Translation:
1) process of changing speech or writing from source lg to target lg
2) product or the target lg version resulting from the process
3) abstract concept encompassing the process and product
General goal of translation: to establish a relationship of equivalence btw the source and target texts, to ensure that both of them communicate the same message, while taking into account constraints. Constraints include context, the rules of grammar of the source lg, its writing conventions, idioms.
Translation studies – a branch of humanities dealing with the systematic, interdisciplinary study of the theory, description and application of translation, interpreting or both these activities.
Translation studies is related to academic research whose subject matter is translation, whereas translation theory is related to theory intended to account for the process of translating and its product.
Linguistically, translation studies is a branch of applied linguistics, for in the process of translating the translator makes attempt to compare and contrast different aspects of two lgs to find equivalents.
James Holmes divided translation studies into 2 areas: PURE and APPLIED translation studies. PURE is divided into 2: descriptive translation studies (the description of the phenomena of translation): product-oriented studies (examining existing translations), process-oriented studies (examining mental processes of a translator), function-oriented studies (examining the functions of translations in the recipient socio-cultural context). Translation theory (the establishment of general principles to explain and predict phenomena of translations): general and partial translation theory. Partial restricts itself to: an area (specific linguistic or cultural groups), a rank (dealing with specific linguistic levels), a text-type (eg. Bible translation), a problem (translations of idioms, metaphors), time (older period vs. contemporary texts). APPLIED (activities leading to specific practical purposes): translator training, translation aids, translation criticism, translation policy.
Translation studies and other disciplines: the focus is on the methodologies borrowed from other disciplines: psychology, literary theory, philosophy, cultural studies.
Translation studies experiences periods of fragmentation. There was a strong movement for establishing and independent discipline of interpreting studies. But a conclusion was that fragmentation could weaken the position of both translation and interpretation.
TRANSLATION: transferring ideas expressed in writing from 1 lg to another
INTERPRETING: transferring ideas expressed orally or by gestures from 1 lg to another
3 Modes of interpreting: simultaneous (real-time interpreting, speaker talks without pause, key skill: decisiveness), consecutive( involves a pause after a passage, key skill: note-taking – to take down not words, but thoughts) and whispering (real-time, interpreter whisper into the ear of the listener).
Other modes (used mostly within conference interpreting):
- relay (interpreting btw two lgs via a third. When a person speaks in a lg not covered by an interpreted in an active booth, this booth can connect to another booth that covers this lg)
- pivot (using a single lg as a relay. If only one or two interpreters have a less widespread lg as a passive lg, they are said to be pivots for the other booths which will take relay from them)
- cheval (interpreter works alternatively in two booths in the same meeting)
- teleconferencing (any form of communication, comprising of at least an audio stream, btw spatially distant participants in a meeting)
- audioconferencing ( sound-only teleconferencing)
- videoconferencing (a special case of teleconferencing involving a video stream. It is an example of a multimedia application, that is involving at least two different media, sound and image, in digital form.
- Studio or room videoconferencing (two or more studios are linked together by video and audio).
- Sight translation (a written document is explained orally from the source lg to the target lg
TYPES OF TRANSLATION (depending on linguistic aspect)
1) intralingual translation (paraphrasing a word, sentence using the same lg, or rephrasing an expression to clarify it)
2) interlingual (translation proper, from 1 lg to another)
3) intersemiotic (transmutation, interpretation of linguistic signs by means of non-verbal signs: written text to music, painting or film.
