Charles and Riggs readings

In Terry's reading, he touches on some common problems that come up when translating Japanese and how to go about solving them. One quote that stuck out to me was the one about how a live dog si better than a dead lion. To me, I felt that this quote meant it's better to have something that makes sense rather than a more loyal, larger mess. Some comments I found particularly helpful were omitting certain phrases and in doing so, understanding the sentence is easier.

Another point that he mentioned about Japanese writing is how often writers avoid being definite, and the topic and details surrounding a topic are often omitted. What I gathered is that often getting the gist of what is being talked about is enough, rather than understanding everything as you read. On top of that, often things are addressed later or at the end of works, so there is some waiting involved. This is contrasts English writing that favors conciseness. In translating, part of the struggle is making the English translation palatable to a Western reader. This means that removing some of the rhetorical and repetitive aspects of Japanese writing is necessary. He sates that remaining completely loyal to the original would mean losing readers.

I also liked the argument in Rigg's reading about transmigration versus translation. When translating Japanese, a huge battle is breaking up the original into its base parts and rebuilding into something new. I often feel that in translation, I understand what is being said, but the exact translation wouldn't work, so I am always looking for English equivalents. Riggs states that most of the work comes after translation, where writing, editing and changes are the new priority. 

-Ariel