Translation Activity Worksheet - Using Gen AI for Translating Poems
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Meaning-Based Hindi Poem (भावानुवाद – कविता रूप)
मुझसे वैसी ही मोहब्बत, मेरी महबूब, न चाह
एक ज़माना था जब लगता था
तेरे होने से रौशन है ज़िंदगी
तेरे ग़म के आगे
दुनिया के सारे दुख फीके थे
तेरे चेहरे से बहारें जन्म लेती थीं
तेरी आँखों के सिवा
कुछ भी देखने लायक न था
मैं समझता था
तू मिल जाए तो
क़िस्मत खुद सँवर जाएगी
पर यह सच न था
यह सिर्फ़ एक ख़्वाब था
क्योंकि दुनिया में
मोहब्बत से अलग भी
असंख्य दुख हैं
और सुकून के और भी रास्ते हैं
सदियों का अँधेरा है यहाँ
जिस्म रेशम में लिपटे
बाज़ारों में बिकते हैं
धूल, ख़ून और बीमारी से
इंसान रोज़ टूटते हैं
इन सबके बीच भी
तेरी सुंदरता अब भी खींचती है
दिल अब भी ठहर जाता है
पर क्या किया जाए?
इसलिए, मेरी महबूब,
मुझसे पहले जैसी मोहब्बत
अब मत माँग
🌹 Meaning-Based English Poem (Poetic Paraphrase)
Do not ask me, my beloved,
for the love I once gave.
There was a time I believed
your presence lit my life,
that your sorrow outweighed
all the pain of the world.
Your face seemed to hold spring,
your eyes the sum of all beauty.
I thought if you were mine,
even destiny would surrender.
But that was only a wish,
not the truth.
For the world carries griefs
far beyond love,
and comforts beyond embrace.
There are centuries of darkness here
bodies wrapped in silk,
sold in streets and markets,
lives bruised by hunger,
disease, and blood.
Even now, your beauty pulls my gaze,
my heart still falters
yet what can I do?
So ask me not, my love,
for that old love again.
Gemini
Hindi
मुझसे पहली सी मोहब्बत मिरी महबूब न माँग
मैंने समझा था कि तू है तो दरख़्शाँ है हयात
तेरा ग़म है तो ग़म-ए-दहर का झगड़ा क्या है
तेरी सूरत से है आलम में बहारों को सबात
तेरी आँखों के सिवा दुनिया में रखा क्या है
तू जो मिल जाए तो तक़दीर नगूँ हो जाए
यूँ न था मैंने फ़क़त चाहा था यूँ हो जाए
और भी दुख हैं ज़माने में मोहब्बत के सिवा
राहतें और भी हैं वस्ल की राहत के सिवा
अनगिनत सदियों के तारीक बहीमाना तिलिस्म
रेशम-ओ-अटलस-ओ-कमख़ाब में बुनवाए हुए
जा-ब-जा बिकते हुए कूचा-ओ-बाज़ार में जिस्म
ख़ाक में लथड़े हुए ख़ून में नहलाए हुए
जिस्म निकले हुए अमराज़ के तनूरों से
पीप बहती हुई गलते हुए नासूरों से
लौट जाती है उधर को भी नज़र क्या कीजे
अब भी दिलकश है तिरा हुस्न मगर क्या कीजे
और भी दुख हैं ज़माने में मोहब्बत के सिवा
राहतें और भी हैं वस्ल की राहत के सिवा
मुझसे पहली सी मोहब्बत मिरी महबूब न माँग
English
My love, do not ask from me that love we had before.
I had believed that because of you, life was luminous.
Having your grief, why would I quarrel with the sorrows of the world?
Your face gives the springtimes of this world their permanence.
What is there left in this world, if not for your eyes?
If I were to find you, destiny itself would bow down.
It was not truly so; I only wished that it were so.
There are other sorrows in this world besides the pain of love,
And other comforts besides the comfort of union.
The dark, beastly spells of countless centuries,
Woven into silks, satins, and brocades.
Bodies being sold here and there, in every lane and marketplace,
Smeared in dust and bathed in their own blood.
Bodies emerging from the furnaces of diseases,
With pus flowing from festering, rotting wounds.
My gaze turns back that way too; what can I do?
