replacing them with originals, even with end-notes, will break the flow.
The author is dead, and I have to deal with the issue, because I had the misfortune to trace down the originals. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | | Phil Hand 
China
Local time: 00:00
din chineză în engleză
| Just translate as is | Feb 19, 2013 |
Presumably the author knows what he's done. In creative work you have to allow authors to actually be creative, and that means breaking rules.
There is theory to back this up: Newmark says when translating creative work you have to follow the author (as opposed to translating journalism/scholarship, where we should also consider the reality that the author is describing).
| | | | | Combine the two other replies | Feb 20, 2013 |
Translate the original text as is, but add a footnote or endnote explaining the situation succinctly.
Also, if there is an editor, probably you should ask them what they think about it. Depending on the audience, your discovery could be an interesting, unexpected feature of the translation, or it could be an annoying distraction.
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Kay Denney
Franţa
Local time: 18:00
din franceză în engleză
| Is it a purely creative work? | Feb 20, 2013 |
or a scholarly publication?
I think the way to go rather hinges on that.
If the accent is on the creative, then the author was being creative with quotes. But it might be worth pointing out in a footnote, or in a translator's note, or editor's note or whatever.
But you do have to respect the author.
Like in "Lord of the Flies": the glasses Piggy would need to correct his eyesight would be useless for starting fires. The translator can't cor... See more or a scholarly publication?
I think the way to go rather hinges on that.
If the accent is on the creative, then the author was being creative with quotes. But it might be worth pointing out in a footnote, or in a translator's note, or editor's note or whatever.
But you do have to respect the author.
Like in "Lord of the Flies": the glasses Piggy would need to correct his eyesight would be useless for starting fires. The translator can't correct it because the whole plot hinges on the fact that the boys need Piggy's glasses to start their fire, and the fact that Piggy can't see without the glasses is also crucial to the story in fact the entire story would have to be reworked. But it's a detail that only bothers opticians, who simply have to suspend their disbelief. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Tatty
Local time: 18:00
din spaniolă în engleză
+ ...
That's what I would add, three simple dots between the two parts that the author has bunged together.
Good luck
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