Honors Thesis Main Menu

Descriptions

33581
Descriptions are the heart of any text. They are what allows the author to create the virtual world of the text and which allow the reader to completely immerse himself into that environment and imagine it for himself. Descriptions are often times wordy making them a bit of a problem to translate. They aren't only very wordy, specific and sprinkled with cultural references and they also embody the debate between choosing meaning over form or form over meaning. Translations are in fact so essential as they help immerse the reader into the world of the book, understanding the characters and the society in which the action is happening. This informs the actions taken by the main character throughout the novel, as well as his reactions and opinions and descriptions even allow the author to pass certain remarks on his own life and environment. This is the reason why descriptions are crucial and why they are so hard to translate. The translator must often times try to strike a balance between mimicking the dream world and societal commentary by the author whilst still attempting to stay true to the written word and rhythm of the original. 

Descriptions are more important than ever in Balzac, Wilde and Hofmannsthal as the entirety of the novel and meaning hinges on them. These three stories are mainly descriptions and a good part of the meaning, societal commentary and plot line only come through because of the descriptions. In fact, one of the key elements of the uncanny is the description of the magical object and the description of the main character's feelings as he embarks on his downward spiral towards eminent death. Another key element encompassed in the descriptions is the authors' commentary related to the claustrophobia of the époque which is often shown through a lengthy and detailed, stuffy and overwhelming description of the bourgeois interior.  

A good translation must be able to not only recreate the literary world as the original as well as elicit  the same emotions in the reader but it should also be able to evoke similar references and cultural background whilst staying true to the rhythm of the text and the written word.

 

This page has paths:

  1. Translation Sandrine Servant

Contents of this path:

  1. Descriptions in Peau de Chagrin
  2. Descriptions in Tale of the 672nd Night
  3. Descriptions in Dorian Grey

This page has tags:

  1. Translation Sandrine Servant

Contents of this tag:

  1. Descriptions in Tale of the 672nd Night
  2. Descriptions in Peau de Chagrin
  3. Descriptions in Dorian Grey