Biblical Hebrew Forum

[James Read <J.Read-2 AT sms.ed.ac.uk>]

Hi Rolf,

actually, on thinking more about his, I think that 'creature' probably  
works the best in most cases.

James Christian

Quoting James Read <J.Read-2 AT sms.ed.ac.uk>:

> Hi Rolf,
>
> I can see what you are saying in principle. But I think that 'soul' is
> perhaps the poorest choice of word possible if the aim is to guide a
> reader to understanding of NP$ via consistent translation. The
> majority of texts seem to place the semantic domain of NP$ as synonym
> of life but with occasional more abstract shades (and occasional more
> concrete shades). A good choice of word, in English, doesn't spring to
> mind but whatever it is it should be a close synonym of 'life'.
> English 'soul' doesn't really qualify as it carries with it all kinds
> of semantic baggage that 'life' doesn't.
>
> In fact, the more I think about it I don't really think it is possible
> to choose 1 word in English which is a synonym of life and which works
> in all contexts of NP$. But, I agree, that we could definitely do
> better than using 30 different words of completely different meaning.
>
> James Christian
>
> > Second, I would like to have a translation like Youngs literal
> > translation  and the New World Translation that are very literal
> > (together with Wuest's Expanded translation). A strictly literal
> > translation is in a way a semi-translation. For example, when the NWT
> > consistently uses the one English word "soul" as a translation of
> > NP$, the readers must on the basis of the context find the references
> > of "soul". Therefore, the readers have a part in the very process of
> > translation.The advantage of a literal translation is that the
> > readers may come as close as possible to the original text through
> > their mother tongue.  But this can of course be a real challenge. One
> > other advantage of such a translation, is that the readers can see
> > where other modern translations for different reasons have broken
> > fundamental translation rules and in effect has lead their readers
> > astray.
> >
> > Third, I would like to have an idiomatic translation that is as
> > literal as possible, but not is a semi-translation. This means that
> > more than one word is used for NP$, but much fewer than the 30 or
> > more words that are used in modern translations, Footnotes with
> > alternative readings and alternative translation possibilities would
> > also be appreciated. When a person who does not know the original
> > languages works to get an understanding of Biblical passages, he or
> > she will learn a lot by comparing different translations. It is
> > impossible to transfer the whole original meaning of the verbs and
> > clauses from the source language to the target language-a part, great
> > or small, is lost in the process, and a part, great or small, is
> > added. Different translations may stress different sides of the
> > original meaning, and therefore it is an advantage to use several
> > translations.
>
>
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The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in
Scotland, with registration number SC005336.