Don’t people take any pride in their work?
ADDENDUM (6/3): I realized that when I wrote this I wasn’t completely awake, and ended up sounding even more acid that I intended it to be. I have also noted another problem - actually what pissed me off much more than the translation problems I see around would be the TRANSLITERATION errors, which I feel are rather unacceptable. I think I’m staying off further work till I calm down and get my study of physics done.
I treat the business of translating lyrics very seriously. Every piece of work is always painstakingly edited and read through again and again before I submit or post it. Occasionally (or maybe even most of the time) I turn out dissatisfactory work, but to me, I always have a clear conscience, and any fault with my translations cannot be attributed to any sloppiness, or unwillingness to consult on my part.
And as a result, I’m immensely offended. I do see brilliant translators around (DarkMirage is one of them - only once have I been able to spot any sort of substantial error in his lyrics), but most of the time the people who submit stuff on Animelyrics DON’T KNOW WHAT THE HELL THEY ARE DOING. Once a set of lyrics goes up on Animelyrics, it’s in practice EXTREMELY hard to change it. And many, many times now I’ve come across OLD lyrics that are ABSOLUTELY HORRENDOUS.
In theory I could go into the forum and start a discussion about some line or other, but in the end THE TRANSLATOR WHO SCREWED UP still keeps the credit. I’m not dealing with minor stylistic or grammatical errors or imagery problems here - I’m talking about ridiculous things like SPELLING ERRORS, and lyrics that reek of grade school English. Come on - this is TRANSLATION - I don’t give a damn if the translator’s mother tongue is Gobbledegook - BUT IF YOU CAN’T WRITE ENGLISH PROPERLY MOST OF THE TIME FOR GOODNESS’ SAKE DON’T POLLUTE THE INTERNET WITH TRASH!!! ESPECIALLY on Animelyrics, long regarded as THE defintive source of lyrics translations. If you post on Animelyrics, BE RESPONSIBLE enough to ensure that whatever you post ISN’T UTTER CRAP. For myself, I am pretty sure I didn’t make glaring mistakes that are indisputably mistakes (though I have to admit I think I discovered some stylistic and interpretation problems in some of the stuff I submitted, but those are subject to debate).
I don’t like to rush translation. There are many reasons. 1, I am lazy. I take like weeks to finish many of my lyrics. 2, I keep editing it till kingdom come. If it still sucks, by all means come shoot me. But I’ll be damned if you can catch me abusing English. For these two reasons and more which I don’t care to mention, I usually complete my own version of a song AFTER someone uploads a set to Animelyrics. Sometimes the ones posted up there are good ones (like those from DarkMirage), but more often than not they are either marginally passable, or utter trash.
I first begun translating lyrics because it was a way for me to express my love for a song, by understanding, interpreting and recomposing its meaning in a different language, and also as a sort of service to the people out there, who share the same (if not a stronger) love for the song, but due to various circumstances unable to do what I was able to do for myself. I know that some people DO appreciate my translations, and that some do not. Ultimately, every set of lyrics I translate is a piece of work I’d be willing to stand up and defend, and I didn’t do them in a way that anyone can just waltz up to me and say, “Look, this line is completely wrong - it should be…” (though DarkMirage might be an exception - his version of 明日のプリズム put me absolutely to shame, but I’m keeping my own there as a lesson of sorts to myself). On my personal honor, I swear that whatever a reader sees in the lyrics section is at least 50% of the time the best he/she can possibly find on the Net, 40% of the time one of the better or comparable versions, and only 10% of the time not worth his/her attention and time. It is a duty not only to myself and my readers - it is also a duty I owe to the singer and lyricist. I mean, wouldn’t you be mad if someone went about screwing up your work? I would. And I genuinely hope Hata Aki (畑亜貴) doesn’t take too much offence at what I have been doing with her work. (In my own defence, I would maintain that her lyrics are usually extremely challenging… but it’s up to her. ^^)
By the end of 6/3 I’ll be uploading another set of lyrics. Though it is still a work in progress (like all the lyrics I post on the site), I guarantee that almost everyone would be hard pressed in finding any improvements. Nonetheless, I will be paying attention if someone has anything of value to say, praise or criticism alike.
June 17th, 2007 at 12:42 am
PD, I’ve always been wanting to ask you something, if I am one of those people who you think is doing subpar work on translation as you have described above.
If that is so, then I am extremely sorry. I am no expert, my kanji knowledge count is low, I’m not even JLPT-4 certified and how the hell can I be compared to people like you and DM who is JLPT1-cert.
But I do take great heart in my translations. I, as well as you, read through them meticulously before submitting, and even then days later I would be reading it again and fix whatever mistakes I did. (Although I do have to fix my old ones, one of these days…)
Looking at your sola OP trans, I noticed one striking thing, which is the complexity of the English words you use - and this is one of those problems I come across in the land of song translation (I’m trying to gather them and put a huge discussion of it), which is the English you use in translation. Probably a normal or even a hugely-metaphorical song can be paired with a high level of linguistic, but what about those hyper songs like Lucky Star OP, and the loads of denpa you’ve heard along the way? Surely using less-formal English could be better suited to send the “feeling” across the song along with its literal meaning.
