The Dream?

The American Dream.  People from all around the world migrate the the land of opportunity to pursue a life of happiness.

The American Dream consists of a job, a white picket fence, happiness, and the freedom to make choices that will make one happy.  But I think the actual idea is the pursue of true happiness.  Everyone wants to be happy.  I don't have a doubt in my mind that people leave their countries to come to this one without a dream of being happy and the vision of the opportunity to be happy in the United States of America.

Wealth covers a wide range of ideas.  One could have material wealth and own all of the fancy products in the world, they could have vast emotional wealth and have all of the happiness in the world, or they could have both.  I think it is very difficult to obtain wealth from both sides of the spectrum.  I think the pursue of material wealth is more prominent in today's society as it is assumed that money = happiness.

As a society, I believe we focus on the rich and choose to forget about the impoverished.  We glorify the rich through the media, such as television and magazines.  We watch shows television shows about people who are famous for their wealth and not their talent.  I am not upset at giving a lot of attention to people who deserve it, whether through a successful acting or athletic career, but, as stated previously, I am upset that we give attention to those who have not earned it.  I believe that we need to give more attention to the little things we all do.

Poverty is kind of swept underneath the rug, in my opinion.  Nobody wants to identify the fact that we have poverty within the United States.  The issue of poverty is not as glamorous as Kim Kardashian having a baby, but it what matters most, the happiness of many, or one person having a baby?  Happiness is a part of the American Dream.  And if everyone pursues happiness in a way that does not infringe upon the happiness of others, then I do not see a problem with everyone being happy.

Different Translations, Different Messages

Below is the first line of Franz Kafka's novella Metamorphosis:

Als Gregor Samsa eines Morgens aus unruhigen Träumen erwachte, fand er sich in seinem 

Bett zu einem ungeheuren Ungeziefer verwandelt.

When translated into English from German from a variety of people, it is found that there are a variety of ways to translate it.  These are all translated from the same German line, but how do they differ?  

(I used one the first Google image that came up when I searched the phrase about the kind of insect he turned into.)

#1:As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.

• The use of the words "gigantic insect" really stood out to me.  With those words I think of a more grotesque creature, rather than a cute little lady bug.  
• The subject is placed very early in the translation.
• Puts "one morning" before "uneasy dreams," which places emphasis on the morning rather than the dreams
• "Transformed":  A complete, dramatic change.  Implies a complete change.

#2:Gregory Samsa woke from uneasy dreams one morning to find himself changed into a giant bug.

• Use of "giant bug" makes me think of a large, cute, and innocent creature (although Google Images doesn't quite agree with me).
• Uneasy dreams implies that the dreams are not so terrible.
• It puts "uneasy dreams" before "one morning" which places emphasis on the dreams rather than the morning.
• The subject is placed very early in this translation.
• "Changed":  To become different.  Implies something small was altered.

#3:When Gregor Samsa awoke from troubled dreams one morning he found he had been transformed in his bed into an enormous bug.

• This sentence didn't make sense to me the first time I read it.  I believe this is due to the excessive use of the pronoun "he."
• The excerpt used "enormous bug" which made me think of a large cute bug, a not as scary stimulus (Google Images pulled through this time around).
• "Troubled dreams" makes it sound like his dreams were far from pleasant.  
• The subject is placed in the early portion of the translation.
• "Transformation"

#4:One morning, upon awakening from agitated dreams, Gregor Samsa found himself, in his bed, transformed into a monstrous vermin.

• The other translations used "awoke" or "woke" to describe Samsa's ascension into consciousness, and this one used "upon awakening."  Upon awakening makes the action seem more synthetic rather than natural.  
• Also, the use of "monstrous vermin" is very ambiguous.  Whenever I think of a vermin, I think of a rat, but it could be any range of any pest.  
• The use of Samsa's name later in the excerpt makes the audience work a little harder for the name of the character, and builds a small bit of tension.
• Agitated dreams makes the slumber sound annoyed.
• When compared to the other translations, this translation has a different structure.

All of the lines mean the same thing.  The man, Gregor Samsa, had bad dreams before he woke up as an insect.  Bug has a more positive connotation than vermin or insect.  I thought of dreams like waves in the ocean:  uneasy waves are preferable to troubled and agitated dreams.  This made more of a not-as-negative-connotation when "uneasy" was used.  When the use of simpler words was applied, the connotation was not as negative when more complex words were used.  Because I don't know German, I won't know the correct words to use, but I do know that the sounds the sentence makes suggests that there would be a more gentle tone in the translation.

In order to translate a passage with the most accuracy, one must transfer the tone as well as the meaning of the passage in order to give the audience the most authentic reading experience as possible.  This encompasses the idea that there is no perfect translation of literary works, unless one is proficient in both of the languages involved.  There are even some words that don't exist in certain languages, as explained by this NPR story.  There is also a rhythm in which a sentence is structured, and translations need to consider the priorities.  What is the most important?  Rhythm?  Literal meaning of words?  Tone?

A lot is lost in translation.  A viable solution I propose is to just to become fluent in all of the languages.