View source for Method:Translation and Performance Notes

{{Creator Guidelines
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|Version=1.0
|Overseer=Nikki Mustin
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==Introduction==
If Verse-by-Verse Notes serve the purpose of addressing specific issues in each verse in a scholarly way, providing the rationale for our decisions--Translation Challenges are intended to be an at-a-glance resource for translation teams as they are drafting and checking their translations. For simplicity's and brevity's sake, we veer away from providing the WHY for our exegetical decisions in Translation Challenges. Users are encouraged to consult the Verse-by-Verse or our different layers to find the rationale for our interpretations, if interested. Translation Challenges also go one step farther than the Verse-by-Verse by providing translation suggestions and examples, where pertinent. 

''Language register:''
The information contained in the Translation Challenges is intended to be accessed by translation teams who likely don't speak English as a first language, so the language is simpler than is found in Verse-by-Verse. The goal is to use a register of English that is simpler than academic English, but not quite as pared-down as ESL English. See step 4 in the instructions below for some guidelines on simplifying the language for Translation Challenges.
==Required Tools==

*Open-source Hebrew text: [https://hb.openscriptures.org/read/ OSHB Read], also available on the [https://forum.scriptura.org/tag/cbc Psalms: Layer by Layer forum].
*The latest version of the CBC, also found on the Psalms: Layer by Layer forum. 
*The Verse-by-Verse notes for the psalm
*A number of modern English translations, to compare
*Your favorite word processing software, or Google Docs
*Recommended translation resources:
# [https://www.zotero.org/groups/2588207/cdbr_-_the_psalms_layer_by_layer/search/bratcher/titleCreatorYear/items/FJF6ZAHC/item-list UBS Handbook]
#[https://www.zotero.org/groups/2588207/cdbr_-_the_psalms_layer_by_layer/search/zogbo/titleCreatorYear/items/69QZCK6Z/item-list Hebrew Poetry in the Bible: A Guide for Understanding and for Translating]


==Steps==
=====1. Create the Document and Fill in Introductory Material.=====

:A. Open this [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VCj5qpiFlO3i4K_fC3ITh52F-0l2ILfYeSI1wlKAl4A/edit?usp=sharing template] in Google Docs, and go to File => Make a Copy. In the file name, erase the words "Copy of" and add the Psalm number. Click "Make a Copy."

:B. Open the Miro board for the Psalm, and find the At-A-Glance layer. Find the Overview section, and then use the Frame feature in Miro to capture a screenshot of the Icon and Title image. Save the Icon and Title image as a small image to your computer. In Google Docs, add the image in the place of the words "Psalm #" on page 1. 

:C. In the table on page 1, copy and paste the Hebrew text and the CBC, side by side, with verse numbers in between.

:D. Begin to identify and color the various words and phrases in the Psalm according to the color legend on Page 1. Do not worry about being able to correctly identify everything at this point; you will very likely make changes as you go through the TPN creation process. A helpful guide for identifying figures of speech is in Allen Ross' Commentary on the Psalms, vol. 1, pages 90-109.

:E. Here is an example of what the first page of the TPN would look like at this point: 

[[File:TPN Filled Template Page 1 Example.png|img=fluid|300px]]

<!--
:At the very top of page 2 of your document, copy and paste this disclaimer: 

:::Note about this document: this is meant to be a quick-reference guide, giving an at-a-glance look at vital information about key words and phrases in this psalm. As such, it does not go into detail about how we arrived at our conclusions and recommendations; if you would like these details, please see the Verse-by-Verse notes for this psalm, and/or the information found in the various layer analyses, both of which can be found on our Wiki: psalms.scriptura.org .
--->

=====2. Translation Tips - The Psalm as A Whole.=====

======Overview Section======

:Look up the Psalm on the Wiki Page. Use the information from the Overview on the main page to fill in the Overview section on the TPN. In most cases, this information can be cut and pasted without changes.

======Story Behind Section======

:'''Summary''': Using the Psalm's Story Behind main triangle as your guide, write a short summary paragraph of the story that this Psalm tells.

:'''Background Ideas''': On the Miro board for the Psalm, go to the Synthesis layer and find the At-A-Glance visual. Take the background ideas from the Orientation part of this visual, and paste them into the TPN here. Each bullet point should be as brief as possible.

:'''Background Situation''': Save a copy of the 'Background events' visual from the Orientation part of the At-A-Glance visual on the Miro board. Paste it to your TPN here. 

======Layout Section======

:In the Miro board for the psalm, go to the Synthesis layer and find the At-A-Glance visual. It should already have a frame around it. Save this image to your computer, and add it to the TPN.

:Underneath the heading "Progression of Thought," tell how many sections there are in the psalm, and then use bullet points to provide a 1-2 sentence description of each section.

