French Translator: Dispelling the Myths

One of the facts of life of being a French translator, and perhaps one of the greatest sources of irritation, is the number of myths, misconceptions and misunderstandings that are surround the profession.

Some of these are misconceptions on the part of the general public – perhaps there isn’t much we can do about these!   Others are misunderstandings by people who perhaps need to know better such as translation clients!

Wrong ideas held by the public:

• Anyone who speaks two or more languages can be a French translator, can’t they?  No.  This of course is one of the most common mistakes.  In fact it is something that would-be translators themselves often think before they actually get started in the job.  People are amazed on finding out the very high level of skill and specialist knowledge required to be a French translator, with absolute precision in both languages an absolute must.
• It’s all done by computers nowadays, isn’t it?  No. It’s true that about 20 years ago a type of computer program was developed that could roughly translate a passage by substituting one term in the source text by a target language term in its database.  However, anyone who has tried to use one of these knows how abysmally unsatisfactory some of them can be.  In some cases, the term used is totally incorrect in the context and the result can be gibberish.  More recently, more sophisticated programs have been developed – these are not MT (machine translation) programs but CAT (computer aided translation) programs.  That is, they don’t claim to do the translation for you, but to help you do the translation.  Some of these are translation memory programs which use a memory database to provide versions of previously translated passages.  These can be very helpful in increasing the speed and efficiency of the translation process.  However, only a human being can judge whether a passage is appropriate in that context.  So you will always need French translators to do French translation!
• Translation and interpreting are the same thing, aren’t they?  No! It’s true that the terms “translation” and “translator” are often loosely used to include “interpreting” and “interpreter”.  It’s also true that some agencies advertise their personnel as being able to do both.  However, the two are quite different tasks and require quite different skill sets.  An interpreter works with the spoken language.  He or she will usually either be required to interpret between two or more parties in a conversation, one speaking one language and one the other, or to do simultaneous interpretation at a conference, or a session of a body such as the European Parliament.  Interpreting certainly requires a very high level of skill, and complete ease in the speaking and understanding of at least two languages, but it is quite different from translating.  An interpreter may sometimes be asked to write or translate a letter for a client, but generally their work is oral, not written, whereas a French translator works with written material.  Certainly an agency can provide both services, but they should be employing different people for the two different requirements! So if you find an agency claiming that the same personnel can provide both services, go somewhere else. 

These fallacies are mildly irritating for French translators, but don’t affect their work too much.  The misconceptions held by clients, or by prospective users of a translation service, can be much more alarming!
 

Misconceptions often held by clients:

• If you can translate from French to English, you can translate from English to French.  Wrong.  A professional translator will never claim to translate in both directions.  Either you are a French-English translator or you are an English-French translator.  The general rule is that translators translate only into their native language, although it is more accurate to say they translate into their dominant language or ‘A’ language – this is usually their native language but not always.  A very few people are truly bilingual – that is, they have an absolutely equal ability in two languages – but this is very rare.  If someone has grown up using two languages equally, the result is often actually that they have a less than complete mastery of either language.
• A French translator needs hardly any time to produce a perfect translation.  Wrong. This can be one of the most frustrating fallacies of all.  Most translators have had the experience of having a client turn up waving a 20,000-word document and wanting it translated by the next day.  He/she looks disbelieving when told how much time is actually required.  This, of course, stems from the ignorance of the general public about what the translation task actually involves (and sometimes results in clients being less than enthusiastic about paying the rate for the job!)  It is not a good idea for a French translator to try to meet these unrealistic deadlines: 

• The translation is virtually bound to be substandard and won’t be good for the reputation of the translator or the agency.
• It will reinforce the client’s unrealistic perceptions and undermine other translators.

• Translators translate into their native language, so any native speaker of a language can be a translator.  Wrong. This certainly doesn’t follow.  Many people actually have a very inadequate command of, or education in, their own language, and certainly would not be capable of producing a professional translation into it.  Besides, there are so many other skills and abilities required to be a French translator – being a native speaker of the language is a necessary but not a sufficient qualification. 
• Translators can translate any subject matter as long as they know the language. Wrong.  Some French translators will say they can handle any subject matter but the work they do won’t be of high quality.  Translators need to specialise in a particular subject or subject area, so that they can really understand the material in depth.  They need to keep up to date with new trends and discoveries in the subject area and with new terminology in both languages
• Translation is cheap.  Wrong.  A translator has a rate for the job and a highly skilled and experienced French translator will quite rightly charge more.  Clients sometimes try to haggle with translators over charges, or will ask several translators to bid on the same job so that they can take the cheapest offer.  But you get what you pay for.   If clients are only willing to pay the lowest price, they won’t get good quality translation.