Openness, Closure, and Transformation in Proverb Translation
Proverbs are characteristically open to multiple interpretations. This is problematic for the translator: (how) should she convey this “openness” in translation? This article confronts the problem by zooming out to see translation as part of a larger “proverb process.” This process involves interpre...
Main Author: | |
---|---|
Format: | Electronic Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
Journals Online & Print: | |
Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
Published: |
2020
|
In: |
The Bible translator
Year: 2020, Volume: 71, Issue: 1, Pages: 79-100 |
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Bible. Sprichwörter 10-29
/ Translation
/ Proverb research
|
IxTheo Classification: | HB Old Testament |
Further subjects: | B
paremiology
B blend theory B Translation B Proverbs 10–29 B Proverbs |
Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) |
Summary: | Proverbs are characteristically open to multiple interpretations. This is problematic for the translator: (how) should she convey this “openness” in translation? This article confronts the problem by zooming out to see translation as part of a larger “proverb process.” This process involves interpreting, applying, transmitting, and translating the proverb. Focusing on Prov 10-29, I trace a single saying (Prov 18.4) through these stages. I show how, at each stage, “openness” is important. But so too are the dynamics of “closure” and “transformation,” for they give the proverb applicability and power. As such, the translator who closes down and transforms meanings (while arguably lacking faithfulness to the linguistic nuances of the Hebrew) may be showing great faithfulness to the nature, genre, and function of the proverb. |
---|---|
ISSN: | 2051-6789 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: The Bible translator
|
Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1177/2051677019889651 |