Your beauty is still ravishing, but what can I do?
There are other sorrows in this world besides the pain of love,
And other comforts besides the comfort of union.
My love, do not ask from me that love we had before.
2: Translate W. B. Yeats's The Second Coming into Hindi and Gujarati.
Chat GPT
🌪️ हिंदी अनुवाद (काव्यात्मक)
घूमता हुआ, फैलते हुए चक्र में घूमता हुआ,
बाज़ अब अपने बाज़ीगर की पुकार नहीं सुनता;
सब कुछ बिखर रहा है; केंद्र टिक नहीं पा रहा;
निरा अराजकता संसार पर छोड़ दी गई है।
रक्त से धुंधली लहर छूट पड़ी है, और हर ओर
निर्दोषता का अनुष्ठान डूब रहा है;
श्रेष्ठ लोग विश्वास से रिक्त हैं,
और निकृष्ट लोग उग्र आवेग से भरे हैं।
निश्चय ही कोई दिव्य उद्घाटन समीप है;
निश्चय ही दूसरा आगमन समीप है।
दूसरा आगमन! वे शब्द अभी गूंजे ही थे
कि Spiritus Mundi से उठी एक विराट छवि
मेरी दृष्टि को व्याकुल कर देती है:
मरुस्थल की रेत में कहीं
सिंह का शरीर, मनुष्य का सिर,
सूर्य-सा निर्विकार और निर्दय दृष्टि,
धीरे-धीरे अपनी जंघाएँ घसीटता हुआ,
और उसके चारों ओर
क्रुद्ध मरु पक्षियों की परछाइयाँ चक्कर काटती हैं।
अंधकार फिर छा जाता है; पर अब मैं जानता हूँ
कि बीस सदियों की पत्थर-सी नींद
एक झूलते पालने से दुःस्वप्न में बदल गई थी।
और कौन-सा खुरदुरा पशु,
जिसका समय अंततः आ पहुँचा है,
बेथलहम की ओर जन्म लेने को
घिसटता चला आ रहा है?
🌪️ ગુજરાતી અનુવાદ (કાવ્યાત્મક)
ફરતું, વિસ્તરતા ચક્રમાં ફરી રહ્યું છે,
બાજ હવે બાજીગરનો અવાજ સાંભળતો નથી;
બધી વ્યવસ્થા તૂટી રહી છે; કેન્દ્ર ટકી શકતું નથી;
નિર્લજ્જ અરાજકતા વિશ્વ પર છૂટેલી છે.
લોહીથી ધૂંધળો પ્રવાહ છૂટ્યો છે, અને સર્વત્ર
નિર્દોષતાનો વિધિ વિલય પામે છે;
શ્રેષ્ઠ લોકો વિશ્વાસ વિહોણા છે,
અને નિકૃષ્ટ લોકો ઉન્મત્ત ઉત્કટતાથી ભરેલા છે।
નિશ્ચિત કોઈ મહાન પ્રકટ્તિ નજીક છે;
નિશ્ચિત બીજું આગમન નજીક છે.
બીજું આગમન! એ શબ્દો હજુ ગુંજ્યા જ હતા
કે Spiritus Mundi માંથી ઉપજેલી
એક વિશાળ પ્રતિમા
મારી દૃષ્ટિને વ્યથિત કરે છે:
રણની રેતમાં ક્યાંક
સિંહનું શરીર અને માનવનું મસ્તક,
સૂર્ય સમી નિષ્ઠુર અને નિર્વિકાર નજર,
ધીમે ધીમે પોતાની જાંઘો ઘસડતું,
અને તેના આસપાસ
ક્રોધિત રણપંખીઓની છાયાઓ ઘૂમે છે।
અંધકાર ફરી છવાઈ જાય છે; પરંતુ હવે હું જાણું છું
કે વીસ સદીની પથ્થર જેવી નિંદ્રા
એક હળવા પાળણાથી દુસ્વપ્ન બની ગઈ હતી।
અને કયું ખડખડિયું પશુ,
જેનાનો સમય અંતે આવી પહોંચ્યો છે,
જન્મ લેવા માટે
બેથલેહેમ તરફ લથડતું આવી રહ્યું છે?