If I am correct in my fears that I am getting talked behind my back because of my work, then this is what little defense I have. I do not purposefully make them insensitively, everybody has different views of what they hear and understand. And like DM said, all fan translations suck.
Thank you for taking time to read this,
- Azu
June 17th, 2007 at 2:36 am
Hello, and I appreciate your long reply.
I admit that I was somewhat irked by some of your work, but then again, I don’t really believe I have a right to criticize for that - since I have on record several atrocious examples on this site. Allow me to explain a little as to why I wrote this post.
Coming down to it, I was just in a bad mood (no excuse - but the truth is the truth). What started it is now forgotten, but I happened to be surfing through Animelyrics at that time, followed by some random websurfing. I came across some websites that featured lyrics translations, and I took some time to read through them.
What I discovered was a little shocking. The fact is that some people are posting (in my perception, and with the dictionary as proof) pretty atrocious translations on the net, be it on Animelyrics or on their own websites. Do note that I do the same thing, though I have reason to believe that I do make more effort in making sure that whatever I post is as good as I can make it, with some exceptions. The fact does remain that when I wrote the original post I wasn’t terribly self-introspective, and that is a fault on my part.
Now, it is perfectly true that whatever people post on their own blogs is pretty much their own business (and it’s not like people who post translations are endangering the World Order or National Security anyway). But viewing the situation through my own set of colored lenses, something didn’t quite click.
Let’s admit it - many of us who do translations and post them in public (blogs constitute as such, I believe) want, hope, and expect them to be read. That in itself, in my own book, constitutes a certain obligation on the translator’s part, which is to do his best. It is not exactly a universal value per se, and I don’t intend to force it on anybody (as if I can). But it is a view you stated you agree with, no?
Here lies the core of my ‘argument’, if it can be called such - people who do not understand Japanese to a reasonable degree SHOULD NOT make their translations public in a way that would inadvertently mislead or misinform the reader. Note the vague wording of my statement. What constitutes ‘a reasonable degree [of Japanese proficiency]’? What constitutes ‘a way that would inadvertently mislead or misinform’? I have no precise answers to that. However, I would stress that qualifications mean little - and here’s my substantiation. DarkMirage and I both hold JLPT1s, but the ACTUAL DISPARITY between our abilities is wide, if not positively VAST. I lost to him by 11 points out of 400 on the exam - but our difference is a lot MORE than just 2.75%. I hope you see my point.
What would I use as a guide for the ‘reasonable standard’. There isn’t a universal standard for that, but I believe that in general, a consensus among the indisputably Japanese-literate (a category that I hope I’m in, but without proof to back up any claim whatsoever other than my JLPT1, hence it’s up to say Japanese natives fluent in English or anybody who spends his or her life studying Japanese and English as an academic) can be reached as to who actually ‘knows what he’s talking about’.
June 17th, 2007 at 2:53 am
(continued)
That is something I feel most translators posting on the Net do not reach. For myself, I’d honestly say I’m sort of teetering on the edge, but I’d like to believe that I tend towards the side of ‘knowing what he’s talking about’.
Here’s a paradox - by my own standards then, I shouldn’t be posting, since I would by my own measures potentially ‘inadvertently mislead or misinform’. That is valid. Of course, when personal pride and emotions come into play, one can’t be totally objective - and I won’t claim to be. I’ll continue what I’ve been doing, because I believe (or like to) that with each successive translation I make, I’m making progress. With each and every translation, I’m doing my best. And I try to listen, and learn as much as I can. Last but not least, (in a cruel, subjective and perhaps invalid statement) whatever the case is, my version’s probably one of if not the very best on the Net. In this way I can sort of answer to my own impossibly high standards, and my conscience is at ease knowing that I have done my level best at being faithful to the text (and the lyricist), and keeping my faith with my readers (few as they are).
I’m sure your own convictions share many similarities with mine (hopefully a slightly less conceited version of mine. XD). Do correct me if I’m wrong. What I have to say to you, Azu, is perhaps summarized in the following sentence:
“I have something against some of your WORK, not your PERSON.”
I hope you won’t doubt my sincerity (though I’d grudgingly admit that if you do so you might have a point that I cannot see clearly myself, given the limits of self-introspection), and I’d like to offer you a few words, from one amateur translator to another.
“Your Japanese (or English) standard isn’t quite enough, as far as I can see, and with my own personal judgment. You still have much to learn, but so do I. Do your level best at all times, and remember your duty to the reader, the text and the lyricist. Do not give up - and may we both have the courage and will to continue, learning as best from our mistakes as we can, and making improvement constantly.”
As a final word, the reason why I didn’t name names in my post is not out of cowardice, but because it isn’t a personal attack on you. Or rather, it may be perceived as an attack on many people (including myself). But if I may be allowed to explain myself, what this post is isn’t a structured, cohesive, solid and supported attack on translators and their work.
It’s just a rant by a kid in a bad mood, above everything else. I hope you won’t take it too personally or reprimand the kid too severely. ^^;
I hope we understand each other a little more now. I look forward to your reply.
Thanks for reading my (even-) long(er) reply.
- Peardruid/KonoeKonoka