| Translation is a discipline that involves not only technical and structural transpositions from one language to another, but it is also tied to several other areas of human knowledge as anthropology, sociology, linguistics, psychology, history, and geography. Translation's realm is not only concerned with the universal study of man but it also dwells on the differences among human beings, since its essence is that of symbolizing a bridge among distinctive visions of the world. An exclusive knowledge of the mechanical side of translation will only render a partial picture of a given message across languages. In the particular case of English and Spanish translation we find two contrasting cultural paths, which are not totally opposed but that possess enough areas of discrepancy to represent a problem to the individual who wishes to convey messages from one linguistic code to another.; To begin with my study I talked about the reasons and causes behind men's differences and how we could get around them to achieve a better understanding of each other's ways. Some of the people whose ideas I applied to translation were Dell Hymes, Franz Boas, Claude Levi-Strauss, and Octavio Paz. Then I more specifically discussed Anglo-Saxon and Hispanic societies and I arrived at the conclusion that there are basic traits from which many of the elements that shape both cultures arise. I acknowledged the drive towards independence of the Anglo-Saxon character and the opposite impulse towards dependence of the Hispanic personality. I mentioned Anglo-Saxon culture's tendency to control and dominate the environment and Latin propensity towards contemplation and identification with nature. I chose literary works that contained examples of cultural issues to prove that the translator must be able to perceive and acknowledge his own and different cultural perspectives in order to transmit any given message across languages. To provide an empirical dimension to the study I analysed two different published translations of well known literary works to determine which translators made the proper decisions in regards to cultural considerations. |