Gemini
Hindi Translation: द्वितीय आगमन (The Second Coming)
घूमते-घूमते उस विस्तृत भंवर में,
बाज अब सुन नहीं पाता अपने बाजदार को;
सब बिखर रहा है; केंद्र अब थाम नहीं पा रहा;
महज अराजकता दुनिया पर छोड़ दी गई है,
रक्त-रंजित ज्वार उमड़ पड़ा है,
और हर ओर मासूमियत का संस्कार डूब गया है;
श्रेष्ठ जन विश्वास खो चुके हैं,
जबकि अधम उग्र तीव्रता से भरे हुए हैं।
निश्चय ही कोई रहस्योद्घाटन निकट है;
निश्चय ही द्वितीय आगमन निकट है। द्वितीय आगमन!
अभी ये शब्द निकले ही थे कि 'स्पिरिटस मुंडी' (विश्व-आत्मा) से एक विशाल बिम्ब मेरी दृष्टि को व्याकुल करता है:
कहीं मरुस्थल की रेत में सिंह का शरीर और मनुष्य का सिर वाली एक आकृति, एक टकटकी,
सूर्य जैसी शून्य और निर्दयी, अपनी सुस्त जांघें हिला रही है,
जबकि उसके चारों ओर क्रुद्ध मरुस्थलीय पक्षियों की परछाइयां मंडरा रही हैं।
अंधेरा फिर घिर आता है;
पर अब मैं जानता हूँ कि बीस सदियों की पथरीली नींद को एक झूलते पालने ने डरावने सपने में बदल दिया था, और वह कौन सा खूंखार जीव है,
जिसका समय अब आ गया है,
जो बेथलेहम की ओर जन्म लेने के लिए रेंग रहा है?
Gujarati Translation: બીજું આગમન (The Second Coming)
વિશાળ થતા ચકરાવામાં ઘૂમતો ને ઘૂમતો,
બાજ હવે તેના રખેવાળને સાંભળી શકતો નથી;
બધું જ વિખરાઈ રહ્યું છે; કેન્દ્ર હવે પકડી શકતું નથી;
માત્ર અરાજકતા જગત પર છૂટી મૂકવામાં આવી છે,
રક્ત-રંજિત ભરતી ઉછળી છે, અને સર્વત્ર નિર્દોષતાનો ઉત્સવ ડૂબી ગયો છે;
શ્રેષ્ઠ લોકોમાં કોઈ નિશ્ચય રહ્યો નથી,
જ્યારે અધમ લોકો ઉગ્ર ઝનૂનથી છલકાઈ રહ્યા છે.
ચોક્કસ કોઈ સાક્ષાત્કાર નજીક છે;
ચોક્કસ 'બીજું આગમન' નજીક છે.
બીજું આગમન! હજુ તો આ શબ્દો બોલાયા જ છે ત્યાં 'સ્પિરિટસ મુંડી' (વિશ્વ-આત્મા) માંથી એક વિશાળ આકૃતિ મારી દ્રષ્ટિને વ્યગ્ર કરે છે:
રણની રેતીમાં ક્યાંક સિંહનું શરીર અને મનુષ્યનું મસ્તક ધરાવતું એક રૂપ,
જેની નજર સૂર્ય જેવી શૂન્ય અને નિર્દય છે, તે સાથળ હલાવતું ધીમે ડગ માંડે છે,
જ્યારે તેની આસપાસ રોષે ભરાયેલા રણ-પક્ષીઓના પડછાયા ઘૂમે છે.
અંધકાર ફરી છવાય છે;
પણ હવે હું જાણું છું કે વીસ સદીઓની પથ્થર જેવી ઊંઘને એક ઝૂલતા પારણાએ ભયાનક સ્વપ્નમાં ફેરવી દીધી હતી, અને એ કયું હિંસક પશુ છે, જેનો સમય આખરે આવી ગયો છે, ને બેથલેહેમ ભણી જન્મ લેવા માટે ઘસડાઈ રહ્યું છે?
3 : Choose a Gujarati poem and translate it into Hindi and English
🌸 हिंदी काव्यात्मक अनुवाद
अखंड वरने वरी — मीराबाई
अखंड वर को वरण किया, सखी!
