Translator Quotes

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Quotes About Translator

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In some sense the text and the translator are locked in struggle - 'I attacked that sentence, it resisted me, I attacked another, it eluded me' - a struggle in which, curiously, when the translator wins, the text wins too ... ~ Lydia Davis
Translator quotes by Lydia Davis
No one is charismatic. Someone becomes charismatic in history, socially. The question for me is once again the problem of humility. If the leader discovers that he is becoming charismatic not because of his or her qualities but because mainly he or she is being able to express the expectations of a great mass of people, then he or she is much more of a translator of the aspirations and dreams of the people, instead of being the creator of the dreams. In expressing the dreams, he or she is recreating these dreams. If he or she is humble, I think that the danger of power would diminish. ~ Myles Horton
Translator quotes by Myles Horton
I mean, I don't even like guys with light hair, for one thing! Never mind the fact that he'd knock me into a coma every time he opened his mouth. Oh, and that he's a hateful, violent half-wit. Yeah, that's prime courtship material right there."
It wasn't me. YES!
Wait. Was this that Allister fellow?
I drifted over and sat next to her. She looked at me and offered the com unit. "Bram, tell Pamma that there's no way I would want Michael Allister, ever."
I ran this through my "girl talk" translator and said, "I could eat him, if either of you'd like. Seems like it might be the easiest thing to do. ~ Lia Habel
Translator quotes by Lia Habel
It is almost impossible to translate verbally and well at the same time; for the Latin (a most severe and compendious language) often expresses that in one word which either the barbarity or the narrowness of modern tongues cannot supply in more ... But since every language is so full of its own proprieties that what is beautiful in one is often barbarous, nay, sometimes nonsense, in another, it would be unreasonable to limit a translator to the narrow compass of his author's words; it is enough if he choose out some expression which does not vitiate the sense. ~ John Dryden
Translator quotes by John Dryden
When I was 16 years old, I assembled a 2.3 million electron volt beta particle accelerator. I went to Westinghouse, I got 400 pounds of translator steel, 22 miles of copper wire, and I assembled a 6-kilowatt, 2.3 million electron accelerator in the garage. ~ Michio Kaku
Translator quotes by Michio Kaku
To have the translator be a figure in the book's presentation seems like a big thing, especially for a book that's really popular. ~ Ann Goldstein
Translator quotes by Ann Goldstein
Zembla is a site devoted to the life and works of author, translator, and lepidopterist. ~ Vladimir Nabokov
Translator quotes by Vladimir Nabokov
The existence of another, competing translation is a good thing, in general, and only immediately discouraging to one person - the translator who, after one, two, or three years of more or less careful work, sees another, and perhaps superior, version appear as if overnight. ~ Lydia Davis
Translator quotes by Lydia Davis
If a translation doesn't have obvious writing problems, it may seem quite all right at first glance. We readers, after all, quickly adapt to the style of a translator, stop noticing it, and get caught up in the story. ~ Lydia Davis
Translator quotes by Lydia Davis
The choices that bedevil the writer bedevil the translator ten times over. ~ Margaret Atwood
Translator quotes by Margaret Atwood
refers to linguistic hybridity on the level of text that has no representational function within the narrative. In other words, it has no object: it is neither translational mimesis representing another language nor does it represent the self-translation of a character or an embodied narrator. It is characterized by the absence of a fictional translator. If, ~ Susanne Klinger
Translator quotes by Susanne Klinger
Passion for books is the most important thing in being an editor/translator. Work with love. ~ Listiana Srisanti
Translator quotes by Listiana Srisanti
In addition to pumping the blood of life within our bodies, we may think of the heart as a belief-to-matter translator. It converts the perceptions of our experiences, beliefs, and imagination into the coded language of waves that communicate with the world beyond our bodies. Perhaps this is what philosopher and poet John Mackenzie meant when he stated, "The distinction between what is real and what is imaginary is not one that can be finely maintained ... all existing thing are ... imaginary." ~ Gregg Braden
