Tactful Translation: Difference between revisions

{{quote|''"I was soon relieved of my position. I had an unfortunate tendency to tell the truth in a country where no one ever says what they mean. So now I [[Exact Words|very accurately]] translate other people's lies."''|'''Simon Graham''' describes being a translator in ''[[The Last Samurai]]''}}

It often happens that in international business, politics, or two sides meeting before a battle, that a translator is needed for the two (or more) sides to understand each other. It just as often happens that one side will either intentionally or unintentionally say something insulting, offensive, personally distasteful to someone on the other side, engage in a bit of [[Cultural Posturing]], or make an [[Cut His Heart Out with a Spoon|outright threat]] that would either sabotage the talks or needlessly aggravate the other side. As the translator what do you do? Do you repeat all that accurately and maybe end any chance of agreement, not to mention possibly pissing off your boss? ([[You Have Failed Me...|Generally not a good idea]] if you happen to be translating for the [[Big Bad]], by the way.)

Often winds up looking like a case of [[Translation: "Yes"]]. May be the job of a [[Completely Unnecessary Translator]]. Contrast [[Translation with an Agenda]], which can turn out to be the polar opposite of this trope.

* An episode of ''[[Full Metal Panic!]]? Fumoffu'' features a 'negotiation' session between Sousuke, an ex-mujaheddin [[Child Soldier]] who tends to speak in [[Spock Speak]], and a [[Delinquent]] representing a gang who's kidnapped one of his friends. Sousuke is unable to understand the thug's street jargon and extremely heavy accent, prompting the [[Student Council President]] to step in and calmly translate it into [[Spock Speak]]. The show then goes on to invert the trope when Sousuke's equally formal reply flies right over the thug's head -- sohead—so the [[Student Council President]] ''translates it into a series of crude threats completely deadpan, using the exact same tone of voice he used when doing the formal translation''.

'''Translator''' (in [[Translation Convention|English (Russian)]]): "Sir, this woman respectfully requests you release her husband."<br />

'''Tank Commander''': "Ask him where the rebels are."<br />

'''Villager''': "Mujahadeen are all around you! They will kill every one of you!"<br />

'''Translator''': "He says he doesn't know."<br />

'''[[Da Chief|High Ranking Police Boss]]''': "WHAT did you say?"<br />

'''Charlie''': "He means 'a tough motherfucker'."<br />

* A Soviet joke, that goes like this: an Italian movie has been translated into Russian. The very first scene gives us an angry naked woman lying on the bed and an embarassed naked man who is quickly getting dressed.

** In an earlier book by the same author, ''Windhaven'', someone is ''executed'' for doing this. She was carrying very rude verbal messages between two places at risk of war, and made them a bit more polite. When her employer found out he had her killed, and though he was removed from his position for insanity shortly thereafter, he was considered within his rights to do so. They take the job of delivering the exact message seriously.

* The title character in ''[[Mara Daughter of the Nile]]'' tries to do this when the first meeting between the king and the foreign princess he is betrothed to doesn't go so well. Unfortunately for Mara, she forgot that the king also speaks Babylonian.

'''Shizune''': ''(signing)'' [How [[Sarcasm Mode|magnanimous]] of you, Lilly.]<br />

'''Hisao''': Shizune says you should at least try. It might turn out to be fun.<br />

** A gangster takes a translator to visit the shop of a man, whose brother has just died. He had taken money from the gangster and hid it away somewhere - and the gangster assumed he had told his only living relative, his brother. But the brother only spoke Italian, you see, which is why a translator was needed.<br /><br />When the two got to the shop, the gangster asks the translator to translate everything exactly - so he does. "Do you know where your brother hid our money?", the gangster asks, and the man answers "No." This goes on for a while, the translator pausing to make sure he has everything correct before he translates. Eventually, getting fed-up, the gangster pulls out his gun and snarls. "Listen, if you don't tell me where that money is, I'll shoot you in the head!" The translator tells the man this, who confesses; it's in the back-yard of his house, beneath the apple tree, and the gangster can have it back; he doesn't need it!<br /><br />The translator pauses, and says, "He says you don't have the balls to shoot him, boss."

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