Using Technologies For Creative Text Translation

This collection reflects on the state of the art of research into the use of translation technologies in the translation of creative texts, encompassing literary texts but also extending beyond to cultural texts, and charts their development and paths for further research. Bringing together perspectives from scholars across the discipline, the book considers recent trends and developments in technology that have spurred growing interest in the use of computer-aided translation (CAT) and machine translation (MT) tools in literary translation. Chapters examine the relationships between translators and these tools—the extent to which they already use such technologies, the challenges they face, and prevailing attitudes towards these tools—as well as the ethical implications of such technologies in translation practice. The volume gives special focus to drawing on examples with and beyond traditional literary genres to look to these technologies’ use in working with the larger group of creative texts, setting the stage for many future research opportunities. The book will be of particular interest to students and scholars in translation studies, especially those with an interest in literary translation, translation technology, translation practice, and translation ethics. Chapters 2 & 3 of this book are freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com

“I don’t translate, I create!” – This is the slogan of a translation agency called “Sternkopf Communications” located in Flöha, Germany. The translators at this translation agency are specialized in the field of marketing and perceive creativeness their daily bread. But what does this actually mean – I don’t translate, I create? Undoubtedly, the translation of a text from one language into another is not an easy and straightforward process. On the contrary, the translator needs to invest much time and one or the other headache before a target text (TT) finally sounds natural, fluent, coherent and logical for the target audience. Different possible translation solutions will have to be considered, language as well as culture-related equivalents often are not easily at hand etc. Would it not be pleasant if machine translation (MT) was there to help with this process? Yet, despite the enormous importance of creativity in translating, computer-aided translation (CAT) tools are being used frequently by professional translators, not to replace but to support the translator in their daily business. CAT tools enable their users to translate in a more consistent way, since they search source texts for words, phrases or sentences that have already been translated before and stored in the TM so that the translator does not need to translate this text unit again ‘from scratch’. Considering that this process brings about what could be called ‘semi-mechanical’ TTs, the use of CAT tools seems to stand in stark contrast to the importance of creativity mentioned above. Thus, the question arises whether CAT tools influence the creative energy of translators and, if this is the case, whether translators regard this influence as rather positive or negative. In this context, it is also important to consider which fields of expertise generally demand a high degree of uniformity/consistency in translations and which subject fields generally allow for a high degree of creative freedom. Accordingly, this paper pursues two related purposes. The first is to compare five CAT tools in their degree of usability. The second purpose is to identify translators’ perspectives on uniformity and creativity in translations with the goal to shedding light on the question whether CAT tools generally tend to positively or negatively influence the translation process on a rather linguistic than technological basis.

This collection surveys the state of the art of computer-assisted literary translation (CALT), making the case for its potential to enhance literary translation research and practice. The volume brings together early career and established scholars from around the world in countering prevailing notions around the challenges of effectively implementing contemporary CALT applications in literary translation practice which has traditionally followed the model of a single translator focused on a single work. The book begins by addressing key questions on the definition of literary translation, examining its sociological dimensions and individual translator perspective. Chapters explore the affordances of technological advancements and availability of new tools in such areas as post-edited machine translation (PEMT) in expanding the boundaries of what we think of when we think of literary translation, looking to examples from developments in co-translation, collaborative translation, crowd-sourced translation and fan translation. As the first book of its kind dedicated to the contribution CALT in its various forms can add to existing and future scholarship, this volume will be of interest to students and scholars in Translation Studies, especially those working in literary translation, machine translation and translation technologies.

With the intention to show to the world the rigor of translation research, Researching Language, Text and Technology in Translation came forward with a collection of recent translation studies focusing on the aspects of language, text and technology in relation to translation. There is a total of seven studies, with the first chapter presenting the validity of translation research, while the rest portraying many different topics such as the difference between human and machine translation when translating the memoir of Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, the translation of cultural humor for animated comedies, a look into the colonial perspective when it comes to translating literature from the east and various other topics that are both interesting and bring many different cultures around the world into view. This book can benefit academics, students (particularly research and graduate students), translators and those who are interested in language and translation. It is hoped that its casual yet educational content can open minds and stimulate ideas among its readers, especially in the terms of translation, and of how it connects the world together.

Creative texts; translation technologies; machine translation; computer-aided translation; translation practice.

The digital era is characterised by technological advances that increase the speed and breadth of knowledge turnover within the economy and society. This book examines the impact of these technological advances on translation and interpreting and how new technologies are changing the very nature of language and communication. Reflecting on the innovations in research, practice and training that are associated with this turbulent landscape, chapters consider what these shifts mean for translators and interpreters. Technological changes interact in increasingly complex and pivotal ways with demographic shifts, caused by war, economic globalisation, changing social structures and patterns of mobility, environmental crises, and other factors. As such, researchers face new and often cross-disciplinary fields of inquiry, practitioners face the need to acquire and adopt novel skills and approaches, and trainers face the need to train students for working in a rapidly changing landscape of communication technology. This book brings together advances and challenges from the different but intertwined perspectives of translation and interpreting to examine how the field is changing in this rapidly evolving environment.

Since the inception of Translation Studies in the 1970s, its researchers have held regular metareflections. Largely based on the assessment of translation and interpreting as two distinct but related modes of language mediation, each with its own research culture, these intradisciplinary debates have sought to take stock of the state of research within an ever-expanding discipline in search of (institutional) identity and autonomy. Recharting Territories proposes a more widespread and systematic intradisciplinary approach to researching translational phenomena, one which can be applied at various analytical levels – theoretical, conceptual, methodological, pragmatic – and emphasize both similarities and differences between subdisciplines. Such an approach, rather than consolidating a territorial attitude on the part of scholars, aims to raise awareness of the ever-shifting terrain on which Translation Studies stands.

Zulawnik focuses on the broad concept of ‘controversy’ and issues pertaining to the translation of politically and historically controversial texts in East Asia. The research methodology is exemplified through a case study in the form of the author’s translation of the best-selling Japanese graphic novel (manga) Manga Kenkanryū (Hate Hallyu: The Comic) by Sharin Yamano (2005), a work that has been problematised as an attack on South Korean culture and the Korean Wave. Issues analysed and discussed in the research include translation risk, ethics, a detailed methodology for the translation of so-called controversial texts exemplified through numerous thematically divided examples from the translation of the chosen Japanese text, as well as examples from a Korean language equivalent (Manhwa Hyeomillyu – Hate Japanese Wave), and definition and contextualisation of the concept of ‘controversy’. There has been limited research in the field of translation studies, which seeks to exemplify potential pragmatic approaches for the translation of politically-charged texts, particularly in multi-modal texts such as the graphic novel. It is hoped that Zulawnik’s research will serve both as a valuable source when examining South Korea–Japan relations and a theoretical and methodological base for further research and the development of an online augmented translation space with devices specifically suited for the translation of multi-modal texts such as – but not limited to – graphic novels and visual encyclopaedias.