Like-Blog
Presenting you the most interesting translation solutions
Why Like-Blog? Now, first of all, this blog is a blog that you should like (and read regularly) – at least, if you are interested in translation. Then, the topic discussed here is one in which the meaningful likeness between a text and its translation in the language pair English-German plays a key role. On this page, I will take a close look at some interesting translation solutions that I have come across in the course of my work as a translator and translation scholar.
A translation solution is only as good as the arguments that support it. This means that any translation criticism, whether positive or negative, needs to be justified. The quality of a translation solution shows only when we compare it to other possible translation solutions in a given translation situation. Therefore, a translation critic should not only say why a translation solution is bad, but also demonstrate what a better solution might look like. I will try to stick to these principles of translation criticism. So if you have any questions regarding my line of argument or if you disagree, please, let me know your opinion by phone at +49 4171 6086525 or by e-mail to bittner@businessenglish-hamburg.de. So much for the introduction. I hope you’ll enjoy reading this blog!
Team sport (May 2021)
As in the previous month, I am presenting you with a translation example from the article “How to Cut Health-Care Costs: Less Care, More Data” by Michael Grunwald, published by Time.com on 23 June 2009. Mayo Clinic focuses on integrated and coordinated care, with everybody involved working closely together: “‘It’s a team sport here,’ says David Lewallen, a Mayo orthopedic surgeon. ‘A bunch of tennis players doing their own thing just doesn’t work – it’s too expensive, and it’s bad medicine. [...].’”
The German translation strikes me as very idiomatic: “„Das hier ist ein Mannschaftssport“, sagt David Lewallen, orthopädischer Chirurg in einer Mayo-Klinik. „Wenn in einer Gruppe von Tennisspielern einfach jeder sein eigenes Ding durchzieht, dann funktioniert das nicht – das kostet zu viel Geld und es ist schlechte Medizin. [...].“” Where is the error?
Here, the problem is that the tennis-player metaphor does’t work. The reason is the reference to the previous statement suggested by the subordinate clause (“Wenn in einer Gruppe von Tennisspielern [...]”): the tennis players serve as an example of the aforementioned team sport, whereas in reality (as represented in the English version) they are individual athletes. In other words, tennis players do their own thing, team players don’t.
A little word can help here already: “Wenn wie in einer Gruppe von Tennisspielern einfach jeder sein eigenes Ding durchzieht, [...].”