A question of language.
I like linguistics. I like ancient languages, specifically Latin (which naturally gives way to modern Spanish, Portuguese and French, albeit bad French), Greek and Sumerian. At the moment I'm learning Hebrew. The question of valid translations (particularly a long dead language with multiple applications for various words), has long been an issue of mine. It is of course, virtually impossible to know precisely what context every word is or was used in. The best we can do is look at each item in question within the contents of the sentence that contains it. So what happens in translation? Especially multiple changes from one tongue, to another, to yet another.  The following is an experiment using a poem of mine, watching the verse go through several changes (via both human and computer translators), then back to its original language to see how vastly it has been altered without actual  intent.  Forgive please, my atrocious German. My gratitude to Trenchcoat, for his invaluable assistance.

English
He lapped the dust off the mirror, hungry for a taste of nostalgia.
The house reeked of it and he feasted on it -
the thick foreboding resentment in the kitchen,
the anger and dissatisfaction of the bedroom,
the cloying scent of envy prevailed - and like a gourmet
he savoured ever hint of flavour, in all its combinations,
regardless of how sick or how twisted.
It filled him for a while...
calmed the empty feeling below his belly.
But when he needed more there was none to be had.
Every morsel had been drained from the old building,
its faded furniture a shade paler in his passing,
and he shambled off into the silence to find more misery -
to sate his endless hunger.

English to French
Il a enroulé la poussière outre du miroir, affamé pour un goût de nostalgie.
La maison a senti d'elle et il a régalé là-dessus -
le ressentiment forboding épais dans la cuisine,
la colère et le mécontentement de la chambre à coucher,
le parfum cloying de l'envie a régné - et comme un gourmethe
savoured jamais le conseil de la saveur, dans toutes ses combinaisons,
indépendamment de la façon dont malade ou de la façon dont tordu.
Elle l'a rempli pendant un moment...
a calmé le sentiment vide au-dessous de son ventre.
Mais quand il a eu besoin davantage il n'y en avait aucun être eu.
Chaque morceau avait été écoulé le vieux bâtiment,
ses meubles fanés une nuance plus pâle dans son dépassement,
et il shambled au loin dans le silence pour trouver plus de misère -
pour assouvir sa faim sans fin.

French to German
Er hat den Staub außer Spiegel aufgerollt, der für einen Geschmack nostalgie ausgehungert wurde.
Das Haus fühlte von ihr, und er hat darüber -
das Ressentiment dicke forboding in der Küche,
dem Zorn und der Unzufriedenheit mit dem hinzulegenden Zimmer,
dem Parfüm cloying des Verlangens hat geherrscht -
und als gourmethe savoured planiert nie der Rat des Geschmackes in all seinen Kombinationen
unabhängig von der Art und Weise,
darunter krank oder von der Art und Weise darunter verdreht.
Sie hat es während eines Zeitpunkts gefüllt...
beruhigte das leere Gefühl unter seinem Bauch.
Aber, wenn er Bedürfnis mehr gehabt hat er dort,
davon hatte kein gehabtes Wesen. Jedes Stück war das alte Gebäude,
seine gewelkten Möbel ausgelaufen eine blassere Nuance in seiner Überschreitung
und er shambled an weit in der Stille, um mehr Elend zu finden -
um seinen Hunger ohne Ende zu stillen.
 

German to Spanish
Rodó el polvo para arriba excepto el espejo,
que se señaló por medio de luces hacia fuera para una nostalgia del gusto.
La casa sentida de él, y él tiene sobre él -
el resentimiento grueso forboding en la cocina,
que encolerizan y ha prevalecido el descontento con el cuarto que puede ser colocado,
que perfuman cloying la demanda -
y como el gourmethe savoured nunca acepillado el consejo del gusto
en todas sus combinaciones independientemente de la manera,
entre ellas enfermedad o de la manera bajo él rota.
Lo llenó durante una vez...
calmado abajo de la sensación vacía debajo de su vientre.
Pero, si no tenía necesidad él, de él no tenía no más de naturaleza tenida.
Cada pedazo había funcionado hacia fuera el viejo edificio,
su matiz pálido marchitado de los muebles en su exceso
y shambled encendido lejos en el silencio para satisfacer para encontrar más miserias -
alrededor de su hambre sin extremo.

Spanish to English
The dust rolled for up except the mirror,
that was indicated through lights toward went for a nostalgia of the flavour.
The house felt of him, and he has upon him -
the resentment thick forboding in the kitchen,
that make angry and the discontent with the room has prevailed that can be placed,
that perfume cloying the demand -
and as the gourmet he savoured never brushed the counsel of the flavor
in all its combinations independently in the way,
among them illness or in the way under him broken.
It filled it during once...
Calm below the empty sensation under its womb.
But, if did not have need he, of him did not have not more than nature had.
Each piece had functioned toward what was the old building,
its pale shade wilted of the furniture in its excess
and shambled on far away in the silence to satisfy to find more miseries -
around its hunger without extreme.

Is it the same as before? Even its essence has changed in ways (or to us it has, in any case). Imagine if this were an important document or proposal. Some heads would roll. I hope you found this an interesting exercise. The written word is far more mutable than one would immediately assume, and language is as fluid as any ocean.
With that I bid you a fond farewell, adiós, Abschied, adieu, and aloha, suckers.
Our gratitude for your attendance.

Notice 'cloying' doesn't really translate? Should've used another adjective. But that itself tells us something. Just what is up to the individual.
Gender becomes meaningless too, even with careful thought toward usage. How appropriate.

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