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31st translation contest: "A translator's life" » Spanish to English

Competition in this pair is now closed, and the winning entry has been announced.

Discussion and feedback about the competition in this language pair may now be provided by visiting the "Discussion & feedback" page for this pair. Entries may also be individually discussed by clicking the "Discuss" link next to any listed entry.

Source text in Spanish

No conviene, a mi parecer, traducir sino de los idiomas que habitaron nuestras vidas. Quiero decir que no basta con saberlos. Lo esencial es haber sido o ser en ellos. Las lenguas en las que hemos sucedido, aquellas en las que el tiempo se nos brindó con sus goces y sus penas, y en las que expresarnos fue para nosotros vitalmente decisivo, son las que, cuando hay vocación literaria, mejor dotados nos encuentran para encarar su traducción. Yo ocurrí en portugués, si así se me acepta que lo diga, y ello durante años para mí fundamentales. Dejé, en esa medida, de frecuentarlo y sentirlo como un idioma extranjero. Quien sabe abrirse a los secretos de la lengua que traduce, capta y comulga tanto con el sentido de lo dicho como con la cadencia del enunciado escrito, y es esa respiración hábilmente preservada la que vuelve inconfundible una versión exitosa [3]. Se deja en cambio de escucharla al optar por el camino de la literalidad, vía que se revela muerta cuando lo que se busca es acceso a los acentos personales de la voz de quien escribe. El mejor acatamiento al texto traducido demanda imaginación, aptitud para el desvío o las sendas laterales, así como saber valerse de las analogías y lo latente, siempre que con ello no se afecte el propósito ni el tono del autor. Y ello, estoy seguro, en igual medida para la prosa y el verso, puesto que la prosa, cuando de veras lo es, no va a la zaga de la poesía ni en logros ni en exigencias. Es obvio que la alegría de traducir proviene, en amplia medida, de saberse sirviendo a la difusión de quien a juicio nuestro lo merece, alentando así su reconocimiento. ¿Pero cómo no pensar además que, al proceder de este modo, se deja atrás la maldición de Babel, el mandato que forzó la dispersión de quienes debieron haberse buscado, no para volver a homologarse, sino para empeñarse en dialogar a partir de su diferencia?

The winning entry has been announced in this pair.

There were 34 entries submitted in this pair during the submission phase, 7 of which were selected by peers to advance to the finals round. The winning entry was determined based on finals round voting by peers.

Competition in this pair is now closed.