Translator quotes by Gregg Braden
It is the task of the translator to release in his own language that pure language that is under the spell of another, to liberate the language imprisoned in a work in his re-creation of that work. ~ Walter Benjamin
Translator quotes by Walter Benjamin
To write that essential book, a great writer does not need to invent it but merely to translate it, since it already exists in each one of us. The duty and task of a writer are those of translator. ~ Marcel Proust
Translator quotes by Marcel Proust
The translator ... Peculiar outcast, ghost in the world of literature, recreating in another form something already created, creating and not creating, writing words that are his own and not his own, writing a work not original to him, composing with utmost pains and without recognition of his pains or the fact that the composition really is his own. ~ Lydia Davis
Translator quotes by Lydia Davis
I've learned, from working with translators over the years, that the original novel is, in a way, a translation itself. It is not, of course, translated into another language but it is a translation from the images in the author's mind to that which he is able to put down on paper. Here's a secret. Many novelists, if they are pressed and if they are being honest, will admit that the finished book is a rather rough translation of the book they'd intended to write. It's one of the heartbreaks of writing fiction. You have, for months or years, been walking around with the idea of a novel in your mind, and in your mind it's transcendent, it's brilliantly comic and howlingly tragic, it contains everything you know, and everything you can imagine, about human life on the planet earth. It is vast and mysterious and awe-inspiring. It is a cathedral made of fire. But even if the book in question turns out fairly well, it's never the book that you'd hoped to write. It's smaller than the book you'd hoped to write. It is an object, a collection of sentences, and it does not remotely resemble a cathedral made of fire. It feels, in short, like a rather inept translation of a mythical great work. The translator, then, is simply moving the book another step along the translation continuum. The translator is translating a translation. ~ Michael Cunningham
Translator quotes by Michael Cunningham
We're like two dogs in battle on their own;
They fought all day but neither got the bone,
There came a kite above them, nothing loth,
And while they fought he took it from them both."
From Chaucer's "The Knight's Tale ~ Geoffrey Chaucer
Translator quotes by Geoffrey Chaucer
Overly literal translations, far from being faithful, actually distort meaning by obscuring sense. ~ Ken Liu
Translator quotes by Ken Liu
However, there is one great temptation and that is that you can forget that the aim of the writer was to reject all other worlds and to construct one of his own and that the aim of the translator is to re-embody himself into the world of the various writers. ~ Ventseslav Konstantinov
Translator quotes by Ventseslav Konstantinov
Reading a poem in translation," wrote Bialek, "is like kissing a woman through a veil"; and reading Greek poems, with a mixture of katharevousa and the demotic, is like kissing two women. Translation is a kind of transubstantiation; one poem becomes another. You choose your philosophy of translation just as you choose how to live: the free adaptation that sacrifices detail to meaning, the strict crib that sacrifices meaning to exactitude. The poet moves from life to language, the translator moves from language to life; both like the immigrant, try to identify the invisible, what's between the lines, the mysterious implications. ~ Anne Michaels
Translator quotes by Anne Michaels
Boys! Are they always this impossible? Do they always say cryptic, indecipherable things? (Note
to self: work with Liz to adapt her boy-to-English translator into a more mobile form - like maybe a
watch or necklace.) ~ Ally Carter
Translator quotes by Ally Carter
Yes, ma'am," he said, and folded his hands and stopped where he was, listening, waiting while a very sick woman tried to gather her faculties.
"First off, tell the dowager she's a right damn bastard."
It was no time for a translator to argue. Mitigation, however, was a reasonable tactic. "Aiji-ma, Sabin-aiji has heard our suspicions regarding Tamun and received assurances from me and Gin-aiji that we have not arranged a coup of our own. She addresses you with an untranslatable term sometimes meaning extreme disrepute, sometimes indicating respect for an opponent."
Ilisidi's mouth drew down in wicked satisfaction. "Return the compliment, paidhi."
