| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | Poll: Is there a translator's "sixth sense"? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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| Never thought about it... | May 31, 2007 |
Sounds spooky, or not? The "Sixth Sense", just like the movie, brrrrr! I really haven't ever thought about it. But what does this mean? That we can easily catch linguistic errors? Doesn't this happen with every profession?
I mean, an architect will surely enter into a house and know if it has been well built or not. My father-in-law is an analyst of chemicals that dentists use. He can know only by tapping a tooth if an amalgam has been well made and calibrated. I can mention millio... See more Sounds spooky, or not? The "Sixth Sense", just like the movie, brrrrr! I really haven't ever thought about it. But what does this mean? That we can easily catch linguistic errors? Doesn't this happen with every profession?
I mean, an architect will surely enter into a house and know if it has been well built or not. My father-in-law is an analyst of chemicals that dentists use. He can know only by tapping a tooth if an amalgam has been well made and calibrated. I can mention millions of examples. In brief, I think we all have that "sixth sense". Let's not believe we translators are superb, it happens everywhere. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Fiamma Lolli
Italy
Local time: 09:43
Spanish to Italian
+ ...
| definitely yes... | May 31, 2007 |
... the sense of guilt when you're late on a deadline. Unfortunately it looks like this sixth sense does not apply to publishers when they do not pay enough or when they pay too late...
| | | | Özden Arıkan 
Germany
Local time: 09:43
Member
English to Turkish
+ ...
| I see deadlines! | May 31, 2007 |
Seriously, no! There is education, training, experience, work work hard work, and certainly disposition, too, but not anything mystical in it. And I suspect what you call translator's sixth sense is nothing but all of these elements together in a working, if not always ideal, combination.
And bringing an element like the sixth sense in translation would, I am afraid, be self-defeating in terms of acquiring acknowledgement for translation as a profession. After all, a profession is ... See more Seriously, no! There is education, training, experience, work work hard work, and certainly disposition, too, but not anything mystical in it. And I suspect what you call translator's sixth sense is nothing but all of these elements together in a working, if not always ideal, combination.
And bringing an element like the sixth sense in translation would, I am afraid, be self-defeating in terms of acquiring acknowledgement for translation as a profession. After all, a profession is something you have by means of training and hardwork. Am I wrong? ▲ Collapse
| | | | Silvina Matheu
Argentina
Local time: 04:43
Member
English to Spanish
+ ...
| No sixth sense for me | May 31, 2007 |
It is all this:
Özden Arıkan wrote:
There is education, training, experience, work work hard work, and certainly disposition, too, but not anything mystical in it. And I suspect what you call translator's sixth sense is nothing but all of these elements together in a working, if not always ideal, combination.
plus deep knowlwdge of source language. That's all! Though it may take years...
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The more knowledge one gains about one's profession, the more people one knows, the more experience one has, the more one develops something like a "sixth sense" in one's own professional environment.
I could compare it with somebody who has a lot of experience in driving a car and "sense" danger or something that is not directly visible and still act appropriately.
So I definitely believe in a "sixth sense" or "inner voice" one develops over the years.
| | | | Amy Duncan (X)
Brazil
Local time: 04:43
Portuguese to English
+ ...
| It's intuition... | Jun 1, 2007 |
I'm surprised at how many people who answered this believe that it's just about brain cells or matter or education or whatever.
I'm pretty sure that what is meant by sixth sense here is intuition, which is something we all have, and it can't be explained by grey matter or college degrees.
Even a beginning translator has it, and it does develop more and more over time...however this doesn't apply just to translation work, but to any undertaking. Intuition is often what ... See more I'm surprised at how many people who answered this believe that it's just about brain cells or matter or education or whatever.
I'm pretty sure that what is meant by sixth sense here is intuition, which is something we all have, and it can't be explained by grey matter or college degrees.
Even a beginning translator has it, and it does develop more and more over time...however this doesn't apply just to translation work, but to any undertaking. Intuition is often what leads us to our best choices and most creative solutions.
Amy ▲ Collapse
| | | | Steven Capsuto
United States
Local time: 03:43
Member (2004)
Spanish to English
+ ...
| I think this exists in most professions | Jun 1, 2007 |
It's what happens when, after years of experience, the instinctive part of your brain starts reaching conclusions so fast that, initially, your conscious mind can't even analyze how you intuited what you intuited. You just know it's right.
[Edited at 2007-06-01 03:43]
| | | | Anthony Baldwin
United States
Local time: 03:43
Portuguese to English
+ ...
Claudia Hoepelman wrote: I'd rather call it common sense rather than sixth sense. or talent, intelligence, a sense for words and meaning.
Unfortunately, what you or I might consider common sense is not that common.
I mean, I still face highly educated, literate, professional Judges that ask me to interpret ¨word for word¨ from one language to another...
As if they would have a clue what the subject was really saying if I even attempted to do that.
What we do, to most people, is nothing short of magic.
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| I use my sixth sense... | Jun 1, 2007 |
... to decide which projects I take on!
Sometimes when I get a request from a customer, some kind of "gut feeling" tells me NOT to take it on because it will only be tedious, troublesome and unprofitable. And after some bad experiences, I actually learnt to listen to this sixth sense!
| | | | | It's intuition, yes, ... | Jun 1, 2007 |
... nothing more and nothing less, you may also call it "sixth sense", but it's nothing magical. Everybody has it. And it develops with experience.
Amy Duncan wrote:
I'm surprised at how many people who answered this believe that it's just about brain cells or matter or education or whatever.
Amy
So, it also really is about "brain cells", but not about consciously pondering and weighing pros and cons - that would be too complicated and time-consuming. Our brain develops in the course of the years more and more the ability to take (good/right) decisons very quickly without having to go through a complicated decision-making process.
Intuition is very well a performance of our brain - and therefore not less amazing and admirable.
| | | | | Pituary gland | Jun 1, 2007 |
More than a "6th sense", sometimes I feel us translators have the proverbial "third eye" to come up with the frequent "rabbit out of a hat" in our profession. Don't laugh, but sometimes I think I've got extra gushes of melatonin allegedly produced in the so-called "dormient" pituary gland to make me meet the "yesterday" deadlines of some of my unwary clients......................enjoy.
... See more More than a "6th sense", sometimes I feel us translators have the proverbial "third eye" to come up with the frequent "rabbit out of a hat" in our profession. Don't laugh, but sometimes I think I've got extra gushes of melatonin allegedly produced in the so-called "dormient" pituary gland to make me meet the "yesterday" deadlines of some of my unwary clients......................enjoy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_eye
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melatonin
[Edited at 2007-06-01 13:12]
[Edited at 2007-06-01 13:14] ▲ Collapse
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