UNIVERSITY OF DAR ES SALAAM

UNIVERSITY OF DAR ES SALAAM

COLLEGE OF HUMANITY (CoHu)

DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND LINGUISTICS

COURSE CODE: LL (331) TRANSLATION METHODS AND PRACTICE

 COURSE INSTRUCTOR:             MR. FARAJA

SPECIAL WORK.

PARTICIPANTS:

NAMES	REGISTRATIO NUMBERS	SIGNATURE
HAMAD, BARAKA A	2011-04-06713
MLOWE, BAHATI M	2011-04-02637

QUESTION; Do translation Criticism of any translated work.

Wamitila (2003) defines criticism as a means of evaluating strength or weakness of particular work. Therefore, Translation criticism is the systematic study of evaluation and interpretation of different aspects of translation in a translated works. On doing translation criticism, a translated work can be either one of the following types; a good translation, mistranslation, under translation and over translation.

Likewise, the process is done through one of a particular methods or techniques of translation criticism, which are texts comparison, natural evaluation, text understanding, collocation evaluation and back translation techniques.

In this essay we are going to deal with translation criticism of an article, a work of a translation done by Doctor Ali Mzige, from Public Health and Family Health Consultant at Mbezi Beach Dar es Salaam. The article is translated from English to Swahili, and it deals with   a conversation or dialogue   between Bob and Yunus, discussing on matter of HALAAL and HARAAM in Islamic perspective. In doctor Mzige`s translation we have found many mistakes, including problem of words choice (synonyms), overgeneralization, mistranslation of some of phrases and sentences, omission, and addition as we are going to see here under.

Omission of words, phrases or sentences.  This problem is observed in different places, for example at the heading.  A Source text indicates the date “DEC 11, 2006 AT 9:27PM” but has not been indicated in a target text. Also the translator has left some of words found at the heading of source text, for example, the name of person who posted a work.

A source text reads; “POSTED BY ABID ALI HUSSAIN ON DEC 11, 2006 AT 9:27 PM”. But this is not found in a target text.  At the same place, translator seems to omit the names of the participants involving in conversation. The names “BOB AND YUNUS” found in a source text aren’t found in a target text at the introduction of conversation.

 Another problem is addition of the word, phrases or sentences. This is found in different part of a text. For example, before the first paragraph, the target text start with the paragraph reads;

“Marafiki wawili waliulizana maswali, mmoja alikuwa wa dini ya kikiristo na mwingine alikuwa muislamu. Mjadala na maswali yao na majibu yalikuwa kama ifuatavyo”

This paragraph is not found in a source text, but the translator mentioning it in a target text as a part of expressing his feeling from what he is going to translate.

Also, the message after the last paragraph which reads;

“Please forward to others..................it may answer some of their questions especially when the children ask”

But a target text adds some information which is exactly not found in source text, as says:

“Tafadhali wape taarifa hii ndugu na marafiki zako wote, itasaidia kujibu baadhi ya maswali wakati watoto au wanafunzi wakiuliza. Hata kwa watu wote, sio wote wanaojua madhara ya nguruwe katika mwili wa binadamu”

When you take a look in a source text and a target text, you will find that, there are two things different. The translator is exaggerating the meaning, by putting his own feeling. For example the last sentence of the paragraph reads;

“ hata kwa watu wote, sio wote wanaojua madhara ya nguruwe katika mwili wa binadamu”

This phrase is added by translator himself, but not found in a source text.

The same problem is found at paragraph number six and number nine, for example in number six source text reads:

“Yunus: now I think that you will appreciate the special prescribed method of animal slaughter in Islam” 

But the target text reads:

“Yunus: sasa nadhani utakubaliana nami na utaridhika njia iliyokubalika ya kuchinja wanyama inayotumiwa na waislamu, ndiyo iliyo sahihi”.

Here the word “ndiyo iliyo sahihi” is added by the writer himself without considering a   source text.

Another problem is tense problem. This problem is evidenced at the paragraph number eight and nine. For example at paragraph number eight a source text reads:

Yunus: You see the wielder of the knife, whilst taking the name of the Almighty...”

Translation is:

“Yunus:  utaona kuwa Yule mchinjaji anapochukua kisu na kuanza kumchinja mnyama hutamka na kuomba kufanya kitendo cha kuchinja kwa dua inayomtaja Allah (SW)...”

Here the writer of the source text uses simple present tense but the translator has changed to present perfect.

 Another problem is changing of reference. This is happen when a translator fails to realise what a particular pronoun or a certain expression refers to. For example at paragraph number one. The source text reads:

“Bob: tell me why is it that a Muslim is very particular about the word Halaal and Haraam; what do they mean?

Target text reads;    “ ...maneno haya yana maana gani?”

Here translator fails to realise “what do they mean?” refers to. Is it refers to word Halaal and Haraam or refers to Muslims.

Not only has that, but also in this translation a translator seems to escape some sentences without translating them. For example at paragraph number twelve, a translator escapes to translate a verse and leave as it is. The verse reads:

“In Leviticus chapter (11, verse 8) regarding it says “of their flesh (of the swine another name for pig) shall you not eat , and of their carcass you shall not touch; they are un clean to you”

All in all, translation is a hard task, and it is so difficult to find any text which is completely accepted and correct. But there are some ways in which a translator can follows in order to improve and overcome the accoutred problems. The methods includes being faithful to the writer, consulting peoples with translation skill just because translation is not just a matter of knowing a language, but it is a skill.