Challenges in Literary Translation that Machine can’t deal with

The profession of a translator appears exciting to the non-translators and the aspirants who look forward to building a career as a successful language translator. The vision of sitting in a comfy chair and working on an interesting project is something that interests almost everybody. But, the reality is entirely different. Ask any language translator working either in languages translation agencies or offering language translation services in Delhi and know challenging translation can be. Translation of legal documents, web content, articles, and blogs are demanding. But amongst all, it’s the literary translation of the creative works such as fiction or non-fiction or the biographies that consume not only the time of the translator but also his energy. In languages translation agencies, the ultimate purpose of the translators is communicating the beauty of the source work or text.

The process of translation is complex and creative in itself and it is incumbent for the language translators to ensure that the same beauty is reflected in the text. The best languages translator resists the temptation of improving the original text. The quality and beauty of the text is always subjective and depends on one’s individual and unique perception. Therefore, the first challenge that every language translator in Delhi face is preserving the meaning, rhythm, beauty, and aesthetics of the source text, which machine translation very often fails to do. In order to keep the real essence of the source text intact, creativity becomes an important element which technology lacks.

The second challenge that machine translation is unable to deal with is using a language fit for different cultures. Language that makes the readers from the unique and diverse social environment can perceive the original beauty of the work even from the translated version of the original text. A text is inseparable from cultural background and differences because it influences the readers’ reaction towards the literary work. The right choice of words and smart use of effective techniques are required in the creative process of translation to communicate the intended emotions of the author. Though machine translation supported by Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) is getting smart and intelligent, it still cannot tailor the translated for the specific target audience. As the job of a best languages translator is to make the text equally appealing like the original work to a completely different audience, people should rely on well-qualified and experienced languages translator or the professional languages translation agencies.