A4 Article in conference proceedings
Mi az eredeti? : A nyelvváltás mint fordítási probléma Terézia Mora Das Ungeheuer című regényében (2022)
Which original? : Switching languages as a translation issue in Terézia Mora’s novel Das Ungeheuer (The Monster)

Nádori, L. (2022). Mi az eredeti? : A nyelvváltás mint fordítási probléma Terézia Mora Das Ungeheuer című regényében. In B. Sándor, & D. István (Eds.), Folytonosság és megszakítottság a magyar kultúrában : a doktoriskolák VI. nemzetközi magyarságtudományi konferenciája (pp. 97-110). International Association for Hungarian Studies. http://real.mtak.hu/144164/1/Folytonossag_ebook_only.pdf

JYU authors or editors

Publication details

All authors or editors: Nádori, Lídia

Parent publication: Folytonosság és megszakítottság a magyar kultúrában : a doktoriskolák VI. nemzetközi magyarságtudományi konferenciája

Parent publication editors: Sándor, Bene; István, Dobos

Conference:

Place and date of conference: Vienna, Austria, 5.-6.9.2019

eISBN: 978-615-5309-09-0

Publication year: 2022

Pages range: 97-110

Number of pages in the book: 664

Publisher: International Association for Hungarian Studies

Place of Publication: Budapest

Publication country: Hungary

Publication language: Hungarian

Persistent website address: http://real.mtak.hu/144164/1/Folytonossag_ebook_only.pdf

Publication open access: Openly available

Publication channel open access: Open Access channel

Publication is parallel published (JYX): https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/85274

Abstract

The following study is part of my research work on self-reflection in literary translation. Using this case study, I intend to present the aspects and dilemmas faced by literary translators attempting to gauge the success of their work. My baseline questions were: Is the success or failure of a translation solution always determinable? What external and internal expectations must be observed, and to what extent? Where does the process of self-examination start, and when (if ever) can it be considered over? To investigate these questions I chose a special, perhaps even extreme case; namely an element of Terézia Mora’s novel Das Ungeheuer / The Monster which the author had originally written in Hungarian, and then translated into German. The translation issue lies in the fact the translator must first decide which text to view as the original, considering how its earliest version was written in the target language of translation. This condition led to a chain of decisions, ending up in an outcome which may be evaluated by different aspects in terms of successful cultural transfer, to different conclusions. My aim is not to evaluate the produced translation, but to present and analyze the process of translation and subsequent self-reflection. Because the translation in question is my own work, this provided an opportunity to apply introspection in research. An unconventional situation arose from the author’s language competence, whereby she could assess the quality of the translation, and thus participate in the process of editing and evaluation alongside the translator and publisher (editor). Besides the original text and the translation, I also investigated my own written self-reflections, the translator-editor commentary accumulating during the correction process, dialogues with the author, and the author’s follow-up comments on the translation. I’ve showcased how, by including these paratexts, assessing the success of cultural transfer is deepened and modified in the translator’s self-reflection.

Keywords: translating; fiction and poetry; German language; Hungarian language; translators; self-reflection

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Ministry reporting: Yes

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