The 2013 Special Talk "Does Death End It All"... Spanish version eliminates the word "Nanotechnology"

by Calebs Airplane 14 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

• 

  Calebs Airplane

  Remember this incredibly stupid sentence in the 2013 Special Talk (posted on this board in recent months)?:

  "Despite nanotechnology, humans can neither create life nor restore it."

  Well apparently, the English-to-Spanish translator (who wrote the Spanish version of the 2013 Special Talk outline) apparently realized that the use of the word "nanotechnology" in this outline was completely irrelevant and childish... so he simply substituted the word "nanotechnology" with the phrase "great scientific advancements". Here's the Spanish version (as it appears on the actual Spanish outline)...

  "A pesar de los grandes avances cientificos, el ser humano no puede crear vida ni devolverla a quienes han fallecido."

  Incredibly, the Spanish-to-English translation of this sentence (which the WT writer could have easily used) is the following:

  Despite great scientific advancements, humans cannot create life nor return it to those who have passed away.

  Sometimes I think the WT writers are so bored that they find entertainment in sneaking in irrelevant or ridiculous phrases...

  This reminds me of the Steve and Selma thread... remember that? Steve hit Selma in the English Watchtower but in the Spanish version he only got "furious" with Selma.

  I guess the Spanish translators don't always see eye-to-eye with the English writers who write the original versions of most talk outlines, WT articles, books, etc..

  So much for "kingdom unity"...
• 

  wolfman85

  You are right CA is not a true and accurate translation of the original in English. Do you speak Spanish?? I would like to know more people who speak Spanish in this site.
• 

  Calebs Airplane

  Wolf... yes... I'm fluent in English & Spanish... (also working on Portuguese and Italian but still have a long way to go...)

  Lately, I've been noticing wide contrasts in translated publications (in both grammar and semantics), particularly in English-to-Spanish translations... so I thought I'd highlight the fact that this so-called "Kingdom Unity" or "unity of thought" really does not exist to the extent that the WT would like people to believe.
• 

  NeonMadman

  So is there a word in Spanish for "nanotechnology"?
• 

  Calebs Airplane

  Yes Neon... nanotecnologia is the Spanish translation for nanotechnology.
• 

  Apognophos

  That's funny. Perhaps the translator couldn't bear to write something so stupid. Either that or he felt that the audience in many Spanish-speaking countries would not know the word (in all fairness, I am pretty sure most Americans could not define "nanotechnology" in a man-on-the-street poll other than to say, "Small... technology?").
• 

  sir82

  So, do the Spanish translators think the Spanish audience would be too ignorant to understand "nanotecnologia"?

  Or, do the Spanish translators realize the stupidity of the WT teaching department (what on earth does "nanotechnology" have to do with "creating life or restoring it"?)

  Either way, they seem to be trying to compensate for somebody's idiocy.
• 

  wha happened?

  I know sometimes u can't translate directly into another language or it turns into gibberish.

  Despite the fact I lost most of my Spanish skills from non use, there are still a few terms I think of in Spanish to describe things, that I feel, English doesn't describe correctly to me. So grammer and culture does play a role in translating a thought. Carl's Jr was smart enough not to try and translate those ads that talked about "having it all over the place not belonging in your face" ads with young people acting like they have no table skills. A Latin Mom would not approve as in most households, the Mom is in charge of the budget.

  However, removing the word nanotechnology was likely done by the person translating this talk into Spanish as he probably looked up the word and it's meaning and realized everyone else will do the same.
• 

  Theredeemer

  spanish was my first lang and i grew up in a spanish cong. I have always noticed major discrepencies between the english mag and spanish ones. Even bigger ones when you see the asl Wtowers.
• 

  Calebs Airplane

  Wha happened... you make very valid points... on the other hand, it's 2013 and the word nanotechnology is pretty widely known all over the globe... So I really don't see any cultural constraints in simply using "nanotecnologia" as it would have been just as irrelevant and ridiculous in Spanish as it is in English...

  The Redeemer... Remember when Steve hit Selma in the English version WT but only got "furious" with her in the Spanish version? Yeah... there really are major differences sometimes...