मैंने अखंड वर को वरा।
भवसागर में घोर दुःख भोगे,
चौरासी लाख योनियों का फेरा भरा॥
संसार लगा अति भयावह काला,
देख हृदय मेरा काँप उठा।
कुटुंब-सहोदर सब स्वार्थी निकले,
माया-जाल को त्याग दिया॥
जन्म-जन्म का संताप सहा,
घर-गृहस्थी का बोझ उठाया।
संत-संगति में परम सुख पाया,
अब निज घर में ठहराया॥
सद्गुरु की पूर्ण कृपा से,
भवसागर से पार उतरी।
मीरा कहे—गिरधर नागर मिले,
संतन चरणों में शीश धरी॥
🌼 English Poetic Translation
I Chose the Eternal Bridegroom - Mirabai
I chose the Eternal Bridegroom, my friend,
Yes, the One who never fades.
Through the ocean of birth and suffering vast,
Eighty-four lakhs of lives I strayed.
The world appeared dark and dreadful,
My heart trembled at the sight.
Self-bound kin and grasping ties
I cast away their web outright.
Through many births I bore the pain,
The burdens of the worldly role.
In the company of saints I found
A resting place for my soul.
By the True Guru’s boundless grace,
I crossed the ocean wide.
Says Mira: “I found Giridhar
At saints’ feet, I abide.”
Gemini
English Translation: The Eternal Groom
Refrain: I have wed the Eternal Groom, O friend! I have wed the Groom who never dies.
Verses: I wandered through eighty-four lakh births, In the ocean of life, where deep sorrow lies. (Saheli!)
I saw the world as a dark, fearsome void, And trembled in terror before my eyes. (Saheli!)
Kin and siblings are driven by self; I cast off their webs and their worldly ties. (Saheli!)
Since birth, I have suffered in endless toil, Doing the chores that the household buys. (Saheli!)
In the company of Saints, I found supreme bliss; Now my heart is still, where my true home lies. (Saheli!)
By the perfect grace of my Satguru, I have crossed the sea where the spirit dies. (Saheli!)
Says Meera: I found the Mountain-Lifter Lord, At the feet of the Saints, my spirit flies. (Saheli!)
Hindi Translation: अचल सुहाग (अखंड वर)
मुखड़ा: अखंड वर को वरी, सखी! मैं तो अखंड वर को वरी।
अंतरा: भवसागर में महादुख पायो, लख चौरासी फिरी, सहेली।
संसार सारा भयंकर कारो, देख जिसे मैं थरी, सहेली।
कुटुंब-सहोदर स्वार्थी सारे, प्रपंच को मैं परी हरी (त्यागी), सहेली।
जन्म धरके संताप व्यथा सही, घर के धंधों में मरी, सहेली।
संत समागम महासुख पायो, अब निज घर में ठहरी, सहेली।
सद्गुरु की पूर्ण कृपा से, भवसागर मैं तरी, सहेली।
बाई मीराँ कहे प्रभु गिरिधर नागर, संतन चरणन पड़ी, सहेली।
4: Choose a Hindi poem and translate it into English and Gujarati.
नई खेती by रमाशंकर यादव विद्रोही
chatGPT
🔹 Gujarati Translation (કાવ્યાત્મક)
હું ખેડૂત છું
આકાશમાં ધાન વાવું છું।
કેટલાક લોકો કહે છે,
“અરે પાગલ!
આકાશમાં ક્યાં ધાન જમે?”
હું કહું છું
ગેગલા-ઘોગલા!
જો ધરતી પર ભગવાન જમ્યો હોઈ શકે,
તો આકાશમાં ધાન પણ જમી શકે।
અને હવે તો
બંને એક થઈને રહેશે
અથવા તો
ધરતીમાંથી ભગવાન ઊખડી જશે
અથવા
આકાશમાં ધાન જમશે।
English Translation (Poetic & Faithful)
I am a farmer
I sow paddy in the sky.
Some people say,
“You madman!
Paddy never takes root in the sky.”
I say
gabble-gobble!
If God can take root on earth,
then paddy too can root in the sky.
And now, it is certain
the two shall merge as one:
Either
God will be uprooted from the earth,
or
paddy will take root in the sky.
