Translation is indeed a difficult activity. It can never be word by word. It is more like carrying the feel, the emotion, the idea, the thought behind and beyond words from the source to the target language. On this arduous but hugely satisfying journey, there are many, in fact, countless difficulties such as the "cultural noise" as communication studies chooses to call it. Let us look at a few such actual issues, though many more are involved, as they might be attention deficient right now.
Shall we look at a few examples? How to capture " the face that rocked thousand ships" in a non-European language? There is in-built in that expression an obvious reference to Helen, a mother who left a young son and a loving husband to run after a lover. Actually, however, she was a pawn in the ego trip of goddesses fighting over the "Golden apple". So many allusions thus peal in every expression and word. A good translator has to do justice to such allusive subtleties.
Let us look at another expression. " Ata ladu kadhi" does not refer to the activity of going to a sweetmeats shop. Obviously literally translating it in to English would sound forced and artificial.
Yet another problem posers are the "falsche Freunde" that sound and spell similar, but mean vastly differently. Given such challenges and communication "noises" involved in the process, translation is tough. Oh, yes, we have not even referred to the body language involved in interpretation, the process of meaning-making orally! Remember how Frenchies speak? Such issues would matter a lot while "interpreting" orally, right?
Technological/scientific translation could be the google game, but literary translation is not even the machine translator or "algo rhythm" though robotic poems are now available, too. Complex issues tougher than Corona, indeed. But who cares for quality translation?!? That is the (real) question!
Pratima @ words create worlds! We respect them while translating.
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