tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Tue Dec 07 19:36:25 1993

Back to archive top level

To this year's listing

[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next]

Re: tlhIngan mu'ghom'a' chu'

batlh choja', Mark E. Shoulson quv:

=Oh, my, I was afraid it would come to this.  That's the problem with
=translating the Bible, almost everyone has some sort of deeply-held feeling
=about it, positive or negative.

Aye amen. I have read charghwi''s post, and I am not happy. I am even less
happy, because last night's Trek episode (The Mind's Eye), has some Holqoq
in it which, as one says in Greek, {'oh tlhIngan Hol'e' 'e' qaSmoHjaj joH'a'},
and because I've missed two buses, a train and a tram today, and I was
supposed to write up my thesis proposal, but I'm going to say what I will,
so here goes.

I've received not a jot of reaction to the 21 K of Shakespeare or the 18 K
of Mark I've done so far. The work I've done has taught me a lot about
Klingon --- including that it is far more expressive than we assumed, and
that it is more than capable of handling verse, puns, rhyme, and cultural
references. Noone's going to bother reading it? Fine, your loss. But I'm
not going to spend bucketloads of time on Klingon indefinitely.

I should assume I'm drawing most of the flak, because I'm the one translating
the Christian gospel. May I say this. I am not a Christian. Some of my best
friends are Christians, and I have little chance of understanding them. The
Klingon Bible Project was not my idea. I get a sinking feeling every time
I open _Mark_ up to translate yet another chapter. But just as Mark said:
this thing is going ahead, because Kevin Wilson put it in HolQeD, and if it's
going ahead, I'd rather be involved in it than not.

As for this crap about Klingon becoming a Christian proselytists' list: I
am offended by this remark. Deeply. It was my impression that this list
was dedicated to the furthering of Klingon language. *Anything* in Klingon
is fair game here. I would welcome the translation of Das Kapital, American
Psycho, or The Anarchist's Cookbook here. (I'll admit, I'm not crash hot
on anyone translating Mein Kampf, but I would still attempt to keep a detached
linguist's eye should I choose to peruse it.) If you don't like it, you have
an 'n' key on your keyboard; use it.

The KBTP, and projects of its ilk *matter*, if Klingon is to cease being a
plaything and start being a real language. If you'd fain not the Bible,
great; I'm prepared to start coordinating Shakespeare translators. But this
is a Klingon language mailing list, and I'll be damned to hell and back if
i'm going to refrain from posting linguistic commentary on Mark's Jonah 
translation because of these sensibilities.

And while you don't want to be quoted on Krankor refusing to be involved
in looking at the KBTP... I am astonished. Does this man know what being
list grammarian means? It means you have a duty to uphold Klingon linguistic
standards. And I've said it before: works like the KBTP and any Shapkespeare
we come up with will put him out of a job; *they* will lay down the law
for Klingon stylistics and grammar, *they* will be the model in print for
Klingonists to come. Like it or not, the KBTP is going ahead; blame Kevin
Wilson and Lawrence Schoen if you wanted it nipped in the bud. If Krankor
does not involve himself in setting the stylistics of this work straight,
whether he has to hold his nose or no, he is quite simply not doing his job.
That's his choice; others will.

Where to from here? Given the deafening silence, I'll post no more _marqoS_
here; those interested can get it from me in email. I will not stop commenting
on others' translation work, though. Not while this is the Klingon Language
Mailing List.

I await others' responses with interest. Savan.

-- 
***
"Relax." -- "yIleS." [Three seconds pause.] "Stop Relaxing!" -- "yIleSHa'!"
                                  --- the Conversational Klingon tape.
   Nick "I am not a Klingon. Much." Nicholas.    [email protected]
nIchyon jIH. nIchyon SoHbe'. nIchyon ghaHbe'. nIchyon tlhIHbe'. nIchyon jIHqu'.

Back to archive top level