Yuko Matsuoka’s Love Letter to Harry

The original hard cover edition of the Japanese translation of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by Yuko Matsuoka had an afterward by the translator that was entitled “A Love Letter to Harry”.

I finally got around to OCRing and translating the text of that afterward and it is really a wonderful read! I ran it through Google translate, although I already knew it would be awful. I have never found Google Translate to work well with Japanese. (Japanese is my best second language—I would not say I’m fluent, but I was able to read Philosopher’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets in Japanese and I can certainly recognize a bad translation when I see it.) True to form it was awful; I started doing my own translation and was done the first couple of paragraphs when it occurred to me that I should compare ChatGPT’s performance.

It takes a lot to impress me, and wow I was impressed. Enough so, that I gave up on my own translation and did a edit of ChatGPT’s instead. Not only did it make a couple of choices that I myself made, I must admit that overall it did a better job than I did!

After the “Love Letter”, I have included two things: a comparison of ChatGPT’s first paragraph and Google Translate’s first paragraph—the difference is stark; and the full text of the Japanese in case anyone should care to check it themself.

A Love Letter to Harry

In this vivid fantasy, the faces of the characters appear before my eyes, I can hear their voices, and I see the movements of their hands and eyes. Sounds, smells, and colors all come through. When I first encountered Harry Potter—it was a mysterious meeting—I felt my blood stir. This is it! This is the book that heaven has bestowed upon me. Without exaggeration, that’s how I felt. I wanted to convey the excitement I felt reading Harry Potter in English exactly as it was to Japanese readers. That became my mission. There was something in this book that made me feel this way.

As if under a spell, I finished reading this book in one night. It was so interesting that I couldn’t stop halfway through. During the year from that shocking first encounter to publication, this book cast a spell on not just me but many others. For a “Muggle” (human) like me, it was almost unbelievable that such “mysterious occurrences” could happen so close to home.

In October 1998, on my way back from my work as a simultaneous interpreter in Geneva, I went to visit an old friend in Richmond, a suburb of London. In April 1998, after losing my beloved husband the previous Christmas, I decided to continue his publishing company to comfort his soul. For six months, while continuing my work as an interpreter, I studied publishing, and by December, I was about to publish my first book, but it was truly an uncertain start for a novice publisher. My friend in Richmond was an American named Dan Schlesinger, with whom I had a twenty-year friendship. This long-standing friendship led to my encounter with Harry. Dan’s partner, an Englishwoman named Alison, is also a dear friend of mine. Dan and Alison were both Harvard alumni, became lawyers, and at one time both worked in Japan. They had moved to England with their two sons born in Japan, and several years had passed since then.

I was filled with excitement at the prospect of seeing my dear friends after a long time. I had received news that Dan, who originally had a talent for painting, had quit being a lawyer and became a painter, so I was also looking forward to seeing his paintings. They welcomed me with unchanged friendship. In a room surrounded by Dan’s wonderful pastel paintings, the three of us raised our wine glasses and talked about our recent experiences.

“Yuko, if you’re going to publish, how about this book? It’s the hottest book in Britain right now. I’ll lend it to you, so give it a read. I think it’s sold out in bookstores. If you find it in a bookstore, you’re lucky.”
“Really, it’s an incredibly interesting book. All four members of our family are hooked! It’s a children’s book, but adults can enjoy it too. The author became famous with this debut work.”
“But if it’s such a popular book, wouldn’t a major publisher have already acquired the rights…?”
“The story begins here…” Just like the opening of the first chapter of the Harry Potter story, my Harry Potter story began here. The day after I stayed up all night reading “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone,” I called the British publisher and contacted J.K. Rowling’s agent. From then on, I desperately pleaded my passion. I had never been so captivated by a book… I wanted to translate it… I wanted to convey this excitement in writing to many Japanese readers… I continued to appeal earnestly for two months. This was the first bit of magic: on December 8, I received an email from her agent.

“I spoke with the author. We have decided to go with you. We look forward to working with you.”

A “super” small publisher was set to publish a globally “super” popular book. And then, the next bit of magic began. Editors, translators, bookstores, media, and people in the publishing industry came forward one after another to support us. We aimed to produce a good book, to make the seven volumes of Harry Potter remain as classics… A project team formed spontaneously.

