Definition
Translation is the transfer of meaning from one symbol system to another — between human languages, between programming languages, between representations in different minds. Hofstadter (GEB Topic 12) argues translation works at the structural level: what survives is the rule of construction, the texture, the role-relations of elements. Surface details are local instantiations that can rarely be transferred faithfully.
Why it matters
How it works
To translate well: identify the structural roles in the source (rhythm, meter, relations between elements). Translate the structure into the target medium, recreating the surface as needed. Accept residual loss — the exact subjective texture cannot transfer. Test by asking whether a sufficiently capable receiver of the target could reconstruct the structural intent of the source. Literal translation preserves surface and loses structure; good translation does the reverse.