--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The translator's task is to create, in…" description: "\"The translator's task is to create, in his or her own language, the same tensions appearing in the original. That's hard!\" — Manuel Puig" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16d/manuel-puig-9471_appearing_the-translator-s-task-is-to-create-in-hi_2380695.jpg" --- # The translator's task is to create, in his or her own… ![“The translator's task is to create, in his or her own language, the same tensions appearing in the original. That's hard!” quote by Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16d/manuel-puig-9471_appearing_the-translator-s-task-is-to-create-in-hi_2380695.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16d/manuel-puig-9471_appearing_the-translator-s-task-is-to-create-in-hi_2380695.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16d/manuel-puig-9471_appearing_the-translator-s-task-is-to-create-in-hi_2380695.jpg) > “The translator's task is to create, in his or her own language, the same tensions appearing in the original. That's hard!” [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A translator must recreate the original's emotional and cultural tensions in a new language, a demanding creative act. **In simple terms:** Translating means preserving the original's feel. Key Takeaway Preserve original tension when translating. Themes translation language artistry Mood analytical thoughtful Type literary educational When to use this quote - literary translation - film subtitles - interpretive work - cross‑cultural communication Key Concepts linguistics cultural theory creativity Questions to Reflect On - What strategies help retain tension in translation? - When does adaptation outweigh literal fidelity? A Different Perspective Exact equivalence is often impossible across languages. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Appearing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appearing/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Language Tensions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language-tensions-5895889/) [Tasks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tasks/) [Tension](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tension/) [Tensions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tensions/) [Tensions Appearing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tensions-appearing-5895890/) [Translation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/translation/) [Translator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/translator/) [Translator Task](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/translator-task-3481025/) [Translators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/translators/) ## Related quotes > [“The translator's task is essentially a difficult and often a thankless one. He is severely criticized if he makes a mistake, but only faintly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-a-nida/the-translator-s-task-is-essentially-a-difficult-and-often-a/) [Eugene A. Nida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-a-nida/) > [I think that if you are sticking to the text, essentially, you're not trying to write your own version of it. I mean, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-goldstein/i-think-that-if-you-are-sticking-to-the-text-essentially-you-re-not/) [Ann Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-goldstein/) > [I have always maintained that translation is essentially the closest reading one can possibly give a text. The translator cannot ignore "lesser" words, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-rabassa/i-have-always-maintained-that-translation-is-essentially-the-closest/) [Gregory Rabassa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-rabassa/) > [I think every translator would tell you that when they look back at a poem they have translated, they want to pencil in changes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-lee-kercheval/i-think-every-translator-would-tell-you-that-when-they-look-back-at-a/) [Jesse Lee Kercheval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-lee-kercheval/) > [Thomas Teal, a luminous translator of Jansson's twin talent for surface and depth, simplicity and reverberation in language, and someone who knows exactly how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-smith/thomas-teal-a-luminous-translator-of-jansson-s-twin-talent-for/) [Ali Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-smith/) > [It's important to get a translator who will ask the questions in a sensitive and thoughtful way. Knowing the ethnicity issues, the tribal issues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-menzel/it-s-important-to-get-a-translator-who-will-ask-the-questions-in-a/) [Peter Menzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-menzel/) > [It seems more than likely that the translating of poetry is going to rub off on the translator if he or she is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-padgett/it-seems-more-than-likely-that-the-translating-of-poetry-is-going-to/) [Ron Padgett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-padgett/) > [Even a poor translator couldn't kill a style that moves with such narrative clarity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/even-a-poor-translator-couldn-t-kill-a-style-that-moves-with-such/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [A poet is the translator of the silent language of nature to the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rufus-wilmot-griswold/a-poet-is-the-translator-of-the-silent-language-of-nature-to-the-world/) [Rufus Wilmot Griswold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rufus-wilmot-griswold/) > [I think that being an editor, someone who works with words, is very good training for being a translator because it trains you to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-goldstein/i-think-that-being-an-editor-someone-who-works-with-words-is-very/) [Ann Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-goldstein/) > [the translator, a lonely sort of acrobat, becomes confused in a labyrinth of paradox, or climbs a pyramid of dependent clauses and has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-davis/the-translator-a-lonely-sort-of-acrobat-becomes-confused-in-a/) [Lydia Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-davis/) > [Please, never despise the translator. He's the mailman of human civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pushkin/please-never-despise-the-translator-he-s-the-mailman-of-human/) [Alexander Pushkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pushkin/) > [What is the task of the translator? I think the task depends on the book and on the translator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idra-novey/what-is-the-task-of-the-translator-i-think-the-task-depends-on-the/) [Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) > [A translator is essentially a reader and we all read differently, except that a translator's reading remains in unchanging print](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-rabassa/a-translator-is-essentially-a-reader-and-we-all-read-differently/) [Gregory Rabassa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-rabassa/) > [A satisfactory translation is not always possible, but a good translator is never satisfied with it. It can usually be improved. (Newmark)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-newmark/a-satisfactory-translation-is-not-always-possible-but-a-good/) [Peter Newmark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-newmark/) ## More by Manuel Puig > [I think cinema is closer to allegories than to reality. It's closer to our dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/i-think-cinema-is-closer-to-allegories-than-to-reality-it-s-closer-to/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [If it's great stuff, the people who consume it are nourished. It's a positive force.