Műfordítás angolról magyarra 1. / Literary Translation English Hungarian 1. BBNAN05100
Course Leader: Ágnes Somló
Contact: E-mail: somlo.agnes@btk.ppke.hu Tel: 06 30/ 4661983
Course Description
It is an introductory course to translating literature for those students of English who love and would
like to share English language literature with those Hungarians who cannot read English. It also serves
as a kind of synthesis and practical usage of all what you have studied so far.
We will look for ways to solve the various difficulties involved in translating different genres and
styles. During the first part of the term you will have to translate set texts of about 250-500 words for
each session and we will discuss special stylistic problems of a given genre or period or writer (syntax,
word choice, punctuation, etc) as well as the biographical and cultural contexts of genre- and stylespecific texts, since knowledge of this kind is essential and can affect the choices that are made when
rendering a passage into Hungarian. (Set texts are to be downloaded or handed out)
You are also required to do individual translation. During the second part of the term you can choose
the material (about 1000 words) you want to and feel like translating so that you could find your own
‘translator’s voice’ and use your own techniques in translation conceived so far. My aim is to show
you the ways and the excitement of constantly travelling between two cultures and two linguistic
systems. Translation is creative work, a type of performing art in solitude so you will mostly work
alone and then we all discuss the result of your efforts together, which is yet another aim of the course:
we give a chance to translation criticism that is practically non-existent in Hungary. Each session we
take one or two individual translations to discuss and analyse by the help of a student (other than the
translator) who gets a week to study the translation carefully and will give an overall analysis of the
translation pointing out its successful or less successful solutions as well as suggesting possible
changes in the course of examining special problems in a detailed evaluation of the target text.
(The translator(s) discussed must provide the critic and me a printed copy of the original and another
of the translation as well as send it all to our Google group’s mail-list to let the other members of the
group be able to study the texts in advance and thus have their own copies for the sessions.
Course Requirements and Assessment:
Students are required to do the set class translations for discussion weekly and hand in an individual
translation of about 1000 words (65%). (I will also collect set texts after the class and although they
will not be marked yet each missing piece will reduce your final grade.)Due date (see in detailed
syllabus)
All students are to do an oral presentation: giving a critical appreciation of another student’s
individual translation. (25%)
The ability of students to discuss various aspects of the literary passages, and to make suggestions and
comment upon translations will also be assessed. (10%)