Campaign by translators: “It’s enough for us because it’s not enough”

In his 1932 essay on “Homeric Translations,” the wonderful Jorge Luis Borges writes: “No problem is so inherently connected to the writings and their humble mystery as that which a translation poses.” He, who was himself an excellent translator and began translating texts from one language to another in his youth, saw translation as an art form in its own right. Just as the critical engagement with a work of art can sometimes have its own artistic characteristics, the translation of a text is also an independent literary creation.

The “modest mystery” lies in the fact that no work is ever told, but can potentially be reinvented again at any time through a translation - possibly even made better. The art of translation, which Borges emphasizes at various points in his work, is based on the fact that it keeps the flow of literature alive. Always searches for semantic equivalents that another language or new era offers, in order to search for the meaning of a word that it may not yet know itself.

Translation is not a formal matter, it is a deeply creative process. Borges' proud ennobling of the translator figure, which he even elevates to a literary topos in his story "Pierre Menard, Author of Quixote," comes to mind when you follow the desperate campaign that two hundred translators have initiated on social media to draw attention to their precarious existence. Borges’ word “modest” takes on a new, evil sound in this context.

On International Translation Day, named after St. Jerome, the patron saint of translators, they published shocking details of their existence on Instagram under the motto “It’s enough for us because it’s not enough.” For example, literary translators in Germany earn an average gross annual income of 24,000 euros - only about a third of the average German income. Many translators are at acute risk of poverty in old age and are without any insurance in the event of illness or emergencies. This dramatic situation is now being made even worse by the increased use of artificial intelligence in the translation of specialist texts, which makes human assistance practically unnecessary.

As a result, many specialist translators now moved into the field of literary translation and created even more competition as orders became ever fewer. The solidarity between specialist and literary translators in this campaign is particularly impressive. What is required are binding remuneration rules and an orientation towards the active support that is currently being provided in other countries, for example in Ireland: There, for the first time last month, a regular basic income was permanently installed for cultural workers selected by lottery. Every 2,000 people who can prove that they work artistically in Ireland will receive 1,300 euros per month for three years, without any compensation or regulations. Translators are also among the chosen ones. And so we can continue to work on the mystery of translation, modestly but not humiliated.