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/if-it-s-great-stuff-the-people-who-consume-it-are-nourished-it-s-a/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [What's better, a poetic intuition or an intellectual work? I think they complement each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/what-s-better-a-poetic-intuition-or-an-intellectual-work-i-think-they/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [Modern American cinema seems to me superficial. The intention is to understand a certain reality, and the result is nothing but a photographing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/modern-american-cinema-seems-to-me-superficial-the-intention-is-to/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [Contrary to what Kafka does, I always like to refer all of my fictions to the level of reality, He, on the other hand,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/contrary-to-what-kafka-does-i-always-like-to-refer-all-of-my-fictions/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [I've always wondered why there isn't a great French novel about the German occupation. The nouveau roman authors weren't interested in telling that sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/i-ve-always-wondered-why-there-isn-t-a-great-french-novel-about-the/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [I do believe that reading can help you understand what you're writing and see what others are doing. But sometimes the desire for more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/i-do-believe-that-reading-can-help-you-understand-what-you-re-writing/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [Writers are not meant for action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/writers-are-not-meant-for-action/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [I don't have traceable literary models because I haven't had great literary influences in my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/i-don-t-have-traceable-literary-models-because-i-haven-t-had-great/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [For someone who writes fiction, in order to activate the imagination and the unconscious, it's essential to be free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/for-someone-who-writes-fiction-in-order-to-activate-the-imagination/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [If a spectator with a philosophical mind, somebody accustomed to reading books, gets the same kind of information in a movie, he might not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/if-a-spectator-with-a-philosophical-mind-somebody-accustomed-to/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [What better model of a synthesis than a nocturnal dream? Dreams simplify, don't they?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/what-better-model-of-a-synthesis-than-a-nocturnal-dream-dreams/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [Hitchcock makes it very clear to us. There's an objective and a subjective camera, like there's a third- and a first-person narrator in literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/hitchcock-makes-it-very-clear-to-us-there-s-an-objective-and-a/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [Whenever I write, I'm always thinking of the reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/whenever-i-write-i-m-always-thinking-of-the-reader/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [I only understand realism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/i-only-understand-realism/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) [Explore all 66 Manuel Puig quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) ## More Appearing quotes > [I even see the cinema itself as a woman, with its alternation of light and darkness, of appearing and disappearing images](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/federico-fellini/i-even-see-the-cinema-itself-as-a-woman-with-its-alternation-of-light/) [Federico Fellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/federico-fellini/) > [I find it profoundly symbolic that I am appearing before a committee of fifteen men who will report to a legislative body of one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/letty-cottin-pogrebin/i-find-it-profoundly-symbolic-that-i-am-appearing-before-a-committee/) [Letty Cottin Pogrebin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/letty-cottin-pogrebin/) > [Acting is not a state of being ... but a state of appearing to be. You can't be eight times a week without going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-coward/acting-is-not-a-state-of-being-but-a-state-of-appearing-to-be-you-can/) [Noel Coward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-coward/) > [We owe America something because they turned us into a touring band. But at least we feel confident about appearing in Britain again now.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-marriott/we-owe-america-something-because-they-turned-us-into-a-touring-band/) [Steve Marriott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-marriott/) > [I stopped appearing as Dracula in 1972 because in my opinion the presentation of the character had deteriorated to such an extent, particularly bringing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-lee/i-stopped-appearing-as-dracula-in-1972-because-in-my-opinion-the/) [Christopher Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-lee/) > [It was 1988, I believe, that I met Grit. 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Law sends questions back to equity; Law finds it can't do this, equity finds it can't do that; neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/equity-sends-questions-to-law-law-sends-questions-back-to-equity-law/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [Layering in different patterns will keep things from appearing too studied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate-berkus/layering-in-different-patterns-will-keep-things-from-appearing-too/) [Nate Berkus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate-berkus/) > [Barbra Streisand developed overwhelming performance anxiety at the height of her career; for 27 years she refused to perform for the general public, appearing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-stossel/barbra-streisand-developed-overwhelming-performance-anxiety-at-the/) [Scott Stossel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-stossel/) > [How many people become abstract as a way of appearing profound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joubert/how-many-people-become-abstract-as-a-way-of-appearing-profound/) [Joseph Joubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-joubert/) > [I have often seen a cat without a grin - but a grin without a cat - remember the cat kept appearing and disappearing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/i-have-often-seen-a-cat-without-a-grin-but-a-grin-without-a-cat/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [We feel a lot of pressure about looking silly or appearing weak, whatever that means, or being a failure. 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