[Nyororin]

Originally Posted by steven

Okay, I see what you meant now. What you are saying about translated books is very interesting actually. If it were one or two books I'd attribute the phenomenon to the translator(s). It sounds like you've read quite a few though, so I think the idea that it's down to the translator(s) isn't a good one.

It is down to the translator in a lot of cases, but, well, there is a difference to the feeling when the translation is bad. It`s really hard for me to explain clearly, but a bad translation feels like a bad translation.

I'm wondering Nyororin, do you have any experience with comparing technical documents? Or historical documents or anything else that is less expressive by nature than literature?

Comparing those translated from a third language - not much. Usually if I`m reading something technical, it either started in English or in Japanese. (And about half the time I`m the one who has to translate it...)

However, with science related things, while I don`t feel that Japanese is unable to convey things - technical words have a tendency to follow the international standard. In other words, they are the "same" in English, Japanese, and most languages. In Japanese they`re just written in Katakana.
This can make technical documentation end up a literal maze of English word after English word, linked up in a Japanese grammatical structure.

But, in what I have seen of technical documentation in languages other than English and Japanese - the same thing is usually the case regardless of the country. I am wane to agree it is because Japanese isn`t suited for technical writing - every language doesn`t come up with their own version of "server" or "touch panel".

When it comese to historical documentation, what exactly do you mean? History books? Or contemporary documents? I have found neither to be stilted in any way. Contemporary documents are a pain to read though as they`re not modern, but that`s about it.

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I think this need for "truth" like a agent on X-Files is a little over-dramatic. None of us need the ultimate "truth" to function perfectly fine in our social interactions. We just need enough information to allow us to respond and proceed appropriately. Again, this is true both in Japanese and in English.

I`ll go a step further and say (speaking as a linguist here) that the perceived need for the details, such as the difference between dog/dogs when it doesn`t really matter in the conversation, is entirely cultural. I don`t really think that it has anything to do with the "truth". It has everything to do with what you are accustomed to hearing.
I know a woman who is a native French speaker. She has said that it seems so frustrating to her that there are no genders in English. Something large and important is missing. Literature is empty and dry - like a science paper. To her, they are necessary - without them, speech feels incomplete and less expressive.
To the native speaker of English, however, having a gender for each word seems completely unnecessary.