Problems Caused by Word Order when Interpreting / Translating from English into Japanese

The Effect of the Use of Inanimate Subjects in English

Bibliographic Data

ID4344063
AuthorsHiromichi Uchiyama (corresponding author)
Year2002
Volume36
Issue2-3
Pages404-413
Publication date2002-09-30
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueMeta Journal des traducteurs (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0026-0452 • E-ISSN: 1492-1421
PublisherConsortium Erudit (PUBLISHER • CA)
DOI10.7202/004516ar
OpenAlexW2083147356
LanguageEN
Citations received5

One of the most significant difficulties facing an English-Japanese interpreter or translator is the use in English of inanimate subjects which perform intentional acts. While this is a fairly common construction in English, the Japanese normally find it difficult to conceive of an inanimate subject performing a conscious act. English-Japanese interpreter/translators therefore need to be able to interpret such English sentences so that they correspond to the Japanese perception. This paper outlines one method of dealing with this problem - the conversion of the inanimate subjects in the English sentence into an adverbial phrase or clause in Japanese. This serves to reduce the level of difficulty in handling a sentence with a modifying clause the subject of which is inanimate. Practical examples of the use of this method are given. This method also has relevance for interpreter/translator training, as it can be presented to students as a possible means of overcoming a common problem in English-Japanese interpreting and translation

Adverbial · Interpreter · Linguistics · Natural language processing · Perception · Phrase · Relevance (law) · Sentence · Subject (documents) · Word order · Artificial Intelligence · Computer Science · Psychology · Translation Studies and Practices

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access