Re: Translation of amateur Chinese military article, take a look!
Question, Why are the Chinese languages so difficult to translate into English?
Siege has put it lightly. The difference between Chinese language and any latin letter orientated languages, is that letter languages are more or less linear like "codes", while Chinese language is non-linear, it do not exists if seperated from the Chinese civilization itself. You don't speak and write proper Chinese if you do not think and live like Chinese. (there's no "impose" possible, saying, the close relationship with English and French, you can somewhat understand what French people trying to express, while you don't have to be familiar with France the nation)
But, refer to more concerned "translation", you would be surprised how thin a
well translated (English to Chinese) document it compares to the original one, while the codex / cortext / content being expressed throughly, if not enhanced. The catch, is what siege said, how you gonna
"well translate" it. Tenses and singulars and plurals... these are means to put for the language to make it linear (you need only linear thinking to master it from now on), while Chinese trying as non-linear as possible, to express anything. ie, tenses, singulars & plurals got many ways to be addressed (hey, Chinese addresses these aspects too), while not simply "add a tense" in the phrase.
OT:
A little
fry your mind: find the differences below:
田， 由， 甲， 申， 日， 口， 门 …… (hahahaha.... like an IQ test?)
Chinese character IS NOT LETTER, each having a coherent meaning of its own.
Cheers, and hats off for all those contribute to the enhance and extends of human civilization.
