My First Research Digest: access to my latest notes and research
My First Research Digest: access to my latest notes and research
I first started this weekly update as an avenue to share the fruit of my research. Over the last three months, the process of condensing my thoughts into a short and digestible format has been incredibly rewarding. One of my original intentions, however, has not been fulfilled. You, my readers, have not gotten access to my detailed notes on the books and articles I have been reading. This week, I am changing that.
Instead of sending out condensed content every week, as I have been, I will alternate between a digest of my most recent research and sharing notes inspired by that research. The digests will highlight the best books and articles that I have read, the most important connections that I have made, and notes on biblical passages. Notes inspired by my research will continue to share thoughts on improving how we translate the Bible, communicate the Gospel, and disciple others. In short, I want to share the best ideas I read, as well as some I generate, so that you can do the best work possible.
Books, Articles, and Insights
Free resources make people happy. You have access to all the notes that I have taken on books and articles that I have recently read. Please use them to aid your own research! Since these are personal notes, I suggest that you use the page numbers in my notes to guide your own study. In other words, if you need to cite something, go ahead and read the books or articles for yourself. I hope that these notes can serve as a “reader’s digest” form so that you can decide what to read.
Translation Theory
Over the course of the semester, I have had the opportunity to read dozens of chapters and articles on translation theory. The following resources combine to form a wonderful introduction to modern translation studies, from its roots in functional equivalence (Waard and Nida) to modern cognitive accounts for translation (Katan).
- From One Language to Another by Waard and Nida (1984)
- This classic book was designed to introduce Bible translators to the basic challenges of Bible translation and how a “functional” (maximally communicative) approach to Bible translation can solve many issues.
- Introducing Translation Studies by Jeremy Munday (2016) and Translation: the Basics by Juliane House (2017)
- These books, true to their titles, introduce readers to the field of modern Translation Studies.
- Translation as Intercultural Communication by David Katan (2009)
- This book uses the lens of neuro linguistic programming (NLP) to discuss translation as an act of intercultural communication.
Top 5 Insights
Here is a list of my top five notes connecting one thought to another, or summarizing literature, that I have made recently:
- Translation can be a life or death issue – correct translation has been a life or death issue in legal and medical cases.
- Five circumstances for choosing functionally equivalent translations from Waard and Nida 1984 – this note discusses five times that Bible translators should opt for “functional” translations instead of “literal” ones.
- Untranslated insight does not benefit the audience – this note calls us to creatively capture all the meaning we can in a translation.
- Expressive Text Types Entails the Translation of the Aesthetic Forms, which covers all spoken language – the concept of “text types” from Katharina Reiss implies that primarily “expressive” texts (like many of the Psalms) should be translated into appropriate aesthetic and artistic forms.
- The translator’s understanding of the author’s intent influences translation approach – Waard and Nida give a useful perspective on how the translator’s perception of an author’s intent can directly influence the translation strategy.
Next Week:
I will continue the theme of tools useful for academic work that advances the Gospel with “I Love What I Used to Hate: Routines and Templates.”