Sometimes people forget that translation services are more than just a mechanical process for documents. In fact, even with the most technical translations, a great deal of creative thought must go into the work in order to maintain meanings and proper language usage. Literary translation takes this to a whole new level, with some people even regarding translated works as separate pieces all together…
A Brief Intro On Translated Works and Copyrights
The laws and rights surrounding literature and their translations are very straightforward in most countries due to the Berne Convention. The outcome of the convention was that the original creator of a work holds the copyright. Based on this agreement, translations, as they are derivative works, can only be made with express permission from the original author.
When translation rights are granted for foreign literature, they are often done in an oblique manner, as opposed to a simple direct translation. Simple direct translations – grammatically correct word-for-word versions – are found weaker than more adapted translations, which require more creativity and effort from the translator. Each translator has his or her own style and creative outlook when working on a piece, and therefore many avid readers of foreign literature are often taken with a specific translation of their favorite work, or even a particular translator.
“The Vegetarian”
Han Kang, the Korean author of The Vegetarian, chose to honor the translator of her novel in a very special way this year. The Vegetarian was first published in 2007 in Korea, and saw its English release in 2015 in the UK and one year later in the US. In the UK it was promptly awarded the Man Booker International Prize.
But Han Kang did not accept this award alone. Accepting the prize with her was Deborah Smith, the Korean translator responsible for the English translated works. They were named co-authors at the ceremony. Han Kang is a very proficient English speaker and reader, and took a closer look at Smith’s translation herself. According to Smith, Han sees an artistic and creative value in these translations themselves, going so far as telling Smith that the English version of The Vegetarian was “our book”.
Translators rarely receive praise outside their own field. However, one must remember that translators do not just systematically translate one word after the other – they weave new sentence structures and search for the exact words to deliver all the subtle nuances that can be found in the original work. Capturing the essence and meaning of what is said in one language, and translating it to a completely different one, is what defines a good book translation. It also happens to be one of the main reasons why translating is so difficult.
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