An analytical essay on Translation of the short story

Siddharth G. Desai

Roll no. - 12

SEM - I

Paper no. – 5(B)

Year – 2010-11

Topic: An analytical essay on Translation of the short story

Submitted to Dr. Dilip Barad

Department of English,

Bhavnagar University.

           

                   To translate anything into our own language is a really great task, because while translating, we have to take care of each and every word and also we have to understand or catch the real tone of the author and that thing should be translated very well. We have to take into consideration all these things while translating.

                    I have translated one short story from English to Gujarati. So I want to share my experiences of translating this story. Really, translation is not an easy task. Whenever we translate anything, we have to translate it in its real tone, it means, what does the author say? This thing should be translated in its real meaning. If the translator fails to understand or create that type of feeling which is written in the original work, we can say that the translator is killing the author’s work. For example, there is a story in Hindi language, “Kya Mein Ghass Katt Raha Hu”, it means, what I am doing? Or I am doing nothing but it is translated as “Am I cutting Grass?” in English. So in a way, we can say that if the translator fails to understand the real meaning like this example, we can say that the translator is killing the author’s work. So the understanding of the meaning is more essential for the translator. Any translation can be right or accepted if the translator follows or understand the meaning which is written by the author in his work.

                   

                So these are all things which the translator has to keep in his mind. The translator should be good reader. He should be also alert reader, it means, he should have a skill to catch the meaning. He should be master over SL (Source language) and TL (Target language). He should be also a writer. Translator has to create a real tone in his translation, then and then, the translation gets the real meaning. He has to understand both languages and the things which are written in the original work and the things which he writes while translating the text. Before I share my experiences of translating the story, let’s see, first of all, what is translation?

v WHAT IS TRANSLATION?

               

                      In simple language, we can say, “to change a text of one language (SL) into another language (TL).”

                      

                      Here, in this definition, I have written SL into bracket it means, the source language and TL means Target language. The story which I have translated into English language, it is written into English and I have translated into Gujarati. So the English language is the source language and Gujarati language is a target language here. I have taken the source of the story from English language and translated into my target language that is Gujarati. This is the process of translation. Trans+lation which indicates movement one place to another.

                        In Literature, translation is very helpful to understand other works which are written in different languages. By translation, the translator puts other literature’s works into his languages and people can read other literature and also they can understand the other literature.

                      For example, the Bible is written into Latin and Hebrew. But later on, it is translated into English. By translating the Bible, people can read the things which are written into the Bible. The translation of the Bible is a unique example of translation world. Translation is neither a creative art nor an imitative.

                    When translation, this thing existed, it was fully criticized and the avoided at the time. But in the present time, translation has taken place or we can say the special place. And now-a-days, there are very good translator required. This shows a great significance of translation in the present time.

                     Let’s see history of translation. When did it begin or exist? How did it exist?

                      Translation is the essential part of the literary and cultural history of a country. To trace its beginning or to periodize its development in any absolute sense would be a futile task. However, exponent in the field like, Steiner do make an arbitrary periodization of the history of the translation. This periodization consists of four phases: the first extending from the time of Cicero and Horace to the time of Alexander Fraser Tyler i.e. from 466 BC to 1792. The second extending from the time of Friedrich Schiermacher to the time of Valery Larbaud i.e. from 1769 to 1946. The third extending from the invention of machine translation to a reversion to Bermeneutic approach i.e. from 1940 to 1960. The forth extending from the reversion to metaphysical approach to the present time i.e. from 1960 to onwards.

                     So these are the four periodization of the history of the translation. Ugene Nida says, “It is likely that the message of a language ‘A’ is decoded into a concept then provides the basis for the generation of an utterance in language ‘B’. This is the process of translation and the translator has to do this while translating.

                     It means, here, Eugene Nida says that the translator has to decode the source language and then translate into the target language and then the translator has to encode his work. The translator should follow this process of translation while translating. He has to follow thought by thought than word by word while translating. Because if he follows thought by thought, he can put the real tone in his translation which is written in the original book. That’s why thought by thought translation is beneficial for the translator than word by word translation.

                         Now, I am writing the original story which I have translated into Gujarati. It is written in English.

“HOW THE WORLD WAS MADE”

       Before the Earth was made, everything was water. There were two brothers in the sky, who were matchless, unique. They were Lopong Rimbuche and his younger brother Chom Dande.

       Lopong Rimbuche and Chom Dande, one day thought there should be human being on the Earth. So they got down to work.

      One day they said to each other, “When humans are created, how will they live if there is nothing, but water in the world?”

       They saw a lotus flower growing in the sky. The brothers threw this down, and immediately the Earth’s water was covered with flowers.

       Then, they called the winds from the four quarters.

The east wind blew yellow dust.

The south wind red dust.

The north wind black dust.

         The west wind blew the dust round and round and mixed it up together until the Earth was formed.

        The four winds then scattered the dust everywhere.

         The two brothers now patted the dust down nicely with their hands piling up here and making a hole there till finally the earth was made.

         That is why the Earth is of different colours.

     

            And that is also why there are hills valleys.

