Texts in Translation

 “So many people consider their work a daily punishment. Whereas I love my work as a translator. Translation is a journey over a sea from one shore to the other. Sometimes I think of myself as a smuggler: I cross the frontier of language with my booty of words, ideas, images, and metaphors.”    -Amara Lakhous

As part of the International Baccalaureate, our courses constantly provide opportunities to assume a perspective that differs from our own. In Language and Literature this opportunity arises in the form of studying one text in translation.  As demonstrated in the above quote by translator Amara Lakhous, the practice of translation is truly an art. A translator is tasked with transforming an entire text while simultaneously remaining true to the author and their style and intentions. However, this can sometimes be quite difficult as a translator always brings their own unique personal style when approaching a text. When Feng Tang published his translation of poems by Rabindranath Tagore he was faced with heavy criticism for some his word choices. Some felt that his translation had disgraced the original poet while Tang himself felt that he was merely suggesting a different reality regarding the poems. However, despite the difficulties posed, translated literature is highly valuable in our world today. Translated literature from Arabic about an Arab city can provide a wider audience with a particular insight that would most likely prove difficult to capture in English. Many stories are often left untold due to the fact they are originally told in only one language. However, by translating literary texts these stories may travel the world and reach a more global audience.