Why translating literature is sometimes impossible | Mariam Mansuryan | TEDxYouth@ISPrague

One of the most exciting aspects of living in the 21st Century is the opportunity to experience literature from around the world. But except for the languages we’re fluent in, most of us depend on translations. How easily do literary devices and effects survive translation from one language to another? Are there some aspects of literature that simply can’t be translated at all? Using examples from Armenian, Russian and English, Mariam argues that, sometimes, ideas really can be ‘lost in translation’. This talk began as an applied linguistics project in the winter and spring of 2015, when Mariam presented the results of her research to a panel of academics at Charles University in Prague.
Mariam moved from her native Armenia and joined the International School of Prague's high school in 2015. Already fluent in Armenian and Russian, she quickly developed skills in English. Her curiosity about translation was sparked when she began reading and comparing fiction in several languages.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at ted.com/tedx

[@sonjaivanova3795]

Trying to find tips and inspiration for translating a book... came upon this Ted talk. It was phenomenal. What an intelligent young woman and amazing speaker. As somebody who is also interested in languages and the slight differences between them, I want to be like her “when I grow up”. (Also, hearing her reference Russian throughout the whole video brought a smile to my face :) Спасибо!)

[@lauran8968]

This is so true. I was making a translation of a book about a teenage hermaphrodite into Spanish. Most difficult thing ever.

[@Valerie-bx7nj]

Hi! Could you tell me which book is it please?

[@paulheinrichdietrich9518]

@-- Puedes hacerte con los conocimientos adecuados si te enteras de los contenidos de la carrera. Consulta con un traductor profesional para ello. Mi recomendación es que estudies gramática (de las lenguas que quieres traducir), lingüística, fonètica (si quieres ser interprete), y que además te especialices en algún campo de estudio que sea relevante a las industrias que existen en tu país para lo cual debes informarte acerca del mercado laboral. Centrate en disciplinas que sean muy requeridas, ej: medicina, bioquímica, farmacia, economía. Si te informas bien y te autodisciplinas es probable que logres ser un mejor traductor que los que se han graduado de universidades privadas.

[@EriniusT]

@@Valerie-bx7nj commenting here bc i want to know too

[@jesuisravi]

@@Valerie-bx7nj he's trying to be funny with this comment

[@constanzaarroyo4717]

This was such a good Ted Talk and deserves way more hype!

[@whiteninjaplus5]

Nah

[@YeezusTello]

Ted x* they let anyone say anything 😂😂

[@mzhao7650]

Yes!! When I read Harry Potter in Chinese, a lot of the puns had to be translated in a footnote, and it really takes away from being immersed in the story, like Voldemort's real name and McGonagall's "let your hair down"

[@wesleycampos5748]

very interesting, right now I am writing about translation, I came to this video because it said "impossible".... well certainly not impossible, however very complex

[@Aaty_]

Translating literature is very hard task because the language of literature is full of rhetorical segments and lexical items that belongs to the SL and make it distiguished, while the TL doesn't have the same equivelences so, the translator must be well knowledgable about the two cultures and must read much about the original writer so that he can know about his way of thinking and writing

[@sg6388]

I loved it !!! Mariam is extremely intelligent and cognitive. I could have watched ten more minute of her speech. It is interesting to notice that Persian, neighbor language to Armenia so to speak, doesn’t have the same protocole at all. Their is no grammatical gender, rather the very large use of formal and informal(what we read often differs from what is written). For info ;)

[@vanmalakian]

Being a translator myself, I’ve always been “against” the idea. I don’t like read books that are translated from foreign languages. We need to understand the books, feel the events as the authors themselves in their exact mother language. I sometimes try very hard to give the exact feelings, but there are some cases that it’s nearly impossible. As, for example, trying to translate Camus or Balzac from French into Russian or Armenian. It’s possible technically but impossible in many ways 😇 Sometimes there are expressions I consider as a “literal sin” to try to “change” them

[@Daud438]

I am read neville goddard in Hungarian and i feel many times i dont read the Power of awarenes book because i feel translationing make a full a different book!

[@SpeakWritePlayinEnglish]

This is so true. Translating literature is tricky. Sometimes we may not have issues and sometimes we will need some advice.

[@lauracat29]

Traducir un libro es muy difícil, pero me encantó hacerlo. Espero poder traducir algún otro :D

[@Arif4181]

Greatest show on earth.

[@justahumanbeing18]

Thank you!

[@maragirl5958]

this talk was really interesting.

