Challenges of Translation. Literature & Language Essay

Challenges of Translation
Translation is an essential practice that brings people from different cultures and linguistics closer together enabling them to view the world more harmoniously as different communities understand and appreciate. However, despite its value and necessity translation has its limitations. According to Mona Baker, the biggest challenge of translation is that “Languages are never sufficiently similar to express the same realities” (Baker, 1992, p8). Languages vary at all levels from simple words and expressions, a combination of words and phrases, grammar, textual level to cultural context. This paper looks into the challenges of translation in by highlighting the differences in languages at the word level, phrases, text level, cohesion and grammatical and lexical relationships, and cultural context.
Languages are not equivalent at the word level. Languages are not a set of standard concepts that can be translated from one language to another. A name in one language cannot replace a name for a concept another language making the task of translation or learning a new language a more complex task that it would be if such replacement were possible (Culler, 1976, p21-2). Concepts in one language may differ significantly from those of another. Languages are unique in the way they articulate and organize words. There no existing categories for languages but they articulate their own. A word of a language often interests of the people who speak it rather than the reality (Palmer, 1976, p21). Lack of equivalence poses problems during translation, for example, when the target language lacks a word with the same meaning as the word in the source language. A word of warning is one of the common types of non-equivalence. A wide range of factors determines the choice of an appropriate equivalent word which may be purely linguistic or extra-linguistic. As such there are no guidelines for dealing with the different forms of non-equivalence which exist in different languages. The linguistic systems and the way in which both the writer of the source text and the translator text interact with the linguistic systems will always determine the choice of a suitable equivalent (Baker, 1992, p17).
Equivalence goes above word level. Words rarely occur in isolation but nearly always occur in the company of others. However, the string of words is not random in any language, but restrictions exist on the possible combinations to express meaning. Rules are restrictions which admit no exceptions specifically applying to classes of words as opposed to individual words. An example of the rules in English is that a determinant cannot come after a noun. Restrictions usually allow exceptions which usually apply to individual words instead of classes of words. Such restrictions are identified as recurrent patterns of language as they cannot be expressed regarding rules. An example is lexical patterning. Differences in lexical patterning of the source and target languages create difficulties encountered by translators. Collocation and idioms and fixed expressions are two main categories of lexical patterning. Collocation refers to restrictions which contradict the propositional meaning of a word and in some way is the tendency of spe...