Le Blog, El Blog, or The Blog?

#1:As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.

 

This translation uses diction such as “transformed” to show that Gregor is a new person since he has changed into an insect. The imagery provided does not specify the type of insect because that doesn’t matter, he is changed. The connotation of this sentence is that his body and his entire being was changed into a bug.

#2:Gregory Samsa woke from uneasy dreams one morning to find himself changed into a giant bug.

The diction of “giant bug” generalizes the insect that he was turned into but also provides the reader with a better image. When you hear those words you can picture a giant, human-sized, bug in a bed. The connotation of this sentence is that he changed forms overnight but his inside remains the same.

#3:When Gregor Samsa awoke from troubled dreams one morning he found he had been transformed in his bed into an enormous bug.

 

The diction of “had been transformed” makes it seem like someone did this to him. This creates an ominous atmosphere as to who could change someone into a bug. The connotation of this sentence is that someone came in and changed his entire being into that of a bug.

#4:One morning, upon awakening from agitated dreams, Gregor Samsa found himself, in his bed, transformed into a monstrous vermin.

The connotation of this sentence is that Gregor is still the same person, evident by the use of “his bed,” when he wakes up but is in the form of a bug. The diction of “monstrous vermin” makes it seem like Gregor is now a super villain with bad motives. These words have a very negative connotation which is translated into the sentence.

 

Texts that are translated may not represent the entire purpose of word choice and meaning that the author wants it to. Different translations affect the connotation of the sentence and different forms of the sentence with different syntax and diction can alter meaning as well. I believe that diction and imagery are the most effective methods, as seen in these examples, to alter the meaning of a sentence.

            Diction is the word choice that an author makes. Different authors and translators have different opinions on diction. The diction of the first sentence as translated four different times really effects the meaning of the sentence. For example in the 3^rd example, “had been transformed” makes it seem like someone transformed Gregor. This is vastly different from “found himself transformed,” which shows no evidence of anyone having anything to do with the transforming. This affects the meaning of the sentence and the story as a whole because if someone of some higher being transformed Gregor then there is intrigue into who did it, if it just happened then no one questions the cause. Diction that the translator chooses to use reflect their own values and can alter the meaning of the sentence and the novella as a whole.

Imagery is another way to effectively alter the meaning of a sentence and a book. For example, in sentence number 4 “monstrous vermin” creates a terrifying image of a never-seen animal somewhat like a super villain. Compared to “giant bug” which creates an image of an oversized ant or cockroach. The first example of imagery alters the meaning of the story by creating a terrifying non-human image while the second is more imaginable and relatable. The imagery is another choice that the author makes and it is largely affect by diction. I think that diction and imagery are two methods of altering meaning because they are prevalent and help you imagine the book in terms of pictures and events. A little tweak in the event changes the outcome and the characters as a whole.