Bug, Insect, or Vermin?

Translation 1: Gregory Samsa woke from uneasy dreams one morning to find himself changed into a giant bug.

This translation of the sentence is very simplistic. This was an interesting stylistic choice because it shows how the translator emphasized getting the meaning of the sentence across rather than retaining the original author's voice. This simplistic nature of the sentence applies to both the syntax and the diction. One stylistic device that I noticed was the oxymoron that is created with the description of a "giant bug." The sentence structure is also very simple which shows the translator's role in changing the text. One important difference between this sentence and the original is the use of the name Gregory rather than Gregor. This shows how the text has been completely changed and almost undermines the translator's credibility.

Translation 2: When Gregor Samsa awoke from troubled dreams one morning he found he had been transformed in his bed into an enormous bug.

The first difference that I noticed between this one and translation 1 was the use of the word "troubled" rather than uneasy. This word adds in the implication that there was something wrong or something to worry about because this word comes with a very negative connotation. Therefore, it puts a bit of fear into the equation. The name is also retained in its original form as Gregor rather than converting it to Gregory. The syntax and structure of the sentence are like the first translation in that they are fairly simple but the addition of the word "when" at the beginning of the sentence makes it seem to flow much better. The word "enormous" seems very drastic and draws attention to the end result of turning into a bug rather than the process.

Translation 3: As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.

This translation seems to be one that took the original and translated it word for word. This is because each word seems to be translated individually rather than based on the context. It also gives the entire sentence a feeling of being a little bit off because the exact German sentence structure is retained despite the fact that German and English sentence structures are generally quite different. This also leads there to be a lack of punctuation that might have eased the awkward structure. One word that stood out to me was the use of "insect." The connotation of this word is a tad more harmful than that of a bug which is seen as more of an annoyance than a threat.

Translation 4: One morning, upon awakening from agitated dreams, Gregor Samsa found himself, in his bed, transformed into a monstrous vermin.

This translation is most different than the other three in its use of syntax and sentence structure. There is an excessive use of punctuation that makes the sentence a little difficult to follow. Furthermore, the clauses are in a completely different order than the original sentence in German. Although changing the sentence structure often allows for a smoother sentence in English, it can also changed the meaning of the sentence. The description of an "enormous vermin" has a very threatening connotation that makes the audience perceive a much more negative aspect of Gregor. This sentence also uses a lot of imagery and descriptive adjectives such as characterizing the bug as "monstrous vermin" and describing the dreams as "agitated."

Original: Als Gregor Samsa eine Morgens aus unruhigen Trämen erwachte, fand er sich in seinem Bett zu einem ungeheuren Ungeziefer verwandelt.

How does the word choice, syntax, punctuation, and imagery shift in each affect meaning? Is one more effective than another? Why? What does this exercise bring up about the difficulty of reading translated texts? How do different translation effect the tone of the sentence?

Word choice, syntax, punctuation, and imagery all affect the meaning of a text even though they seem like they are only small changes. They do this by highlighting and emphasizing certain aspects of the text that the translator deems significant. This is important because it shows how translated texts really do have the inherent bias of the author. An example of this is the difference in the words "giant," "enormous," and "monstrous." The last one has a very clear emphasis on the negative qualities of this transformation, while the first one is merely describing a quality. This shows how the translator of the fourth translation highlighted this point in order to comment on the true nature of humanity, and thus changed the meaning of the novel. This leads me to believe that imagery really has the greatest impact on shifting the meaning of a translated text. The descriptive quality not only changes the audiences perception of characterization and themes, but also changes the mood of the audience as a result.

Translators change the text subtly in this way because they either intentionally want to emphasize something or it is just inherent as a way to describe what they see happening in the book. Word choice is often crucial to imagery so these can often go hand in hand. More descriptive words or words with specific connotations can easily change the meaning of a text. Punctuation and syntax also have a large impact on the meaning of the text but I think that it is a much subtler impact that might not be recognized right away, and as such might not affect the reader as much as imagery and word choice do.

This exercise highlights the inconsistencies between a text and its translation. It shows how the translation can never perfectly capture the little nuances and connotations of a text and because of that, we should be aware of how the text could've been intentionally or unintentionally changed by the translator. The plot is conveyed but the meaning drawn from each translation differs so it can be very difficult to get a grasp of the intentions of the author when reading a translated text. The tone of translated texts is also impacted because little differences between the original and its translation are often what create emotion in the plot or employ an untranslatable connotation of a word. This means that by changing the language, emotion and unintended connotation is lost or added. An example of this is the translation of the title "L'Etranger" which was originally translated as The Outsider. This has a very unique connotation that creates a very negative or ominous tone, yet this might not be the actual connotation of the word in French. This misrepresentation of connotations and emotions shows how the tone of the author is changed through translation.