Lexical Translation Techniques

Theory of translation

Topic 2

Lexical Translation Techniques

1. Lexical translation challenges can be caused by

ü homonyms,

ü converted words,

ü monosemantic words,

ü polysemantic words,

ü lacunas,

ü realia,

ü neologisms,

ü pseudo-international words,

ü obsolete words,

ü archaic words,

ü emotionally charged words,

ü stylistically marked words,

ü deictic words, etc.

Match the words with their definitions. Mind that some words may be defined in a number of ways.

a) a newly created SL word;	It was a decorated, becatered and bewaitered table = Стол был по-праздничному сервирован, уставлен закусками и напитками. У стола прислуживали официанты.
b) a SL word having several TL correspondences;	hand = рука, стрелка; face = лицо, циферблат
c) a SL word denoting a concept which has no analogue in the TC;	самовар, prairie
d) a SL word similar to the TL word in form, but having a different meaning;	The task of a compositor is rather difficult.
e) a word which has only one registered meaning (among monosemantic words we can find proper names; geographical names; names of organizations, periodicals; terms);	linguistics John Peters Bank of London English Channel
f) a SL word which is no longer in use though the concept it denotes exists (Cmp.: an archaic word is a word which is no longer in use and the concept it denotes no longer exists (забрало, кольчуга));	чело = лоб, scriptitation = writing continuously
g) a SL word expressing an attitude and/or emotion but having a TL counterpart with a different connotation hue;	политикан ≠ politician, карьера ≠ career
h) a TL word which is wider in meaning than its SL correspondences;	elect, select, choose = выбирать
i) a SL word which doesn’t have a TL equivalent though the concept it denotes exists in the TC;	сутки = 24 hours, sibling = each of two or more children having parents in common
j) a high-flown or colloquial SL word having no direct TL analogue in the same stylistic register;	физиономия = face
k) a SL word partially corresponding to its TL counterpart, but differing from it in some aspects;	почка means kidney and bud, but bud can also mean бутон
l) a word relative to the situation in which it is used;	ага can express understanding, agreement, sarcasm, etc.
m) a SL word used in a misleading structure, which doesn’t determine the part of speech the SL word belongs to.	Simply pipein and connect power and the system is ready to use. ( Is the word pipe a noun or a verb? )

2. To cope with lexical translation challenges the translator should use translation techniques. Translation techniques (translation devices) are transformations the translator makes to render the meaning of a SL word with the help of TL means.

Read the information and be ready to explain the essence of concretization, prepare your own examples:

Concretization is substitution of a SL word by a TL counterpart which has a less general meaning (исследовать means to investigate, but it can also mean to explore, to examine, to research, to test, to analyze).

· Use concretization if the SL word is broader in meaning and has several TL correspondences, each of which has a specific differential seme (исследовать – to investigate (= “to carry out an inquiry ”), to examine (= “to inspect an ill person ”), to explore (= “to travel through an area in order to learn about it”)).

· Resort to the device if the SL word and its TL counterpart have different stylistic or evaluative semes. (the word meal can be used both in formal and informal contexts while the Russian прием пищи is purely formal).

· Use concretization if the SL word and its TL counterpart have different collocability. (the sentence ‘ My old dear bedroom was changed, and I was to lie a long way off’ cannot be rendered word for word ‘ лежать вдали ’. The translator should use ‘ в другом конце дома ’ instead of ‘ вдали ’: ‘ Моей милой старой спальни уже не было, и я должен был спать в другом конце дома’).

· To choose the adequate TL correspondence, examine the context in which the SL word is used and decide which semes are acquired by the SL word. (the phrase выбирать президента has the seme “vote”, that’s why выбирать should be translated as to elect = “chose by voting”).

· Use a bilingual dictionary to find possible translation variants. Check the meaning and the collocability of each variant in a monolingual dictionary.

What groups of words (see task 1) can be translated with the help of concretization? Think of your own examples.

3. The Russian word исследовать has several meanings:

ü discover information for use in a book, program, etc. (research, investigate);

ü travel through an area in order to learn about it (explore);

ü examine methodically for purposes of interpretation (analyze);

ü identify the chemical constituents of a substance for medical purposes (test, analyze);

ü inspect thoroughly in order to determine condition (examine);

Read the Russian sentences and say what meanings of this polysemantic word are realized in the contexts. Translate the sentences into the TL. Use you explanatory (monolingual dictionary) to check the collocability (= ‘сочетаемость’, например, использование с предлогами) of the English words.

· Доктор исследовал причины этого заболевания.