"Captain, she says you're a right damn bastard, too. ~ C.J. Cherryh
Translator quotes by C.J. Cherryh
Robin Buss is a writer and translator who contributes regularly to The Times Educational Supplement, The Times Literary Supplement and other papers. ~ Alexandre Dumas
Translator quotes by Alexandre Dumas
«"The translator, no matter how true he thinks he's staying to the text, still brings his own life experiences and opinions to the decisions he makes. Maybe not consciously, but every time a choice is made
between one meaning of a word or another, the translator determines which one to use based on what he believes is correct, based on his own personal history with the subject."» ~ Stephanie Perkins
Translator quotes by Stephanie Perkins
I've translated a lot of American literature into Japanese, and I think that what makes a good translator is, above all, a feel for language and also a great affection for the work you're translating. If one of those elements is missing the translation won't be worth much. ~ Haruki Murakami
Translator quotes by Haruki Murakami
The translator, we should know, is a writer too. As a matter of fact, he could be called the ideal writer because all he has to do is write; plot, theme, characters, and all other essentials have already been provided, so he can just sit down and write his ass off. (p. 8) ~ Gregory Rabassa
Translator quotes by Gregory Rabassa
I think the close work I do as a translator pays off in my writing - I'm always searching for multiple ways to say things. ~ Lydia Davis
Translator quotes by Lydia Davis
The translator, a lonely sort of acrobat, becomes confused in a labyrinth of paradox, or climbs a pyramid of dependent clauses and has to invent a way down from it in his own language. ~ Lydia Davis
Translator quotes by Lydia Davis
War is a primarily a game of skill. It is a Contest of mind matched against mind, tactics matched against tactics.
But there is also an element of chance that is more suited to games of cards or dice. A wise tactician studies those games, as well, and learns from them.
The first lesson of card games is that the cards cannot be played in random order. Only when laid down properly can victory be achieved.
In this case, there were but three cards.
The first was played at the encampment. The result was entrance to the Strikefast. The second was played aboard ship. The result was promise of passage to Coruscant, and the assignment of Cadet Vanto as my translator.
The third was a name: Anakin Skywalker. ~ Timothy Zahn, Star Wars: Thrawn
Translator quotes by Timothy Zahn, Star Wars: Thrawn
Translation means that a translator has picked one word above all the others: one winner, with all the finalists gone from the page forever. Translation always calls upon the translator to make a judgement call, and what the reader hears, then, is a judgement ~ Aviya Kushner
Translator quotes by Aviya Kushner
My mom is a translator for the school district in Delaware. She'd hear these different stories from working with families there. Those stories stuck with me. ~ Cristina Henriquez
Translator quotes by Cristina Henriquez
Now it's the age for the translator. It's the age for the bridge builder. It's the age for Velcro. It's the age for Lego. It's the age for combining what we already have into what we need. ~ Van Jones
Translator quotes by Van Jones
These are crystalline - oftentimes incandescent - translations of Juarroz's powerful metaphysical poems where eternity and silence jut up against a world where "writing infects the landscape" and there are "more letters than leaves" - The kind of match one hopes for where both the translator and the poet are in luck; new poems which don't leak and yet old poems in which the original passion shines. ~ Jorie Graham
Translator quotes by Jorie Graham
Junius was one of the most highly regarded Reformed theologians in Europe. Junius was renowned for his labors as an exegete and translator of the New Testament and for a series of major treatises, the most influential of which, De theologia vera (True Theology), is here for the first time translated into English. ~ Franciscus Junius
Translator quotes by Franciscus Junius
Not everyone who knows how to write can be a writer. Not everyone who knows two languages can be a translator. ~ Nataly Kelly
Translator quotes by Nataly Kelly
In a sense Muhammad was less the messenger than the translator, struggling to give human form -- words -- to the ineffable. ~ Lesley Hazleton
Translator quotes by Lesley Hazleton
Whenever I write a paragraph in English, I first check it with the Google Translator, and most often it says no language detected. ~ M.F. Moonzajer
Translator quotes by M.F. Moonzajer
The head is in charge of thinking; the heart is in charge of feeling; and the spirit realizes the creative, infinitely thriving power of life while imagination acts as translator and synthesizer. ~ Deborah Sandella
Translator quotes by Deborah Sandella
Fine," Vanto said. The musculature of his throat relaxes partially, but not fully. "Personally, I'd be a lot more concerned about him, but that's up to you. But I'm still the bottom man on the roster. Why do you even care about me?" "You are my translator. You hold my words in your hand, and their meanings. A misjudged translation will confuse or anger. A deliberate error could lead to death. ~ Timothy Zahn
Translator quotes by Timothy Zahn
So many people consider their work a daily punishment. Whereas I love my work as a translator. Translation is a journey over a sea from one shore to the other. Sometimes I think of myself as a smuggler: I cross the frontier of language with my booty of words, ideas, images, and metaphors. ~ Amara Lakhous
Translator quotes by Amara Lakhous
