Working languages:
Catalan to English
Spanish to English
English to Spanish

James Townsend
English language consultant

Spain
Local time: 19:56 CEST (GMT+2)

Native in: English Native in English
Feedback from
clients and colleagues

on Willingness to Work Again info

This service provider is not currently displaying positive review entries publicly.

No feedback collected
Account type Freelance translator and/or interpreter
Data security Created by Evelio Clavel-Rosales This person has a SecurePRO™ card. Because this person is not a ProZ.com Plus subscriber, to view his or her SecurePRO™ card you must be a ProZ.com Business member or Plus subscriber.
Affiliations This person is not affiliated with any business or Blue Board record at ProZ.com.
Services Translation
Expertise
Specializes in:
AnthropologyArchaeology
Art, Arts & Crafts, PaintingGovernment / Politics
HistoryJournalism
Military / DefensePrinting & Publishing

Rates

KudoZ activity (PRO) PRO-level points: 4, Questions answered: 1, Questions asked: 1
Portfolio Sample translations submitted: 3
English to Spanish: EL AUGE Y EL DECLIVE DEL SIONISMO
Source text - English
THE RISE AND DECLINE OF ZIONISM (LAQUEUR)

At the entrance to Rehavia, one of the middle class neighborhoods of Jerusalem, there is a small complex of low buildings housing the Jewish Agency. Once upon a time, before the state of Israel came into being, this was a very busy place--- the political center of the Jewish community of Palestine,and the world Zionist movement, to day it is very quiet there, it is no more than an institution in search of a an assignment with a small budget and a steadily shrinking number of employees . Its leaders are barely known to the general public ..Perhaps it was not liquidated for sentimental reasons but it certainly reflects the shrinking importance of contemporary Zionism. The history of modern, political Zionism goes back some 110 years, it is at one and the same time the story of amazing success and failure.

When Theodor Herzl declared in 1898 that “If you want it, it is no fairy tale in fifty years from now there will be a Jewish state”, all but a small group of enthusiasts thought he had taken leave of his senses. Yet exactly fifty years later the state of Israel came into being, not admittedly because the Zionist movement was so strong and so rich, but because of Hitler and the persecution of Jews in Europe; to hundreds of thousands of them who otherwise would have been killed in the holocaust, the Jewish community in Palestine could offer a shelter and a new homeland
Translation - Spanish
EL AUGE Y EL DECLIVE DEL SIONISMO (LACQUER)

A la entrada de Rehavía, uno de los barrios de clase media de Jerusalén, hay un pequeño complejo de edificios que albergan la Agencia Judía. Érase una vez que, antes de que el estado de Israel hubiera comenzado a existir, este era un lugar muy concurrido – el centro político de la comunidad judía de Palestina, y del mundo del movimiento sionista. Hoy hay allí mucha tranquilidad. No es más que una institución en búsqueda de un propósito con un pequeño presupuesto y un número constantemente decreciente de empleados. Sus líderes son prácticamente unos desconocidos para el público en general. Quizá no fuera liquidado por razones sentimentales pero ciertamente refleja la menguante importancia del sionismo contemporáneo. La historia del sionismo moderno político se retrae unos 110 años. Es a la vez la historia de un éxito y la de un fracaso increíbles.

Cuando Theodor Herzl declaró en 1898 que “Si lo quieren, no es ningún cuento de hadas. De aquí cincuenta años habrá un estado judío”, todos menos un pequeño grupo de entusiastas pensaban que había perdido sus cabales. Sin embargo, exactamente cincuenta años más tarde se creó el estado de Israel, no porque el movimiento sionista fuera tan fuerte ni tan rico, si no debido a Hitler y a la persecución de los judíos en Europa; para cientos de millones de estos que de otra manera hubieran muerto en el Holocausto, la comunidad judía de Palestina podía ofrecer un santuario y una nueva patria.
Spanish to English: Enrique Brinkmann
Source text - Spanish
Toda la obra plástica de Enrique Brinkmann ofrece una constante y expresiva intención lírica, desde la cual se constituye en esencia, ya que el autor indica una y otra vez conseguir dar validez a su imagen viva, por las muy sensibles calidades del color convencido de ciertas premisas de su objetividad y del movimiento visual en su función de lo onírico con la realidad. Utilizando de tal modo los colores, las gamas, que operan modificaciones sensibles en la conciencia del que las contempla: modificaciones tales que dejando los dominios del espiritu reservado al conocimiento, entra en los pertenece a la formación, percibiéndose aquí una intención cargada de ambigüedades apasionada.

Un mero análisis de la calidad y expresión de su lenguaje plástico nos lleva a considerar la valoración estética de un estilo muy personal, de una inquietud permanente y de una libertad total de expresión para rescatar los compromisos de la realidad objetiva, fruto de un talento poético innato, instintivamente dirigido hacia la búsqueda de equivalencias plásticas en las que esten introducidos elementos de cromatismo y lirismo jugando con la luz los muy variados juegos de la fantasía, ayudando a utilizar las realidades que se ofrecen a su atención extrayendo lo que para él es esencial, gritando angustiosamente en cada espacio su afán de conseguir una atención gracias a esas manchas llevadas a su paroxismo enbrujador, llenas de juegos de luz, de efecto dinámico, de preocupación por lo aparente, que son toda una nueva emotividad onírica, de realidad visual.
Translation - English
Enrique Brinkmann’s work offers a constant and expressive lyrical intent based on which, in essence, it is constituted given that the author indicates time and again he has been able to validate its living image from the highly sensitive colour qualities, convinced of certain premises of objectivity and the visual movement in its dreamlike function with reality. Using colours and scales in such a manner, which obtain sensitive modifications in the conscience of the person contemplating them: such modifications that, abandoning the domain of the spirit reserved to knowledge, enter into those that pertain to creation, perceiving here a passionate intent charged with ambiguities.