· Переводчик непременно должен исследовать текст до перевода, это позволит ему избежать неправильной интерпретации.

· Колумб большую часть своей жизни посвятил исследованию неизвестных земель, а Павлов – исследовал условные и безусловные рефлексы.

· Врач исследовал больного и сказал, что причиной заболевания является неизвестный вирус и необходимо провести исследование крови.

4. Read the information, be ready to speak about generalization, provide your own examples:

The opposite of concretization is generalization, which consists in using a more general TL counterpart to render the meaning of a more specific SL word.

· Use generalization when the SL word is narrower in meaning (has more differential semes). Compare: wrist watch and наручные ча­сы. The former is more specific. It means “a small timepiece worn on a strap on one’s wrist”. Thus, it has two differential (= ‘дифференциальные’, позволяющие выделить слово из ряда подобных) semes “small” and “worn on a wrist”. The Russian word часы means “a timepiece” and lacks the aforementioned semes. That is why the Russian word can be used to translate both the English watch and clock.

· Use generalization if the recipient is not familiar with the concept denoted by the SL word and the exact translation of the word is not relevant to adequate understanding. E.g.: in the sentence Не showed us his old beat-up Navajo blanket the name of the Indian tribe is not significant, it is only mentioned to show that the blanket is ethnic. That is why the translator should resort to generalization and say: Он нам показал свое потрепанное индейское одеяло. Cmp.: Он показал нам свое потрепанное одеяло, сделанное индейцами племени Навахо would sound extremely odd.

· Use generalization if the SL word and its TL counterpart have different stylistic, evaluative or emotional connotation and/or if they are characterized by different frequency of use. (In the English language it is customary to specify the exact or approximate height and weight of a person when describing him or her. But we can’t translate the phrase a young man of 6 feet 2 inches in the following way: молодой человек ростом 188 см. instead we should prefer: молодой человек высокого роста).

What groups of words (see task 1) can be translated with the help of generalization? Think of your own examples.

5. In the English language there are several words with the lexical (= ‘лексическая’, общая для всех слов синонимического ряда, объединяющая слова) seme “having the ability to acquire and apply knowledge”: bright, brilliant, clever, intelligent, smart. Study the table of semes.

Semes   Words	lexical seme (indicates the common meaning)	differential semes (express meaningful differences)	stylistic seme(shows to which stylistic register words belong)	emotional seme (reflects people’s attitude to the notion)
source of the ability	type of mental activity	speed of mental process
bright	having the ability to acquire and apply knowledge	native ability	excellent mental achievement	--	neutral	--
brilliant	native ability	outstanding keenness of intellect	mental quickness	neutral	excites admiration
clever	native ability	aptitude for study	mental quickness	neutral	--
intelligent	education	good at learning the new and understanding	--	neutral	--
smart	native ability	liveliness of mind	mental quickness	colloquial	--

6. Read the sentences and say which of the synonyms should be used in them (each synonym is to be used only once). Explain your choice by specifying the differential seme responsible for the meaning.

sentences	words	semes
Alex Jordache had learned how to speak proper English very quickly. There was no denying it, he was an (smart, clever, intelligent, brilliant, bright) man.
In fact though (smart, clever, intelligent, brilliant, bright), he was idle at school and far from bookish.
He is (smart, clever, intelligent, brilliant, bright) and a nice guy and all that, but he doesn’t seem to have much purpose as far as I’m concerned.
They were the (smart, clever, intelligent, brilliant, bright) girls in the school and they had made a small superior isolated clique.
I think scientists are supermen. Some of them are (smart, clever, intelligent, brilliant, bright), I grant you that.

7. Translate the sentences into Russian. Say what translation techniques you used to render the meaning of the synonyms.

8. Study the information, be ready to speak about modulation, provide your own examples:

Modulation consists in using in translation a TL counterpart which is logically connected with the SL word either as reason and result (We cannot translate relaxation of a well-earned rest word-for-word. That is why we should analyze the phrase and understand that relaxation may result in enjoyment. Thus, we can translate the phrase as наслаждаясь заслуженным отдыхом), as a part and the whole (word-for-word translation of the sentence Не would cheer up somehow, begin to laugh again and draw skeletons all over his slate, before his eyes were dry is impossible, because рисовать скелеты would sound awkward. That is why we should resort to modulation and translate skeletons as фигурки: Он снова приободрялся, начинал смеяться и рисовал на своей грифельной доске разные фигурки, хотя глаза его еще были полны слез), etc.

· Use modulation if none of the TL counterparts listed in the dictionary entry can truly represent the semes of the SL word.

