Like-Blog
Presenting you the most interesting translation solutions
Why Like-Blog? Now, first of all, this blog is a blog that you should like (and read regularly) – at least, if you are interested in translation. Then, the topic discussed here is one in which the meaningful likeness between a text and its translation in the language pair English-German plays a key role. On this page, I will take a close look at some interesting translation solutions that I have come across in the course of my work as a translator and translation scholar.
A translation solution is only as good as the arguments that support it. This means that any translation criticism, whether positive or negative, needs to be justified. The quality of a translation solution shows only when we compare it to other possible translation solutions in a given translation situation. Therefore, a translation critic should not only say why a translation solution is bad, but also demonstrate what a better solution might look like. I will try to stick to these principles of translation criticism. So if you have any questions regarding my line of argument or if you disagree, please, let me know your opinion by phone at +49 4171 6086525 or by e-mail to bittner@businessenglish-hamburg.de. So much for the introduction. I hope you’ll enjoy reading this blog!
Windows (July 2024)
Once more, we will look at a translation problem in “The Trouble with Harry’s” (Vanity Fair, 2 November 2009) by Mark Seal. In the original, we read: “A year later, at one in the morning, a taxi driver crashed through the front window and plowed 75 feet into the restaurant.”
This sentence has been rendered into German: “Ein Jahr später krachte um 1 Uhr nachts ein Taxifahrer durch die Frontscheibe und pflügte fast 25 Meter durch das Restaurant.”
Perhaps, you’ve noticed already where the problem is. “Frontscheibe” is a word that is typically used in connection with cars and similar vehicles. In the context of a restaurant, it is better to refer to a “Fensterfront”.