Gemini
Gujarati Translation
હું ખેડૂત છું, આભમાં ડાંગર વાવી રહ્યો છું.
કોઈ કહે છે મને, કે એ પાગલ, આભમાં ડાંગર ન ઊગે.
હું કહું છું એમને એ ઘેલા અને ઠોઠડાઓને
જો આ ધરતી પર ભગવાન જામી શકતો હોય, તો આભમાં ડાંગર પણ જામી શકે છે.
અને હવે તો, બન્નેમાંથી એક થઈને જ રહેશે
કાં તો ધરતી પરથી ભગવાન ઉખડશે, કાં તો આભમાં ડાંગર જામશે.
English Translation
I am a farmer, Sowing paddy in the sky.
Some say to me, "You fool, rice doesn’t grow in the sky."
I say to those The simpletons, the slow-witted
If God can take root upon this earth, Then paddy can take root in the sky.
And now, One of these two must come to pass:
Either God shall be uprooted from the earth, Or paddy shall flourish in the sky.
Step 2: Analysis of Translations
Comparison between ChatGPT and Gemini
Syntax: Retention or Alteration of Sentence Structure
Both ChatGPT and Gemini generally attempt to retain the original sentence structure while translating. However, as discussed in class, strict retention of structure is neither always possible nor desirable especially when translating between languages with different grammatical frameworks.
For instance, Gujarati follows a Subject–Object–Verb (SOV) order, whereas English follows Subject–Verb–Object (SVO).
Example:
હું ખેડૂત છું
I am a farmer
Here, the Gujarati structure must necessarily change to fit English grammar. This structural shift is unavoidable and natural in translation.
Similarly, when translating poetry, syntactic rearrangement often occurs to ensure grammatical correctness and readability in the target language. While both tools make such adjustments, ChatGPT tends to manage these shifts more smoothly, maintaining poetic coherence, whereas Gemini occasionally introduces prose-like constructions that weaken poetic flow.
Metre and Sound: Preservation of Rhythm
Since sentence structure changes during translation, the original rhythm and metre are also affected. This is particularly evident when translating between Indian regional languages and English.
Gujarati and Hindi, due to their shared linguistic and cultural roots, often preserve a similar rhythmic pattern. For example:
Gujarati:
અખંડ વરને વરી, સાહેલી! હું તો અખંડ વરને વરી
ભવસાગરમાં મહાદુઃખ પામી, લખ ચોરાશી ફરી
Hindi:
अखंड वर को वरण कर, सखि! मैंने अखंड वर को वरा
भवसागर में महादुःख पाया, लाख चौरासी फेरा भरा
The rhythm remains largely intact.
However, when translated into English, the compact devotional metre expands into descriptive lines:
English:
I chose the Eternal Bridegroom, O friend!
Through oceans of birth and boundless pain,
Eighty-four lakhs of lives I rose.
Here, meaning is preserved, but the metrical compactness is lost. English translations often prioritize clarity over rhythm, resulting in longer lines that cannot fully replicate the original musicality.
Between the two tools, ChatGPT shows greater consistency in maintaining stanza form, while Gemini sometimes disrupts poetic structure by inserting explanatory or uneven lines.
Lexicon and Grammar: Appropriateness of Word Choice
Overall, the lexical choices made by both ChatGPT and Gemini are largely appropriate. Both tools successfully retain key spiritual and cultural terms where necessary.
For example, in “अखंड वरणे वरी”, ChatGPT retains “Giridhar”, preserving its devotional specificity. Gemini translates it as “Mountain-Lifter”, which is semantically correct but culturally reductive, as it explains rather than evokes the name’s devotional resonance.
Similarly, in The Second Coming, both tools translate the title as “द्वितीय आगमन” or “બીજું આગમન” . While grammatically correct, one may argue that “પુનર્જન્મ” could better capture the cyclical and transformative implication of Yeats’s vision.
Despite such limitations, both tools generally maintain grammatical accuracy and preserve the spiritual and philosophical tone of the originals.
Cultural Connotations: Translation of Cultural Meaning
Culturally loaded terms are mostly handled with care, though with varying sensitivity.
Examples include:
Bethlehem, which remains untranslated, preserving its Christian eschatological significance.