· Use the dictionary of synonyms, the dictionary of antonyms and the thesaurus to find an adequate correspondence.

9. Translate the sentences into Russian using the translation techniques suggested.

· Where a young (concretization) bibliographer may make (concretization) a mistake, a more experienced one (concretization) will find the matter easy (modulation: reason-result).

· A strong northerly (modulation: reason-result) wind found a few weary, half-skeletoned leaves to play with (modulation: reason-result).

· The pill was sugar-coated (modulation: reason-result).

· The weather is very bad (concretization + emotional coloring) today, which prevents us from taking a long walk (modulation: reason-result).

· The book was edited (concretization + change the doer of the action) by a famous scholar (generalization).

· There's a lot of feet (concretization) in Shakespeare's verse but there are not any legs (concretization) worth mentioning in Shakespeare's plays.

10. Study the information and be ready to discuss transliteration and transcription, provide your own examples.

Transliteration consists in creating a formal representation of the letters of the SL word with the TL graphical means (C.Eceнин – S.Esenin).

Transcription, on the other hand, is a formal representation of the phonemes of the SL word with the TL graphical means (C.Eceнин – S.Yessenin).

The device is seemingly simple to use, meanwhile there is a number of rules the translator should know in order to handle the device properly:

· It is necessary to learn the rules of transferring Cyrillic letters into Latin ones (see the table).

Cyrillic alphabet – Latin alphabet		Latin alphabet – Cyrillic alphabet
а – a	к – k	ф – f		a – а, э	j – дж, ж, й	s – с, ш
б – b	л – l	х – kh		b – б	k – к	t – т
в – v	м – m	ц – ts, c		c – с, ц, к	l – л	u – у, ю
г – g, gh	н – n	ч – ch		d – д	m – м	v – в
д – d	о – o	ш – sh		e – и, е	n – н	w – у, в
е – e	п – p	щ – shch		f – ф	o – о, оу	x – кс
ё – e	р – r	ы – y		g – г, дж	p – п	y – и, й
ж – zh, j	с – s	э – e		h – х	q – к	z – з, ц
з – z	т – t	ю – yu		i – и, ай	r – р
и – i	у – u	я – ya

· It is important to take into account the culture (synchronic and diachronic) to which the name belongs, for the same name will be translated differently if originating from different cultural backgrounds: King George = Король Георг; George Clooney = Джордж Клуни; George Sand = Жорж Санд.

· It is important to know what phenomenon the name denotes, for one and the same name can be translated differently if meaning different phenomena: Bloody Mary can be translated as Мария Кровавая (a historic personage) and Кровавая Мэри (a cocktail).

· When dealing with geographical names and names of inanimate objects it is sometimes necessary to add the name of the class: Financial Times = газета Файнэншл Таймс.

· The translator should check whether there is no ready-made correspondence and only then use transliteration or transcription: English Channel can only be translated as Ламанш. It should never be translated as Инглиш Чэнел or Английский канал.

What groups of words (see task 1) can be translated with the help of transliteration/transcription? Think of your own examples.

11. Translate the following names using the table given above if necessary.

Чехов, Салтыков-Щедрин, Москва (a city), Москва (a river), Georgia (a state), Georgia (a country), «Правда», Genghis Khan, Don Quixote.

12. Translate the following names a) if they are the names of biblical personages, b) if they are the names of real people. Comment on the translation techniques you used

Adam, Bathsheba, Cain, Delilah, Job, Noah.

13. Read the information and be ready to discuss loan translation, supply your own examples.

loan translation is creating a blueprint collocation by rendering the meaning of the morphemes constituting a SL word or by rendering the meaning of the words constituting a SL collocation (superpower = сверхдержава; mass culture = массовая культура). Sometimes loan translation is accompanied by transcription (transnational = транс национальный, petrodollar = нефте доллар, miniskirt = мини -юбка). The device doesn’t reveal to the recipient the essence of the phenomenon, but only helps to create a blueprint collocation. Thus, it should not be used too often.

What groups of words (see task 1) can be translated with the help of loan translation? Think of your own examples.

14. Use loan translation to render the meaning of the following words and phrases.

Зимний дворец, mixed laws, maltreatment, White House, the period of unrest (about Russian history), the Rocky Mountains, the Black sea, risk analysis, a standard key-combination.

15. Translate the following sentences into the TL and say what translation techniques you used.

· She setThe Guardian by when the telephone rang.

· The short story is set in the Moscow of the early twenties.

· Schubert set many poems to music.

· James has always been very natural.

· Ask Barry to draw this picture. He is a natural!

