Schleiermacher and Deutscher

    What Schleiermacher talks about when discussing the idea of writer vs. reader is reminiscent of when we talk about making sacrifices in translation. It benefits one but comes at the drawback of another, and if you try to appeal to both, most of the time neither sides are happy in the end. As mentioned in the article, a translator seeks to impart what they have learned about the language and culture onto the reader. Thus, the idea of maintaining a balance in translation is key. Then the question we must ask ourselves is, when should we preserve the original language and when is it better for us to change it?

    It’s also important to realize we can’t completely avoid introducing something that readers might be unfamiliar with; whether it’s a foreign word or custom. In some scenarios, we would lose more from the writing if what we’re trying to localize is an important concept in the original piece. In that case, it’s sometimes better to just ask the reader to do a little research.

    As for Deutscher, the article starts off with an interesting thought, the idea that our mother tongue influences how we think. I agree with that notion, because I have experienced how learning a new language allows people to broaden their horizons of thinking. Learning foreign languages have not only made me realize how differently people speak, but how differently they think. Like the article mentions about the idea of language “allowing” vs. “obliging”, learning a language forces us to think in a certain way. Thus, the way we view the world, the way we interact with other people, are all influenced by the culture we are raised in and the language we speak.

    The article touches upon an interesting point; because of the natural structure of some languages, they force you to include details that other languages omit. An example they use is gendered terms, which is a fascinating concept in itself. I’ve heard of the experiment with the bridge before; it makes a good point of how the language shapes a person’s perspective of an object, even when speakers of different languages are shown the same object.

    I’ve also read on the concept of geographic coordinates in languages before, including the experiment where the person is blindfolded and spun around, so it’s interesting to read about it in class. To people raised with egocentric coordinates, the ability seems almost supernatural. Overall, this article was a really fascinating read and illustrated vividly how languages shape our mind.

Alex