Translation From A Hearing-Impaired Perspective

Translation isn’t only a world where I convert context from one language to another. It’s a  continuous learning process that enriches my knowledge and broadens my horizons. I have  always had moments when I paused translation to delve into a new expression or idea that  captured my attention. 

In my last translation about flax with Pro bono, I learned that flax was used in the wing covers of  airplanes during WWI and II which gave them rigidity. In addition, to free out the fibers, the  inside layers of flax need to get rotten but not too much otherwise they spoil. 

In an article for Progressive International, the term “the banality of evil” was introduced. This  term was mind-blowing for me. Through her book, Hannah Arendt mentioned the lack of  thoughtfulness of those who couldn’t see the world from the perspective of others. She  describes the normality of those who committed one of the cruelest atrocities throughout  history. People who were merely interested in building their careers at the expense of others’  lives were ordinary, from her perspective. 

Reading all this through the lens of what is going on in our world nowadays makes me scared.  Arendt described Eichmann, the main organizer for killing millions of Jews in concentration  camps, as a bland bureaucrat. How many bland bureaucrats do we cross paths with in our daily  life? 

As a hard-of-hearing volunteer, there are bonus reasons to like translation. One of these reasons  is that it doesn’t require hearing. I’m in the comfort of my hearing loss bubble. All I need to do is  to read and write. Even communicating with clients happens through sending and receiving  emails and messages. My glasses do the job and help me read.

Unfortunately, my hearing aids  are not a cure-all. Wearing them doesn’t allow me to hear all the sounds and words. However,  while translating, if the batteries of my hearing aids die, it’s not a big deal. I keep translating and  checking my emails regularly so as not to miss an update or feedback. I can change batteries  afterwards. 

When I read a word that I don’t know its meaning, I can look it up and do some research to  understand the meaning. This is not the case in conversations with others. I have to ask the 

speaker to repeat, often more than once. In the end, I will probably not catch the word at all. Or  in best and\or worst cases, I will hear it incorrectly. 

One day, someone, let’s call him “Mr. X”, came back after having some sambosas in a restaurant.  “Today is a cheat day”, Mr. X said. I heard, “It’s a cheese day” and I promptly rambled, saying,  “Oh, you could only find cheese sambosas at the restaurant”. Needless to say, Mr. X emphasized  without even looking at me, “I said it’s a cheeeeat day, not cheese. I bought some cookies. Do  you want some?” I would have loved to but the way he answered turned me off and I couldn’t  laugh it off. 

Another advantage of translation is that I don’t have to suffer from listening fatigue due to  keeping listening all the time. My brain doesn’t have to keep working on more than one task: listening, compensating for missing words, reading, thinking of translating, etc. My brain can  have a break from the extra shifts that it has to do around the clock for me as a hearing impaired person. During translation, my brain can shift its focus to visual details. 

This is not to say that translation is always smooth sailing but maybe this can be the topic of  another article.