Spiritus Mundi, which is retained to respect Yeats’s philosophical and mystical framework.
In Faiz’s poetry, words such as vasl, hijr, mehboob, and dard are contextualised rather than mechanically translated, maintaining their emotional depth.
However, devotional Gujarati poetry presents greater challenges. Terms such as “अखंड वर”, “संत-संगति”, and “भवसागर” carry layered spiritual meanings rooted in Bhakti philosophy. While Hindi translations approximate these meanings effectively, English translations can only partially convey their cultural and devotional richness.
Analysis Prompts
1. Identification and Discussion
Which parts of the poem were difficult to translate? Why?
Certain sections of the poems posed significant challenges due to their deep cultural, philosophical, and devotional specificity. In Mirabai’s poem, expressions such as “लाख चौरासी फेरा”, which refers to the cycle of 84 lakh rebirths in Hindu–Buddhist belief, do not have a direct equivalent in English. Similarly, the epithet “गिरधर”, a devotional name for Krishna associated with the lifting of Mount Govardhan, carries mythological and emotional resonance that exceeds literal meaning.
ChatGPT generally handles these elements through functional equivalence, for instance rendering the phrase as “Eighty-four lakhs of lives I rose” or retaining “Giridhar, my Lord.” Gemini, on the other hand, often resorts to explicit explanation, translating “गिरधर” as “Mountain-Lifter Lord,” which clarifies meaning but reduces devotional immediacy.
How were cultural connotations and collocations managed?
Culturally specific collocations reveal clear differences in translational strategy. For example, “गगला-घोगला” in Nayi Kheti functions as a dismissive, non-lexical utterance marked by sound and tone rather than semantic clarity.
ChatGPT translates this as “gabble-gobble,” effectively retaining the dismissive sound pattern and colloquial sharpness. Gemini instead interprets the phrase semantically as “the simpletons, the slow-witted,” which explains the intent but sacrifices the original’s sonic force and oral quality. This demonstrates how ChatGPT prioritizes stylistic equivalence, while Gemini prioritizes interpretative clarity.
Were there untranslatable words or phrases? How were they addressed?
Yes, several terms resist full translation due to their embedded cultural meanings. In Yeats’s The Second Coming, “Spiritus Mundi” is retained unchanged by both tools, treated as a philosophical concept belonging to the source culture. Similarly, in Faiz’s poetry, the term “वस्ल”, rich with Sufi symbolism, is translated as “union” or “embrace,” relying on surrounding context to preserve its metaphysical depth.
Strategies Used by AI Tools
Both tools mainly adopt two approaches:
Literal or Near-Literal Translation: Used for culturally dense but familiar concepts, such as “भवसागर” rendered as “ocean of life” or “ocean of worldly existence.”
Interpretative Expansion: Applied when direct equivalence fails, particularly in Gemini’s translations, as seen in its handling of “गगला-घोगला” or “गिरधर,” where explanation replaces poetic suggestion.
2. Translation Choices and Considerations
Influence of metre and rhyme on translation
Metre and rhythmic considerations clearly influenced ChatGPT’s translations. It consistently attempts to preserve poetic form, using balanced line breaks, parallel structures, and rhythmic repetition for example:
“I chose the Eternal Bridegroom, O friend!
Yes, the Eternal One I chose.”
Gemini, by contrast, often presents poems in a segmented or annotated format, dividing them into refrains and verses and adding markers such as “(Saheli!).” While this aids comprehension, it interrupts lyrical continuity and diminishes musicality.
In translations between Indian languages such as Gujarati and Hindi, both tools maintain closer rhythmic similarity because of shared syntactic and metrical traditions.
Were liberties taken to preserve tone and emotion?
Yes, particularly by ChatGPT. Its translations tend to prioritize emotive resonance and poetic self-sufficiency, sometimes choosing more evocative phrasing. For instance, in Faiz’s poem, ChatGPT’s line “life would blaze with light” conveys heightened emotional intensity compared to Gemini’s more restrained “life was luminous.”
Gemini’s translations remain semantically faithful but often read as informative renderings, whereas ChatGPT’s versions aim to recreate the affective and aesthetic experience of the original poem.
