Every book we deliver to the publisher is written once and read thrice. All the pain and heated discussions and firmly-put-downfoot finally pays when a flawless translation of equally great book engages the reader and when the reader can relate to the book as if written in her own language.
• Why all the pain and heated discussions?
• Why reading it thrice?
• Why editing is so important for a translated work?
When a good translator translates such a good work, it still has to undergo rigorous editing process. Translation editors play a threefold role.
• To ensure that the translation is loyal to the original content
– not a shade more, not a shade less. – Translator is just telling the original story in a different language. His / her views, interpretation, explanation has no place in translation. The translation must convey exactly the same meaning in the same tone in a different language.
We go to the extent to capture the original writer’s style to the extent possible. It is a kind of parakaya-pravesh – metamorphosis
• To ensure that the spirit of original book is captured
– The translation can be perfect word to word, but the essence should not be lost. What is important is that the message for which the whole book was written. At the end, the same message must reach the reader.
• To ensure that the book has the flavor of the target language
- Each language has its own flavor. The syntax, sequence of clauses, placing of adjectives and adverbs, the typical sentence formation or expressions make the translation a great read – in some cases, better than the original one. The editor sees that the culture, language is typical of the target language.
The addition to the time and cost of translation due to editing is in fact the addition to the value of the translation.