Dan drew the jacket and illustrations, Alison provided legal advice. My university juniors, Fumiko Uo and Natsuko Muramatsu, helped with the translation for a year, and the renowned translator Jerry Harcourt read it thoroughly and corrected the mistranslations. In the final stage, my friends Tombo Yuasa (a songwriter) and Sayaka (a Japanese major) reviewed it. Members of the Children’s Book Translation Club also cheered us on. One of the members, Shoko Ikegami, not only set up a fan club but also provided amazing translation ideas in a short period, and another member, Rieko Yanagida, provided comprehensive support, including background material preparation during her busy schedule. If we managed to be even remotely successfull at the eternal challenge of translators—how to make the translation easy to read without losing the feel of the original—it was thanks to everyone who supported us. If the charm of the original work was not fully conveyed, it was solely due to my lack of skill.

The charm of Rowling’s work lies in the delicate details scattered within the grand scale of the plan. When Rowling was twenty-five, she was waiting for a delayed train, and the image of Harry suddenly came to her. She then spent five years researching, organizing on cards, and preparing to write. In 1997, the first volume of the Harry Potter series was published in Britain, but the first thing she finished writing was the final chapter of the seventh volume. Until the completion of all seven volumes in 2003, the final chapter was securely hidden in a secret vault.

“Writing a children’s book was not my intention. I wrote a book that I would enjoy,” said Rowling, then thirty-four, who is now not only a hero to children but also an author who captivates adults. While writing the first volume, “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone,” she was a single mother on welfare, with only enough money to buy a cup of coffee while writing in a corner of a coffee shop in Edinburgh, during her child’s naps. Now, she has 80 million readers in 140 countries, with a movie adaptation by Warner Brothers set for the summer of 2001, and has become a millionaire. However, she says what makes her happiest is the response from readers, especially children. Children who used to be obsessed with computer games now line up in front of bookstores and libraries to read her books. A girl who read it twelve times, a boy who memorized more than five pages… They see the world of Hogwarts before their eyes, hear the voices of Headmaster Dumbledore and the trio of Harry, Ron, and Hermione… Rowling is most pleased that her book can provide such a reading experience for children.

“Never underestimate children,” she says. Children’s imagination is rich. They devour the fine print of the 223-page (original first volume) book with no illustrations. Translated into 28 languages, this phenomenon doesn’t change even in different languages and cultures. Even children who can’t read yet are enthralled when their parents read to them. And adults, whose soft imaginative wings lie dormant in their hearts, are touched by Harry Potter’s magic and begin to flap their wings powerfully. Harry’s story pours “the water of life” into every adult who was once a boy or girl.

A year has passed since my encounter with Harry. My fever for Harry Potter has only grown stronger. Now, let’s embark on the world of Harry together on the red train!

Finally, I would like to sincerely thank the senior members of the publishing industry who advised me, the bookstores, and the media who encouraged me. I am deeply grateful to Tsune Kida, Kohei Muto, and Tetsu Toyoda, who taught me the ABCs of the industry as a novice publisher. And though they are family, I also want to thank Yuko Kimura, the secretary who supported our “small but elite” publishing company, Rieko Ota of the art department, and my late husband Yukio Matsuoka, who continuously encouraged me in my heart when I felt like giving up.

October 1999

Yuko Matsuoka

ChatGPT vs Google Translate

ChatGPT: In this vivid fantasy, the faces of the characters appear before my eyes, I can hear their voices, and I see the movements of their hands and eyes. Sounds, smells, and colors all come through. When I first encountered Harry Potter—it was a mysterious meeting—I felt my blood stir. This is it! This is the book that heaven has bestowed upon me. Without exaggeration, that’s how I felt. I wanted to convey the excitement I felt reading Harry Potter in English exactly as it was to Japanese readers. That became my mission. There was something in this book that made me feel this way.

Google Translate: It is a rich fantasy. The character’s face appears in the eyes, hears the voice, and can see the movement of the hands and the movement of the eyes. Sounds, odors, and colors are transmitted. When I met Harry Potter -it was a mysterious encounter, but I was noisy. This is the book that heaven has given me. I thought it was not exaggeration. I want to tell the Japanese reader exactly the fun of Harry Potter’s world in English. That is my mission. There was something in this book to think so. I finished reading this book overnight, as if it were magic. It was interesting and I couldn’t stop on the way. For a year from this shocking first encounter to publishing, this book magically wrote not only me but also many people. It was incredible for me of “Mu Guru (human)”, which is not a magician.

