Thursday, November 27, 2008

A Comparative Analysis of Formal Shifts: A Proposal for Inter- and Intra-lingual Study of Translations and Translational Tendencies

The present article outlines a methodology for comparing and contrasting translations, applied specifically to the translations of the Christian Scriptures. The comparison begins with a vertical display of the words from representative portions of the original text, followed by a horizontal placement of corresponding words or phrases from the translations proposed for study. This procedure allows for the isolation and tabulation of objective, formal shifts in translation—such as additions to, deletions from, and modifications of the original text—thus facilitating a specific analysis of differences or similarities as well as a description of tendencies within specific translations and among historic groupings of translations, opening up the possibility for an objective comparison of translations from different historical periods or even in different languages. While this type of descriptive analysis cannot provide a judgment of "correctness" or even adequacy in translation, it can, nonetheless, objectively isolate historic tendencies in translation through statistically relevant data, which may or may not follow developments within the broader field of linguistics, and even suggest possible strategies for dealing with literary and rhetorical devices both in sacred as well as secular texts.

Abstract for "The Sacred Texts Translation Conference" in Marrakech - Morocco

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Purpose

This blog is designed to facilitate communication about my professional work in the field of translation.

David B. Bell, PhD
Universidad de Alicante