3. Comparison of the Translations
Differences between ChatGPT and Gemini Outputs
Aspect
ChatGPT
Gemini
Evaluation
Poetic Form
Stronger control over stanza division, line breaks, and rhythmic balance. Attempts to recreate poetic flow.
Weaker poetic structure; often uses paragraph-like layout or adds explanatory markers and labels.
ChatGPT performs better as a poetic translator.
Lexical Choice
Uses more literary and imaginative vocabulary (e.g., “blaze with light,” “ceremonially bathed”).
Chooses more literal or explanatory words (e.g., “Mountain-Lifter,” “simpletons”).
ChatGPT better preserves tone and mood; Gemini ensures semantic transparency.
Syntax
Willingly reshapes English syntax through inversion, compression, and parallelism for poetic effect.
Closely follows source-language syntax, sometimes resulting in stiff or awkward phrasing.
ChatGPT produces more idiomatic and aesthetically effective poetic English.
Cultural Terms
Tends towards assimilation or transcreation, often retaining culturally loaded names like “Giridhar.”
Prefers glossing or explaining cultural terms within the translation itself.
Subjective: ChatGPT assumes an informed reader; Gemini assumes a novice reader.
Overall Fidelity
Dynamic fidelity: aims to recreate the experience, emotion, and aesthetic impact of the poem.
Formal fidelity: prioritizes accuracy of content and clarity of meaning.
For literary appreciation, ChatGPT is more effective; for analytical study, Gemini is more reliable.
4. Reflection through Theoretical Frameworks
Application of Translation Theories
Roman Jakobson – On Linguistic Aspects of Translation
The findings strongly align with Jakobson’s classification of translation. Both ChatGPT and Gemini primarily perform interlingual translation (between languages). However, difficulties with expressions like “गगला-घोगला” reveal the limits of direct translation and highlight intralingual challenges, where meaning must be re-expressed rather than translated.
Jakobson’s assertion that “poetry is untranslatable; only creative transposition is possible” is particularly relevant. The loss of sound patterns, rhythm, and metre especially in English translations confirms this claim. ChatGPT attempts creative transposition through rhythmic restructuring, while Gemini remains closer to semantic substitution.
J. C. Catford – A Linguistic Theory of Translation
Catford’s concept of textual equivalence is visible in both tools. The syntactic shift from SOV structures (Hindi/Gujarati) to SVO structures (English) exemplifies structure shift and level shift, where grammatical relations are converted into lexical solutions.
Catford’s idea of cultural untranslatability is evident in phrases such as “लाख चौरासी”. Gemini resolves this through cultural explanation, whereas ChatGPT opts for functional approximation, allowing the term to resonate without explicit explanation. Both strategies reflect Catford’s framework, though with different priorities.
G. N. Devy – Indian Literary Translation
Devy’s notion of translation as transaction, continuity, and renewal within Indian literary traditions exposes the limitations of AI-generated translations. Both ChatGPT and Gemini treat poems largely as isolated texts, detached from their broader Bhakti or Sufi lineages.
A Devy-inspired translation would situate Mirabai within the Bhakti continuum or Faiz within the Sufi–progressive tradition. The suggestion that The Second Coming could be rendered as “પુનર્જન્મ” (rebirth) rather than the literal “બીજું આગમન” reflects Devy’s emphasis on culturally resonant renewal rather than formal equivalence.
A. K. Ramanujan – On Translating Indian Poetry
Ramanujan’s insistence on context-sensitivity including genre, dialect, and cultural echo is only partially fulfilled by AI tools. For example, the intimate and song-like address “સાહેલી” is flattened into “friend” or “O friend,” losing its gendered, oral, and performative nuance.
Ramanujan argued that the translator must also be a poet in the target language. ChatGPT occasionally approaches this ideal through rhythmic phrasing and tonal sensitivity, whereas Gemini functions more as a linguistic interpreter, prioritizing informational clarity over poetic re-creation.
Concluding Insight
Overall, the comparison demonstrates that ChatGPT aligns more closely with creative, reader-oriented translation models, while Gemini reflects linguistic and explanatory translation practices. When viewed through the lenses of Jakobson, Catford, Devy, and Ramanujan, both tools reveal the enduring tension in translation studies between faithfulness to meaning and faithfulness to form, culture, and experience.
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