ハリーへのラブレター

イメージ豊かなファンタジーである。登場人物の顔が目に浮かび、声が聞こえ、手の動き、 目の動きまで見えてくる。音、におい、そして色が伝わってくる。 ハリー・ポッターに出会ったとき――それは不思議な出会いだったが私は血が騒いだ。 これだ! 天が私に与えた本だ。大げさでなくそう思った。ハリー・ポッターの世界を英語 で読んだこの面白さを、そっくりそのまま日本の読者に伝えたい。それが私の使命だ。そう思 いこませる何かがこの本にはあった。 まるで魔法にかかったように、私は一晩でこの本を読み終えた。面白くて途中でやめられな かった。衝撃的なこの最初の出会いから出版までの一年間、この本は私ばかりでなく多くの人 に魔法をかけた。「まか不思議な出来事」がこんなに身近でおこるとは、魔法使いならぬ「マ グル(人間)」の私には信じられないぐらいだった。

一九九八年十月、私は古い友人を訪ねて、ロンドン郊外のリッチモンドに向かっていた。ジ ュネーブで同時通訳の仕事をした帰路だった。その前年のクリスマスに敬愛する夫を失い、道 半ばに倒れた人の魂を慰めたいと、夫の出版社を続ける決心をしたのが九八年の四月のことだった。それから半年、同時通訳の仕事を続けながら出版の勉強をし、十二月には最初の本を刊 行するというところまでこぎつけてはいたが、新米出版人のまことに頼りない船出であった。 リッチモンドの友人はアメリカ人のダン・シュレシンジャー、付き合いは二十年も前に遡る。 この長年の友情がハリーとの出会いを生むことになった。ダンのパートナー、イギリス人のア リソンも私の大切な友人である。ダンとアリソンはハーバード大学の同窓で、二人とも弁護士 になり、一時期二人とも日本で仕事をしたが、日本で生まれた二人の男の子をつれてイギリス に移り、すでに数年が過ぎていた。
久しぶりに親しい友人に会えるという喜びに私は胸を膨らませていた。もともと画才のあっ たダンが、弁護士をやめ画家に転向したという知らせを受け取っていたので、彼の絵をみるの も楽しみだった。二人は少しも変わらぬ友情で迎えてくれた。ダンのすばらしいパステル画に とりかこまれた部屋で、私たち三人はワイングラスをかたむけ、お互いの近況を語り合った。
「ゆうこ、出版するなら、こんな本はどうだい? 今イギリスで一番ホットな本だよ。貸し てあげるから読んでごらん。 本屋に行っても売切れだと思うよ。もし本屋にまだ残ってたら君 はラッキーだ」
「ほんとに、ものすごく面白い本よ。家は親子四人が夢中! 子供の本だけど、大人も楽し めるし、著者も処女作で一躍有名になった話題の人なの」
「でも、そんなに人気のある本なら、大手の出版社がもう版権を取ってるでしょう・・・」
「物語はここから始まる」・・・ハリー・ポッター物語の第一章の書き出しさながらに、私のハ リー・ポッター物語もここから始まった。「ハリー・ポッターと賢者の石」を徹夜で読んだ次 の日、私はイギリスの出版社に電話をかけ、著者J・K・ローリングの代理人に連絡をとった。 それからは必死で私の情熱を訴えつづけた。こんなに夢中になった本はない・・・・ 翻訳したい …、この感動を文字にして、多くの日本の読者にハリー・ポッターのすばらしさを伝えたい・・・・ 真摯な心からの願いを二ヶ月にわたって訴えつづけた。それが最初の魔法を生んだ。十二月八日、代理人からEメールが届いた。
「著者と話した。私たちはあなたに決めた。よろしく頼む」

