To a jeweller or even a jewellry enthusiast, there are few things as frustrating as seeing a clear, lustrous, well-cut gemstone in a piece of jewellry where it either doesn’t quite belong/fit in or isn’t allowed to really display all of its qualities.
Naturally, this isn’t just the scourge of the fashion/jewellry industry and there is a very good reason for this: every single aspect of a thing needs to fit properly in order to allow an object to be the best it can be and optimally perform its function.
The same ideals apply to writing. If a body of text contains errors of grammar, spelling, typing, syntax, or punctuation, it can only serve to detract from the impact of the message being conveyed. Thankfully, there are- today’s word- proofreaders.
Coming from the combination of the words proof, meaning ‘a trial print of something,’ and reader, meaning ‘a person who reads or inspects’; and first appearing in the Philadelphian literary and political publication, The Port Folio, in 1803: “Particularly in reprinting any edition of the Greek or Roman classics, error would be most pernicious… Here a just, nay a generous reward to an accomplished proofreader..will prove..the most profitable prudence.”
The term, as both an occupation and activities, co-existed for several centuries with the synonymous press corrector, first recorded in use in 1644, in John Milton’s Areopagitica: “No man of worth..is ever likely to succeed them, except he mean to put himself to the salary of a Presse-corrector.”
And by the beginning of the 1900s be qualified as American, as recorded in a 1907 publication by the Daily chronicle: “Thomas Bailey Aldrich..entered literature as a ‘proof-reader’. That is the American equivalent of our ‘corrector to the Press’ or ‘printer’s reader’.”
Regardless of what is being written, the proofreader is essential to producing a clean, mistake-free work where the topic and points can clearly speak for themselves.
And in the world of translation, the role of a proofreader expands to include assuring that the translated form of the work matches the structure, meaning, and intent of the original. So, essentially, while regular translation and editing may be able to yield the words of the work, a proofreader is the person who will assure that your work actually conveys the message wanted in the proper context. Unfortunately, while many companies and cross-border organisations require translation into multiple languages, the emphasis is placed solely on translation without the added benefits of editing or proofreading, and this comes at the cost of clarity; however, when partnering with a translation services provider whose goal is speed as well as accuracy, you can be assured that the proper steps are being taken in order to provide the best overall translation of your work.
