Introductory Notes. Russian folk tales.There are many similarities between the English and Russian folk tale

Russian folk tales. There are many similarities between the English and Russian folk tale. These indudethe magic func­tions of the dark forest and of the remote and distant land. In both traditions one can come across brave princes and beautiful but enchanted maidens, evil creatures and ugly spirits, shape-shifters and helpers of different kinds, etc. But there is also difference. Whereas in the Russian fairy-tale landscape the river and field dominate alongside the forest, the English folk tale will often mention some beautiful lake or a magic knoll that may appear and disappear by turns. The magic creatures themselve are differ­ent. If the Russian Змей Горыныч is more or less like an English dragon, then such images as Баба Яга, Морозко or Жар-птица are specific for the Russian tradition, while elves, giants and gob­lins are typically English.

The different features go deeper than the appearance. Baba Yaga looks more or less national, though some of her features are pan-European, like the hooked nose, shaggy hair, relationship with the dark forest creatures and so on, and do not contradict the im­age of an evil hag from an English or Celtic folk tale. Yet a Rus­sian Yaga is much more powerful than an English witch, much more dangerous and is able to cover huge distance very swiftly. She is obviously the chief of the magic World and a relative of the most terrible creatures in it. The origins of the Russian Yaga are rooted in the nation's far-off heathen past when she was one of the most important deities, the mistress of life and death, the owner and protector of fire, the lady of the Dark. Most fairy tales with

her as a personage date from the very early times.

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Практикум по художественному переводу

Taking into account the age of Baba Yaga, it is not correct ever to refer to her as a witch in translation, for the expression "a witch" in the English tradition refers to a kind of heathen priest­ess, a woman of spells and magic rather than to a supernatural, or sacred being. Transliteration is thus more appropriate in this case, for it reconstructs an image as exotic and unusual as it might be. When she is referred to as «ведьма» in Russian, it should be trans­lated as a spirit,.a bogy, if it is a description, while the substitute of "witch" or "hag" should be only used when she is being ad­dressed. For example, the Russian phrase «Баба Яга была страшная лесная ведьма» should be translated as «Baba Yaga was a frightful spirit of the forest." But when Ivan Tsarevich ad­dresses her «Ax ты, старая ведьма, ты бы вперед напоила, накормила, баньку истопила да спать уложила!» it is better to use "witch" or "hag" in translation: "Hey, you, old hag, you'd better welcome me to eat at pleasure and to sleep at leisure!"

Another translation problem is connected with the rhymed mnemonic formulas of time and space, or symbols of the sacred. When in Russian such archaic phrases are used as «близко ли, далеко ли — долго ли, коротко ли,» or «девушка скотину поила, дрова-воду носила, тесто творила, всех кормила,» it is rather difficult to find a proper functional substitute for them. If we use a simple semantic technique, the result sounds less ex­pressive, and the target text lacks the emotive "fairy-tale" back­ground: "Be it close or far away, sooner or later" sounds much more logical and thus less magic. Any attempt to find a function­al equivalent to the source formula faces the challenge of rhyme; and we may try using some parallel constructions to reconstruct the source rhythm in English:. "Their way was neither long nor short, their pace was neither fast nor slow."

There is also a general linguistic problem that a acquires a particular twist when translating folk tales: the question of affec­tionate suffixes and forms of address. When a Russian fairy-tale personage addresses a man, use may be made of such forms as «добрый молодец», «стрелец-удалец», or «батюшка, царь-

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Imagery in Translation

батюшка» (when addressing an elder or high-ranking person). They often appear in the existing English translations as "kind boy" or "good archer"; while батюшка amusingly becomes "lit­tle father". They add a very strange emotive component to the translated text, probably, making it sound far too exotic. Mean­while, добрый молодец is not "kind boy" or "fine fellow" but "a brave man," or just "a brave" (though, on its own this is used almost exclusively for American Indian warriors); and стрелец-молодец is semantically equivalent to something like "a brave ranger," or "a valiant guard," which fits the idea of an armed man at somebody's service, a folklore hero.

When a woman is addressed, Russian folklore often uses the term «красная девица», in which «красная» does not mean "red" but "pretty, comely, beautiful". Thus, it would be wrong to transform it, as it happens in English, into "little red cheeks" or "ruddy-blushy"; more appropriate may be "beauty" or "fair maid­en". Similarly, in the Russian девица, the suffix -иц- is not di­minutive but rather affectionate, and thus the transformation into "little maid" is semantically wrong.

In general, to translate a Russian fairy tale into English, we should consider the following principles:

• Note the functions of the framing and sacred formulas of
time, space and magic symbols.

• Try to construct a semantic and emotional analogue to
this or that fairy-tale element when it is a unique national phe­
nomenon and has no direct counterpart in English.

• Pay careful athention to fairy-tale names and forms of
address and reference when they do not coincide with the target
culture traditions in order to create a form that retains as much as
possible of the source features.

• Mind the rhythmic pattern of the fairy-tale narrative, its
components and functions when reconstructing the text in En­
glish.

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Практикум по художественному переводу

Task for comparison: Морозко — Frost

МОРОЗКО

Жили-были старик да старуха. У старика со старухой было три дочери. Старшую дочь старуха не любила (она была ей падчерица), почасту ее журила, рано будила и всю работу на нее сваливала. Девушка скотину поила-кормила, дрова и воду в избу носила, печку топила, тесто творила, избу мела и все убирала еще до свету; но старуха и тут была недовольна и на Марфушу ворчала: «Экая ленивица, экая неряха! И го­лик-то не у места, и не так-то стоит, и сорно-то в избе».

Девушка молчала и плакала; она всячески старалась мачехе уноровить и дочерям ее услужить, но сестры, глядя на мать, Марфушу во всем обижали. Старику было жалко старшей дочери, да не знал он, чем пособить горю. Старуха была в доме хозяйкой и он ужасно ее боялся.

Время шло да шло, девицы росли да росли, стали боль­шими и сделались невестами. Стала мачеха думать, как бы ей избавиться от падчерицы Марфуши, ведь та выросла кра­савица.

Однажды старуха и говорит старику: «Ну, старик, от­дадим Марфушу замуж.» А Марфуше старуха подала в блю­де старых щей и сказала: «Ну, голубка, ешь да убирайся, я вдоволь на тебя нагляделась! Старик, увези Марфутку к же­ниху; да мотри, старый хрыч, поезжай прямой дорогой, а там сверни с дороги-то направо, на бор, — знаешь, прямо к той большой сосне, что на пригорке стоит, и тут отдай Марфутку за Морозка». Старик вытаращил глаза, перестал хлебать, а девка завыла.

«Ну, что тут нюни распустила-то! Ведь Морозко, же­них-то, красавец и богач! Мотри-ка, сколько у него добра: все елки, сосны да березы в пуху: житье завидное, да и сам он богатырь!»

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