1. In the text, the author finds it really difficult to translate Japanese words with similar meanings, for example, waku waku and doki doki. What she did was to go back to the original text and look at how the author of the book has conceived of them. Then she would translate these two words according to the specific contexts.
Do you think what she did is a good way to sovle this problem? And, can you come up with other Japanese words/ pharses that sharing similar meanings which make them difficult to be translated into English?
2. In the text, author mentions that when she was trying to translate a moive scene into Japanese, she intentionally changed the name of Ichiyama into Imaichi to translate"the spirit of wordplay" and capture the mood of what Jerry Lewis, another character in the movie, is doing with language.
Do you think such change is acceptable？Especially for audiences who can't understand the English, do you think it may change the way how audiences think of the movie?
3. In the text, author mentions that she "would never translate a mystery without knowing first who did it."
Do you think it is necessary for translators to read the whole novel first before starting to translate?
1. Yes, I think this is a good way to solve the problem because by understanding the contexts that the words are in, it is easier to find English equivalents. I like how she used "pitter patter" for "doki doki," as it provokes the image of a heart beating with excitement like "doki doki" does in Japanese. There are many words with very similar meanings that are hard to translate, like even the many types of ways to say "you" in Japanese. They all have slightly different connotations and contexts, but it's hard to distinguish between them because they all just mean "you" in English.
ReplyDelete2. I think that works well here because it conveys the same type of humor that the English version has. If they had used the direct translation, it would not have made as much sense to the Japanese audience.
3. Yes, I think it is necessary to read the whole novel first so that the translator fully understands the story and can include hidden nuances that they might have missed if only reading it for the first time. As mentioned in the article, by reading the whole book, the translator can get a feel for the way that the characters speak, and keep their speech patterns consistent and fluid when they translate their dialogue.
1. I like her way of dealing with these two sets of words. This is the kind of cultural barrier between Japanese and English that has to be handled with careful interpretation behind the text. It is important to grasp the emotions behind each of these similar meaning words in order to make an accurate translation. A pair of words sharing similar meanings that I can think of would be 一生懸命 and 頑張る. I think the level of the hard work in these two words are different which makes translation hard.
ReplyDelete2. I think this wordplay works really well. Direct translate just does not work here. I don't think this wordplay changed the original meaning of the movie. Instead, it helps the Japanese audience to understand the movie better.
3. Yes, I think it helps if the translator knows the ending before translating. It just makes translation easier. If the translator had no idea of the ending and went ahead to translate, he/she might be risking himself/herself into re-translating of the text.
1. I think she used a good method. As with any language, obviously there are many pairs/groups of words in Japanese with subtle differences that are only revealed in context. I think of two of my favorite words in Japanese: めんどくさい and しんきくさい (関西弁). As I understand it, しんきくさい is similar to めんどくさい, but carries the additional feeling of being time-consuming.
ReplyDelete2. I still don't understand Japanese comedy very well, but what she did here seems quite clever. It's different from the English, obviously, but carries the same confusion.
3. I think that no matter the genre, it makes sense to read an entire work before really beginning to translate. Plot points aside, by doing this one can get the best sense of the author's style, as well as the voices of characters.
1. Yes, I do think what she did was the only good way to solve the problem. For words like waku waku and doki doki, I do wish that she found a way to translate the feeling while keeping the same repetitive structure of the phrases in Japanese. At the same time, I know in English we don’t have these types of words. I find it extremely difficult to translate similar style words, like もふもふ or さらさら, for example.
ReplyDelete2. I do think it is acceptable, since it has the same wordplay effect. The only thing I would be concerned about is how it affects the rest of the story; if it’s just one casual scene where Ichiyama is never mentioned again I think it’s fine, but for example if Jerry and Ichiyama end up becoming best friends, using Ichiyama’s name for wordplay could affect the rest of the story.
3. Yes, I do think its necessary for translators to read the whole novel, or to at least read the whole novel before editing the translation. Otherwise, the translation could end up as the translator’s interpretation of the piece, which might be slightly off from the original author’s intention.