Fidelidad y Traducción

Abstract

Fidelity in Translation

Evoking terms such as fidelity, infidelity; translatability, untranslatability; literal translation, free translation, automatically leads us to think of the close relationship between all these concepts and their use, sometimes inappropriate, by the majority of our students. For this reason, we will try in this paper to make a brief review of the definitions of these concepts by important translation theorists.
The brief review of the definitions of some translation theorists gives us a clear idea of the confusion that reigns when it comes to defining certain concepts in translation studies. This can be due to the fact that there is no agreement among great scholars themselves upon certain concepts which leads to confusion.
It is to be noted that the biggest problem in the definition of certain translation concepts is due, precisely, to the inappropriateness of the selected approach. Questions that should be raised in any act of translation are essential in the understanding and the success of the process of translation itself. Who translates what? For whom? When? Where? Why? And under what circumstances?