The Importance of Translation

#1: Gregory Samsa woke from uneasy dreams one morning to find himself changed into a giant bug.

- Diction: "uneasy" - there is an uncomfortable feeling 
- Syntax: one thought in the sentence
- Imagery: "giant bug" - pictured as a large insect
- Details: "find himself" - it is perceived as if this was an unexpected event
- Structure: flows as a sentence

#2: When Gregor Samsa awoke from troubled dreams one morning he found he had been transformed in his bed into an enormous bug.

- Diction: "troubled" - there is a problem with his dreams
- Syntax: no comma makes the sentence structure smooth
- Imagery: "enormous" - a very large bug.  bigger than a giant bug
- Details: "transformed" - a process, rather than just a change
- Structure: one thought

#3: As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.

- Diction: "uneasy" "transformed"
- Syntax: builds up suspense as the sentence goes
- Imagery: "gigantic" - a very, very large bug
- Details: "transformed" - a process, not a change
- Structure: flowing sentence

#4: One morning, upon awakening from agitated dreams, Gregor Samsa found himself, in his bed, transformed into a monstrous vermin.

- Diction: transformed - a process, rather than just a change
- Syntax: the use of commas
- Imagery: "monstrous" - bad, evil
- Details: "one morning" - an unexpected and random morning
- Structure: comma break adds detail "upon...dreams"

      When referring to literature, the choice and use of words play an immense role, also known as diction.  Different words have slightly different context, all meaning different versions of one big idea.  When writing, an author uses these words to portray a specific mood, feeling, tone or emotion.  An example would be saying "scared" vs. "frightened"; while both of these words portray a startled feeling, using scared is less intense than frightened, creating a different effect while reading and interpreting the situation.  Word choice is important, but the placement of words in a sentence plays just as big of a role.  An example would be "I miss you" and "miss ya"; while both of these examples are conveying the idea of one being missed, the first is much more formal and sincere than the second phrase. 

     The translations above are examples of how diction can change the way a thought or idea is perceived.  There are also many other influences, such as syntax, punctuation, and imagery.  All of these stylistic features can change the way a reader interprets the writing from the author.  I do not believe that one of these tactics are more effective than another, due to the fact that it greatly depends on the reader/writer and point/effect is trying to be created.  After looking at these translations, it is evident that translated texts come with great difficulty; the difficulty of translated texts is that there can be many interpretations, and with the use of slightly different word choice and structure, it can change the meaning and become perceived in a way that was not intended by the author.  A translation can also change the tone by through the use of different words and word placement, veering away from the purpose of the original text.  Translations can be different in many ways, such as diction, syntax, imagery, tone, mood, and create difficulty for the reader as translated texts may not have the same effect as the original text.