«"We're talking about the technical aspects of translation again. Do I have to do all the work here? Who can tell me one of the problems translators face?" Rashmi raises her hand. "Well, most words have different meanings." "Good," Professeur Cole says. "More. Elaborate." St. Clair sits next to Rashmi, but he's not listening. He scribbles something fiercely in the margins of his book. "Well," Rashmi says. "It's the translator's job to determine which definition the author means. And not only that, but there could be other meanings in relation to the context."55 "So what you're saying," Professeur Cole says, "is that the translator has a lot of decisions to make. That there are multiple meanings to be found in any word, in any sentence. In any situation." "Exactly," Rashmi says. And then she cuts her eyes at me.» ~ Stephanie Perkins
Translator quotes by Stephanie Perkins
An engineer can look at the data, but he needs a translator from the cockpit - the driver - to understand it completely. For example, only the driver can tell you why he abruptly takes his foot off the gas pedal at a certain point. The data doesn't necessarily tell the engineer whether the driver made a mistake at that point or the car was acting up. The information the driver provides often helps determine the direction of development. ~ Michael Schumacher
Translator quotes by Michael Schumacher
This is my gift to you, this story that is also a song, these words that are a part of Fokir. Such flaws as there are in my rendition of it I do not regret, for perhaps they will prevent me from fading from sight, as a good translator should. For once, I shall be glad if my imperfections render me visible. ~ Amitav Ghosh
Translator quotes by Amitav Ghosh
Though Radu did not like the intense heat of the foundry, he visited as often as he could. And it was a good thing he had come back when he did. Urbana was screaming in Hungarian at several confused workers. Radu jumped in as a translator, though he left out most of what she said. He did not think telling the workers that they were "more useless than the rotting carcasses of a thousand dead dogs" would help morale. ~ Kiersten White
Translator quotes by Kiersten White
The best translators slip into the glove of a text and then turn it inside out into another language, and the whole thing comes out looking like a brand-new glove again. I'm completely in awe of this skill, since I happen to be both bilingual and a writer, but nevertheless a lousy translator. ~ Alma Guillermoprieto
Translator quotes by Alma Guillermoprieto
To me a translator is very, very important. If the fixer is also the translator, so much the better. I have known photographers who didn't speak the language and would work in a place for weeks without one, getting by on common sense and smiles. But how many situations did they miss because they couldn't talk to someone and get the back story on details, small daily life things, etc. ~ Peter Menzel
Translator quotes by Peter Menzel
My lesbian translator must be on the fritz. Is that code for your period? Instead of calling it an Alexandria Tampon how about a bloody Mary?" He snaps his fingers and continues, "This bloody Mary is giving me the cramps or Damn you, bloody Mary for ruining my sex life."
Robert Marshall, Flapper Girls ~ Candace Cloud
Translator quotes by Candace Cloud
I suppose I try to be a translator of sorts, striving to translate emotion and vision into words, to express the life force of animals and landscapes, to give them voice. I pore over the lustrous details of nature and human nature. How different is this from a monk devoting his life to an illuminated manuscript? ~ Diane Ackerman
Translator quotes by Diane Ackerman
I ran this through my "girl talk" translator and said, "I could eat him, if either of you'd like. Seems like it might be the easiest thing to do."
-Bram to Nora & Pamela ~ Lia Habel
Translator quotes by Lia Habel
A poet is the translator of the silent language of nature to the world. ~ Rufus Wilmot Griswold
Translator quotes by Rufus Wilmot Griswold
Intrinsic to the concept of a translator's fidelity to the effect and impact of the original is making the second version of the work as close to the first writer's intention as possible. A good translator's devotion to that goal is unwavering. But what never should be forgotten or overlooked is the obvious fact that what we read in a translation is the translator's writing. The inspiration is the original work, certainly, and thoughtful literary translators approach that work with great deference and respect, but the execution of the book in another language is the task of the translator, and that work should be judged and evaluated on its own terms. Still, most reviewers do not acknowledge the fact of translation except in the most perfunctory way, and a significant majority seem incapable of shedding light on the value of the translation or on how it reflects or illuminates the original. ~ Edith Grossman
Translator quotes by Edith Grossman
The translator constantly learns new things about himself. ~ Ventseslav Konstantinov
Translator quotes by Ventseslav Konstantinov
There is a book to be written, for instance, on small errors in subtitles. In the Fred Astaire musical Royal Wedding, for instance, the English girl he falls for, played by Sarah Churchill (daughter of Sir Winston), is engaged to an American, whom we never see but who's called Hal - like Falstaff's prince, like a good high Englishman. That English H, though, was completely inaudible to the French translator who did the subtitles, and so throughout the film the absent lover is referred to in the subtitles as Al - Al like a stagehand, Al like my grandfather. If you have the habit of print addiction, so that you are listening and reading at the same time, this guy Al keeps forcing his way into the movie. "But what shall I say to Hal - that I have never loved him?" Patricia says to Fred. Down below it says, "Et Al - qu'est-ce que je vais lui dire? ~ Adam Gopnik
Translator quotes by Adam Gopnik
Judge: And what is your occupation in general?