                                                                                 -  From, Meghalaya

I have translated this story into Gujarati. Here it is.

Aa s>sarnI ]Tpit kevI !

             s>sar nI ]Tpit 4{ te phela b2u j j5b>bakar htu. AjoD, Anupm Aeva shodro ggnma> wmta hta. teAo lopo>g rI>buce Ane teno nano wa{ com d>De hta.

           

            Aek idvs lopo>g rI>buce Ane com d>De na mansma> AaVyu ke jgtma> manvjait nu AiStTv AinvayR 0e. te4I teAo Aa kam Aadrva nIce AaVya.

                                   

            La>aba idvsna A>te, teAoAe AekbIjane kHyu, ‘Jyare manvIAonu sjRn 4xe Tyare te kevI rIte +vxe, jo jgtma cotrf pa`I j hoy bIju kxu j nih.’

                                    

            ggnma qIlta km5ne teAoAe nIha%yu.

                                    

           shodroAe tene p/u$vI trf f>go%yu Ane AekaAek p/u$vInu pa`I fUlo4I 0va{ gyu.

                                    

           p0I teAoAe carey idxaAoma>4I pvnnI lherqIAone bolavI.

                                      

           pUvR idxaAe pI5I rjk`o ]DaDI. v5I di9`e lalax pDtI rjk`o. Jyare ]Ttre ka5ax pDtI rjk`o.

          Jya su2I s>sarnI ]Tpit 4{ nhI Ane pa&caTy pvnnI rjk`o tema> w5I nhI Tya> su2I te s>sarnI co-trf frtI rhI.

                                      

          Tyarbad carey idxamana pvnoAe rjk`one b2I bajuAe ivqerI naqI. Aa p/ik/yama>4I p/u$vIno ip>D b>2ayo.

                                      

          Caomer4I Aavta pvnoAe Aa rjk`one smg/Tya felavI dI2I. hve Aa b>2uAoAe potana ha4 q>qeyaR, Ane Amuk Aek S45e ma3Ino !glo kyoR Ane Jya su2I p/u$vI bnI nhI Tya su2I Aakar AaPyo.

                                     

          Aaj kar` 0e ke p/u$vI pcr>gI, bhur>gI Ane nvpiLlt 0e.

                                    

          Ane Aa j kar` 0e ke p/u$vIna flk pr qI`o Ane 3ekrIAo p/u$vIna sO>dyRne dEidPyman bnave 0e.

                                           [ me6aly ma>4I ]

                            While translating this story, I have faced many difficulties. My first difficulty was the title of this story, “HOW THE WORLD WAS MADE” because we can see there is no punctuation mark in the title. So how should I translate this title? What to do? How to do? Many questions were raised in my mind. While giving the title to this story, I came across many similar words like as the Earth, “pu/$vI,jgt,duinya,iv&v or s>sar. So which word should I put in the title? Which word is appropriate for this title? Because as per the title concern, I should put the word which shows the real tone. I should say at that time, I was in great dilemma.

After considering so much time, I gave the title to this story with exclamation mark, “Aa s>sarnI ]Tpit kevI !” this is all about only the title. But in this story, there are many things which are complicated to translate. Let’s see.

                      While translating some words like, “human being, water (everything was water.), two brothers, lotus, winds, four quarters, I came across many words like, “human being as manvIAo, mnu*yo, mnu*yjait.” Then “water as pa`I, j5”, “ two brother as be wa{Ao, shodro”, “lotus as km5, p>kj, Ariv>d,”, “winds as  pvn, hva, vayro.”, “four quarters as cotrf, carey baju, comer.”

                     Another problem is sentence like, “the east wind blew yellow dust, I had tried to translate this sentence as “pUvR idxama>4I pI5I rjk`o fU>ka`I.” and also I had tried to translate as “pUvR idxaAe pI5I rjk`o ]DaDI.” Then I have chosen the second one translation for this sentsnce.

         The second one is a very long in this story and that is “The two brothers now patted the dust down nicely with their hands piling up here and making a hole there till finally the earth was made.”

                    I have translated as “ hve Aa b>2uAoAe potana ha4 q>qeyaR, Ane Amuk Aek S45e ma3Ino !glo kyoR Ane Jya su2I p/u$vI bnI nhI Tya su2I Aakar AaPyo.” To translate this sentence I have fumbled many a times in meaning. Sometimes it lost the meaning and it had not constructed very well, I mean to say that the sentence can’t be arranged in sequences. But whenever I tried to translate I have translated like that.

                 And I have deliberately used “p/u$vI” as world because I felt that if I would put “s>sar” at that place perhaps it will lost the charm of meaning, that’s lost why I put it there “p/u$vI.”

                 To translate this story I have to come across many similar words and different meanings. The major thing of translation is the understanding of the meaning and that is more essential for the translator. If you want to explain by different words, you can. But as I said the charm of meaning should be translated by the translator.

v Conclusion:-

       The translator should follow the three principles while translating the work and the principles are:

1.     What does the author say?

2.     What does he mean?

3.     How does he say the things?

      With the help of above three principles, he can create the real tone in the translation.