“The art of transmitting meaning and culture” .. How does artificial intelligence threaten the role of the translator?

The Literature, Publishing and Translation Authority organized a specialized literary symposium entitled “The Art of Transfer of Meaning and Culture”, as part of the fourth edition of the Medina International Book Fair 2025, presented by the main paper, Dr. Mashael Al -Hammad, and was managed by Professor Israa Adel, in the presence of those interested in literary translation issues and its challenges.

Al -Hammad highlighted the translation as a process that goes beyond linguistic transmission to being a compound cultural act, which requires a profound understanding of textual contexts and cultural backgrounds, stressing that literary translation represents a bridge for cultural exchange, which is affected by technical and digital transformations that have become even affecting the structure of meaning.

Literary translation

She touched on the difficulty of translating poetry in particular, compared to other literary races such as the story and the novel, citing the old position of Al -Jahiz, who said that it is impossible to translate poetry, in exchange for the opinion of Abbas Mahmoud Al -Akkad, who saw that the translation is possible if its tools are available.

She explained that translating hair not only transmits the meaning, but also tries to reproduce rhetoric and rhetorical symbols, which computer programs cannot accurately emulate.

It also specified a set of conditions that the literary translator must have, in the forefront of being a writer who is able to language and targeted, and is aware of the cultural and time conditions that surrounded the original text.

The effect of artificial intelligence on translators

She pointed out that the translation is not a literal process, but rather differs from one translator to another according to its interpretation and its ability to transfer the creative spirit of the text.

Al -Hammad warned of the challenge imposed by artificial intelligence on the future of translators.
She said: These technologies, despite its facilities, lack the cultural and rhetorical sense, and the human translator cannot be compensated for the transmission of symbols, or the interpretation of metaphor, especially in poetic texts.

It is noteworthy that the Medina of the Book Fair 2025 continues until the fourth of next August, providing an integrated cultural program that combines seminars, evenings, and workshops.