Brodsky: Poet, poet-translator.
Judge: And who recognized you to be a poet? Who put you in the ranks of poet?
Brodsky: No one. And who put me in the ranks of humanity?
Judge: Did you study it? ... How to be a poet? Did you attempt to finish an insitute of higher learning ... where they prepare ... teach
Brodsky: I did not think that it is given to one by education.
Judge: By what then?
Brodsky: I think that it is from God. ~ Joseph Brodsky
Translator quotes by Joseph Brodsky
which had previously provided the translator safe haven. Pretending ~ Thomas Cahill
Translator quotes by Thomas Cahill
I have two friends named Matt. They're both scouts in the cavalry. They both served in the same section of Iraq. They both worked with the same Iraqi translator. And yet, if you talk to them, their stories couldn't be more different, because one was there in 2006. One was there in 2008. ~ Phil Klay
Translator quotes by Phil Klay
What are we playing for? This needs to be worth my while."
"Honour?" Steve suggested. "Let me know if your universal translator got that one. I know it may be a tough concept for your species. ~ David Liss
Translator quotes by David Liss
All nonfiction writers, whether they like it or not, are translators. The translator is the perfect journalist. The best journalism endeavors to convey an essential idea or story to an audience that knows very little about it, and that requires translation. To do this successfully, the writer must filter the idea through the prism of his eye, and his mind, and his writing style. ~ Ilan Stavans
Translator quotes by Ilan Stavans
Thomas Teal, a luminous translator of Jansson's twin talent for surface and depth, simplicity and reverberation in language, and someone who knows exactly how to convey her gift for sensing the meaning embedded in the most mundane act or turn of phrase. ~ Ali Smith
Translator quotes by Ali Smith
Even a poor translator couldn't kill a style that moves with such narrative clarity. ~ William Zinsser
Translator quotes by William Zinsser
She was pretty, possibly not the prettiest woman in the audience, but pretty in a very particular, indefinable way that couldn't be put into words, like a line of poetry whose ultimate meaning, if such a thing exists in a line of poetry, continually escapes the translator. ~ Jose Saramago
Translator quotes by Jose Saramago
Chance of source language influencing the target language and that of the translator intervening onto the style of original writer are major challenges in literary translation. ~ Suman Pokhrel
Translator quotes by Suman Pokhrel
An actor's life is the shadow of a cloud, the echo of a sound, the memory of a dream, nothing come of nothing. The finest actor does not create, he is but a translator of another man's work. ~ Fanny Kemble
Translator quotes by Fanny Kemble
It is only logical for the translator to become a part of the world of the author. ~ Ventseslav Konstantinov
Translator quotes by Ventseslav Konstantinov
The troll rumbled away in the direction of the coal store and his place in front of Billy was taken by a smartly dressed young lady with an air of authority. 'Sir, I think the railway is going to need a translator. I know every language and dialect on the Disc.' Her voice was firm but there was a glint of excitement in her eyes as she looked at Iron Girder and the other engines in the compound and Billy knew she was hooked. He also knew that 'translator' was not on his list of vacancies and sent her off to Sir Harry's office, while he returned to his search for shunters, tappers and other workers. And so the line moved on again. It seemed everybody wanted to be part of the railway. ~ Terry Pratchett
Translator quotes by Terry Pratchett
To read is to translate, for no two persons' experiences are the same. A bad reader is like a bad translator: he interprets literally when he ought to paraphrase and paraphrases when he ought to interpret literally. ~ W. H. Auden
Translator quotes by W. H. Auden
So what you're saying [...] is that the translator has a lot of decisions to make. That there are multiple meanings to be found in any word, in any sentence. In any situation. ~ Stephanie Perkins
Translator quotes by Stephanie Perkins
Alex was a historian by education, a translator of centuries-old scripts by training, and a savant when it came to inane trivia, which she tended to offer up without encouragement and much to the annoyance of everyone around her. Three months ago, Bran, LT, Mason, and the other three guys from their SEAL Team - now the owners of the Deep Six Salvage Company - had hired her to translate the historical documents housed in the Spanish Archives that pertained to the hurricane of 1624. They'd hoped she could give them a leg up on their hunt for the Santa Cristina. ~ Julie Ann Walker
