Unauthorized use of a copyrighted work. Translations are included under the category of derivative works, and those have a requirement of lawfulness. They have to be somehow licensed or authorized from the copyright holder of the work they derive from.
The Shannara books were unoriginal, but not to a degree that they'd be considered derivative works.
> The Shannara books were unoriginal, but not to a degree that they'd be considered derivative works.
First, as far as I knew only the first book was unoriginal. But I'm certainly willing to believe others are unoriginal too.
Second, when nobody can read a book without noticing "hey, this is exactly the same story as this other book, but with different names", what's left that both
(1) distinguishes it as "not a derivative work", and
(2) doesn't also automatically apply to any translation into a foreign language?
I have seen it said many times that copyright will not protect ideas, only the particular form they have taken. Without a pretty gigantic loophole, those terms would provide absolute protection to a translation, which necessarily cannot use any wording from the original.
> First, as far as I knew only the first book was unoriginal.
Maybe. It's been a long time since I read the series. I remember getting to the third or fourth and realizing that the plots of later books also seemed to crib off the earlier ones.
(1) The story isn't exactly the same, just noticeably similar. The presentation is also significantly different, with a different premise for the setting and such.
(2) Copyright laws (Berne convention and US copyright law) specifically note translations as being afforded copyright separate from the original work, but falling under the "exclusive rights of authorization" that govern the original work.
Unauthorized use of a copyrighted work. Translations are included under the category of derivative works, and those have a requirement of lawfulness. They have to be somehow licensed or authorized from the copyright holder of the work they derive from.
The Shannara books were unoriginal, but not to a degree that they'd be considered derivative works.