Dialog using an interpreter?

[sashamerideth]

I have a primary character that speaks in a peculiar sign language understood by only one other person. It is part of this character, and works very well when he is talking to his interpreter. I don't know how to write dialog where this character is speaking to another through his interpreter.

 

[Kelise]

I would just write the dialogue between the interpreter and the 'another', after saying once at the start that this character is speaking through him

Confusing sentence. Back to sleep with me.

 

[Telcontar]

Basically what star said. The most common method I've seen - and one I think works perfectly well - is to establish that there is an interpreter with one line of 'he translated.' After that, just write the dialogue as you would normally, with perhaps an occasional reminder that there is a translator (maybe when the translator actually reacts to what he's passing on). It's also fairly customary to set off the 'foreign' speech (whichever character is not speaking the language that most of your characters assumedly do) with italics.

 

[TWErvin2]

What has been said works. I have limited instances of this in my writing. It works well enough, but extended interpretation, making it flow, can sometimes get tricky.

 

[Ravana]

Bob gestured.

"Bob says there are fifteen orcs behind the hill–"

Bob gestured again, frantically.

"–and a poisonous snake just crawled inside your trouser leg."
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Basically, that's what it comes down to. If the language is so idiosyncratic only one other person understands it anyway, there's no reason to worry about depicting it. The interpreter will not translate literally, word-for-word; rather, he'll adjust what he receives to the expectations of the hearer… including filling in missing information, omitting extraneous material, selecting between different senses of the same gesture, rendering idiom comprehensible or converting literal-but-mundane statements into idiom, and so on. Nor will he always be correct when making these choices, no matter how well he understands the person he's working with.

Should Bob (with or without the help of his interpreter) try to teach the language to another character–or even if they don't: as long as they're regulars, those around them will start picking up signs over time–eventually you'll work you way up to:
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Bob made the sign for "orc," and some number over ten, along with a few that Mel wasn't familiar with, then finished by pointing at Mel's trousers. Mel grinned and said "No, I'm just really happy to see you." Which was not the best epitaph imaginable, but last words were last words.…

 

[sashamerideth]

Cool, what about one way telepathy, would that work any different? Ad he is trying to hide it, I suppose he can mask it behind a nonsensical sign language.

 

[Kelise]

The times I've seen telepathy, it's been in italics. And they look at each other silently.