Entries (34 total; 7 finalists) Expand all entries

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Language variants:
Entry #36085 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Winner
Voting points1st2nd3rd
5913 x43 x21 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.974.06 (18 ratings)3.88 (17 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 7 users entered 11 "like" tags
  • 5 users agreed with "likes" (5 total agrees)
The way I see it, we should only translate from the languages that shaped our lives. What I mean is that merely knowing them is not enough.
Flows well
Sets the r​elaxed, in​formal sty​le for the​ rest of t​he piece
RORY O BRIEN
+2
Living and breathing them, now or in the past, is indispensable.
Flows well
Valeria Delmar
+1
I came into being in Portuguese
Flows well
Patricia Field
I came into being in
Flows well
andresmds9
seminal years.
Good term selection
Sarah Verger
shares in
Good term selection
Valeria Delmar
By contrast,
Flows well
Valeria Delmar
+1
leading to a dead end when one seeks to grasp the idiosyncrasies of the writer’s style.
Flows well
Valeria Delmar
is not to be outdone by
Flows well
Laura Angelani
+1
not to be outdone by
Flows well
Valeria Delmar
Furthermore, it is impossible to ignore
Other
Interestin​g change i​n the tone​ of the or​iginal sen​tence
antonella piñeiro
Entry #35942 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
lesmark
lesmark
Reino Unido
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
488 x46 x24 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry4.214.33 (12 ratings)4.08 (12 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 4 users entered 7 "like" tags
  • 1 user agreed with "likes" (1 total agree)
they must be part of our being.
Good term selection
antonella piñeiro
+1
The languages that we have ‘lived’ – in which time has bestowed its joys and sorrows upon us, in which expressing ourselves has been a vital formative experience
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
I think I can say that I experienced this with Portuguese
Good term selection
Elizabeth Slaney
also the tonality of the written statement.
Flows well
Kristel Koukoua
living and breathing
Good term selection
Elizabeth Slaney
safe route of literal translation leads to a dead end
Good term selection
Excellent ​translatio​n
Elizabeth Slaney
a flair for discovering a detour or a side road
Flows well
Kristel Koukoua
Entry #35587 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
274 x44 x23 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry4.154.00 (7 ratings)4.29 (7 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
ose who should have sought each other, not to become homologous again, but to engage in dialogue based on their differences?
Flows well
Laura Angelani
Entry #35356 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Clara Dunlop
Clara Dunlop
Estados Unidos
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
275 x42 x23 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.933.71 (7 ratings)4.14 (7 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 4 users entered 5 "like" tags
  • 2 users agreed with "likes" (3 total agrees)
  • 1 user disagreed with "likes" (1 total disagree)
-1
1
It's not advisable, in my opinion, to translate but from the languages that have inhabited our lives.
Flows well
Victoria Breting-Garcia, M.A, History, M. Pub Admin
existed or existing within them
Good term selection
Much bette​r than "ha​ving been"​, etc.
Elizabeth Slaney
+2
Whoever knows how to open themselves up to the secrets of the language they translate captures and communes with the sense of what is being said
Flows well
Victoria Breting-Garcia, M.A, History, M. Pub Admin
It’s obvious that the joy of translating comes in large part from knowing we’re serving to disseminate the works of those we judge to deserve it, thereby encouraging their recognition
Flows well
Sarah Verger
+1
but to insist on conversing in light of their differences?
Other
Interestin​g solution​ to the ph​rasing of ​the origin​al
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
Entry #36115 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
223 x44 x22 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry4.004.09 (11 ratings)3.91 (11 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 4 users entered 5 "like" tags
  • 2 users agreed with "likes" (2 total agrees)
+1
those we have used to express ourselves in life’s decisive moments, those through which time has graced us with its joys and sorrows
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
ring true
Good term selection
Elizabeth Slaney
+1
A literal approach to translation stifles this breath, leading to a dead end when you are looking for access to the personal touches that animate a writer’s voice
Flows well
Patricia Field
in large part
Flows well
Elizabeth Slaney
And how could this not lead us to believe that
Flows well
very stron​g translat​ion, invol​ving gramm​atical res​tructuring
Sarah Verger
Entry #36086 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Keeva Rock
Keeva Rock
Reino Unido
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
172 x43 x23 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry4.004.08 (12 ratings)3.92 (12 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 6 "like" tags
  • 3 users agreed with "likes" (4 total agrees)
  • 1 user disagreed with "likes" (1 total disagree)
ranslator should only undertake to translate a language in which the
Flows well
Laura Angelani
+1
It’s simply not enough to learn a language, the crucial factor is to be immersed in it.
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
This is the hallmark of a successful translation.
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
+1
The result is not a soulless literal translation
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
-1
1
The later applies to both prose and verse, which does not fall short of poetry,
Flows well
Laura Angelani
+2
leaving the calamity of Babel in its wake
Good term selection
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
Entry #35786 — Discuss 0 — Variant: British
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
121 x42 x24 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.943.88 (8 ratings)4.00 (8 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 3 users entered 4 "like" tags
  • 2 users agreed with "likes" (3 total agrees)
time brought us its joys and sorrows
Flows well
Elizabeth Slaney
+1
the language they are translating grasp and commune with both the meaning
Flows well
Laura Angelani
detours or side paths
Flows well
Elizabeth Slaney
+2
the mandate that forced the dispersion of those who should have sought each other out, not to become homologous again, but to commit themselves to dialogue on the basis of their differences?
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta


Non-finalist entries

The following entries were not selected by peers to advance to finals-round voting.

