Why Trump’s comments are an ‘impossible’ translation service

Unless you have been living under a rock these past months you probably have heard the rather explosive and sometimes tedious popularity contest that is the US presidential election race. The Presidential election race, for those who may not know is mainly contested between 2 polarising parties the left-winged Democrats who have selected former first lady Hilary Clinton as their leader and the right-winged Republicans which is led by American billionaire businessman Donald Trump, who if you don’t know is a straight talker to put it mildly. This blunt and abrasive way of speaking that Donald Trump employs can either make you love or hate him and one set of people who fall into the latter category, other than Democrats are those who offer translations services.

Translators and interpreters across the world who are there to keep their respective nations up to date on what is one of the most widely publicised presidential debates of any country to date are finding themselves in a bit of a bother when it comes to providing a fast translation service of Trump’s speeches in their native tongues. As if translating political affairs into other languages isn’t sensitive and tricky enough, translators have to deal with Trump’s unorthodox way of speaking which could sometimes yield some interesting results.

One twitter user @tylerantichrist commented on an interpreter providing German translation services on a German radio show for the elections that she felt sorry for the interpreter as he had explained his friends teased him because he had to first emphasise with Trump in order to quickly translate his comments into German.

There is also an example on The Huffington Post showing trump’s misogynistic and offensive language which has had a Mandarin translation which actually makes him sound worse. The words that have been translated makes his comments sound even more sexist and sometimes racist in other languages. On the other hand when some of his harsh and brash comments are translated into other languages it sometimes has the reverse effect and makes his tone sound softer when his intentions may be otherwise. For instance he was criticised and mocked for rudely interrupting and shouting “Wrong!” but when translated into Spanish “Es falso” which means that is not true actually made him sound civil.

With less than two weeks to go until America elects a new president, whether its Hilary or Donald, whether you love or hate Donald Trump, you can’t say he’s not entertaining.

Image credit: Gage Skidmore

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