TYPES OF TRANSLATION (from the point of view of method)
- word for word translation (the source lg word order is preserved and the words are translated by their most common meanings. Cultural words are translated literally. The main use is to understand the mechanics of the source lg or to construe a difficult text as pre-translation process)
- literal (follows the form and linguistic features of the source lg, source lg grammatical constructions are converted to their nearest target lg equivalents but the lexical items are translated out of context. It may be helpful for the study of the source lg, not for those interested in the meaning of the text)
- faithful (to reproduce the precise contextual message of the original within the constraints of the target lg grammatical structures. It transfers cultural words and preserves a degree of grammatical and lexical deviation from the source lg norms. Attempts to be completely faithful to the intentions of the source lg writer)
- semantic (differs from faithful n that in must take into more account of the aesthetic value of the source text, compromising on meaning where appropriate so that no assonance, word play or repetition jars in the finished version. It does not rely on cultural equivalence. While faithful is dogmatic, semantic is more flexible)
- communicative (renders the exacts contextual meaningof the original in such a way that both the lg and the content are readily comprehensible to the reader)
- idiomatic (communicates the meaning of the source text in the natural forms of the target lg, both in the grammatical constructions and the choice of lexical items. A truly idiomatic translation does not sound like a translation)
- free (meaning-based translation, sense-for-sense), it means that more emphasis is given to overall meaning than to exact wording. Usually it is a paraphrase much longer that the original)
- adaptation ( freest form of translation mainly used for plays and poetry. Source lg culture converted to target lg culture and text is rewritten)
- screen translation (translations of films and tv programmes, including subtitling – where the translation is typed along the bottom of the screen, and dubbing where the voices of the native speakers of the target lg are heard in place of the original actors)
Translations can be very literal, literal, modified literal, near idiomatic, idiomatic, unduly free, which add information not contained in the source text or change the meaning of the source text, or distort the facts of the historical and cultural setting of the source text.
TRANSLATION PROCESS
1) decoding the meaning of the source text
2) re-encoding this meaning in the target lg
EQUIVALENCE – the relationship btw a source text and a target text that allows the target text to be considered as the translation of the source text in the first place – if two linguistic units in two lgs carry the same meaning
TYPES OF EQUIVALENCE:
1) linguistic (word for word translation), there is homogeneity on the linguistic level of both the source and target lg)
2) paradigmatic (equivalence of elements of grammar seen as being a higher category than lexical)
3) stylistic (there is functional equivalence of elements in both the original and the translation aiming at an expressive identity with an invariant of identical meaning)
4) textual or syntagmatic (equivalence of the syntagmatic structuring of a text, that is equivalence of form and shape
Translation can have rigid adherence to the form of the original lg – FORMAL equivalence, or complete disregard for the form, not the message, of the original lg (DYNAMIC equivalence).
The task of the translator: to preserve the meaning across two different lgs or cultures, to create a pragmatically and semantically adequate translation.
An adequate translation is the replacement of a source text by a pragmatically and semantically equivalent texts in the target lg. It is both accurate rendering of the source text and one which fulfils its role in the target culture.
Adequacy – the degree of equivalence btw the meaning of the original message and the meaning of the translated one.
LANGUAGE VARIETIES: may be interpreted from various perspectives:
1) according to attitudes (styles)
2) according to the user (idiolects, social or geographical dialects)
3) according to subject matters (registers)
REGISTER – lg variety which is distinguished according to use:
1) field of discourse (lf use which reflects the social functions of the text, fileds may include a variety of subject matters)
2) mode of discourse (the medium used in lg activity: speech into writing)
3) tenor of discourse (refers to the relationship btw the partners of communication: formal vs. informal)
TWO CRITERIA OF SUCCESSFUL TRANSLATION:
1) faithfulness, or fidelity – the extent to which the translation accurately renders the meaning of the source text, without adding to it r subtracting from it, without intensifying or weakening any part of it – faithful traslation
2) transparency - the extent to which the translation appears to a native speaker of the target lg to have originally been written in that lg, and conform to the grammatical, syntactic an idiomatic conventions of that lg – idiomatic translation
TRANSLATION PROBLEMS
1) linguistic problems – grammatical differences, lexical ambiguity, meaning ambiguity
2) cultural problems – refer to different situational features
Additional problems: the source text is illegible, misspelled, incomplete, may miss important references, it may be a translation of a quotation that was originally made in the target lg, and the original is unavailable, dialect terms, neologisms, unexplained acronyms, abbreviations, jargon, rhymes, puns, poetic meter, highly specific cultural references
UNTRANSLATABILITY – property of a text in a lg for which no equivalent text can be found in another lg.
