scholarly journals “Metaphoric Displacement” – a Reliable Guide in Literary Translation

2006 ◽  
Vol 2 (1-2 (2)) ◽  
pp. 106-110
Author(s):  
Seda Gasparyan

The article addresses the issues related to the translation of literary texts. The author places a special emphasis on the importance of the functional approach and suggests the principle of “metaphoric displacement” as the best way to achieve adequate literary translation. The article attaches special importance to the translation of lexical units especially to that of polyphonic words.

Target ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roda P. Roberts

Abstract Many translation theorists have adopted a functional approach to translation in an attempt to guide and explain the difficult choices a translator must make. This paper argues that it is the function of the translation, and not the functions of language or the function of the source text, that is the translator's guiding force. Having defined the function of translation as the application or use which the translation is intended to have in the context of the target situation, various functions that a literary translation may serve are examined. Finally, using the criteria of functions of language, functions of (source) text and functions of translation, an attempt is made to show that the type and degree of coincidence between the formal manifestations of the functions of language in the source text, the function of the source text and the translation depend on the precise function of the latter.


Author(s):  
Svitlana Gruschko

In the article the phenomenon of translation is regarded as mental interpretation activity not only in linguistics, but also in literary criticism. The literary work and its translation are most vivid guides to mental and cultural life of people, an example of intercultural communication. An adequate perception of non-native culture depends on communicators’ general fund of knowledge. The essential part of such fund of knowledge is native language, and translation, being a mediator, is a means of cross-language and cross-cultural communication. Mastering another language through literature, a person is mastering new world and its culture. The process of literary texts’ translation requires language creativity of the translator, who becomes so-called “co-author” of the work. Translation activity is a result of the interpreter’s creativity and a sort of language activity: language units are being selected according to language units of the original text. This kind of approach actualizes linguistic researching of real translation facts: balance between language and speech units of the translated work (i.e. translationinterpretation, author’s made-up words, or revised language peculiarities of the characters). The process of literary translation by itself should be considered within the dimension of a dialogue between cultures. Such a dialogue takes place in the frame of different national stereotypes of thinking and communicational behavior, which influences mutual understanding between the communicators with the help of literary work being a mediator. So, modern linguistics actualizes the research of language activities during the process of literary work’s creating. This problem has to be studied furthermore, it can be considered as one of the central ones to be under consideration while dealing with cultural dimension of the translation process, including the process of solving the problems of cross-cultural communication.


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 196-216
Author(s):  
Helena Bodin

Abstract Heterographics (“other lettering”) refers to the use of two scripts in one text or a translation of a text from one script to another. How might the occasional use of heterographics in literary texts highlight issues of cultural diversity? Drawing on intermedial theory and studies of literary multilingualism, literary translation, and pluriliteracies, this article examines various functions of heterographics in selected contemporary literary texts. Examples of embedded Greek, Chinese, Cyrillic, and Arabic script are analysed in works published in Swedish, French, and English between 2004 and 2015, selected because they thematise cultural diversity and linguistic boundaries. The conclusion is that heterographic devices emphasise the heteromediality of literary texts, thereby heightening readers’ awareness of the visual-spatial features of literary texts, as well as of the materiality of scripts. Heterographics influence readers’ experiences of cultural affinity or alterity, that is, of inclusion or exclusion, depending on their access to practices of pluriliteracies.


2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 8
Author(s):  
Erico Assis

The long-discussed – and frequently dismissed – concept of translation faithfulness or translation fidelity, though usually applied to literary texts, has its fair share of applications when considered for comics translation. In literary translation, non-linguistic portions such as illustrations are often considered addenda or “paratexts” relative to the main, linguistic text. Comics, by its turn, present a certain set of features which single them out as a form that demands a new concept of “text” and, therefore, of translation fidelity. The comic-reading process, as pertaining to cognitive apprehension, implies interpretative accords that differ from the ones in purely linguistic texts: each and every element of the comics page – non-linguistic (mainly imagetic) signs, linguistic signs, panel borders, typography and such – are intertwined and should be perceived in regards to its spatial and topological relations. This approach to understanding comics is based on Groensteen (1999) and his concepts of arthrology, spatio-topia, page layout, breakdown and braiding. As for translation fidelity, we rely on authors such as Berman (1984), Guidere (2010) and Aubert (1993). On comics translation, Zanettin (2008), Rota (2008) and Yuste Frías (2010, 2011) are of particular interest. Based on various concepts of fidelity – supported by samples of translated comics with varied degrees of fidelity to the source text – we discuss the different grounds of source-text fidelity, target-reader fidelity and source-author fidelity in the following instances: linguistic sign fidelity, imagetic sign fidelity, spatio-topia fidelity, typographic fidelity and format fidelity.