======Emotions Section======

:In the Miro board for the psalm, copy the At-A-Glance visual and paste it off to the far-right-hand side where it will not be confused with previous work. Delete the sentences/phrases in the boxes in the main middle column. In each box, re-type the 1-2  emotions that the exegete has identified as the main emotion in that section (these are in red boxes in the At-A-Glance). Make the font size 64 pt (or whatever comes closest while fitting in the box) and choose a consistent color for these emotions throughout the column. Capture the image from the verse numbers on the left to the icons on the right, and upload it to your TPN. The result will look something like this:

:[[File:Psalm 019 - Emotional Overview.jpg|img=fluid|300px]]

======Prominence Section======

:Your prominence section should look something like this:

:[[File:Prominence.png|img=fluid|300px]]

:1) On the Miro board, find the Prominence layer. The right-most visual gives the top three most prominent sections of the psalm. Identify the section of highest (primary) prominence. 

:2) Then identify the 2-3 prominence features that match the section of highest prominence. Using the Frame feature in Miro, take a screenshot of one of those prominence features that you find to be the most visually pleasing. Save it to your computer.

:3) In your TPN, create a 2-column table with no borders. In the first column, upload the image of the prominence feature from Miro. Shrink the image so that it only takes up about 1/2 of the text-width of the page (not including the margin). It is not necessary that the words of the psalm be legible - the important thing is that the image should draw attention to the section of the psalm that is most prominent.

:4) Then, drawing from the explanations of the 2-3 prominence features, use bullet points in the right-hand column of the table to briefly summarize what makes this section the most prominent. For variety, switch the table columns of the secondary prominence feature so that the image is on the right and the bullet points on the left. 

:5) Repeat the same process for the secondary and tertiary prominence sections, as identified by the exegete.

======Poetics Section======

:Go to the Poetic Features layer on Miro or the wiki and identify 1-3 of the poetic features would be helpful to a translator or performer. Focus on features that are easy to explain, have clear impact on the understanding of the psalm as a whole, and impact translation and performance decisions. 

:For these features, include in your TPN the Poetic Feature image from Miro or the wiki (save as a file to your computer and upload it to your TPN). Also, provide a brief write-up of the feature itself and its effect on the hearer, drawing on the explanations given by the exegete.

======Participants and Speech Acts======

:Take the Speech Act summary visual either in Miro or on the wiki and upload it to your TPN here. 

:If there are any major issues in the psalm with identifying participants or speech acts, describe them briefly here. For most psalms, though, the visual will be enough to explain these layers on the psalm-wide level.

=====3. Section-by-Section and Verse-by-Verse.=====

:Create as many section templates (the grey boxes; be sure to include the legend) and verse templates (with verse number, Expanded Paraphrase box, and Notes bullet points) as needed for your psalm.

:Go to the Story Behind layer for your Psalm on the Wiki, and copy and paste the Expanded Paraphrases into the boxes on your TPN. Make sure that the formatting matches the latest convention: the CBC should be in '''bold''', and the Expanded Paraphrase should be in ''italics''. Remove any colors or parentheses. 

:Copy all the Verse-by-Verse notes for the psalm and paste them into your document<!--, starting on page 2 after the disclaimer--->.  Include all text and visuals, but leave out the Hebrew/CBC chart, grammar/phrase semantics diagram, and expanded paraphrase for each verse. In other words, copy and paste everything under “Notes” for each section and verse in the Verse-by-Verse. 

:As you paste, use a footnotes tool in your word processor to ensure that the references are correct and in order. We will opt to use footnotes in lieu of endnotes to cite references.

<!--
:Carefully go through the '''notes''' that may be deemed unnecessary for translation decisions. This includes notes that served to explain or defend our reasons for interpreting the way we did; for example, here’s one note to be cut out entirely:
--->
:Carefully go through the '''notes''' and edit them, which will often involve cutting or rewriting them for a translation audience. For example, let's say that you come across this note:

:::''The grammar and meaning of v. 2b are one of the top three exegetical issues in this psalm. See The Text, Grammar, and Meaning of Ps. 8:2b and watch this part of the exegetical issues video for a detailed discussion of the issue.[7] In short, although the form תְּנָה (“bestowed”) looks like an imperative,[8] it is probably an infinitive construct from the root נתן (lit.: “the bestowing of your glory is on the heavens”).[9] While this view is not without problems, it seems to be the least problematic of the proposed options.[10] The psalmist may have chosen the anomalous form for the sake of alliteration (compare תְּנָה and מָה) and/or to express the ongoing nature of YHWH’s bestowal of glory on the heavens.[11]''

:*First, determine what the main translation issue in the note is. In the sample note above, the main translation issue is whether to translate the verb as an imperative or an infinitive construct.

