If you could take a break from your life and go back to school to master a subject, what would it be?
Photographers, artists, poets: show us MASTERY.
If I could go back to school it would definitely be to study ancient languages & civilizations.
I have almost a life long interest in these two subjects and I would dearly love to be able to read many ancient texts in the language in which they were written.
Always reading in translation puts me at the disadvantage of being constantly one step removed from the source and having to rely on the ‘lens’ of the translator and their version of the text.
Even an excellent translator will have to make many decisions during the translation about which are the best words to use. Each one of these decisions will, inevitably colour the text in some way.
If I could read the texts myself I could make those decisions for myself and maybe I would decide to keep several words in mind rather than settling for one.
As I am on a bus travelling to an internet free zone for the weekend I’ll keep this post short.
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Khana's Web 
Hi Khana,
“Always reading in translation puts me at the disadvantage of being constantly one step removed from the source and having to rely on the ‘lens’ of the translator and their version of the text.”
So true. Every translator adds his personal hue to language (I’ve been translating for about 20 years.) and he can be the best and still not convey each and every tiny nuance of the original.
As for going back to school, you might want to look in here: https://www.coursera.org/. They have great online courses, academic level and free. Heila
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Wow Heila, this site looks great. Thanks for the link. Glad that as a translator you understand what I mean. My husband has also done a lot of translating over the years, but it is not his profession. Thanks for reading & taking the time to comment 🙂
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My pleasure! 🙂
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