The Translator Between the Text and the Culture

Download as pdf document.

“No Translator can claim impersonal access to the textual, nor is it possible to translate in a social vacuum.” (Vermeer and Witte, 1990)

Written by: Mohamed Mahou

Translation, a process of rendering the meaning of one language into another, entails an awareness of the culture of these two languages. Indeed, translation does not function in a social vacuum as Vermeer and Witte point out¹. It is actually culture-bound. In order to avoid misunderstandings, translators should resort to an integrated approach and they should be aware of their cultural responsibility. The major aim of the present paper, thus, is to reveal the importance of culture in translation. I will first state some problems faced while translating a text. Then I will focus on the effect of culture on translation and translators. I will finally tackle the cultural responsibility of translators.

1. Problems in Translation

Most of the difficulties encountered in translation are due to the difference between the source language and the target language. When faced with culturally-bound expressions, for example, the translator is usually obliged to add or delete something over what is actually said in the original text. Though the influence is sometimes inevitable², translators must be careful not to transfer idiosyncrasies of the source text into the new text, a factor which will shock the target reader. Claiming an impersonal access to the textual meaning of a translated text is, to be sure, impossible because a good translation always entails frames and framing. According to David Katan, “frames are a combination of prior knowledge, generalizations and expectations regarding the text. As the text is read so it is checked against expectations and degree of fit with other similar known or possible texts.”³ When attempting to reconstruct a text appropriately, translators are likely to face different problems, which may be divided into three categories:

1. Linguistic problems:

They can be subdivided into three kinds of problems: semantic, syntactic and textual. Semantic problems appear when the translator tries to negotiate meanings within the source text. Syntactic problems, on the other hand, arise from differences in the features of arrangement and suprasegmental aspects of the two languages. Differences in cohesion, coherence, punctuation and divisibility of sentences are some textual problems that a translator may encounter when translating a text. Indeed, a contrastive grammar and a comparative of styles would be a great help while dealing with these problems.

2. Pragmatic problems:

They arise when ignoring to check on one of the following extra textual factors: sender, receiver, medium, time, place, motive and text function

3. Cultural Problems:

As it is stated above, translation takes place within a socio-cultural context. Because of the difference between the two cultures, some translators may find it difficult to interpret the norms and conventions of the target culture or they may impose their own cultural values on it. Some strategies are of value when tackling the component of culture in any translation.

2. Dealing with Culture:

Rendering a text in the most appropriate way, translators, or to borrow one of David Katan’s terms mediators, are in need of two processes: decoding and encoding. By decoding it is often meant to dismantle the ideas of the source text whereas the encoding process necessitates finding a new code in the target text. Between the two processes the translator needs to analyze and frame his “grouped linguistic and textual knowledge.”⁴ Indeed, unlike the grammatical model that describes translation focusing on equivalent words, the cultural model takes the cultural aspect of the target text into account. The focus, according to the supporters’ of this model, is extensively on the importance of context. For them, translation is a form of cross-cultural communication.

Doing a cross-cultural translation appropriately depends on the translator’s understanding of the culture s/he is working with. When dealing with idioms, proverbs and metaphors, for instance, the translator has to replace the source text items by those known in the target culture. To illustrate my point, translating some Berber proverbs into English using a literal translation may appear odd to the English audience. Using equivalent English proverbs will surely be more legitimate and safer in this respect. Here are three examples:

1- Berber: Yan ibbi ulgmad ar ti tssiwid tzkirt

Literal Translation: The one bitten by a snake is afraid of ropes.

English equivalent: Once bitten, twice shy.

2- Berber: Imik s imik a sa ikccm uram s ugdur.

Literal translation: Little by little the camel enters the pot

English equivalent: Rome is not built on one day

3- Berber: Wanna yran tammnt isbr i tiqqrst n tizzwa.

Literal translation: The one who wants honey must bear bee stings.

English Equivalent: Every rose has its thorn.

Indeed, doing a cross-cultural translation entails mastering both the source culture and the target one. Being bicultural is one major characteristic of a good translator. The main objectives of translators, thus, are to avoid cultural misunderstandings and to achieve an appreciation of the source text. Resorting to footnotes or endnotes is one technique to be used to meet these goals. For example, when translating some God phrases that abound in Berber language, the translator should explain to the target reader that these phrases are used to express politeness and they reflect Imazighens (Berbers) strong link to Islam. As a very simple example, this God phrase “Ad k irhm rbbi ifqirn” may be translated literally as: “May God bless your old people.” But this translation is a bit awkward because the phrase “old people” (Ifqirn) refers actually to parents, not to the old people in general. So, a good translator should be aware of such cultural aspects of the target language. It is worth mentioning that a translator of the above-mentioned phrase should also use an endnote to stress the situations in which it is used. That is, stating that it is used when asking for a service/ information or when expressing gratitude to someone.