Entry #35972 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Susana Sherman
Susana Sherman
Estados Unidos
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.813.94 (16 ratings)3.67 (15 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 4 users entered 8 "like" tags
  • 3 users agreed with "likes" (3 total agrees)
it is not advisable to translate languages which haven’t shaped our lives
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
The key is to exist or have existed in them.
Flows well
Mauricio Muñoz Gómez
I lived in Portuguese
Flows well
Victoria Rodríguez
+1
I stopped, in that sense, using and considering it as a foreign language.
Flows well
Mauricio Muñoz Gómez
+1
personal inflections of the writer’s voice
Good term selection
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
a flair for
Good term selection
Valeria Delmar
that which is left unsaid
Good term selection
Victoria Rodríguez
+1
It’s clear that the joy of translating comes, in great measure, from knowing how to spread the word of someone who is, in our opinion, deserving of it, thus promoting their recognition.
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
Entry #35717 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Paula Penovi
Paula Penovi
Estados Unidos
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.783.64 (11 ratings)3.91 (11 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 3 "like" tags
  • 1 user agreed with "likes" (1 total agree)
when a literary calling beckons
Good term selection
Elana Wojenski
+1
I came into being in Portuguese, if I may put it that way, and this occurred during years that were fundamental to me.
Flows well
Mauricio Muñoz Gómez
applies equally to prose and verse
Flows well
Elana Wojenski
Entry #35953 — Discuss 0 — Variant: British
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.734.18 (11 ratings)3.27 (11 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 3 users entered 4 "like" tags
  • 3 users agreed with "likes" (3 total agrees)
It is this life-giving breath, performed with great skill, that creates an unmistakeably successful adaptation.
Flows well
Victoria Breting-Garcia, M.A, History, M. Pub Admin
+1
his voice cannot be heard, however, when opting for the path of literal meaning
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
that scattered to the winds the very people who should have sought each other out
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
+2
insist on dialogue, with their differences as the starting point
Good term selection
Valeria Delmar
Entry #36118 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Valeria Delmar
Valeria Delmar
Estados Unidos
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.703.90 (10 ratings)3.50 (10 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
and did so during my seminal years
Flows well
Andrea Emanuelli
Entry #35750 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Canadian
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.613.44 (9 ratings)3.78 (9 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 2 "like" tags
my foundational years. T
Good term selection
Rudolph Campbell
death to
Good term selection
Sarah Verger
Entry #35822 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Rody Correa Avila
Rody Correa Avila
Estados Unidos
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.583.38 (13 ratings)3.77 (13 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 2 "like" tags
I became who I am in Portuguese
Flows well
Carmela Gaytán
The best observance of a translated text demands imagination, the skill to follow deviations or side paths, and knowing how to use analogies and hidden subtleties
Flows well
Victoria Breting-Garcia, M.A, History, M. Pub Admin
Entry #35767 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Greg Ahlswede
Greg Ahlswede
Estados Unidos
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.543.62 (13 ratings)3.46 (13 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 4 users entered 5 "like" tags
  • 1 user agreed with "likes" (1 total agree)
he languages in which we have experienced life, which have seen time unfold with its pleasures and sorrows,
Flows well
Valeria Delmar
+1
where expressing ourselves was of vital importance, are the ones that, when there is a literary calling, will find us best prepared to undertake their translation.
Flows well
very natur​al soundin​g
Valeria Delmar
I came about in Portuguese, if I may put it that way, and it was pivotal for me for years.
Flows well
Patricia Field
I no longer went to it or perceived it as a foreign language
Good term selection
antonella piñeiro
The joy of translating clearly comes in large part from knowing that we are contributing to the recognition of those who, in our judgment, are deserving of it
Good term selection
Victoria Breting-Garcia, M.A, History, M. Pub Admin
Entry #36064 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Jeff Gotfredson
Jeff Gotfredson
Estados Unidos
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.473.56 (9 ratings)3.38 (8 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 2 "like" tags
I “happened into” Portuguese, if the reader will allow me to use this expression,
Flows well
Rudolph Campbell
indistinguishable from an original work
Flows well
Carmela Gaytán
Entry #35720 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.393.22 (9 ratings)3.56 (9 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 2 "like" tags
The key is to have been, or be, part of them.
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
aptitude for shortcuts and detours and the capacity of using analogies and figures
Flows well
Carmela Gaytán
Entry #36001 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Diego Agostini
Diego Agostini
Estados Unidos
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.363.36 (11 ratings)3.36 (11 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 3 users entered 5 "like" tags
we can be equipped to undertak
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
I took place—occurred—in Portuguese, if I may be allowed to say so, during a fundamental period for me.
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
On the other hand, a language’s voice is lost when the translator sets off in pursuit of the literal; a dead-end path when what is sought is access to the personal accents in the author’s voice.
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
venturing off the beaten path
Flows well
Andrea Emanuelli
neither in deeds nor exigencies
Flows well
