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!
Giuseppe (March 2024)
Again we find an interesting translation problem in “The Trouble with Harry’s” (Vanity Fair, 2 November 2009) by Mark Seal. The original goes: “Arrigo soon sent his son, Giuseppe, who was then 20 and had never been to New York, to help oversee the business.”
This was translated: “Arrigo schickte bald darauf seinen damals 20-jährigen Sohn Giuseppe, der noch nie in New York gewesen war, um bei der Leitung des Geschäfts mitzuhelfen.”
It may not be immediately obvious to the reader where exactly the problem lies. To be sure, the problem is a translation problem only inasmuch as the subtle influence of the original can probably be regarded as the cause of a reduction which in German is unwarranted – at least in a journalistic text such as the one in question. What is missing, here, is a place adjunct complementing the verb “schicken”. Only in a very limited and often colloquial context, if at all, may there be a possibility of using the verb without an adverbial (or, for that matter, an indirect object – ich schicke jemandem etwas).
There are two solutions. One is to use the verb “entsenden” instead of “schicken”. The other, perhaps more elegant, solution is to add the grammatically required place adjunct: Arrigo schickte bald darauf seinen damals 20-jährigen Sohn Giuseppe, der noch nie in New York gewesen war, in die Metropole, um bei der Leitung des Geschäfts mitzuhelfen.