Translator quotes by Julie Ann Walker
These are not my people." The neutrality of the vocalizer makes his words more poignant for their lack of vehemence. "This is my race, but these are not my people." I don't know what to say to that, but he goes on, so I don't need to deal with my inadequacy. "I left here because I did not fit. I traveled, but never did I ... " He pauses, as the translator seeks a word - or perhaps he is thinking. "Belong. In more turns than you can imagine, the closest I have ever come to a home is with you, Sirantha. ~ Ann Aguirre
Translator quotes by Ann Aguirre
ETIENNE DELANCARRE Domingo Salvard," said Sabetha, reading out loud from the lantern-lit plaque beside the building's street entrance. "Master solicitor, bonded law-scribe, authorized notary, executor of wills and estates, Vadran translator and transcriber. Fortunes assured, justice delivered, enemies confounded. Reasonable rates." Locke ~ Scott Lynch
Translator quotes by Scott Lynch
Without translation, I would be limited to the borders of my own country. The translator is my most important ally. He introduces me to the world. ~ Italo Calvino
Translator quotes by Italo Calvino
That Steuben, who needed a translator, what with his English vocabulary consisting almost entirely of swear words, ended up being the perfect hire to upgrade the Continental Army should rattle every search committee, small-business owner, casting director, college admissions officer, headhunter, and voter. ~ Sarah Vowell
Translator quotes by Sarah Vowell
How true,' returned the measured, featureless voice. 'I would chuckle in amused agreement, but the laughter switches of my translator have been malfunctioning for the past six hours. You understand.'

'Certainly,' I said. And somehow felt much more comfortable. ~ Samuel R. Delany
Translator quotes by Samuel R. Delany
As a true translator you will take care not to translate word for word. ~ Horace
Translator quotes by Horace
It was nice to be in my own country, where I didn't need a translator or a driver. Where I didn't need to figure out cultural references or what hijab I needed to wear to cover my hair. ~ Lynsey Addario
Translator quotes by Lynsey Addario
One of my favorite poets, Neruda, writes close to the bone. Though I know only a little Spanish, I like to compare the Spanish and English lines and see how the translator worked. ~ Anita Diament
Translator quotes by Anita Diament
What is more important for the world right now than preserving ways of living in balance with the earth? ~ Daoud Hari
Translator quotes by Daoud Hari
So the poor translator must not just go back and forth between two languages, but if he is worthy of his calling must shift between two selves, with all the perils of this induced schizophrenia. ~ Gregory Rabassa
Translator quotes by Gregory Rabassa
A translator must, of course, be an interpreter of cultures. ~ Philip Zaleski
Translator quotes by Philip Zaleski
I traveled the world ten times over doing something I never thought I'd do in a million years. I found myself in Tokyo, Japan. I (was in) a Dell Computer commercial, the first thing I had ever done, and I fell in love with it. I fell in love with the green screens, I fell in love with (everything). The translator was explaining everything to me. It was a passion like I had never felt before. I came back and it took me five years to really accept that that was okay. ~ Drew Waters
Translator quotes by Drew Waters
My goal is to act as a faithful interpreter, preserving as much of the original's nuances of meaning as possible without embellishment or omission. Yet a translator must also balance fidelity to the source, aptness of expression, and beauty of style. The best translations into English do not, in fact, read as if they were originally written in English. The English words are arranged in such a way that the reader sees a glimpse of another culture's patterns of thinking, hears an echo of another language's rhythms and cadences, and feels a tremor of another people's gestures and movements. ~ Ken Liu
Translator quotes by Ken Liu
An ideal translation should, I believe, reproduce the effect of the original, but I have found that the best any translator can even hope for is to reproduce the effect that the originals have had on him.

