Why Read Translated Works?

This was a question sent to me a few months ago, and I never got the chance to answer it earlier—mostly because I felt I didn’t have anything especially substantial to say. I’m no expert on the subject, and everything here comes simply from my experience as a reader who loves good books. So if you’re looking for scholarly insight, you may be on the wrong page. But if you’d like to stay, take everything here with a grain of salt.

I learn.

Did I buy them because they were translations? No. So far, I’ve read a fair number of translated works, but I never picked them up simply because they were translations. In fact, with many of them, I only realized that detail after I’d already finished reading. That probably tells you everything you need to know about my level of expertise here. Still, it took me a while to understand what exactly I loved about them.

For me, translation in literature does more than bridge a language barrier. It opens a door to other cultures—their clothing, spirituality, political views, family values, and relationship with food. Through translated works, I’ve found myself laughing at certain differences, feeling startled by others, and marveling at the similarities that cut across distance and language.

Lost in translation.

Carrying cultural nuance through literature is no easy task. Culture is made up of layered, everyday experiences, and I’m often fascinated by a translator’s ability to capture those details and make them meaningful to readers outside the original context. Of course, some things will always be lost in translation—but honestly, that has never stopped me from being grateful for what still comes through.

“Without translation, I would be limited to the borders of my own country.
The translator is my most important ally. He introduces me to the world.”
— Italo Calvino

Oh, the places you’ll go!

Translation also feels like a way of travelling to places I may never reach in person. Years later, I still carry a version of Stockholm in my mind as translated by Reg Keeland for Stieg Larsson. I remember the melancholy in José Saramago’s memories of Azinhaga and Lisbon as rendered by Margaret Jull Costa. And I know I’ll always miss the lights of Barcelona as Lucia Graves brought them to life for Carlos Ruiz Zafón.

Keeping the windows open.

Lastly, while I still read books originally written in English more often, I also read translated works because it feels both limiting and unnatural to shut myself off from the rest of the remarkable literature the world has produced.

“It is better to have read a great work of another culture
in translation than never to have read it at all.”
— Henry Gratton Doyle

If you’re looking for recommendations, Goodreads Listopia has plenty of lists for best translated novels and favorite translated literature, and The Millions also shared the winners of the Best Translated Book for 2016.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this, too. Why do you read translated works—or why don’t you?