Translation mistakes (II): Steppenwolf

One of the things in which probably agree all translators, is that since you become a translator, in reading is added a critical touch (consciously or unconsciously). I'm currently reading the book Steppenwolf of Hermann Hesse, and I couldn't avoid detecting a mistake in the translation into Spanish.

The original language of the book is German, so the mistake appears in the word "Gimnasio". The German word is Gymnasium and in the German education system it refers to the high school system. In Spanish, it makes no sense the translation as "gimnasio" (gym), because there is no level in our educational system with that name, and what really refers is the ESO (Obligatory Secondary Education) or the Bachiller (High school) (no equivalent 100%).

As you can see, in translation you have to take into account the cultural implication of some words. Maybe in this case, a novel, the mistake goes unnoticed, because it is simply a comment of one of the characters and it doesn't have relevance for the story. However, if this mistake appears in an academic record or in a CV, it will have more importance and other consequences.

Here you have more information if you are interested in knowing a little more of the German education system.

Interpretation (VI): whispered

Hello everybody!

Today I finish the serie of posts dedicated to explain different types of interpretation. Whispered interpretation, or chuchotage, is a simultaneous interpretation, in which the interpreter translates in the interested's ear what the speaker says in the source language. This kind of interpretation it is transmitted to one person or to a little group, because it is not used an additional interpretation system (in comparison with the cabins that are used in simultaneousinterpretation).

Here I show you a picture of an example of how could be a whispered interpretation:

Interpretation (V): consecutive

Good morning!

Consecutive interpretation is an interpretation modality, in which the interpreter listens a speech in the original language and takes notes of what the speaker says. Once the speech have finished, the interpreter translates it to the target language based on his notes.

For this kind of interpretation it is important, not only to understand correctly the original speech, but having a good memory. For reasons of time and speed of the original speech, it is not possible to make notes of everything, but it would be perfect take notes of the main ideas and to remember the minor ones.

In order to take notes it is recommendable to know abbreviations, because we will take less time to note an idea. Even we can invent our own abbreviations. If the speech is about concepts that we can visualise easily, we can use drawings or symbols. However, if the speech is about abstract ideas, it would be advisable to have some symbols previously prepared to remember its meaning. Although if you have time, it will be better to write the word in order to not confuse it later, during the translation.

When I speak about concepts that we can visualise easily, I mean, for example, the environment. Specifically, in the university we have translated speeches about climate change. In the next image, you can see some of my notes.

Some idea of the speech's topic?

Now I show you the meaning of my notes. Obviously there are only main ideas of the speech, that later will be completed with ideas that I don't have written, but I remember.

Every interpreter can use his own notes, because the important thing is that, once the speech have finished, he could understand it to make a correct interpretation. In addition, the notes must be a support, a reminder, and not the opposite. Sometimes we don't understand our own notes (because we have written it quickly or because it is a new concept that we have written fast and then we don't remember it) and that can damage our interpretation. Like other types of interpretation, the consecutive interpretation requires a lot of practice.