Mouse or Rat?: Translation as Negotiation [Hardcover]

Professor of semiotics, essayist and world-renowned novelist Umberto Eco's Mouse or Rat? Translation as Negotiation is based on a series of lectures on the art of translation. Strictly speaking this is a specialist book, of interest mainly to students and practitioners of translation and in that regard the book will probably become standard. While the book is accessible to the interested novice it would be a mistake to think that the essays produced here will have the broad appeal of his 2002 book of essays Five Moral Pieces. The general lesson here is that translation is negotiation between the translator, the reader and the original author, and how enormously difficult the translating process is. The professional translator must not only have an understanding of two languages, but of differences in culture and a keen attentiveness to the style, rhythm and tone of language if the overall texture and meaning of the text is to be preserved.

The book is effectively an instruction manual for translators and a personal record of Eco's own virtuoso translating performances. The solemn duty of the translator is to give every line, every last word loving devoted pious attention in order to recreate the unique voice of the original author. In short, translation is not only an exacting science but an art and the translator's heart must be motivated by what Eco calls "faithfulness". The essays are littered with concrete examples offering practical guidance but at the same time they are full of Eco's philosophical and theoretical musings in relation to his subject. This is an indispensable text for those in the translation business, but the general reader may find it a dense and difficult, although a highly educative read. --Larry Brown

Eco's book is an entertaining, fluid tour around the problems that arise from the awkward fit between the world's languages (Alain De Botton THE TIMES )

A stimulating and rather charming book. (SUNDAY TELEGRAPH )

His witty sense of humour, combined with his knowledge has rooted the book in the "practical problems" of translation and their solutions. (IRISH TIMES )

Reading Eco's fascinating study of the machinery that brings literatures across languages is an instructive addition to the pleasure of reading them. (Ac Grayling FINANCIAL TIMES )

A blasting display of wilful complexity... a vibrant and stenuous treatment of a fascinating subject. (THE OBSERVER )

"A stimulating and rather charming book."

"A blasting display of wilful complexity... a vibrant and stenuous treatment of a fascinating subject."

"His witty sense of humour, combined with his knowledge has rooted the book in the "practical problems" of translation and their solutions."

A dazzlingly erudite demonstration, by one of the world's most brilliant thinkers, of how mistranslations can affect culture, politics and art.

Based on a series of lectures on translation these essays are thought-provoking and compelling discussions on the difficulties of translating faithfully. Using examples from classic literary texts including his own bestselling novels Eco examines the rights and wrongs, the misunderstandings and the 'negotiations' needed in order to translate. He examines various problems in translation with great wit and humour. Pointing out the pitfalls of literal translation, he asks a machine to translate the beginning of the Bible into Spanish then back into English, then into German and then again back into English. The result is very funny but as Eco points out, it is still vaguely recognisable as a version of the Bible and obviously not the first adventure of Harry Potter. He discusses every form of interpretation and expression from poetry to film and music always demonstrating with vivid examples the disastrous but often hilarious outcome of mistranslation.The main point of all these essays is that translation is always a matter of negotiation; whether it be a loss or a gain on either side a translator's job is to decide what elements are vital and which may be neglected.

A dazzlingly erudite demonstration, by one of the world's most brilliant thinkers, of how mistranslations can affect culture, politics and art. Based on a series of lectures on translation these essays are thought-provoking and compelling discussions on the difficulties of translating faithfully. Using examples from classic literary texts including his own bestselling novels Eco examines the rights and wrongs, the misunderstandings and the 'negotiations' needed in order to translate. One of the most obvious of these is in Italian translations of Hamlet. Where Hamlet, on hearing Polonius behind the arras, cries out: A rat!, the Italian Hamlet's cry is: A mouse! There is a very good reason for this... With great wit and humour, in examining various translations, Eco demonstrates how these negotiations are made. Illuminating the pitfalls of literal translation, he asks a machine to translate an excerpt from the Bible into Spanish then back into English, then into German and then again back into English. The result is hilarious but as Eco points out, it is still vaguely recognisable as a version of the Bible and obviously not the first adventure of Harry Potter. Accessible to everyone, these essays should also be a requisite for any student of translation. £12.99 in UK only

Umberto Eco is Professor of Semiotics at the University of Bologna and holds Honorary Doctorates at more than 20 Universities, from Jerusalem to Buenos Aires.