Department of Italian

Paper IT C1

Translation from and into Italian

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Exam papers which have been set since 2010 can be downloaded from CamTools, but please note that the format of this paper is changing for TRIPOS 2013. See this page for details and this link for a specimen paper.

In the examination you will be required to translate a passage of Italian (c. 450 words) into English, and a passage of English (c. 300 words) into Italian (the latter is the exercise still known as Composition). The department offers classes which will give you the chance to practice and improve both skills.

Translation

These classes are given by one (or more depending on circumstances) of the native speakers of English in the Department. You will be asked to prepare a passage of the right length and type beforehand. In the class you will be expected to contribute your own version of at least one sentence orally and to take part in a general discussion of the problems posed by each sentence in turn. By the end of the year you will have acquired a much better sense of the strategies of translation and the compromises that have to be accepted if the English version is to match the spirit as well as the letter of the original.

Composition

These classes will be conducted by two native speakers of Italian, Dr Antonello and Dr Natali. Given that you will be in your fourth year and that you will have spent 8-10 months in Italy, it is assumed you will have achieved a sufficient mastery of the grammar, morphology and structures to allow the teacher to concentrate on the nuances of register and style and to develop your sense of idiom. Increasingly you will be encouraged to experiment with renderings that sound and flow as if they had been conceived in Italian. This is an area where you can never hope to be as good as your teachers; but you will improve your performance immensely if you attend the classes and do the assignments regularly.