Monday 8 June 2020

The Shallowness of Google Translate (2018)



A superb piece in The Atlantic by the excellent Douglas Hofstader on translation by humans and by Google (HERE):
To me, the word translation exudes a mysterious and evocative aura. It denotes a profoundly human art form that graciously carries clear ideas in Language A into clear ideas in Language B, and the bridging act should not only maintain clarity but also give a sense for the flavor, quirks, and idiosyncrasies of the writing style of the original author.