SotoNote + Poll
I found out what that whole "Gojyo was a pimp, what??" thing actually means, thanks to the invaluable help of my Japanese buddy Aya!
He was something like a kept boy, dependent on a woman's financial support. Which makes a lot more sense than what I originally thought the sentence said.
The Japanese said he was something like an "onna no himo" [女のヒモ]. The only context I'd previously heard 'himo' in, aside from the literal meaning of 'thread', was referring to a man who used women, like the English 'pimp'. (Quick grammar lesson: the 'no' particle is a possessive, like an 'apostrophe s'.) Hence my multiple mistranslations. Sorry for the confusion!
And check out this blog, link courtesy of smillaraaq, for some more info on slang!
And my fake poll: Japanese + notes vs Westernization of words in translations
One of the problems I have while translating (aside from slang terms like "onna no himo") is deciding whether to use the Japanese term and include an explanatory note at the end, or attempt to find a Western term that comes close. Also, being born-and-bred in Hawaii, where Japanese words are part of everyday speech, I worry that some terms I grew up with might not cause other people pause.
So basically, I want to know if (a) you like the Japanese + a note, or if you'd rather I use more Western terms when possible; and (b) if I need more definitions/notes in my translations.
I'm hoping to be a professional translator one day, and your feedback will be amazingly helpful. So if you have some time, please let me know in the comments! Thank you!! ♥
Thank you, everybody who told me what you think! Looks like the majority prefer some notes, so I'll try to find a good balance between my language major babbling and text readability (^_^) Thank you all again! ♥♥♥
He was something like a kept boy, dependent on a woman's financial support. Which makes a lot more sense than what I originally thought the sentence said.
The Japanese said he was something like an "onna no himo" [女のヒモ]. The only context I'd previously heard 'himo' in, aside from the literal meaning of 'thread', was referring to a man who used women, like the English 'pimp'. (Quick grammar lesson: the 'no' particle is a possessive, like an 'apostrophe s'.) Hence my multiple mistranslations. Sorry for the confusion!
And check out this blog, link courtesy of smillaraaq, for some more info on slang!
And my fake poll: Japanese + notes vs Westernization of words in translations
One of the problems I have while translating (aside from slang terms like "onna no himo") is deciding whether to use the Japanese term and include an explanatory note at the end, or attempt to find a Western term that comes close. Also, being born-and-bred in Hawaii, where Japanese words are part of everyday speech, I worry that some terms I grew up with might not cause other people pause.
So basically, I want to know if (a) you like the Japanese + a note, or if you'd rather I use more Western terms when possible; and (b) if I need more definitions/notes in my translations.
I'm hoping to be a professional translator one day, and your feedback will be amazingly helpful. So if you have some time, please let me know in the comments! Thank you!! ♥
Thank you, everybody who told me what you think! Looks like the majority prefer some notes, so I'll try to find a good balance between my language major babbling and text readability (^_^) Thank you all again! ♥♥♥