Clearly, a major problem for translators is usually facing non-equivalence. To solve the problem, David Katan suggests using a new model for working cross-culturally. He notes:

I would suggest here that translators, interpreters and others should use the Meta-model themselves to consciously locate the deletions, distortions and generalizations in the source text. Mediators should also be conscious of their own modeling strategy in the production of the target text.⁵

Indeed, finding the implicit and the absent in the source text is the overriding task of a translator. The implicit means what a translator makes explicit in the target text and the absent refers to things or concepts that are absent in the source text, but they are actually present in relation to the general situation which gave rise to the text. David Katan labels this absent with the phrase “the context of culture.” He states:

We mentioned earlier that a translator as cultural interpreter or mediator also needs to account for information that is implicit in the context of culture. We should also consider that the context of culture can be perceived at a number of different levels, from environment (e.g. institutions) to beliefs and values (cultural orientations) and identity. ⁶

Since non-equivalence seems to be a major “predicament” in translation, translators should mainly seek to achieve the communicative function of the target text. This function is achieved through the use of an integrated approach that takes the global vision of the text at hand as a starting point. The two levels of this approach are defined as follows: “At that higher level things are perceived holistically, as a single gestalt, while for identification at a lower level, specific details have to be picked out.”⁷Truly, the integrated approach brings to the forefront of concern the paramount importance of analyzing parts in order to have an appropriate translation. At the outset, a good translator reads his text several times, in doing so s/he grasps the linguistic knowledge of the text. Then s/he moves to the analysis of the situation. That is, the immediate environment of the source text that will help the audience understand the translated text. Finally the translator focuses on the cultural aspects raised in the work at hand; he should fully understand beliefs and values encoded in the text. Indeed, taking the text, situation and culture into consideration will certainly ensure credibility of the translated work in the eyes of the target reader.

3. Cultural Responsibility of Translators

As technology develops and grows fast, nations and their cultures intersect in different ways. Translation, as a means of transposing thoughts and interpreting languages, is required to play an influential role in the current transcultural communication. Translators’ responsibility, thus, goes beyond the mere act of translating. They are not merely bringing about a linguistic translation, but they are also acting as experts in cultural transposition.

Sometimes translations may introduce negative views and aspects into the target culture. In their book, The Translator as Communicator (1997), Basil Hatim and Ian Mason state: “Text may thus be seen as carriers of ideological meaning, a factor which makes them particularly vulnerable to changing socio- cultural norms.”⁸. Additionally, translated texts may act as a reinforcer of the prejudices and clichés that exist about certain societies, especially the once-colonized. According to Said Faiq (2005), this job is done superbly both by the orientalists as well as by the “native foreigners”. While discussing some books written by Arab authors like Ben Jelloun and Mohamed Heikal, Faiq concludes:

Their writings, particularly in English and French, are taken by western cities as evidence that the stereotypes and clichés used to represent/ translate Arabs and Islam, as explained by Said (1997), were and still are true, and that the native foreigners only further confirm them.⁹

Along with the ideology underlying certain works, some translations may unconsciously misinterpret messages and cultures. This is mainly due to translators’ limited competence in one of the languages at hand or it is likely a result of the scarcity of documentation they are working with. Thus, translators are tasked to free themselves from ideology and make huge efforts to participate in merging cultures together.

Certainly, translations, when they are done appropriately, take on a significant role in drawing cultures together. Differences will be absorbed and tolerance will spread in the world. In fact, as Beekman and Callow suggest¹⁰, using a native source language speaker as a helper in translation is a sound technique. It will definitely minimize cultural misinterpretations; and it will eventually lead to cross-cultural understanding. Additionally, translators often participate effectively in the enlightenment of the readers of the target culture. Recently, I have watched some famous plays like Othello and Waiting for Godot performed using the Berber language. For the novelty-seeking Berber public, translating international plays and acting them out in their native language will certainly bring new cultural aspects into the Amazigh culture. In this regard, Larbi Mamouch, a Berber translator, affirms:

La traduction en amazighe permet … de développer l’éventail de sa poétique en « important » de nouveaux genres littéraires, comme le théâtre, la nouvelle, le roman, les formes poétiques modernes,… La littérature amazighe sera aussi enrichie par des motifs et des images poétiques nouvelles, qui viennent s’ajouter à celles déjà connues et en vigueur dans la tradition poétique et littéraire orale.¹¹

4. Conclusion:

In order to promote an inter-cultural awareness and to participate in the development of nations, translators should interpret cultures and messages correctly. The use of an integrated approach, that take the text, the situation and the culture as equally important components of any translation, will show that translators’ work is not done in a social vacuum; rather it is “mired” deeply in culture. Actually, a mere focus on the textual meaning will not contribute to a solidly understood translation and it will simply create cultural misunderstandings that will widen the gap among different societies.

Notes:

1. See the quotation on the first page. ( Under the title) ( Vermeer and Witte, 1990)
2. Said Faiq ( 2005) states:

“When cultures cross and mingle through translation, these pasts come face to face and struggle for power and influence becomes inevitable.”

3. Katan, David. Translating Culture: An Introduction for Translators, Interpreters and Mediators ( Manchester and Northampton: St. Jerome Publishing, 1999) p 169
4. Ibid. p 169
5. Ibid. p 169
6. Ibid. p 177
7. Ibid. p 169
8. Hatim, Basil. Ian Mason. The Translator as Communicator. ( London and New York: Rouledge, 1997) p 127
9. Faiq, Said. ed. Translation, Representation and Identity in Intercultural Communication. (American University of Sharjah, 2005) Vol XIV p 72
10. It is cited in Katan, David. Translating Culture: An Introduction for Translators, Interpreters and Mediators ( Manchester and Northampton: St. Jerome Publishing, 1999) p 173

11- Moumch Larbi in intervied published in http://tirrawal.canalblog.com/archives/2011/01/28/20238791.html

Works Cited

1. Hatim, Basil. Ian Mason. The Translator as Communicator. London and New York: Rouledge, 1997
2. Faiq, Said. ed. Translation, Representation and Identity in Intercultural Communication. American University of Sharjah, 2005. Intercultural Communication Studies.Vol XIV
3. Katan, David. Translating Culture: An Introduction for Translators, Interpreters and Mediators Manchester and Northampton: St. Jerome Publishing, 1999
4. Mamouch, Larbi. “la traduction en amazighe” . Interview with Mohamed Oussous. January 2011. http://tirrawal.canalblog.com/archives/2011/01/28/20238791.html