A mere analysis of the quality and expression of his plastic language leads us to consider the aesthetic appraisal of a very personal style, of a permanent restlessness and of complete freedom of expression to rescue the compromises of objective reality, fruit of an innate poetic talent, instinctively directed to the search for plastic equivalencies in which elements of chromaticism and lyricism are introduced, the highly varied fantasy games playing with the light, helping to utilise the realities that are offered to its attention extracting what is essential for it, anxiously crying out in each space his desire to attract attention thanks to those spots taken to their bewitching paroxysm, full of the play of light, dynamic effects, of concern for what is apparent, which are an entirely new dream-like emotivity, of visual reality.
Catalan to English: "Contraband" by Josep Pla
Source text - Catalan
Aquella casa del Pianc de Cadaqués fou una de les primeres que en el curs de la meva vida he tingut llogades. Hi ha persones que recorden amb gran precisió els successius domicilis que han tingut, les cases que han habitat. M’agradaria de posseir aquesta forma específica de memòria. Però el curiós és que, per una sèrie de circumstàncies que no tenen res a veure amb la casa de referència, de la del Pianc, me’n recordo d’una manera molt clara.
Havia estat construïda per americano i es veia de seguida que havia estat llargament somniada. Era una casa gran, de bons materials i col·locada en un lloc molt visible, perquè quan una cosa ha estar llargament somniada acaba per agafar un aire petulant. Era situada a la part més alta del Pianc i tenia una vista sobre la badia de Cadaqués, el poble i les muntanyes de Pení, admirable.
Els baixos, que havien estat excavats en la llicorella, eren molt espaiosos i obscurs, i en el fons de l’antre hi havia una gran cisterna per a recollir les aigües del teulats. Aquesta cisterna devia ésser molt gran, perquè quan plovia i l’aigua hi anava feia un soroll fosc i tombal, una bonior que restrunyia i gairebé hi feia basarda. El pensament de l’americano havia estat, és clar, d’utilitzar-los per a posar-hi (a l’hivern) l’embarcació, els arreus de pesca, la llenya, les bótes de vi i els mallals d’oli. Per desgràcia, aquell bon home no pogué veure cap d’aquestes il·lusions realitzades, perquè es morí a l’Argentina abans d’emprendre el retorn definitiu. Els seus tampoc tornaren, i així la casa fou ocupada, en el curs dels anys, per gent diversa i vaga.
Translation - English
One of the first houses I rented in my life was on the Pianc of Cadaqués. Some people remember every house they ever lived in. I wish I had that special kind of memory. But oddly, for reasons that have nothing to do with the house in question, I clearly remember the one on the Pianc.
It had been built by an 'americano' and you could see that it had been dreamt of for a long time. It was a large house, well built and located on a very good site, because when a house has been dreamt of for a long time it finally picks up a haughty air. It was located at the highest part of the Pianc and had an admirable view over the bay of Cadaqués, the town and the mountains of the Pení.
The ground floor, which had been excavated in the slate, was dark and spacious, and at the back of the hole there was a large cistern to collect water off the roof. This cistern must have been very large because when it rained and water flowed into it, it made a dark and rumbling noise, a hum that echoed it was almost frightening. The 'americano's' idea had been, of course, to use it to store the boat (in winter), fishing gear, firewood, wine casks and oil kegs. Unfortunately, the good man never saw his dream fulfilled because he died in Argentina before undertaking the final return. His children did not return either, and thus the house came to be rented, and was occupied, in time, by various vague persons.

Experience Years of experience: 30. Registered at ProZ.com: Apr 2006.
ProZ.com Certified PRO certificate(s) N/A
Credentials N/A
Memberships N/A
Software N/A
CV/Resume CV/Resume (DOC)
Bio
As early as the age of three I accompanied my Catalan-speaking grandmother as her interpreter while she shopped in Washington D.C. I started early!

I am a published writer in all three of my translating languages. This enhances my command of the target language. As a native-English speaker my skills in Catalan are quite unique.

I am especially proud of the translating from Catalan into English I did of the Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana (Catalonia’s Encyclopaedia Britannica) to make it available in English on the Internet.

One particularly rewarding translation from Catalan into English I’ve done was "Shell middens on the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua: Prehistoric patterns of mollusc collection and consumption," Ermengol Gassiot Ballbé, Proceedings of the 9th Conference of the International Council of Archaeozoology, Durham, August 2002.

My preferred kind of work is art and archaeology. I have worked for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and for Barcelona's leading daily newspaper La Vanguardia. I greatly enjoy the entire publishing process, and as a published writer like to see my name in print in the credits.

I have done innumerable translations on the most varied subjects including: medicine, engineering, advertising, marketing, public relations, banking, finance and economics, commercial and business correspondence, the environment, sports, computers, art, architecture, archaeology, political science, radio, television, and film scripts, children‘s textbooks, etc.

As for rates, everything is negotiable, but as a starter I charge 0.08 euros per word. We can discuss things from there.

This work is often very rewarding. Was it Octavio Paz who said, “The translator is the ambassador of culture,” or words to that effect?
Keywords: medicine, advertising, marketing, public relations, business, environment, sports, art, architecture, archaeology. See more.medicine,advertising,marketing,public relations,business,environment,sports,art, architecture,archaeology,political science,radio,television,film scripts,children‘s books. See less.


Profile last updated
Nov 29, 2013