Lost in Translation: Das Unheimlich

I have found Freud’s theory of The Uncanny fascinating since studying it as part of my Bachelor’s degree. Having recently revisited Freud’s essay I posted the image included above on my Instagram with the caption: ‘Das heimlich und unheimlich’. Instagram’s translation tool provided the following translation: ‘The scary and the creepy’. The page I photographed is the section of Freud’s essay in which he discusses he wide variety of meanings that are created through the many translations of the unheimlich into other languages.

The uncanny is the English translation of the unheimlich but it is not a direct translation of the word; the direct translation is the unhomely. The uncanny encompasses feelings of uncertainty, fear, and the familiar contrasted with the unfamiliar. With many concepts, including some juxtaposing ideas, to be defined through a single word it’s not surprising that names and meanings change through translation.

Returning to the translation provided by Instagram, it appears to be influenced by social awareness of Freud’s theory. If the algorithm were set to provide direct translations it should have occurred like this: ‘the homely and the unhomely’. This then adds further complexity, for not only do the issues of indirect translation affect the understanding of the uncanny, but social understanding can affect it as well.

For anyone interested in Freud’s theory of the uncanny I highly recommend that you read his essay. It is a somewhat complex concept, one that I cannot easily summarise in a short article, but one worth diving into.