[@CupcakeGalLurvRupert]

Wow, I loved this! That made me think about language in a way I knew but differently... explain that aha! Will be discussing this at uni when I reach my translating term :) Thank you! Very insightful, it's so difficult to translate some things especially when other languages have verb endings with a gender, not everything can be neutral for some.

[@lucasmatheus0001]

She is that beautiful!

[@ramyarmuhammed-7352]

Thats why we study translation in college, to solve these problems that you are talking about. There is nothing that can't be translated! You can translate everything. The thing is, how do u translate, how much you are capable of translating this or that book, how much do you know about that language and the gaps and the problems of it... if it's true that she is talking about, we could have never heared anything about (Kafka, Dostoevsky, Marry Shelly, Shakespeare, Albert Camus...ect) in Kurdistan (place where i live)... and any other places around the world. I personally against translating poem, but not novels and stories. PS: I am a student of the college of translation.

[@brigittebarroso2116]

I speak both Spanish and English, I will read how to kill a mockingbird in English, for sure. Then, I will read it in Spanish, to compare the impressions. Thank you for the info.

[@lusinesimonyan4645]

enqan em mtatsel es ameni masin :D shat xarn a.. shat lav speech er )

[@machiavelZongo]

SHE IS RIGHT, we can't translate a word in english to french and have the same meaning it is just impossible to do that.

[@ДиляраХалиулина]

Well done!

[@rexpress3661]

Loved it.

[@sobanya_228]

Actually you can say just blue in Russian. It is not entirely correct, but somewhat acceptable to say siniy instead of goluboy. So yes, they are both siniy (blue).

[@sobanya_228]

​@Mariam Mansuryan I know linguists like that example. I'm just saying that saying goluboy is more optional, than for example pink in English.

[@scoobedobedoo]

Wait Your right or my right?

[@fernandoparentejr6655]

There are strategies which one may use in order to keep the uncertainty about the gender of a character. For example, during the text, adjectives which may convey gender-related information could be used exchangebly, as beautiful and handsome... And I've seen even an interchageable use of pronouns he and she for the same character... I was a bit confused at the begining but then I realized it was on purpose in order to keep the character's gender as a misterious feature.

[@animalsandbabieschannel]

thank you

[@lucineidematias290]

That’s great

[@LearnWithHaJarhgs]

Good presentation

[@vinaybhogle395]

Languages are different for a reason.

[@orange_lime]

I've read 'To Kill a Mockingbird' in English and until chapter 8 or 9 I was almost 100% sure Scout was a boy 😅

[@bib3kpandey]

Why is that?

[@ROMaster2]

The colors are Navy Blue and Cyan/Turquoise. The rest of the video just argues English is a more flexible language. You can do the gendered objects in English with some tactful rewriting and, at worst, modifying the premise a bit. (i.e. the child was convinced everything has a gender)

[@sunflower_2013_7]

I wanna become a literary translator...

[@sg6388]

Same

[@areejrababah4792]

You can do it 💪✨

[@ukyoize]

keikaku means plan

[@ramseyal-mansouri4443]

Grammatical gender in Arabic is so common too.

[@nightsky212]

and then there is my prof at uni who wants us to read a lit piece in English and make a summary in our mother tongue so even though the original is in English, there are many parts that are untranslatable especially for a person who has never done that

[@TheJaniceAdams]

On page 5 Jem refers to Scout as "she", so we know Scout is a girl from page 5.

[@OMAR-vq3yb]

Something is always lost in translation.

[@kyanqschgashraparak]

Any Armenian poets who are trying to translate literature?

[@skepticaltomboy]

@D & D I'm working on translating a book from Spanish to English. It's pretty tough. I agree

[@tubafizzlecrisis]

A year late, but I'm one.

[@TheRealJanKafka]

What do Armenian wrestlers yell when they give up the fight? Paternal or maternal uncle?

[@lyubov_zubritzkaya]

Just change gender for word to show that he's weird. She instead of he. Poor translators.

[@Smithpolly]

It still doesn't give the same message. In English, owners of boats or cars often refer to them as "She" rather than "It" as if the boat or car has a personality. If he has lived all his life in that room , every object in it is important to him, seems alive to him. Whether the rug is referred to as He or She in Russian, it doesn't give the reader that information which is given to an English speaker.

[@albertvangestal3696]

Great video.....and let's stop trying to modify gendered language to fit a political agenda.

[@adiblima]

Who is a translator says dark blue in Russian. or like this comment.

[@vibhavarikulkarni1516]

Good presentation