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Most people consider translation to be the act of switching words from one language to another. Simple, right? But translation is actually a complex process. It is not a neutral activity, rather, it is affected by things like politics, power, and culture. This can be further evident depending on the material being translated. Word choices, language modifications that impact the author's meaning, and ideological pressures that can impact how a text should be perceived in a different language, among other choices, can either challenge or reinforce power structures.

Interested to know more about the politics of translation? Click on.

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Noted in her 'Translator's Preface' of a compilation of eighteenth-century Bengali poetry, Indian scholar Gayatri Spivak (pictured) notes that “translation is the most intimate act of reading.”

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British sociologist Michèle Barret states that translation takes on a “life of its own,” if we consider language to be a process of “meaning-construction.” Pictured is William Henry Fox Talbot's process of decoding ancient texts.

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Language is a tool that allows us to make sense of things. Therefore, there is great power in the choice of language in what is said—and not.

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If we think about how two people can read the same text and have different interpretations of its meaning, we can consider how complex the task of translation really is.

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Sometimes, we can oversimplify the act of translation to be a matter of simply switching words from one language to another, but by understanding the role of interpretation, we can begin to understand some of the complexities at hand.

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Spivak points to how some translators choose to use “logical systematicity” to translate language. Simply, this refers to emphasizing the logic structure of translation.

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What is at stake when translation is reduced to the logical? Meaning, when we make a literal translation of a word to a similar one in another language instead of trying to understand what is being said.

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What Spivak is specifically pointing to here is the rhetorical aspects of language; “between the original and its shadow.” When we are intimately familiar with a language, we can understand what is being said beyond just the words. Pictured are letters written in 1933 between writer Elio Vittorini to translator Lucia Rodocanachi.

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When considering what is being said (and not), we should consider the identities, not just of the author, but of the translator, and what can be implied.

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An author may infer from their writing certain truths that are situated in their identity and worldview, which may be in direct conflict with the truths and worldview of the translator. Pictured is Argentinian writer and translator Cesar Aira.

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An example includes elements like sexism or racist undertones that are rhetorical in the writer's work, to the translator, there may be a need to construct a method in which the rhetorical can be emphasized to understand the holistic meaning of a text. Pictured is the Dutch translation of Thomas Piketty's 'Capital.'

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For translators, this is often an intimidating challenge and task. There is a sense of exposing oneself in this form of interpretation. But it is also these nuances that bring a translation to life. Pictured is a projection of the English translation of Finnish-Estonian novelist Sofi Oksanen's work.

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Of course, there is also a risk when this situation is inverted, in which a translator’s lack of intimacy with a language (distance from the rhetorical, in this case), makes them unable to really grasp what is being said between the lines. Pictured are the winners of the 2000 LA Stage Special Ovation Awards for Best Writing: New Translation/Adaptation.

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In this way, a translation becomes very literal; a quick and repetitive exercise of searching for word-to-word similarities, in which the translator distances or eliminates the difficult aspects of translation. Pictured is the English translation of Japan's surrender during World War II.

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The quick versus difficult approaches to translation are something that Spivak points to repetitively. The latter approach requires time, a deeper engagement with the text that is being translated, and importantly, patience. Pictured is part of the 18th-century original manuscript of Alexander Pope's translation of Homer.

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Spivak also uses a theater analogy to demonstrate the difference between the easy translation and the more complex version.

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In the easy adaptation, the director of a play will not seek to interpret the text, direction, or set any more than what is written in the script. In the complex adaptation, the director will attempt to deepen their understanding of what the text is trying to evoke and design the set to meet that interpretation, provoking actors in a similar format.

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This is a powerful understanding of translation if we think of the act as a bridge between places, languages, and cultures. Authors like Zeynep Capan, Filipe dos Reis, and Maj Grasten consider translation as an act of international relations. Pictured is William Cowper's translation of the 'The Bellman Verses.'

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According to the authors, translation is a way to transform ideas, challenges, and notions, from one language into another. Through this interpretation of translation, the translator must act as the speaker, not as the external translator. Pictured is famed boxer Muhammad Ali holding a French translation of his book.

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British scholar Susan Bassnett points to how translation is not so much of a linguistic act, but rather “communication within and between cultures.” Pictured is Pakistan's former prime minister signing copies of the Urdu translation of his book.

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Through this interpretation of translation, Bassnett argues that the translator is in a “dominant position,” because their cultural identity is centered to creation “functional equivalence.” Pictured is Turkish actor and translator Haldun Dormen.

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In this sense, the translator holds a great deal of power, as they hold “the flexibility to rewrite or even break the literary form of the original.” Pictured is the Polish edition of slain Russian opposition leader, Alexei Navalny's book.

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Belgian translation theorist André Lefevere noted that translation is an act of “cultural rewriting.” According to Lefevere, it’s the act of rewriting that “keeps the original text alive” and generates the power of the text. Pictured is Ukrainian poet and translator Kateryna Mikhalitsyna.

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The challenge, rightly noted by researchers, is that political, social, and economic restraints constrain the rewriting of texts by translators. What does this mean? Complying with the ideologies of the time of translation. Pictured are writers and translators Ostap Slyvynskyi (far left) and Halyna Kruk (far right).

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A translator’s job is also to make a text palatable to readers. That means that there have to be adjustments to the original writing that make the text understandable to its target audience. Pictured is British-American author and translator Emily Wilson.

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This means that translators have to, in part, comply with or, at least, will be influenced by the ideologies of a particular time period and context. Pictured is author and translator Yigit Bener.

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The strategy and techniques employed by the translator, the why behind the translation itself, and the ideology of the society in which the translator’s readership lives, among other factors, are all important to understand as translation is an interactive, social experience. Pictured is translator Stefan Moster.

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There are many other avenues to consider when we think about translation. Whether it’s the influence of gendered language in how a text is formulated or the connotation of certain words (for example, 'publicity' in Chinese implies propaganda, while in the United States, 'publicity' can be viewed positively, in contrast with the term 'propaganda').

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Translators should be aware of how their choices impact what people ultimately understand. Their choices can impact how people see culture and history, holding a great deal of power. Pictured are author Jenny Erpenbeck and her award-winning book's translator, Michael Hofman.

Sources: (‘Outside in the teaching machine’) (Argo Translation) (‘The Politics of Translation in International Relations’) (‘Translation Studies’) (‘Translation, Rewriting and the Manipulation of Literary Fame’) (SHS Web of Conferences)