Perspectives Studies in Translatology ISSN: 0907-676X (Print) 1747-6623 (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rmps20 Understanding translation Anna Kuznik To cite this article: Anna Kuznik (2013) Understanding translation, Perspectives, 21:4, 611-613, DOI: 10.1080/0907676X.2013.779131 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/0907676X.2013.779131 Published online: 21 Mar 2013. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 1280 View related articles Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=rmps20 Perspectives: Studies in Translatology, 2013 Vol. 21, No. 4, 611613, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0907676X.2013.779131 BOOK REVIEW Understanding translation, by Anne Schjoldager, Henrik Gottlieb and Ida Klitgård, Aarhus, Academica, 2008 (2nd print run 2010), 312 pp., 425.00 DKK (paperback), ISBN 978-87-7675-510-2 The almost 300 pages of Understanding Translation deal with the main issues related to translation practice and Translation Studies as an academic field. Two-thirds of these pages (mostly by Schjoldager but also by Gottlieb) present a general theoretical framework with the aim of situating the discipline within the Humanities and providing essential concepts for the analysis and description of translation phenomena. The final part of the book gives highly relevant insights into three different types of translation, namely interpreting (by Schjoldager), screen translation (by Gottlieb), and literary translation (by Klitgård). Evidently, the implicit comparison between these three types of translation highlights the specificity of each mode. Based on course material developed by Schjoldager since 2002 at the Aarhus School of Business and the University of Aarhus, Understanding Translation was designed as a textbook for courses on translation theory and practice. It is beyond all doubt that this objective has been completely fulfilled. The whole content is very comprehensive. Nothing seems to be missing or to be superfluous. In other words, Schjoldager, Gottlieb, and Klitgård’s work presents a very harmonious combination of a theoretical background and practical information. It is worth mentioning that the distribution of the chapters is also quite appropriate. The following are its chief assets. Firstly, Understanding Translation is coherent and clearly structured. The presented material is supported by numerous albeit not tedious references to definitions of concepts and bibliographical data. Maintaining their individual position and style, the three authors propose examples and points for discussion within a standardised framework. They not only put forward questions but also show how to deal with them and give answers. Thanks to this feature the book is not only extremely useful for teachers but can also be easily used as a self-learning tool. Another advantage is its very clear language. Examples in Danish are translated into English in square brackets in the footnotes. The whole edition is well designed and nicely presented. There are plenty of helpful figures and summarising tables. Secondly, Understanding Translation is judicious and well thought out. Concepts are presented, defined, classified, and/or put in diachronic or synchronic relations, before being illustrated with examples (deductive strategy). Scholarly opinions are suggested, explained, and illustrated. Well-known dichotomies, models, and classical points of view are presented in a highly accessible form. Another very important aspect is the three authors’ subjective and creative transformation of existing concepts and ideas elaborated hitherto by Translation Studies scholars. Importantly, in each case the three authors clearly distinguish between their own ideas and those of others. 612 Book review Thirdly, Understanding Translation is practical and useful. It presents an abundance of real-life examples which are all contextualised and discussed (inductive strategy). The authors built their teaching methodology on a case study, a very frequent procedure in the Social Sciences. Thanks to these examples readers deal with a simulation of an authentic professional world. Since the concepts, taxonomies, and ideas used are very close to the reality of the translator’s job, the whole content seems much more convincing. The richness of communicative situations and a variety of adequately chosen texts are combined with a very correct management of confidential data and with a respect for the sources of the texts and situations included. In other words it presents a highly practical approach to the Translation Studies issues that it discusses, which is hardly surprising when one remembers that it was conceived in the heart of the Department of Language and Business Communication of the Aarhus School of Business, University of Aarhus, Denmark, as well as in the country that invented the famous Lego bricks. Fourthly, Understanding Translation is engaging and thought-provoking. Schjoldager defends translation theory against those who claim that it is not useful for the practice of translation. She shows which parts of translation theory, in which situations, and why these are helpful in translation practice (Chapters 1 and 9). The author presents the history of Translation Studies in eight stages, ending up with the current situation (Chapter 8), and proposes a very adequate choice of basic literature in the field. The book also includes a highly interesting classification of translation types proposed by Gottlieb (Chapter 4). His ‘Multidimensional translation’ explores the semiotic nature of translation and is based on an open and broad vision of translation, which is not restricted to its written form. The author elaborates a comprehensive typology of translation, supported by examples and using the following distinctions: intersemiotic vs. intrasemiotic translation; isosemiotic vs. diasemiotic, supersemiotic, and hyposemiotic translation; conventionalized vs. adaptational translation; and verbal vs. non-verbal translation. As Gottlieb states, this typology ‘provides conceptual tools for dealing systematically with any type of translation encountered in today’s media landscape’ (p. 40). Furthermore, the book gives a fresh view of the current and future communicative needs of highly developed societies. The authors deal with the existing and emerging forms of interpreting (Chapter 10 by Schjoldager) and screen translation (Chapter 11 by Gottlieb). In addition, the afore-mentioned typology by Gottlieb (Chapter 4) is applicable to the ‘ever-increasing communicational output from cellphone text messages to live multi-media presentations’ (p. 39). The Danish publication stresses the professional nature of translation activity (Chapter 7 by Schjoldager), focusing chiefly on the importance and different types of professional ethics and norms. Certainly many would agree with Schjoldager’s opinion that the definition of what we call ‘the translation profession’ should be very wide: ‘Professional translators mainly translate but also carry out other language-related professional assignments’ (p. 114). Finally, Klitgård offers a very profound understanding of literature and literary translation. In Chapter 12 she reminds her readers that the very essence of literature is ‘to tell an imaginative ‘‘story’’ [. . .] which actually, deep down, tells a different story by way of some kind of similarity’ (p. 249). Consequently, the literary translator’s main mission is to ‘operate on both levels: making sure the target surface story matches the source surface story [. . .] as well as simultaneously telling a more profound story whose purpose is to touch or move the reader in one way or another’ (pp. 249250). Perspectives: Studies in Translatology 613 To summarise, Understanding Translation reveals its three authors’ long-term passion for and authentic interest in the broadly understood translation and communication practice, a passion and interest that, it must be said, are quite contagious to the readers. Anna Kuznik Institute of Romance Philology University of Wroclaw Poland Email: Anna.Kuznik@uni.wroc.pl # 2013, Anna Kuznik
