This happens with classics usually. For instance, when somebody is complaining about not "getting" Crime and Punishment, one common response is emphasizing the importance of reading the "right" translation. In this case, Garnett, McDuff, Pevear, Cockrell, etc. Of course, is is very hard for someone who does not speak Russian to choose the right translation….
Most recently this came up with Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis. So Gregor Samsa wakes up one morning and finds out he's become a what? A horrible vermin, a gigantic insect, a monstrous cockroach, or an enormous bedbug? Does it really matter? Somebody said it's best I read several translations and decide for myself. But again, is this necessary? Is it more necessary for some works than others? And how does one decide what the "right" translation is?
by mafia_baby