TWO TYPES OF UNTRANSLATABILITY
1) linguistic – there is no lexical or syntactical substitute in the target lg for a source lg item – ambiguity, plays on words, oligosemy
2) cultural – due to the absence in the target lg culture of a relevant situational feature for the source lg text – names of some institutions, clothes, foods, abstract concepts
THREE APPROACHES TO TRANSLATABILITY:
1) universalists - the existence of linguistic universals ensure translatability
2) monadist – each linguistic community interprets reality in its own way and this endangers translatability
3) deconstructionists – perceive translation as transfer of meaning
TRANSLATION PROCEDURES – general category referring to particular steps undertaken by the translator
TRANSLATION TECHNIQUES – an act of selecting target lg units, that is an actual operation or manipulation with linguistic material
THREE BASIC PROBLES IN TRANSLATION
1) there is no lexical correspondence at word level btw the source and target text
2) there is no lexical correspondence above word level – collocations, idioms and fixed expressions
3) there is no textual quivalence sorting out cohesion and coherence
PROBLEMS AT WORD LEVEL
- there are culture specific concepts in the text
- the source lg concept is not lexicalized in the target lg
- the source lg word is semantically complex
- there are differences in form
- there are differences in frequency and purpose of using specific forms
- the use of loan words in the source text
Suggestions – translation by footnote, glossary at the end of a book, omission, illustration, paraphrase using related or unrelated words, using loan word plus explanation, cultural substitution
PROBLEMS ABOVE WORD LEVEL
- culture-specific collocations,
- the tension btw accuracy and naturalness,
- market collocations in the source text,
- no equivalent idiom in the target lg
Suggestions – to evaluate the significance of a potential change in meaning, use an idiom of similar meaning and different form, paraphrase, compensate, reword, translate by illustration
PROBLEMS WITH TEXTUAL NON-EQUIVALENCE
- gender
- person
- genre
- verb tense
- restrictions of word order
Suggestions – to read the source text aloud to sb else and focus on intonation, change the word order by puzzling with words and clauses until they fit, use adding, explicitation, rechunking, that is reorganizing or renumbering paragraphs, sentences
MOST FREQUENT TRANSLATION TECHNIQUES:
1) Adaptation - when the context referred to in the original does not exist in the culture of the target text, thereby necessitating some form of re-creation. Modes of adaptation:
- transcription of the original – word for word reproductions of part of the text in the original lg
- omission – the elimination of part of the text
- expansion – adding information in the text or in footnotes
- exoticism – substitution of slang or dialect in the original text by rough equivalents in the target lg
- creation – the replacement of the original text with a text that preserves only the essential message of the original
- updating – the replacement of outdate or obscure information by modern equivalents
- situational equivalence – insertion of a more familiar context than the one used in the original
2) Borrowing – the translator uses a word or expression from the source text in the target text. If they are not considered to have been naturalised in the target lg, they are normally printed in italics. They are often used when the target lg has no corresponding word in its lexicon or when the translator wants to keep a special flavour of the term – perestrojka, shaman
3) Calque – translator translates an expression literally into the target lg, translating the elements of the expression word for word. It is a literal translation on the level of phrase and serves the purposes of foreignisation.
4) Compensation – involves achieving a similar effect in the target text through different means of expression than those on the source text. It is used with puns, alliteration, rhyme, slang, metaphors, or pregnant words. Four categories of compensation:
- in kind – different linguistic devices are used in the target text in order to re-create the same effect
- in place – the effect in the target lg is at different place from that in the source
- by merging – source text features are condensed in te target text
- by splitting – the meaning of a word in the source text has to be expanded in the target lg
5) Explicitation – the translator expands the target text by inserting additional words. Introducing information into the target lg which is present only implicitly in the source lg, but which can be derives from the context. Four types of explicitation:
- obligatory – caused by missing categories in the source lg, eg. Missing articles in Slavonic lgs necessitating addition in English
- optional – dictated by differences in text-building strategies and stylistic preferences btw lgs
- pragmatic – dictated by differences in cultures. A well-known name for a source lg audience may be an unknown name for the target lg audience and a translator may use an explanation by means of an additional word
- translation-inherent explicitation – attributed to the nature of the translation process itself. Therefore translations are always longer than originals, regardless of lgs, genres or registers.
6) Modulation – a shift in the point of view, that is in cognitive categories, whereas transposition is a shift btw grammatical categories
7)...
malenagad