Contextualizing Machine Translation: A Comparative Analysis of Iqbal’s Selected Translated Poems

Abstract

In the rapidly changing world of artificial intelligence, machine translation plays a crucial role. Even professionals are relying on machine translations. However, no research has yet examined whether machine translation is superior to human translators in providing context-based translations, especially in translating literary genres. The present study investigates issues of contextualization in machine translation through a comparative analysis of Iqbal’s selected translated poems, Shikwa and Jawab-i-Shikwa. This qualitative research examines elements of contextualization in Iqbal’s poems by comparing translations produced by a human translator and the Instagram machine translation feature. Contextualization, explained by Catford (1965), is used as a theoretical framework to analyse data. The findings reveal that Iqbal’s poetry contains various contextual and intertextual references that a machine is not capable of translating. The study highlights that producing a contextualized, accurate translation requires a collaborative partnership between machine and human translators.