[B-Greek] Essays on translation
Curtis Hinson
curtis at curtishinson.com
Mon Nov 7 17:10:06 EST 2005
Presumably, that's why we have the whole range of translation types out
there, from the so-called "literal" to the dynamic. You can take your
pick, especially if you're an English speaker. Those options are good
for different ends since none suits all ends. They're only tools, and
no one tool is good for all purposes, or even for all time. Every few
years you replace your tools as they wear out and don't do their job as
well as they used to.
In any case though, I think someone on here inferred that this
discussion could get carried away from the usual business of the list.
Carl pointed out in so many words that rather than obsessing about how
to translate this or that, our primary purpose should always be to READ
the Greek text and leave it for what it is in all it's levels.
There is a little epistle I find personally repugnant in many ways that
comes to mind.
Χριστιανοὶ γὰρ οὔτε γῇ οὔτε φωνῇ οὔτε ἔθεσι διακεκριμένοι τῶν λοιπῶν
εἰσιν ἀνθρώπων. Οὔτε γάρ που πόλεις ἰδίας κατοικοῦσιν οὔτε διαλέκτῳ τινὶ
παρηλλαγμένῃ χρῶνται οὔτε βίον παράσημον ἀσκοῦσιν.
XRISTIANOI GAR OUTE GH OUTE FONH OUTE ESQESI DIAKEKRIMENOI TWN LOIPWN
EISIN ANQRWPWN...OUTE DIALEKTW TINI...
-- The Epistle to Diognetus 5.1,2
On the whole, I think I disagree with the writer: although we have our
own languages, for those of us to whom the NT and LXX is our tradition,
the language by implication is the language of our people.
Bless the Name
Curtis Hinson
James Ernest wrote the following on 11/7/2005 3:19 PM:
>As I recall, Everett Fox refers extensively to Buber and Rosenzweig in
>his introduction to his own translation of the Pentateuch (The
>Schocken Bible, vol. 1, The Five Books of Moses). Refreshingly retro
>in an era of rampant dynamic vulgarization-reduction, pardon me, I
>mean dynamic equivalence. ;-) Fox and Buber-Rosenzweig seem to pose
>the question: if in translation something always must be lost, why
>should the one thing always preserved be the current popular idiom of
>the receptor language?
>
>James Ernest
>jernest at BakerAcademic.com
>
>
>
>On 11/7/05, Carl W. Conrad <cwconrad at ioa.com> wrote:
>
>
>>Although I've never read it (I'd like to), I've heard that one of the
>>best essays on Biblical translation was that of Martin Buber and
>>Franz Rosenzweig, _DieSchrift und ihre Verdeutschung_ -- this was an
>>introduction to their translation of the Tanach into German. There's
>>an OP English version of this entitled _Scripture and Translation_.
>>
>>On Nov 7, 2005, at 9:53 AM, Jim West wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>>>Since we are discussing essay about translation- the best is of course
>>>Martin Luther's - which was rightly mentioned on this very list
>>>back in
>>>1999-
>>>
>>>http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/b-greek/1999-October/007639.html
>>>
>>>Jim
>>>
>>>
>>>Eric Weiss wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>>The essay is correctly entitled: "Are Translators Traitors? Some
>>>>Personal Reflections" and it can be read here:
>>>>
>>>>http://www.zondervan.com/media/pdfs/0310246857.pdf
>>>>
>>>>Eric Weiss <papaweiss1 at yahoo.com> wrote: And then you have Moises
>>>>Silva's essay in THE CHALLENGE OF
>>>>BIBLE TRANSLATION where he describes the agony he went through
>>>>trying to convey in
>>>>English something straightforwardly written in his native Spanish.
>>>>Why the agony? Because he
>>>>was aware of all the nuances in the Spanish original that were
>>>>lost with every English phrase
>>>>he attempted. "The Translator as Traitor?" I believe he entitled
>>>>his essay.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>--
>>>D. Jim West
>>>
>>>Biblical Studies Resources - http://web.infoave.net/~jwest
>>>Biblical Theology Weblog - http://biblical-studies.blogspot.com
>>>---
>>>B-Greek home page: http://metalab.unc.edu/bgreek
>>>B-Greek mailing list
>>>B-Greek at lists.ibiblio.org
>>>http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/b-greek
>>>
>>>
>>Carl W. Conrad
>>Department of Classics, Washington University (Emeritus)
>>1989 Grindstaff Road/Burnsville, NC 28714/(828) 675-4243
>>cwconrad2 at mac.com
>>WWW: http://www.ioa.com/~cwconrad/
>>
>>---
>>B-Greek home page: http://metalab.unc.edu/bgreek
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>>
>>
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