:*Next, compare the various English translations. Many translators will use one or more English translations as their base text. So, determine if any of the English translations differ in how they translate the word or phrase in question. 
:**If the translations differ, then provide the options with examples (citing the translations parentheses), and give a brief summary our rationale for our choice. Conclude with a link to the layer or exegetical issue that provides more details.
:**If the translations are the same, but our CBC differs, then give the rationale for our CBC. Conclude with a link to the layer or exegetical issue that provides more details.
:**If the translations are the same and so is our CBC, then delete the note. 

:Along with English Bible versions, the creator can also consult any other languages they understand well. If another language is cited, the creator should make clear in the prose what that citation means in English. 
<!--
:The rationale for cutting this kind of information is that we want the Translation Challenges to be as concise as is helpful for teams who need to run through a ton of key terms quickly as they are working on this psalm; they probably don’t have time to dive into all our reasons for our decisions. Many teams will just want to know what we recommend. Though Psalm 8 Translation Challenges includes a note about the verb “bestowed”, it does not include most of the info in the above note because it doesn’t add to the understanding needed to make a translation decision. The only exception is to include a link to the Exegetical Issues video, so that the user knows it exists for that word or phrase and can consult the video if desired. (Feel free to put in links to the Overview and/or Poetics videos, too, where helpful.)

[[File:Ps 8 91.png|frameless|center]]

:Other notes to delete include those that deal with sound correspondence and parallelism across verses, as well as other features we'd consider poetic. We want to leave poetics largely out of Translation Challenges, as it can quickly over-clutter the text. Instead, we will have a Poetics Overlay for the psalm to accompany these Translation Challenges. 

:Next, go back through all the remaining notes and look for '''individual sentences and phrases''' that could be cut out of notes (again, aiming for concision). Sentences and phrases to cut include:

:* info about what the word or phrase ''doesn’t'' mean, and why. The exception to this is if our CBC rendering is different than the majority of modern translations--see how this is handled in the note below. 
[[File:Ps 8 2.png|frameless|center]]
 
:* any sort of rationale for our interpretation decisions, including why two or more verses are bound together as a syntactic or poetic unit
--->
:As you go through these steps of choosing what information to cut (and later, what information to add), a good rule of thumb is to continually ask yourself: '''“What information do translators NEED to have in order to make an informed translation decision?”''' If it's not directly relevant to a good understanding of the word/phrase/imagery, and doesn't provide translation suggestions--cut that info, in the expectation that the Verse-by-Verse, various layers, and exegetical issues videos will provide other details that may be needed or wanted by a translation team.

:Make sure as you go that you include important visuals, including the following:
:*Pictures from the VxV notes
:*All Venn diagrams created for the psalm, as well as Venn diagrams that have been created for other psalms that apply to words in your psalm (for a list of these, go to the Venn diagrams link on the wiki). To introduce the Venn diagram, use instructions like the following:
:::''The following diagram compares the Hebrew term with the English word look! Definitions in the yellow left side apply only to the English word, while definitions in the green right side apply only to the Hebrew word. Definitions in the middle, where the shapes overlap, apply to both the English and Hebrew words:''
[[File:Psalm_133_-_HINNEH.jpg|frameless|center]]
:*The most helpful imagery tables for the Psalm. Go to the Miro board for the psalm, find the imagery table, and copy and paste it in a place on the Miro board where you can edit it. Remove the words "source" and "target." Change the words Implicatures/Entailments with "Summary" or "Summary of Characteristics", or something else that is appropriate to the table. Remove the information about "blend." Consider removing anything in the table below the Implicatures/Entailments row. For example:
[[File:Psalm 022 - worm.jpg|frameless|center]]
:*Any other visuals that may be interesting or relevant for translators. Examples may include portions from Macrosyntax and Poetic Structure, such as: 
[[File:Psalm 033 - verses 20-21 Macrosyntax.jpg|frameless|center]]

:'''Make sure to provide a written description with each visual to help your reader understand what they are looking at.''' 
<!--
=====3. Combine notes.=====

:Now, go through the notes and combine some, where possible and appropriate. For example, it's helpful to put some notes together to compare and contrast similar words. Below, for Psalm 8, I cut and pasted the notes for “the heavens” in v. 2 and “your heavens” in v. 4 together into one note. 

[[File:PS 8 4.png|frameless|center]]

:In Psalm 1, the notes for ''wicked/sinful/insolent'' were combined together in one note, because translators will want an at-a-glance comparison and contrast of these 3 related terms. 

[[File:Ps 8 6.png|frameless|center]]

:Another example from Psalm 8: there were two notes about “vengeful enemy”, so those were combined.
 
