Transposition

To avoid falling into the trap of a literaltranslation (an exceedingly strict adherence tothe source text’s composition and grammaticalstructure), which is justifiable only in someisolated cases, we generally use a variety ofmethods. These are almost always doneautomatically, without knowing whichapproach we are using or what it is called. Oneof these strategies, which is quite useful whenwe cannot find the perfect structure to matchthe original, is:

Transpositiona style of translation

This is the process where parts of speech change their

sequence when they are translated. It is in a sense a shift

of word class. Grammatical structures are often different

in different languages. Transposition is often used

between English and Spanish because of the preferred

position of the verb in the sentence: English often has

the verb near the beginning of a sentence; Spanish can

have it closer to the end. This requires that the translator

knows that it is possible to replace a word category in

the target language without altering the meaning of the

source text.

For example:

In English Hand knitted (noun +

participle) becomes in Spanish Tejido

a mano (participle + adverbial phrase).

"She likes swimming" translates as

"Le gusta nadar" (not "nadando").

“El carro rojo” literally is “the car red”

as opposed to the correct translation

“the red car”.

Original in English: After he comes back.• Literal Spanish translation: Después de que élregrese.• Transposed Spanish translation: Después de suregreso.EQUIVALENCY: using a word whose meaning is a synonym of another word in the source.

Working with you is a pleasure → Trabajar

contigo… El trabajo contigo …

Tras su salida → after he’d gone out

There’s a reason for life → Hay una razón para

vivir

with government support → apoyado por el

gobierno

It’s getting dark → comienza a oscurecer

Techniques of transposition

Transposition

• Operates at the grammatical level• Consists of the replacement of a word class by another wordclass without changing the meaning.

Within the same language:

Reconstruction of the city is very importantReconstructing the city is very importantTo reconstruct the city is very important

Tu enojo me tiene sin cuidadoQue te enojes me tiene sin cuidado

(Back-translation: I don’t care about your anger.I don’t care about your getting angry.)

Enojo (noun) → enojes (verb)

Public servants should be held accountable for theirmanagement of public goods. →Debe responsabilizarse a los funcionarios públicos porel manejo de los bienes públicos.

Tips

• The use of the pronominal passive allows a renditionthat does not indicate the subject of the sentence, like inthe ST.

• From a stylistic view point the transposed expressiondoes not have the same value, but the meaning is thesame.

• Transposed expressions are generally more literary incharacter.

• It is important to choose the form that best fits thecontext.

Transposition can be:

Free: When the transposition used depends mostly oncontext and desired effect.

The course is of interest to all of us. → El curso nosinteresa a todos (nosotros). (Back-translation: Thecourse interests all of us)

Compulsory: When only a transposition is acceptable.

I will never forget the time when I got lost in themarket. → Nunca olvidaré la vez que me perdí en elmercado.

(Back-translation: I will never forget the time that I gotlost in the market.)

When (adverb) → que (relative pronoun)

Types of transposition

Adverb→ verbI only defended myself. → No hice sino defenderme(Back-translation → I did nothing but defend

myself.)

Adverb→ nounI wrote to you early this year. → Le escribí a

principios de año.(Back-translation → I wrote to you at the beginning

of the year)

Adverb→ adjectiveHe lives precariously → Lleva una vida precaria.(Back-translation → He leads a precarious life)

Adjective→ noun

He found it difficult to arrange for the tripTuvo dificultad en hacer los arreglos para el viaje(Back-translation → I had difficulty to make the

arrangemets for the trip)

Possessive adjective → definite articleYour hair is too long→ Tienes el cabello muy largo(Back-translation → Your have the hair too long)

Verb or past participle → nounI intended to tell you the whole truth. → Mi intención fue

(era) decirle toda la verdad.(Back-translation → My intention was to tell you the whole

truth.)

Adverb → nounI wrote to you early this year. → Le escribí a principios de

año.(Back-translation → wrote to you at the beginning of the

year.)

It is very important to understand that transposition means“replacing one word class with another withoutchanging the meaning of the message”.

Transposition concerns the changes of grammatical categoriesin translation. This procedure is the most frequent device used bytranslators, since it offers a variety of possibilities that helpavoiding the problem of untranslatability.

Besides, with this type of translation, misunderstanding andliterary translations can be avoided. In this, the translator caninterpret the content without changing the main idea from theoriginal text; whereby, it is comfortable because of the personcan use their own style to translate.