The Good News Bible at 50(ish): Translation, Localization, and Alterity

This article will explore the Good News Bible (GNB) as an example of a translation designed to “localize” the source text—in this case, by virtue of its strategy to produce a translation in contemporary language. In this approach, designed to enhance the reader’s chance of making meaning, there are gains and losses. On one level, greater accessibility to the text for a wider audience may seem to be achieved, while at another level, access to the otherness/alterity in the source text (intertextuality, wordplay, etc.) is closed off. Several examples will illustrate some of these gains and losses in GNB.