Translatign Culture
Translating Culture Coursework 1: Compare and evaluate the translations of Goethe’s Faust I by Anna Swanwick and Howard Brenton regarding the translators’ intentions and strategies
Both translators of Goethe’s Faust, namely Anna Swanwick (written 1878) and Howard Brenton (1995) have used very different styles when translating.
The original text, Faust Part I, is a tragic play written by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe published in 1808. It consists of three preliminary sections and twenty-five scenes. The rhyme scheme is known as “Knüttelvers” and was popular during the Renaissance. It consists of four accented syllables in every line and an AABB or ABAB rhyming pattern.
The main theme throughout the book is man’s life on earth and the constant striving for knowledge and power.
In her translation, Swanwick clearly employs Nida’s (1969) ‘Dynamic Equivalence’ approach. Nida describes this as the “quality of translation in which the message of the original text has been so transported… that the response of the receptor is essentially that of the original receptors”. That is to say that the target text is so close in terms of register, rhyme, syntax and meter that the reader of this target text should have the same experience when reading, as someone reading the original source text in its original language. Thus, it is quite clear that Swanwick’s version has strong source text bias, as she stays very faithful to Goethe’s original text throughout. One reason for this could be that, as she could understand the German language of the original, which meant that she had a better relationship with the text and consequently stayed very faithful to it when translating.
On the other hand, Brenton has not so much translated the text, but rather based his text on a literal transition by Christa Weisman and adapted it for a theatre production. Consequently, there have been many alterations, redactions and sometime omissions. His writing style is clearly meant for a modern
Both translators of Goethe’s Faust, namely Anna Swanwick (written 1878) and Howard Brenton (1995) have used very different styles when translating.
The original text, Faust Part I, is a tragic play written by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe published in 1808. It consists of three preliminary sections and twenty-five scenes. The rhyme scheme is known as “Knüttelvers” and was popular during the Renaissance. It consists of four accented syllables in every line and an AABB or ABAB rhyming pattern.
The main theme throughout the book is man’s life on earth and the constant striving for knowledge and power.
In her translation, Swanwick clearly employs Nida’s (1969) ‘Dynamic Equivalence’ approach. Nida describes this as the “quality of translation in which the message of the original text has been so transported… that the response of the receptor is essentially that of the original receptors”. That is to say that the target text is so close in terms of register, rhyme, syntax and meter that the reader of this target text should have the same experience when reading, as someone reading the original source text in its original language. Thus, it is quite clear that Swanwick’s version has strong source text bias, as she stays very faithful to Goethe’s original text throughout. One reason for this could be that, as she could understand the German language of the original, which meant that she had a better relationship with the text and consequently stayed very faithful to it when translating.
On the other hand, Brenton has not so much translated the text, but rather based his text on a literal transition by Christa Weisman and adapted it for a theatre production. Consequently, there have been many alterations, redactions and sometime omissions. His writing style is clearly meant for a modern
Bibliography: Atkins, S,. Goethe’s Faust at the Hands of Its Translators: Some Recent Developments in Interpreting Goethe’s Faust Today, ed. by Jane. K Brown, Meredith Lee and Thomas P. Saine (Camden House, 1994), pp. 231-237. Bassnett, S., Lafevere, A., ‘When is a Translation not a Translation?’ in Constructing Cultures: Essays on Literary Translation (Multilingual Matters, 1998). Goethe, J, W., Faust: Der Tragödie Erster Teil (Philipp Reclam jun. Verlag GmbH, 1986) Goethe, J, W., Faust Parts I and II, translated by Brenton, H, from a literal translation by Weisman, C (Nick Hern Books, 1995) Goethe, J, W., Faust, Part I, translated by Swanwick, A (Digireads.com Publishing, 2005) Nida, E., Tabler, C.R., The Theory And Practice Of Translation (BRILL, 2003). Oergel, M., Culture And Identity: Historicity in German Literature And Thought 1770-1815 (Walter and Gruyter, 2006).