How does it happen?
It is admirable that professors and students speak incredibly nice English in Stockholm univ, where I had opportunity to study last year. I currently miss the education that I benefited and owned so much, especially when I see professors who are not admirable at all.
There was a presentation last night in my univ; introduction to Canadian law presented by guest professor from Canadian university. Having the content of her presentation clear and easy, there was a professor to translate and interpretate it. He is prof specialized for administrative law and working in graduate school of Nichidai. He came to the place, because he must have had a good English performance enough to help Japanese-speaking students understand the presentation. Everyone had expected that he would have provided us with orientation toward Canadian n judicial sysytem. However that was the horriblest translation in the world that I have ever seen...
he: Ok, let's begin.
guest prof: Well, let me start from a basis structure and principle of Canadian laws...
First of all, things were really easy-going;
everything was fine at that time
and, nobody yet realized something wrong...
guest prof: the most famous case in this respect is "O.J.Simpson". He supposedly killed his
family but was not convicted for murder. He turned to be innocent till the
relative of victims went to lawsuit against him for compensation. He acutually
lost the civil lawsuit, though no guilty was sentenced to him in criminal case...
Almost everything was what I hadn't known, so some issues such as terminalogies were needed to be translated at least for me. Then the great professor from our Nichidai will take the role to make everything intelligible for every student, and that was what everyone was looking forward to. However...
he:えー、このＯ．Ｊ.シンプソンの判決は有名なものでありますから、皆さんはご存知であるかと思いま すので逐語訳は致しません。
(English translation of his Japanese translation: Well, I think that you folks have well
studied the O.J.Simpson case, so I don't have to translate from A to Z.)
Acutually everyone could understand the case as a matter of fact; good understanding of English is not a big problem to be mentioned in this respect. Yes, there will be something more important following after that.
guest prof: Then, I'm going to implement the content of resume since I missed to add some
details about the judicial system...
Finally I thought "Yes! this is the one I need Japanese translation to deeply understand!" Introduced to the new aspect of the system, it was a bit hard to follow the lecture without Japanese translation.
he: あまり時間がないので、説明は省きます先生次に進んでください。Please go.
（We don't have so much time for lecture, please go on.）
私:（ ´ﾟдﾟ｀）how come!
It was gradually revealed that he did not undersand the presentation of lecture. All he says is written down on a resume given before the presentation. All he can do is just speak out a piece of paper...
Above All,
he: Please hurry we don't have so many time (repeatedly).
Disturbance, which is the most impolite for the presenter. Guest professor and every student in the lecture hall fully realized that he should have been refused the role of translator; otherwise it will result in dispersing shames around.. Everyone thought "it's enough, go home and hit the shower." In all probablity, he was the one who was upset most in the room, but he couldn't get down from the rostrum on the way of translation. It was his honor not to say any more.
<opinion>
I see a lot of professors saying "you people have to have good English proficency while studying other Asian languages. You need to be international if you want to be lawyer of comming generation." What they say makes sense of course; it is not enough that one can speak only Japanese and English. In addition, at least, we should be able to speak one more Asian language. I can understand what they talk. However why the un-sophisticated implite non-English speaking grad school teacher can become a professor? Without the accordingly necessary knowledge of foreign languages? How can you still say "study English"? Is it incredible that the man who translated teaches oversea laws in grad school? The only thing that I say is This is nichidai.
There was a presentation last night in my univ; introduction to Canadian law presented by guest professor from Canadian university. Having the content of her presentation clear and easy, there was a professor to translate and interpretate it. He is prof specialized for administrative law and working in graduate school of Nichidai. He came to the place, because he must have had a good English performance enough to help Japanese-speaking students understand the presentation. Everyone had expected that he would have provided us with orientation toward Canadian n judicial sysytem. However that was the horriblest translation in the world that I have ever seen...
he: Ok, let's begin.
guest prof: Well, let me start from a basis structure and principle of Canadian laws...
First of all, things were really easy-going;
everything was fine at that time
and, nobody yet realized something wrong...
guest prof: the most famous case in this respect is "O.J.Simpson". He supposedly killed his
family but was not convicted for murder. He turned to be innocent till the
relative of victims went to lawsuit against him for compensation. He acutually
lost the civil lawsuit, though no guilty was sentenced to him in criminal case...
Almost everything was what I hadn't known, so some issues such as terminalogies were needed to be translated at least for me. Then the great professor from our Nichidai will take the role to make everything intelligible for every student, and that was what everyone was looking forward to. However...
he:えー、このＯ．Ｊ.シンプソンの判決は有名なものでありますから、皆さんはご存知であるかと思いま すので逐語訳は致しません。
(English translation of his Japanese translation: Well, I think that you folks have well
studied the O.J.Simpson case, so I don't have to translate from A to Z.)
Acutually everyone could understand the case as a matter of fact; good understanding of English is not a big problem to be mentioned in this respect. Yes, there will be something more important following after that.
guest prof: Then, I'm going to implement the content of resume since I missed to add some
details about the judicial system...
Finally I thought "Yes! this is the one I need Japanese translation to deeply understand!" Introduced to the new aspect of the system, it was a bit hard to follow the lecture without Japanese translation.
he: あまり時間がないので、説明は省きます先生次に進んでください。Please go.
（We don't have so much time for lecture, please go on.）
私:（ ´ﾟдﾟ｀）how come!
It was gradually revealed that he did not undersand the presentation of lecture. All he says is written down on a resume given before the presentation. All he can do is just speak out a piece of paper...
Above All,
he: Please hurry we don't have so many time (repeatedly).
Disturbance, which is the most impolite for the presenter. Guest professor and every student in the lecture hall fully realized that he should have been refused the role of translator; otherwise it will result in dispersing shames around.. Everyone thought "it's enough, go home and hit the shower." In all probablity, he was the one who was upset most in the room, but he couldn't get down from the rostrum on the way of translation. It was his honor not to say any more.
<opinion>
I see a lot of professors saying "you people have to have good English proficency while studying other Asian languages. You need to be international if you want to be lawyer of comming generation." What they say makes sense of course; it is not enough that one can speak only Japanese and English. In addition, at least, we should be able to speak one more Asian language. I can understand what they talk. However why the un-sophisticated implite non-English speaking grad school teacher can become a professor? Without the accordingly necessary knowledge of foreign languages? How can you still say "study English"? Is it incredible that the man who translated teaches oversea laws in grad school? The only thing that I say is This is nichidai.
