BACK IN TIME: How translation and cultural influence interplays? (By Leung Yiu Man, Tommy)

You may have heard of the melody of the famous theme song, Back In Time in Korean from a Korean drama, The Moon that Embraces the Sun. But do you ever realize that the lyrics has been translated into English, like this?

While listening, try picture a metaphorical world in which all of the English lyrics described.

Korean version of the song with Chinese translation of meaning:

English version of the song with English lyrics:

Korean Version of the song

English Version of the song

구름에 빛은 흐려지고 창가에 요란히 내리는 빗물소리 만큼 시린 기억들이 내 마음 붙잡고 있는데 갈수록 짙어져간 그리움에 잠겨 시간을 거슬러 갈 순 없나요 그 때처럼만 그대 날 안아주면 괜찮을텐데 이젠 젖어든 빗길을 따라가 함께한 추억을 돌아봐 흐려진 빗물에 떠오른 그대가 내 눈물 속에서 차올라와 갈수록 짙어져간 그리움에 잠겨 시간을 거슬러 갈 순 없나요 그 때처럼만 그대 날 안아주면 괜찮을텐데 이젠 흩어져가 나와 있어주던 그 시간도 그 모습도 다시 그 때처럼만 그대를 안아서 시간을 거슬러 갈 순 없나요 한번이라도 마지막일지라도 괜찮을텐데

As the sky darkens into the night  Memories, cold as the rain outside  Pounding on my window  Pouring into my mind  My heart, is filled with thoughts of you  Trapped within these painful walls  Longing to be rescued  Can't I travel back in time to be with you  Just to feel you close  Your arms wrapped around me  Then, I'll know I'm alright Again  Following, the dark and rainy road  Looking back, to what our story holds  Our love so pure and true  Reminding me of you  My eyes are filled with tears thinking of you  Trapped within these painful walls  Longing to be rescued  Can't I travel back in time to be with you  Just to feel you close  Your arms wrapped around me  Then, I'll know I'm alright Again  Scattered in time All my memories of you  You're by my side Don't let me go  Can I travel back in time? Hold you here in my arms  Just a chance to be with you For one last time  If I have to live  In this world without you  Please, give me one last kiss?

An interesting discovery: you may find that the world you imagine somehow match with the world pictured in the music video that illustrates the Korean version of the song!!!

Here, translation has definitely taken place, but it is obviously more than translation. Beyond the realm, there expands a spreading shine of power-- cultural influence. If language represents identity, then translation bridges two groups of people of different identities. Here a Korean version of lyrics is code-switched into the English depiction of the same imagery. We can see that the world is drawn by a different paint, but ultimately the artwork is more or less the same! The appearance of the English version interplays translation and cultural influence in a way that it bridges the Korean eye vision with the English one through code-switching translation. There, the people who knows English but not Korea can start to get in touch with Korean culture.

Here is the Chinese version of lyrics carrying thee same melody of the song.

Chinese Version of the song

愛上你　總會流言蜚蜚 聽說你　對待情像馬戲 開心過便失憶　欣賞過便唾棄 愛你　同時亦要憎自己 仿似懸崖上戀愛　其實有多精彩 全憑自欺欺騙我贏得到愛 危牆下的愛　承受太多悲衰 我恨我應該　躲開 我厭棄　聽這是是非非 到最尾　決定盲目愛你 應該我是該死　不可以沒有你 流言替你盡力倒轉黑白 跟你懸崖上戀愛　其實有多精彩 全憑自欺欺騙我贏得到愛 危牆下的愛　承受太多悲衰 我恨我應該　放開 若是錯愛　我不敢揭開 殘酷應該　流淚應該 苦澀無味地戀愛　難道有天花開 埋沒自尊心這過程可有愛 流言下的愛　前面太多的比賽 注定要分開

The song here is used with a different lyrics. You can feel that the world it illustrates is a largely different world which paints love relationship in a more Hong Kong styled way for Hongkongers to understand culturally.

May we get BACK IN TIME to dip ourselves into the worlds translation created and feel the intensity of cultural difference.