I assume there must be a reason why sign language is superior but I genuinely don’t know why.
Would you rather watch content in your native language, or subtitled? If you read translated content, it’s fine. But it’s not the same as hearing something performed for you. Might be hard to grasp if your language is largely auditory and written, rather than visual and emotive.
Just because sign language is a visual language, does not mean reading is an equivalent. There is a ton of nuance and feeling that goes into communicating through sign language that is not possible through text alone.
Beyond the communication piece, there is respect of an individual who natively speaks a language, and the importance of keeping the language alive.
Would you rather watch content in your native language, or subtitled?
Subtitled, 100 times out of 10. In fact, that’s what I already do, alongside a significant portion of the non-anglophone world.
But it’s not the same as hearing something performed for you.
Considering the fact that nearly all TV media is made to only be fully enjoyed if you can hear it, that’s a given. Deaf people are missing out either way, though.
There is a ton of nuance and feeling that goes into communicating through sign language that is not possible through text alone.
Just like there’s a ton of nuance that can’t be communicated by text alone when compared to spoken words, you mean?
the importance of keeping the language alive.
This is the only factor you’ve presented I can agree with. Programmes are presented with sign language because it’s important to maintain awareness that it exists. Deaf people are a very small minority, so keeping their languages alive is essential.
Not deaf/HOH, but I’ve watched some signed translations out of curiosity and even to me it seems different. They do things like indicating the feeling of music, matching their facial expressions to the characters’, and sometimes forgoing a direct translation to confer the mood of a phrase.
Even when you’re watching a subbed movie/show, you have the emotion of the voice performance to influence how you read the words. I imagine it’s the same for signed VS subbed translations (to anyone who signs, please correct me if I’m wrong).
Yeah, but it’s not the translator speaking…
They’re translating spoken words.
They wouldn’t have someone watch the sign language and then translate that into the subtitles, that wouldn’t make any sense logically.
They’d make them off the original spoken words.
So while you’re right there’s be slight difference, those are already being introduced with the sign language, and subtitles maintains the original phrasing and tone.
But can subtitles accentuate the way sign language can?
Spoken word is to text as sign language is to text is my understanding.
I can emphasize a word with sign language that otherwise can’t when just put to a text.
Yes, exclamation points have existed almost as long as written language has…
You also couldn’t do a literal translation of spoken word in sign language. And different people can interpret it differently because of that.
So even if exclamation points didn’t exist, it would still be worth it to keep the wording as accurate as possible.
Translation isn’t a 1 to 1 process. Every language has difference, idioms, etc. My understanding is that sign language is no different.
The translator makes choices to convey meaning, as well as the literal sense.
Im not an expert, I asked my friend.
She is hearing but has deaf parents and grew up with ASL.
I should have said my statement was a regurgitation of someone else’s words, either way you’re also correct.
I have no dog in this argument and my statement should be taken as a “this is what I understand” and an addition to the conversation not a “nah y’all wrong” statement
So…
Your argument for translating this into a different language, is that anytime you translate it, that changes what it says?
Not translating is still best.
And it’s pretty offensive that I’ve already seen comments in here saying deaf people read slower than people who can hear, so hopefully that’s now what you’re about to throw out.
Being deaf doesn’t mean someone can’t read well, that’s a really old stereotype. If a deaf person is a slow reader that’s not because they’re deaf.