16. Read the information and be ready to discuss explication and implication, supply your own examples.

· EXPLICATION consists in providing an explanation or a definition of the SL word, i.e. in making explicit the meaning which in the SL was implied (conservationist = сторонник охраны окружающей среды, whistle-stop speech = выступления кандидата в ходе предвыборной агитационной поездки). Explication consists in bringing the lexical and the differential semes of a SL word to the surface. That is why explication is used to translate neologisms (teach-in = диспут-семинар), lacunas (сутки = twenty four hours), realia (валенки = traditional Russian winter footwear).

· The opposite of explication is IMPLICATION. Implication consists in avoiding redundant information, i.e. in using one word instead of a phrase or omitting a word which doesn’t add anything new to the situation but is used solely for the sake of collocability (to sing a song = петь).

What groups of words (see task 1) can be translated with the help of explication and implication? Think of your own examples.

17. Translate the sentences into the TL using explication or implication.

· Ireland has a right to nationhood.

· We worked round the clock.

· Do you have any siblings?

· «Когда вы вернетесь?» «Недели через две».

· The weather being fine, we decided to go for an outing.

· Is there any difference between fraternity and sorority?

· This man is an escapist from modern society.

18. Read the information and be ready to discuss commentary, supply your own examples.

COMMENTARY is similar to explication. But unlike explication which is introduced inside the text, commentary is provided at the end of the text or in a footnote: Starets, pl. startsi. A monk distinguished by his great piety, long experience of the spiritual life, and gift for guiding other souls. Lay folk frequently resort to startsi for spiritual council; in a monastery a new member of the community is attached to a starets, who trains and teaches him.

What groups of words (see task 1) can be translated with the help of commentary? Think of your own examples.

19. Translate the sentences into the TL using commentary if necessary.

· In many parts of Great Britain, the custom of First-footing in the early hours of January 1st is kept with great vigour. The First Foot comes as soon as possible after midnight has struck.

· If you burn a Yule log this Christmas, keep the ashes to burry along with your plant seeds in the spring. Superstition dictates that you’ll be assured of a bumper crop.

· If you make a calennig for New Year’s Day don’t through it away afterwards. Put it to stand on your window sill and it will bring you good luck for as long as it stands there.

20. Read the information and prepare to discuss metaphorization, demetaphorization, emphatization, and neutralization. Provide your own examples.

METAPHORIZATION consists in preserving a SL metaphor in the TL translation (On the opposite bank an emerald ribbon of fields and foliage bordered the river = Противоположный берег реки окаймляла изумрудная зелень полей и деревьев).

The opposite technique is DEMETAPHORIZATION, which is omitting the SL metaphor for the sake of denotational meaning (he was pitchforked to the post = его неожиданно назначили на пост).

EMPHATIZATION is another technique. It is similar to metaphorization but unlike metaphorization which helps the translator to preserve emotive connotation, emphatization is aimed at preserving evaluative semes (old lady = старушка, старуха, старушенция).

The opposite of emphatization is NEUTRALIZATION (старушенция = old lady, old girl).

What groups of words (see task 1) can be translated with the help of these techniques? Think of your own examples.

21. Translate the sentences into the TL and comment on the transformations.

· The cat sat bolt upright on the seat opposite ours, staring out the window, pretending not to eavesdrop on our conversation.

· The clouds on Emerson 's noble brow cleared.

· Years had passedsince I last beheld the plain of Amarna, yet in eternal Egypt a decade is no more than the blink of an eye.

· Any artifactmade of or covered with gold could start the gossip mills grinding.

· I passed a crocodile of choir boys, in starched collars and peculiar caps, on their way to Tom Gate.

22. Study the information and get ready to discuss compensation. Provide your own examples.

One more transformation is COMPENSATION. The translator should compensate for the losses inevitable in translation. Compensation can consist in using lexical means instead of grammatical or stylistic ones and vice versa (“I’m nothing to you - not so much as them slippers”. “Those slippers” = “Я для вас ничто, хуже вот этих туфлей” “Туфель”).

23. Translate the sentences resorting to compensation when necessary. Comment on the translation transformations you used.

· You could tell he was ashamed of his parents, because they said “ he don’t ” and “ she don’t ” and stuff like that.

· We went on a woller coaster. Oscar was scared, but I wasn’t. And it was weally fast (a child’s speech).

24. Match the terms denoting translation techniques with their Russian equivalents.

Транскрбирование, метафоризация, транслитерация, импликация, деметафоризация, калькирование, расширение, описательный перевод, эмфатизация, сужение, смысловое развитие, нейтрализация, компенсация.

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