Translation issues

The CES Letter and other critics raise questions about the language in the Book of Mormon and the translation process.

Below is a summary of my take on the best and worst responses to the critics.

The best responses are based on the explanations given by Joseph and Oliver, along with the information in the revelations in the D&C (e.g., Joseph was told to translate the engravings on the plates). These responses provide a natural explanation that fits with how translation operates in the real world, aided by inspiration; i.e., any translator works with original source material and then draws on his/her own mental language bank, meaning the chunks of language he/she has learned.

The worst responses are those given by intellectuals who don't accept what Joseph and Oliver said because they prefer statements by others (mostly critics) who were not present during the translation (e.g., the "stone in the hat" scenario). Lately, even the Church History Department has adopted this scenario, and is now teaching that Joseph didn't even use the plates because they were covered with a cloth or outside somewhere during the translation. We see this scenario presented in recent Church artwork and media.

Some of these intellectuals also don't accept the idea that Joseph had a mental language bank sufficient to produce the language in the Book of Mormon, D&C, and PofGP.

Answers to the CES Letter
Best	Worst
Translation issues
By the gift of God, Joseph Smith translated the ancient Nephite record into English.	Joseph didn’t translate anything. He merely read out loud the words that appeared on a stone.
To translate, Joseph had to study it out in his mind and then ask if it was right.	Joseph didn’t study anything out in his mind; he just read the words that appeared on a stone.
Joseph used the Nephite interpreters that Moroni placed with the plates in the stone box to translate the engravings on the ancient metal plates.	Joseph didn’t use the Nephite interpreters or the plates. The plates sat nearby, covered with a cloth, while he read the words that appeared on a stone placed in the bottom of a hat.
Joseph dictated English words from his own mental language bank; i.e., after the manner of his language. He learned English from reading parts of the Bible, reading local newspapers, reading books written in “pseudo-Biblical style”, and reading and listening to Christian ministers. Naturally he drew on these words and phrases when he translated the engravings on the plates.	The language in the Book of Mormon is Early Modern English, which Joseph could not have known. Joseph had no control over the language, which was provided by an unknown translator.
Joseph used the King James version when he saw that the plates were quoting from Isaiah or other Old and New Testament books. He made minor changes, such as “When the mountain of the Lord’s house” in Isaiah 2:2, which he had added to his mental image bank when he read The American Revolution.	The unknown translator whose words appeared on the stone duplicated the King James translation exactly, except when inserting special Hebraisms and innovations that Joseph could not have known, such as “When the mountain of the Lord’s house” from Isaiah 2:2.
The imperfections in the text are attributable to Mormon and Moroni (Title Page) and the limitations of Joseph’s own mental language bank.	The imperfections in the text are attributable to the Early Modern English of the unknown translator who put the words on the stone.
The language in the D&C and PofGP (Moses, Abraham, and JS-H) resembles the text of the Book of Mormon because all of these scriptures were filtered through Joseph’s mental language bank.	Although Joseph didn’t read the words off a stone for the D&C and PofGP, the same spiritual translator also dictated the language of the revelations, letters and history. Joseph had no control over the language.
After 1832, the grammar in the D&C changed because Joseph learned better grammar after he moved to Ohio.	We don’t know why the grammar in the D&C changed after 1832.
Joseph revised the Book of Mormon text in 1837 and 1840 because by then he learned better grammar.	Joseph inexpertly removed some of the Early Modern English and Hebraisms when he revised the Book of Mormon in 1837 and 1840.

More detailed explanations of all of this are forthcoming.