Languages and Translations (was: Languages in Europe...)

[Joelle Lyons Everett]

Lucy, Artur--

After so many years, I could not be sure that the word used was "rolas."  The
results that we got would make me think that the translator had said
something like "social roles," though the answers were more oriented to family than to
careers.  Anyway, I would not draw any serious conclusions about something in
an unfamiliar language.
Lucy, I do not mind the story being told, but since the incident was many
years ago, I cannot assure you that my memory of it is accurate.

I also, when working in another language with a translator, would not tell
jokes.  I have used poems in groups where there were several languages, and had
someone translate who was bilingual or a well-trained, experienced translator.
 For a poetry reading in Russia, I chose some poems and gave them to the
translator ahead, then in the session I read in English and she read in Russian,
and the Russian poet who co-facilitated this session read in Russian, with a
translator reading in English.  But one woman in the group took one of my books
in order to make her own translation (she said better because it rhymes, which
is standard for Russian poetry). I was not so happy about that.  Artur is
accurate in saying that translating poems brings up a whole set of special
problems!

<<I think that people giving training in a foreign language in a different

country, when that training must be mediated  by a translater, must always

ask very seriously what are the qualifications of the translator in the

subject of the training and not only the "translation qualification" in

other subjects.>>

I was asked once to give a workshop on Creative Problem Solving in a Mexican
company, as part of a conference.  I was supported by simultaneous
translators, a person who took care of administrative details like registration, passing
out materials, bringing supplies and collecting feedback forms, and also an
aide who was a member of the corporate training department, and had studied
Creative Problem Solving himself.  He gave me some coaching in advance, and while
participants were working in small groups, listened to see if there were any
problems in the group, and conferred with me about what action I should take.

This seemed to me like a realistic approach, and they provided this level of
support in all the workshops with English-speaking presenters.

Joelle

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