I. The answer to the above question is because English is a truly international language
II. International language or not and regardless of Tolkien, Shakespeare, Poe, Marlowe, Churchill and all the others that made me love it, I would gladly give English the finger if only I could write this blog in Riksmål, the language of Henrik Ibsen, my favourite playwright:
Having said that, I need to elaborate on a couple of points; namely, that I enjoy the a priori lost game of translation, because it offers many interesting insights on the nature of the languages involved and that, although sometimes it can be frustrating in its simplicity, English has a unique ability to integrate various linguistic elements (and not just foreign words) with such natural plasticity that allows anyone to say anything with virtually complete impunity (and no, I will not quote Finnegans Wake - it would be too predictable).
Allow me to demonstrate, at least to those who speak Greek as well.
During my wanderings in Greek blogs, I have come across this wonderful passage which originated from the Guru, who infrequently updates in greek a blog of "infinite jest, of most excellent fancy":
Αριστοτέλης, Βολταίρος, Ρουσώ...
Ελα μωρέ με τους πουθενάδες. Ο Νίτσες είναι φιλοσοφούρα. Είναι δύο Κάντιδες και 62 Ντεριντάδες είναι και ταχύς. Ρε της μιλάει της διαλεκτικής και έχει αποδόμηση διαβήτη.
Συμφωνείτε ή διαφωνείτε;
Although short of the mark concerning Derrida's inferiority to Nietzsche in deconstruction, this text is pure Monty Python, written in the idiomatic speech of Greek footbal manager and cult figure Nikos Alefantos.
My translation attempt:
Aristotle, Voltaire, Rousseau...
Allow me to demonstrate, at least to those who speak Greek as well.
During my wanderings in Greek blogs, I have come across this wonderful passage which originated from the Guru, who infrequently updates in greek a blog of "infinite jest, of most excellent fancy":
Αριστοτέλης, Βολταίρος, Ρουσώ...
Ελα μωρέ με τους πουθενάδες. Ο Νίτσες είναι φιλοσοφούρα. Είναι δύο Κάντιδες και 62 Ντεριντάδες είναι και ταχύς. Ρε της μιλάει της διαλεκτικής και έχει αποδόμηση διαβήτη.
Συμφωνείτε ή διαφωνείτε;
Although short of the mark concerning Derrida's inferiority to Nietzsche in deconstruction, this text is pure Monty Python, written in the idiomatic speech of Greek footbal manager and cult figure Nikos Alefantos.
My translation attempt:
Aristotle, Voltaire, Rousseau...
Give me a break with all those nobodies.The Nietzscher is a philosoficator. He is two Kants and 62 Derridas thrown together and he's spanking as well. Mate, he licks dialectics and has a sniping-longball deconstruction. Word or base?
Now, everybody gets the meaning and the intentions of the text. Football jargon has been left intact and the overall effort is very precise, which is something that would probably not be possible were it not for the plasticity of English. As a translation however it is a miserable failure, because the greek passage evokes clearly the image of Alefantos, while the English passage fails to convey that. Even if an Englishman knew Alefantos, he would not be able to see the connection.
So, I will try my best to keep uniformity for style's sake. Languages however need to be interchangeable. Do not expect to be spoon-fed everything. Expand the limits of your world.
And now for something not completely different:
"The Germans playing 4-2-4, Leibniz in goal, back four Kant, Hegel, Schopenhauer and Schelling, front-runners Schlegel, Wittgenstein, Nietzsche and Heidegger, and the mid-field duo of Beckenbauer and Jaspers. Beckenbauer obviously a bit of a surprise there...
...and here come the Greeks, led out by their veteran centre-half, Heraclitus....let's look at their team. As you'd expect, it's a much more defensive line-up. Plato's in goal, Socrates a front- runner there, and Aristotle as sweeper, Aristotle very much the man in form. One surprise is the inclusion of Archimedes...
...Archimedes out to Socrates, Socrates back to Archimedes, Archimedes out to Heraclitus, he beats Hegel, Heraclitus a little flick, here he comes on the far post, Socrates is there, Socrates heads it in! Socrates has scored! The Greeks are going mad, the Greeks are going mad! Socrates scores, got a beautiful cross from Archimedes.
The Germans are disputing it. Hegel is arguing that the reality is merely an a priori adjunct of non-naturalistic ethics, Kant via the categorical imperative is holding that ontologically it exists only in the imagination, and Marx is claiming it was offside.But Confucius has answered them with the final whistle! It's all over! Germany, having trounced England's famous midfield trio of Bentham, Locke and Hobbes in the semi-final, have been beaten by the odd goal...."
Monty Python, International Philosophy, Live at the Hollywood Bowl (originally from Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus, 2nd episode).
Cheers...
Now, everybody gets the meaning and the intentions of the text. Football jargon has been left intact and the overall effort is very precise, which is something that would probably not be possible were it not for the plasticity of English. As a translation however it is a miserable failure, because the greek passage evokes clearly the image of Alefantos, while the English passage fails to convey that. Even if an Englishman knew Alefantos, he would not be able to see the connection.
So, I will try my best to keep uniformity for style's sake. Languages however need to be interchangeable. Do not expect to be spoon-fed everything. Expand the limits of your world.
And now for something not completely different:
"The Germans playing 4-2-4, Leibniz in goal, back four Kant, Hegel, Schopenhauer and Schelling, front-runners Schlegel, Wittgenstein, Nietzsche and Heidegger, and the mid-field duo of Beckenbauer and Jaspers. Beckenbauer obviously a bit of a surprise there...
...and here come the Greeks, led out by their veteran centre-half, Heraclitus....let's look at their team. As you'd expect, it's a much more defensive line-up. Plato's in goal, Socrates a front- runner there, and Aristotle as sweeper, Aristotle very much the man in form. One surprise is the inclusion of Archimedes...
...Archimedes out to Socrates, Socrates back to Archimedes, Archimedes out to Heraclitus, he beats Hegel, Heraclitus a little flick, here he comes on the far post, Socrates is there, Socrates heads it in! Socrates has scored! The Greeks are going mad, the Greeks are going mad! Socrates scores, got a beautiful cross from Archimedes.
The Germans are disputing it. Hegel is arguing that the reality is merely an a priori adjunct of non-naturalistic ethics, Kant via the categorical imperative is holding that ontologically it exists only in the imagination, and Marx is claiming it was offside.But Confucius has answered them with the final whistle! It's all over! Germany, having trounced England's famous midfield trio of Bentham, Locke and Hobbes in the semi-final, have been beaten by the odd goal...."
Monty Python, International Philosophy, Live at the Hollywood Bowl (originally from Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus, 2nd episode).
Cheers...
1 comment:
nice try indeed even if it is your baby steps.Keep walking...
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