(Preface, vi) ~ Harold Gould Henderson
Translator quotes by Harold Gould Henderson
It is natural for a translator to be prejudiced in favour of his adopted work. More impartial readers may not be so much struck with the beauties of this piece as I was. Yet I am not blind to my author's defects. ~ Horace Walpole
Translator quotes by Horace Walpole
Eve talking to someone on her computer and having trouble with the language translator.
... "I have two like crimes. Your data and your input on Leclerk would be very helpful"
Marie pursed her lips and humor danced in her eyes.
"It says you would like to have sex with me. I don't think that is correct"
"Oh, for Christ sake" Eve slammed a fist against the machine ... ~ J.D. Robb
Translator quotes by J.D. Robb
( ... ) the translator of prose is the slave of the author and the translator of poetry is his rival. ~ Andrei Makine
Translator quotes by Andrei Makine
I have always maintained that translation is essentially the closest reading one can possibly give a text. The translator cannot ignore "lesser" words, but must consider every jot and tittle. ~ Gregory Rabassa
Translator quotes by Gregory Rabassa
I think that if you are sticking to the text, essentially, you're not trying to write your own version of it. I mean, of course, it is your own version of it. And every translator would probably have a different version. But I think that that's what keeps the writers from being individual in English. They may be my English, but I don't think that Ferrante sounds like Levi. ~ Ann Goldstein
Translator quotes by Ann Goldstein
As the writer, you can choose the word that seems best in terms of meaning, nuance, sound, etc. As the translator you are unlikely to find a word in your language that exactly matches, so that you are always making a decision about which meaning or nuance to choose, or emphasize, over the others. ~ Ann Goldstein
Translator quotes by Ann Goldstein
Throughout history the community of readers has been prey to sinister forces - to pedants and priests, legislators and lunatics, deities and demagogues. You have paid for your passion in humiliation, mutilation, and sometimes even - as when Henry VIII burned Bible translator William Tyndale as a heretic - immolation. I salute you all, as do my fellow books. ~ James K. Morrow
Translator quotes by James K. Morrow
There is no such thing as a perfect, ideal, or 'correct' translation. A translator is always trying to extend his knowledge and improve his means of expression; he is always pursuing facts and words. ~ Peter Newmark
Translator quotes by Peter Newmark
No matter how great the book is, Its translator will never be famous as the author!Better Write! ~ Me
Translator quotes by Me
A translator is to be like his author; it is not his business to excel him. ~ Samuel Johnson
Translator quotes by Samuel Johnson
(Temeraire:) "Can one hire a translator to say things properly?"
"Yes; they are called lawyers," Tharkay said, and laughed softly to himself. ~ Naomi Novik
Translator quotes by Naomi Novik
When we don't have God's Word in our heart language, a translator says, "It looks like God is coming every Sunday to visit dressed in another culture and language. As soon as He goes away, the rest of the week we have no God. God is a visitor. ~ Patrick Cogdill
Translator quotes by Patrick Cogdill
A translator is essentially a reader and we all read differently, except that a translator's reading remains in unchanging print ~ Gregory Rabassa
Translator quotes by Gregory Rabassa
Translator Dlique was saying, very earnestly, Eggs are so inadequate, don't you think? I mean, they ought to be able to become anything, but instead you always get a chicken. Or a duck. Or whatever they're programmed to be. You never get anything interesting, like regret, or the middle of the night last week. ~ Ann Leckie
Translator quotes by Ann Leckie
It was an epiphany when I realized you don't have to call yourself a linguist, a translator, a poet. You can call yourself an artist and you can do all these things. ~ Jan Peacock
Translator quotes by Jan Peacock
Actually, I'm frequently described as the UK's only translator of Korean literature, but even that isn't accurate - Agnita Tennant is UK-based, Janet Poole is British though lives in Toronto, Brother Anthony was born here though is now a naturalised Korean citizen. There's also Chi-young Kim and Sora Kim-Russell, who are younger and do fiction for commercial houses. ~ Deborah Smith
Translator quotes by Deborah Smith
A satisfactory translation is not always possible, but a good translator is never satisfied with it. It can usually be improved. (Newmark) ~ Peter Newmark
Translator quotes by Peter Newmark
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