ARGUMENT198 习作请拍

NevilleWangUID: 2725154

198. There is a general idea that a translation always fails to preserve some of the qualities that distinguish the original work - i.e., that "something always gets lost in translation". Writers, critics, and the general reading public unthinkingly accept this cliché. But this belief is unwarranted: translators are sometimes distinguished authors themselves, and some authors may even translate their own works. As the translator pointed out in the preface to an English version of Dante's works, the violin and the piano make different sounds, but they can play what is recognizably the same piece of music.



In this argument, the arguer confutes a "general idea" that "a translation always fails to preserve some of the qualities that distinguish the original work" by citing the fact that "the translators are sometimes distinguished authors, and some authors may even translate their own works." In other words, under either of those circumstances, a translation would manage to maintain all the qualities the original work enjoys. Moreover, the arguer refers a quotation from a translator concerning the relationship between translation and original works to illustrate his judgment. In my view, although the common sense or "cliché" concerned in the argument may overstate the truth, the argument itself is logically lame both for its reasoning and illustration.

  In the first place, the fact that some translators are distinguished authors themselves does not guarantee that they could preserve all the qualities of the original work, especially when they are translating some other's works. Translation requires the translator a good command of both the source language and the target language. When it comes to preserve all the qualities that distinguish the original work, like in the literature masterpieces, the task becomes even more demanding for the translator, in that it entails the translator a great understanding of the original work as well as a great expression in the target language. Thus, being an eminent author does not ensure one to be a qualified translator, even though he or she is translating his or her own works. To sum up, the reasoning of the argument has an ultimate underlying assumption that a translator, who is also a great author, must be able to translate his or her own work perfectly, without any loss of the qualities of the original work. The extreme rarity of the extreme circumstance lends the assumption little support, which in turn renders the reasoning logically ill-founded.


  Another point merits analysis is that the illustration from the quotation of a translator commits the fallacy of false analogy. Although different instruments could play the same piece of music, for certain kind of instrument there will inevitably be some distinctive features which others cannot imitate. By comparison and contrast, the arguer overemphasizes the common ground between music pieces made by different instruments, while intently ignoring the nuances made by the distinctive timbres of the instruments. In our case, the argument equates translation with the original work based on a partial reality.

  In conclusion, the argument lacks credibility because the reasoning is founded on an invalid fact and the illustration based on a biased or illogical opinion. Before we accept the argument, the arguer must present more unbiased facts and examples as evidence to us readers. (442 words)

NevilleWangUID: 2725154

我自己对结尾不满意 写时太仓促了
哪位同学能帮我做这个结尾练习
我算抛砖引玉了
顶起 看童鞋们的了