Foreign Proofreading by Foreign Translators

After Chinese translators submit the initial draft of a translation, clients can continue to entrust foreign translators to proofread the translated text. Foreign translators are not only very familiar with their native language but also have a good understanding and application ability of Chinese as their first or second foreign language. They have generally undergone systematic learning in the field of translation and have mastered the ability to convert between the two languages. This article will take the translation of an interview script as an example to compare the effects achieved before and after proofreading by foreign translators.

Chinese translators often translate word for word according to the sentence structure of the original text, sometimes mechanically conveying the meaning, and sometimes even failing to convey the intended meaning. However, it is important to note that translators also need to modify and supplement the original sentence according to the situation, expressing implicit meanings to make the sentence clearer and more direct. For example, the phrase "此次合作的契机" would generally be translated as "Could you please say something about yourself first and illustrate the opportunity for this collaboration." In fact, the implied meaning of "此次合作的契机" is to inquire about what led to this collaboration, and using the word "opportunity" does not accurately convey this meaning. After proofreading by a foreign translator, the expression "Please tell us a bit about yourself and also the events leading up to this collaboration" is more straightforward. Another example is when a Chinese translator translated "从小在家庭的引导下学习传统绘画" as "Since my childhood, I learned traditional painting nurtured from the artistic atmosphere of my family." Although the translator fully understood and processed "在家庭的引导下" into "受家庭艺术氛围陶冶" rather than a literal translation, the translated text after proofreading by the foreign translator, "Being raised in a family of artists, I was trained in traditional painting technique since my childhood," looks more specific because it directly indicates that the interviewee's family members are artists, which explains their guidance in the artistic aspect. Additionally, it can be observed that the use of passive voice in "being raised" and "was trained" is common in English grammar, and there is even a tendency to overuse the passive voice. Therefore, the translation by the foreign translator is evidently more authentic and in line with the language usage habits of the translated text.

Due to the foreign translator's more proficient and flexible use of foreign languages, they often simplify content during proofreading to make it more concise and to the point. For example, in the interview script, "生态有机的东西能持续为我带来能量" was initially translated by the Chinese translator as "these ecological and organic things can constantly generate sources of inspiration for me," which clearly conveys the original meaning. After proofreading by the foreign translator, it was changed to "I am constantly energized by organic elements in the ecosystem," transforming the phrase "带来能量" into the verb "energize" with the noun "energy," making the expression more concise compared to the initial translation draft. Additionally, the phrase "新科技解构再造物质" is one of the translation difficulties in the text. A literal word-for-word translation such as "materials that are deconstructed and reconstructed with new technology" seems cumbersome. The foreign translator revised it to "technologically-reconstructed materials," using "reconstructed" as a prepositional adjective and flexibly handling "科技" as an adverb "technologically," making the sentence structure more concise and compact.

◀️： The Use of Parallel Texts

▶️：The Value of Parallel Texts