Schleiermacher and Deutscher Readings- Carly

Both the Schleiermacher and Deutscher readings made me reflect on the complexity of truly understanding another language and how it influences translation. Showing understanding in a language is not just about finding a one-to-one match for words or phrases, but being able to bring out the cultural nuances that are behind the words. Schleiermacher mentioned the idea of, "Bringing the Author to the Reader vs. Bringing the Reader to the Author." I feel like either approach requires the translator to understand the context of the original text to be able to adapt it into another language. For example, a translator could choose to include a word like "Senpai" in their translation to show hierarchy, which would be fine. On the other hand, a translator who chooses to "Bring the Author to the Reader," would still have to have an understanding of this Japanese expression of social standing. Then, they would also have to know how to make it apparent to the reader without including this word that only people familiar with Japanese culture would understand. It made me think about whether you choose one method over the other, you must still have a strong understanding of not only just the language, but also the cultural nuances that influence the language you are doing a translation of. 

The Deutscher reading expanded upon this when explaining the concept of "Masculine" vs "Feminine" words in languages like Spanish and French. A French speaker might describe a fork (la fourchette) as slender/elegant, while a Spanish speaker sees it as sturdy (el tenedor). Translating between these languages involves more than just finding the right words, but it would also involve translating the perspectives of the speakers of those languages. 

Another part of the Deutscher reading that I found interesting was whether the features that are in your native language determines what you will be able to understand in another. Although we know that this is not exactly true, it still made me wonder if language learners will ever be able to come close to the innate sense that native speakers have. Is it something that you are able to have intuition for over time, or will it always be a little off.