--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think translation is an impossible job…" description: "\"I think translation is an impossible job, and I admire the people who do it in a way that brings poetry to us that we wouldn't have access to.\" — Joan ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e40/joan-larkin-26192_access_i-think-translation-is-an-impossible-job_1118086.jpg" --- # I think translation is an impossible job, and I admire the… ![“I think translation is an impossible job, and I admire the people who do it in a way that brings poetry to us that we wouldn't have access to.” quote by Joan Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e40/joan-larkin-26192_access_i-think-translation-is-an-impossible-job_1118086.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e40/joan-larkin-26192_access_i-think-translation-is-an-impossible-job_1118086.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e40/joan-larkin-26192_access_i-think-translation-is-an-impossible-job_1118086.jpg) > “I think translation is an impossible job, and I admire the people who do it in a way that brings poetry to us that we wouldn't have access to.” [Joan Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-larkin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Translation is portrayed as a near-impossible task, yet some translators achieve poetic quality that would otherwise be inaccessible. **In simple terms:** Translators create poetic versions of foreign works. Key Takeaway Value the art of translation. Themes translation poetry language Mood appreciative inquisitive Type literary reflective When to use this quote - Literary translation - academic study - publishing - cross‑cultural communication Key Concepts Linguistic creativity cultural bridge interpretation Questions to Reflect On - What makes a translation feel poetic? - How do translators balance fidelity and artistry? A Different Perspective Not all translations succeed poetically. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Access](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/access/) [Admire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/admire/) [Brings Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brings-poetry-3011334/) [Impossible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impossible/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Poetry Wouldn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry-wouldn-1318806/) [Think Translation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-translation-3011333/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Translation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/translation/) [Translation Impossible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/translation-impossible-3011332/) [Translations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/translations/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [one reason why I like writing poetry - you can say so many things in it that are true in poetry but wouldn't be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-maud-montgomery/one-reason-why-i-like-writing-poetry-you-can-say-so-many-things-in-it/) [Lucy Maud Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-maud-montgomery/) > [I wrote poetry for seven or eight years, maybe longer, before I could say I was a poet. 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The casting, the choice of location, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/a-screenplay-is-really-an-instruction-manual-and-it-can-be/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [The translation process becomes a highly subjective thing - turning reds and blues into black-and-whiteness. It's really bizarre for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-longo/the-translation-process-becomes-a-highly-subjective-thing-turning/) [Robert Longo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-longo/) > [The translation called good has original value as a work of art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedetto-croce/the-translation-called-good-has-original-value-as-a-work-of-art/) [Benedetto Croce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedetto-croce/) > [“My goal is to act as a faithful interpreter, preserving as much of the original's nuances of meaning as possible without embellishment or omission.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/my-goal-is-to-act-as-a-faithful-interpreter-preserving-as-much-of-the/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [Drill in exact translation is an excellent way of disposing the mind against that looseness and exaggeration with which the sensationalists have corrupted our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/drill-in-exact-translation-is-an-excellent-way-of-disposing-the-mind/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) ## More by Joan Larkin > [Keep growing. Stay awake. Beware of gurus. Keep a low overhead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-larkin/keep-growing-stay-awake-beware-of-gurus-keep-a-low-overhead/) [Joan Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-larkin/) > [Spanish and English have such different music, and in my own poetry I feel much less drawn to fluid sounds than I do toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-larkin/spanish-and-english-have-such-different-music-and-in-my-own-poetry-i/) [Joan Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-larkin/) > [People need what they think of as a poem to be read at their bar mitzvah, their wedding, a funeral, whatever. 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