「超」小出版社が世界的な「超」人気の本を出版することになった。そして、次の魔法が始 まった。編集者、翻訳者、書店、マスコミ関係者、出版業界人と次々に支援してくれる人が現 れたのだ。よい本を出そう、ハリー・ポッター全七巻が古典として残るような本にしよう…自 然発生的にプロジェクトチームが組まれた。 ダンはジャケットとイラストを描き、アリソンは弁護士として助言してくれた。大学の後輩、 宇尾史子、村松夏子女史は一年間翻訳を手伝ってくれ、名翻訳家ジェリー・ハーコート女史は隅々まで読んで誤訳を訂正してくれた。仕上げには友人の湯浅とんぼ(ソングライター) と さやかさん(日本語専攻) 親子のチェックが入った。 児童書翻訳クラブのメンバーもエールを 送ってくれた。メンバーの一人、池上小湖さんには友の会を立ち上げていただいたばかりか、 短期間に驚くほどのすばらしい翻訳のアイデアをいただいたし、同じくメンバー柳田利枝さん には激務の合間に背景資料の作成など、全面的にご協力をいただいた。原作の手触りを失わず、 いかに読みやすい翻訳にするか、翻訳者のこの永遠の課題を、もし少しでもクリアする事がで きたとすれば、支えてくれた皆様のおかげであり、原作の面白さが十分に伝わっていないとす れば、ひとえに私の力量不足だ。 ローリングの作品の魅力は、壮大なスケールの構想の中にちりばめられた繊細なディテール である。 二十五歳のとき、ローリングが遅れた列車を待っていると、フッとハリーのイメージ が湧いてきたそうだ。 それからはそのイメージの肉付けのために文献を調べ、カードで整理し、 執筆を始めるまで五年を費やしたという。一九九七年、ハリー・ポッターシリーズの第一巻 がイギリスで出版されたが、実は最初に書き終えたのが第七巻の最終章だった。全七巻が二〇 〇三年に完成するまで、最後の章は秘密の金庫にしっかりと隠してあるらしい。 「児童書を書いたという意識はない、自分が楽しめる本を書いた」と言う三十四歳のローリ ングは、いまや子供たちの英雄であるばかりでなく、大人をも夢中にさせる作家だ。 第一巻の 『ハリー・ポッターと賢者の石」を書いているときは、生活保護を受けるシングルマザーで、エディンバラのコーヒー店の片隅でコーヒー一杯を飲むお金しかなく、幼い子供が眠っている 間書きつづけたという。その彼女が、いまや世界一四〇カ国、八〇〇万人の読者を持ち、ワー ナーブラザーズで二〇〇一年夏の映画化も決まり、億万長者になった。しかし、彼女が一番う れしいのは、読者の、特に子供たちの反応だと、彼女自身が語っている。コンピュータ・ゲ ームに夢中だった子供たちが、書店や図書館の前に行列を作って彼女の本を読みたがる。 十二 回も読んだという女の子、五ページ以上も暗記している男の子。目の前にホグワーツの世界が 見え、ダンブルドア校長や仲良し三人組のハリー、ロン、ハーマイオニーの声が聞こえてくる ・・・、そういう読書体験を子供に与える事ができたのが何よりもうれしいという。 子供を侮ってはいけない、と彼女は言う。 子供の想像力は豊かだ。 挿絵の一枚もない二二三 ページ(第一巻の原書)の細かい活字の本を、子供たちはむさぼるように読む。 二十八カ国語 に訳され、異なる言語、異なる文化の中に置かれても、この現象は変わらない。まだ字を読め ない子供も、親が読み聞かせるとシーンとなって聞きほれる。そして、大人も、その心の中に 眠っている柔らかい空想の羽が、ハリー・ポッターの魔法に触れ、力強く羽ばたき始める。か つて少年、少女だったすべての大人に、ハリーの物語は「生命の水」を注いでくれる。 ハリーとの出会いから一年が過ぎた。私のハリー・ポッター熱は冷めるどころかますます 激しく燃え上がっている。さあ、ハリーの世界へ、皆さんと一緒に紅の汽車に乗って出発!! 最後に、ご助言下さった出版界の先輩の皆様、激励してくださった書店やマスコミの皆様に 心から感謝したい。 新米出版人の私に業界のいろはを教えてくださった木田恒、武藤浩平、豊 田哲の諸氏には足を向けては寝られない。身内ではあるが、「少数精鋭」の小出版社を支えて くれた秘書の木村康子女史、アートの太田理英子女史、 そして、くじけそうになる私を、私の 心の中で励ましつづけた亡き夫の松岡幸雄に感謝する。

一九九九年十月吉日

松岡佑子