| I don't really know what is like to read a Light Novel in English, because I usually read them in Japanese, but I've seen several translation, and they seem no where near as good as the originals. I know that some things just get "Lost in translation," but translated manga are still fun to read. Something about Light Novels are just not translatable, I guess... So for those of you who only read Light Novels in English, what do you think? |
 良い曲 // アスカ名言 ママ、ママ、わかったわ。ATフィールドの意味！！私を護っていてくれてる！私を見てくれてる！！ずっと、ずっと一緒だったのね！ママッ！！ 気持ち悪い |
| I don't see what's so untranslatable about shitty cliches, the majority of LNs aren't complex in language so it doesn't seem too difficult to translate apart from cultural references. Also translations like descriptions don't come across as vivid in about any translations to other languages, a common thing in literature in general not just LNs, it's difficult to translate a writing style that might be exclusive to a culture. Only complex ones like Boogiepop or Monogatari seem like they'd be much superior. |
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| i think out of the one light novel ive read my experience is positive lollll. ive tried maybe one or two chapters from others and i thought those were kinda bad because there are constant grammatical errors and sometimes sentence structure can be convoluted. i think its because the translators dont approach things from a literary perspective? i mean im not saying they should all be charles dickens but they should strive to attain that quality of work. often times the vocabulary in translations is lacking and it makes for a really dull read. |
| I love the Spice and Wolf novels. I've only got the first 8 volumes right now though. The translations are fine, but that's because it was licensed I guess(?) Well, it definitely keeps me entertained :) Noticing differences between the orginal and the translations isn't something I can notice anyways, since I can't even read the originals. I mean, what do you even want from us - if we read it then we most likely enjoy it..? Well, could just be me. |
A stupid thread deserves a stupid answer!  |
| I've read several light novels in English and as someone who doesn't know Japanese it is hard to tell what you are missing. It also depends on the translator's skills also. A translator with who is generally more knowledgeable (or more willing to do research) and with a massive vocab can make a big difference. A good example (if a non-novel, non-Japanese case) is the sword Ragnarok in Noblesse. For a good chunk of the translation the sword was something stupid like Lagnarock. But anyone with some knowledge would know they they almost certainly meant Ragnarok instead. Or the Ys games make a good example of this. A lot of the older games mistranslates the name of things and places because who ever translated wasn't family with the lore it was based on. The other problem when it comes to light novels it is hard to tell if it is an issue with the translator or if it is a problem with the writer in the first place. It's been a long time but I remember the first Vampire Hunter D novel using the word miasma incessantly. But someone who doesn't know the original Japanese text it is hard to tell if the original author was just hung up on the word or the translator couldn't think of anything else. In the end I've enjoyed the light novel I've read and I've never left one feeling like I was missing something (weather I was or not). |
| Every one I've read has been terrible, including Utsuro no Hako to Zero no Maria, which people insist is a masterpiece. |
| HELL YES. Maybe you should be an editor and make translations better. |
wataru99 said: I don't really know what is like to read a Light Novel in English, because I usually read them in Japanese, but I've seen several translation, and they seem no where near as good as the originals. I know that some things just get "Lost in translation," but translated manga are still fun to read. Something about Light Novels are just not translatable, I guess... So for those of you who only read Light Novels in English, what do you think? Light novels, unlike manga, take a good deal of skill as a writer to translate in such a way that it flows well in English without losing any of its meaning (and we're not just talking about rearranging sentences so they work grammatically in English...). If you're reading fan translations then, for obvious reasons, a lot of fan translators just don't have those skills, or they somehow lose them when they are focused on translating something. Or they're too concerned with getting it out quickly to actually put the effort in. Professional translators are better on the whole - to the point where (outside the occasional typo) my gripes are for the most part along the lines of them changing measurements of things to the system Americans use... which of course rids it of any meaning for anyone who isn't used to fluid ounces and farenheit. There have been a few passages that have been slightly garbled, though - mostly in The Rising of the Shield Hero (this didn't stop me enjoying the read, though). For the most part I can get fully engrossed in reading them in English, and they still seem fine when I compare them line-by-line with the original on the few occasions that I have done this. Even so, though, if you're able to read and understand Japanese fluently enough that you don't lose meaning from things you don't get (including idioms and the like as well as unfamiliar words or kanji) then you would still get more out of reading the original, for obvious reasons. |
| There is no such thing as shit taste. Only idiots who think everyone should have the same taste as they do. |
| I can't read Japanese, so I read English translations, both fan and official. |
My Queens  |
| If I can find in English, I'll read. If not... I'm scrwed. But hey, even if it's not the best translation: 1) I can't know it. 2) They try their best. |
 |
| I love me some good light novels. If there isn't an English translation I get depressed :(. |
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