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/lit/ - Literature

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21047032 No.21047032 [Reply] [Original]

Why do so many translator re-translate works that already have fine translations?
Is it some sort of perfectionism that makes them unable to accept the old? Pride and the belief they could do better? Cowardice and fear of tackling something new? Some other option I haven’t considered? Financial reasons?
There are plenty of books not translated into English, yet instead of tackling them, translators just release new versions of the Bible, Homer, and Dante every few years. The Bible especially, regardless of your religious beliefs, we have a glut of modern English translations and no reason for any new ones at this point.

>> No.21047038

>>21047032
They didn't get Ulysses right in spanish until the third version.

>> No.21047041

>>21047032
>Pride and the belief they could do better
This.

>> No.21047052

>>21047038
imagining someone reading ulysses in anything but english has just made me understand why people learn languages to read instead of just buying a translation

>> No.21047118
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21047118

>>21047038
I get that, but that’s the third version. You’re telling me none of these Bibles got it right? And also that no older Bible got it right? There needs to be a NEW translation that’ll get it done?

>> No.21047123
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21047123

>>21047118
Part 2

>> No.21047145

>>21047032
Simple economics. Publishers want to sell more books. A new translation let’s you sell more books. Many of these old texts are basically free without copyright valid anymore and all you need to sell it is a translation.

>> No.21047267

>>21047032
Purely financial. Translators got to make a living, you know?

>> No.21047295

>>21047032
stupid frogposter

>> No.21047296

>>21047145
doesn't make sense, unless the market is entirely people who collect Iliad translation like pokemon
for financial reasons publishers will reprint censored hackjob from 1898 that is more of a loose adaptation with changed ending than translation because it's royalty free and hiring a new translator costs money

>> No.21047310

>>21047032
>There are plenty of books not translated into English
Which ones? All the ones people care about have already been translated.

>> No.21047343

>>21047032
They didn't get Ulysses right in spanish until the third version.

>> No.21047362

>>21047032
>Pride and the belief they could do better?
If you're Seamus Heaney, examining the extant translations of Beowulf, would you not feel like stunting on these hos?

>> No.21047376

>>21047310
There was a project to translate the Ethiopian Bible into English, including books and textual variants only in the Amharic or Ge’ez versions. As far as I can tell, it’s been abandoned since 2017. But projects to translate the Hebrew/Greek text are still going strong, despite the fact we already have a million translations of such

>> No.21047532

Rather translate a good book than something forgettable.

>> No.21047769

i don't know why, but i'm happy they do it