[[File:Ps 8 5.png|frameless|center]]


:These examples highlight how Translation Challenges are meant to be '''arranged by word or concept, rather than by verse.'''
--->

=====4. Convert to simpler English.=====

:Now, take a closer look at the wording of the notes that remain--it's time to simplify the language. As noted above, we want to aim for a simplified English that will lend to easier translation into other languages, and easier comprehension for ESL speakers. It is possible to write in simple English without it seeming patronizing or condescending. Some principles to keep in mind as you simplify<ref>https://www.plainenglish.co.uk/how-to-write-in-plain-english.html</ref>:

*Identify "academic-y" words, and replace them and/or provide short parenthetical definitions  
:::Ex: Replace ''metonymic'' with ''metaphorical'' or ''symbolic'', and consider putting the technical term ''metonymic'' in a footnote, perhaps with examples.
:::Ex: When a term is technical but necessary, give a simple definition in the main body  and provide the term itself in parentheses. For example: 
:::::In Hebrew, the phrase we have rendered '''vengeful enemy''' is literally "the enemy and the avenger" (ESV). It is the expression of a single idea by two words connected with “and” (it is a ''hendiadys''). An example of a phrase with similar structure (but not similar meaning) is ''nice and warm'' in English.

*Identify sentences that are quite long or contain many clauses (especially subordinate clauses), and cut into shorter sentences, rewording as necessary. Average sentence length should be about 15 to 20 words, just as a guideline.

*Identify passive verbs and determine if it's possible to change them into active verbs, without the clause sounding awkward. If not possible, it's ok to have a few passive constructions; but the goal is to have as few as possible. 

*Where possible and advantageous, use a (perhaps bulleted or charted) list of related items or information in lieu of prose.

*Favor active verbs in lieu of nominalisations. 
:::Ex: We did an investigation => we investigated

=====5. Research and add new notes where needed.=====

:Go through the psalm on page 1 and identify other words you suspect translators might have questions about that were NOT covered in the Verse-by-Verse notes. To help facilitate this, pretend that you are attempting to translate this psalm into another language you know, or perhaps another dialect of English. Read through the psalm and ask yourself, ''What words or phrases do I not really understand, even in English, or need more information on?'' This could include this word in this context--sometimes a word is completely straightforward, but we may question if it means something different in the context of this psalm. For Psalm 8, I added notes about ''mankind'' vs. ''human beings'' and ''consider'', for 2 examples. This can be tricky because these might not be difficult words at all in the Hebrew--but sometimes words that seem simple are difficult to translate, especially abstract concepts like ''faith'' or ''justice'', words that serve as metaphors or imagery, or just words that sound "religious", or perhaps unnatural, in our CBC and/or in most modern translations. 

:To make these new notes--and for some other existing notes that you sense need a little more info to make translation decisions--do your research. Consult the recommended resources above, along with any other exegetical resources you prefer, and gather pertinent info. Don't forget to also consult the various layers on Miro, forum posts, and Wiki pages--these are a gold mine for useful info! Then, supply translation recommendations where pertinent. From the layers: all of semantics (especially lexical and verbal), discourse, and exegetical issues are particularly helpful.

:FOR IMAGERY: Highlight each image in orange. Give an explanation of the imagery and its significance; often, it's a good idea to provide translation suggestions or info about each individual word, as well. This helps translators discern the differences and similarities among the words. For example (from Ps 19:5):

[[File:Ps 19 5 home for the sun.png|img=fluid|300px]]


:Copy and paste any helpful visualisations from the Miro boards or Wiki. Venn diagrams are particularly useful for showing the nuances of a word. 

:NOTE: Remember to write these notes in simpler English, to be consistent with the existing notes. If you find it easier to write in your normal/academic English first, then convert afterward--in lieu of composing in simple English--you can do wait to step 4 above until after you've completed step 5.

=====6. Ensure proper formatting of the whole document.=====

:Where needed, move the word or phrase in question to the beginning of the note, capitalize it, and bold it. Make sure to also un-bold where it was bolded before in the body of the note. If a word or related imagery appears more than once in the psalm, add verse numbers in parentheses, also bolded.

:Colour-code the words or phrases to match the colour key on page 1. Then, rearrange the notes so that all the blue words are together (in the other they appear in the psalm), all the orange words/phrases together, and so on. Type in bold font above each group the title of the group (Key Terms, Important Imagery, etc.)

:As you do this, it's a good time to also colour-code the Hebrew and CBC on page 1 accordingly. 

:A suggestion for a cleaner appearance is to take some words that are in quotation marks and put them in italics, because a plethora of quotation marks in the notes can be distracting. A rule of thumb is to leave the quote marks for quotations from outside resources; for individual words and phrases that are quoted in the psalm or were being referred to as a word, put those in italics (Ex: the pronoun “we” => the pronoun ''we'').

==References==

[[Category:Creator Guidelines]]