Babel ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 150-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdullah Shunnaq ◽  
Fayez Abul-Kas

Abstract Poetry in general and lyric poetry in particular are perhaps the most difficult types of texts to be rendered from one language into another without much change in meaning and structure. That is why folkloric songs could be considered as toilsome to be rendered, because they are often culture-bound. Moreover, they have a highly complicated sign structure which plays an important role in transmitting culture. It may be helpful and useful to investigate a number of difficulties in translating these rhymed texts which reflect certain aspects of culture (social, political and ecological, among others). Despite the dearth of references, the authors have succeeded in obtaining the necessary data of translating these folkloric songs. They aim to reach modest findings which could be beneficial to students of translation. In this paper, it may be useful to introduce some ideas about the nature of translation and translatability as well as literary translation with special reference to the semantic vs. communicative translation. It also aims to shed light on the translatability of some Jordanian folkloric songs. This study partly provides examples of the authors' translations from Arabic into English, which are only attempts of translating these literary texts. The translations are meant only for the aim of comparison or to support data. Some conclusions and recommendations about the translatability of folkloric songs are reached. Résumé La poésie en général et la poésie lyrique en particulier sont probablement les types de textes les plus difficiles à reproduire d'une langue dans une autre sans introduction de changement de signification ou de structure. C'est la rasion pour laquelle les chants folkloriques, généralement liés à la culture sont difficiles à traduire. De plus, la structure des signes est éminemment compliquée et joue un rôle important au niveau de la transmission de la teneur culturelle. Il peut donc être intéressant et utile d'analyser un certain nombre de difficultés qui surgissent lors de la traduction de ces textes rythmés qui reflètent certains aspects culturels (sociaux, politiques et écologiques, entres autres). En dépit du manque de références, les auteurs sont parvenus à obtenir les informations nécessaires à la traduction de ces chants folkloriques. Leur but est d'obtenir certains indications susceptibles d'être précieuses pour les étudiants en traduction. Dans le présent article, les auteurs ont estimé qu'il pouvait être utile d'introduire certains notions concernant la nature de la traduction et de la traductibilité mais aussi de la traduction littéraire, en particulier dans le domaine de l'opposition traduction sémantique — traduction communicative. Les auteurs souhaitent aussi aborder la traductibilité de certains chants folkloriques jordaniens, et ce à l'aide d'exemples de traductions arabe-anglais réalisées par les auteurs mais qui ne sont d'après ces derniers que des essais de traduction de ces textes littéraires. Ces traductions visent uniquement à comparer les informations ou à fournir des indications utiles. Ce faisant ils sont parvenus à formuler un certain nombre de conclusions et de recommendations concernant la traductibilité des chants folkloriques.


2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (33A) ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Veronica Razumovskaya

The paper deals with the original inexhaustibility and translation multiplicity as new literary translation categories. Particular attention is paid to the information ambiguity of “strong” literary texts, which directly results in the generation of numerous centres of translation attraction. A “strong” text of Russian culture The Master and Margarita and its secondary texts resulting from the performed interlingual and intersemiotic translations served as the material for the present study. The centre of translation attraction, which is formed from the Bulgakov’s text, is considered from the standpoint of translation theory and literary criticism, which corresponds to the universal scientific principle of complementarity and provides a complementary approach to the “strong” text as a research object. The formation and further functioning of the centres of translation attraction is of particular interest in the case of using a “strong” literary text of Russian culture as an attractor of literary translation due to the traditional literocentrism of the Russian culture. Numerous translations of the novel provides “expendability” of a culturally significant text in the temporal and cultural spaces and serve as a guarantee of its “preservation” and survival.


Author(s):  
Mehmet Şahin ◽  
Sabri Gürses

This article investigates perceptions of technology-mediated translations of literary texts by two groups: translation students and professional literary translators. The participants post-edited an excerpt from a classic Dickens novel into Turkish using a machine translation (MT) system of their choice. The analysis of the post-edited texts, participants’ answers to survey questions, and interviews with professional translators suggest that MT is currently a long way from being an essential part of any literary translation practice for the English–Turkish language pair. Translators’ interactions with MT and negative attitudes toward it may change in a positive direction as MT improves and translation practice evolves.


2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (33A) ◽  
pp. 8
Author(s):  
Natalia Kamovnikova

A literary translation invariably reflects the historical and cultural features of the time and place of its production. The perception of literary texts is determined by the political and cultural situation in a given language community, and the literary translation, therefore, is justly seen as the negotiation that aims at reaching a compromise between two languages, two geographical spaces, and two historic times. Literary translation is as well regarded as a manipulation, an attempt to make the translation fit in with the target audience culture, social situation, or ideology. The famous poem The White Man’s Burden by Rudyard Kipling was alternately seen as racist and Eurocentric or as missionary and philanthropic. The translations made into different European languages conveyed the ideology of the poem differently as well, the interpretation depending on the historic time, the targeted language community, and the social requirements to literature and translation. These social factors preconditioned the difference in interpretation of such controversial issues of the poem as race, difference, and religion in the five translations analysed in this article. The article offers a comparative study of the strategies applied by Russian, Bulgarian, and French translators of the poem who worked under different historical and social conditions.


2021 ◽  
pp. 175069802098876
Author(s):  
Claudia Jünke

The purpose of this article is to map the role of translation in literary and cultural memory studies and of memory dynamics in transcultural contexts. “Translation” is understood both as interlingual translation, that is the rephrasing of a literary text in another language, and in a broader and more metaphorical sense as transfer, transmission and relocation across different kinds of spatial and temporal borders. The first part gives an overview of the state of research, presents basic theoretical and conceptual reflections regarding the intersections of literary memory and translation, and proposes a general framework for analyses of literary texts and their translation that want to elucidate the role of translation for transcultural memory circulation. The second part is dedicated to a particular case study: the translational aspects of the literary memory of the Spanish Civil War, the anarchist revolution and exile in Lydie Salvayre’s novel Pas pleurer and the role of Javier Albiñana’s Spanish translation No llorar as a medium of transcultural memory.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document