Since serving as the Writer in Residence for the British Centre for Literary Translation here at UEA in 2015, Korean poet Han Kang will receive a Nobel Prize in Literature this December. The reason for her award being her “intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas” whilst exposing “the fragility of human life”, according to the Nobel Prize website. Kang’s work attests to the importance of literary translations: by converting texts into new languages, we experience the vividity and history of diverse cultural backgrounds, creating a more inclusive literary community. 

When translating a work of literature, writers must balance linguistic precision and cultural sensitivity to guarantee the text replicates the original writer’s unique voice and their own cultural context. In their desired target language, translators should capture the author’s tone and style, including all metaphors and idioms they may use. As well as this, it is beneficial for translations to convey the deeper meanings of the text in order to honour the culture it came from. These characteristics of translation both promote an understanding of diverse cultures, ultimately fashioning a more educational reading experience. 

Though, the translation of literature comes with a beguiling question: should translators craft as literal a translation as possible, or focus on making the translation accessible for readers unfamiliar with the original culture? It is safe to say a literal approach preserves the author’s voice more intelligibly, as it aims to replicate their exact words, offering readers a more fulfilling understanding of how the text would actually appear in its original language. By breaking linguistic borders to protect the text’s language, translation proves its value to not only casual readers, but to academics who may be intent on studying the literature’s language. Thus, literal translation’s integral role within academic fields enhances the original text’s ingenuity, thereby affirming translation’s importance in the literary community. 

However, as literal translations are focused on linguistic precision, they fail to capture the deeper meanings of their original text. A more interpretive translation intends to replicate the work’s emotional impact, removing the possibility of alienating readers from the text for it may not translate the language-specific phrases of the original. Though this style of translation may overpower the original authorial voice, it is this that ensures texts are accessible to all cultures, guaranteeing the success of literature’s cross-cultural adaptability. 

Combining both translation styles seems impossible; a less literal approach wholly immerses readers into diverse cultural contexts but diminishes the author’s voice, and vice versa. Though there appears to be no solution, it is important to acknowledge all types of translation have one goal in common: achieving universally accessible literature. It is this that makes translated literature a piece of art in its own right; by building cultural bridges through words, translations let us glimpse at lives different from our own, to grasp an understanding of them. This fosters a more empathetic readership and encourages connection to the people around us, a unique gift only literature can provide. 

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