Laura Angelani
Entry #35695 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.283.22 (9 ratings)3.33 (9 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 3 users entered 4 "like" tags
inhabited
Good term selection
Very appro​priate wor​d choice.
Maria Lydia Spinelli
word and the cadence of the written statement
Good term selection
Laura Angelani
I am sure, is valid in equal measure for prose and verse because when prose is true prose, it does not lag behind poetry either in achievements or demands.
Good term selection
Patricia Field
in dialogue based on their differences?
Good term selection
Laura Angelani
Entry #35930 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.223.00 (9 ratings)3.44 (9 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 4 "like" tags
  • 2 users agreed with "likes" (2 total agrees)
  • 1 user disagreed with "likes" (1 total disagree)
-1
+1
As I see it, we can only truly translate the languages that have made homes of our lives.
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
nd I am certain that this holds true equally for prose and
Flows well
Laura Angelani
+1
verse, since prose—when it really is prose—does not come second to poetry
Flows well
Laura Angelani
but to enter into a dialogue born of their differences?
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
Entry #35962 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.153.00 (10 ratings)3.30 (10 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • No "like" tags
Entry #36121 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Carlos Pellot
Carlos Pellot
Estados Unidos
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.153.00 (10 ratings)3.30 (10 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
approaching
Good term selection
Valeria Delmar
Entry #35744 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.122.80 (10 ratings)3.44 (9 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
perceive and embrace both the meaning of what is said as well as the pace of the written word, and it is this skillfully preserved acuity what makes a successful version to be absolutely unmistakable
Flows well
It's clear​ and defin​es the mea​ning of th​e original​ sentences​ accuratel​y
antonella piñeiro
Entry #35981 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.053.30 (10 ratings)2.80 (10 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
subtleties
Good term selection
Valeria Delmar
Entry #36004 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Silvana Cecotto
Silvana Cecotto
Estados Unidos
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.052.90 (10 ratings)3.20 (10 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • No "like" tags
Entry #36040 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.022.78 (9 ratings)3.25 (8 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
does not lag behind poetry neither in achievements nor demands.
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
Entry #36119 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.013.13 (8 ratings)2.88 (8 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 4 users entered 6 "like" tags
It is unwise
Good term selection
antonella piñeiro
made a home in our lives
Flows well
antonella piñeiro
the ones through which Father Time graced us
Flows well
Carmela Gaytán
this skillfully preserved breath is what gives life
Flows well
"gives lif​e" was a p​ersonal ad​dition of ​the transl​ator that ​maintains ​very well ​the metaph​or begun w​ith "skill​fully pres​erved brea​th"
Linda Grabner
If one opts not to listen but rather plots a course through literal
Flows well
Laura Angelani
for both prose and verse in equal measure, for prose, when prose it truly is
Flows well
Good use o​f repetiti​on; it ali​gns with t​he tone of​ the trans​lation
antonella piñeiro
Entry #35926 — Discuss 0 — Variant: British
Emma Rowe
Emma Rowe
Reino Unido
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry2.892.78 (9 ratings)3.00 (9 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
It happened for me in Portuguese,
Flows well
Rudolph Campbell
Entry #35837 — Discuss 0 — Variant: British
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry2.843.00 (10 ratings)2.67 (9 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • No "like" tags
Entry #35758 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Canadian
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry2.782.93 (14 ratings)2.62 (13 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
this principle applies equally to both prose and verse, as true prose does not lag behind poetry
Flows well
Valeria Delmar
Entry #36056 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry2.752.90 (10 ratings)2.60 (10 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 4 "like" tags
cadence
Good term selection
Sarah Verger
personal accents of the writer’s voice.
Flows well
Sarah Verger
those who, in our opinion, deserve it, thus encouraging their recognition.
Flows well
Sarah Verger
the mandate that forced the dispersion of those who should have sought each other out, not to become similar again, but to engage in conversation based on their difference
Flows well
Valeria Delmar
Entry #36128 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry2.692.63 (8 ratings)2.75 (8 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • No "like" tags
Entry #36139 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry2.622.77 (13 ratings)2.46 (13 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
those which time afforded us with their joys and sorrows
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
Entry #35801 — Discuss 0 — Variant: US
Jeanine Manzano
Jeanine Manzano
Estados Unidos
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry2.612.33 (9 ratings)2.89 (9 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 3 "like" tags
during the most important years of my life
Good term selection
simple but​ faithful ​rendition
Valeria Delmar
the purpose and the tone of the author remain unaffected.
Flows well
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
the joy of translating comes, largely, from the knowledge of serving
Flows well
Good restr​ucturing o​f the begi​nning of t​his senten​ce, but th​e next par​t of the s​entence fa​lls apart.
Jacqueline O'Neill Huerta
Entry #36268 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specified
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry2.582.27 (11 ratings)2.88 (8 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • No "like" tags