Manifestations of cultural nuances and ways of their translation

One of the challenges that a translator faces is how to manifest the cultural nuances of the SL. It is essential to focus on the usage and cultural context in the translation process. Although an equivalent of the word may exist in another language, many times it lacks the cultural connotations associated with it, e.g .: car pool, red curb, brown paper lunch, to take a red eye etc. Faithful translation pertains the idiom of both SL and TL as a specific character, a form of expression peculiar to these languages. A word is more than what is found in a dictionary, and it contains a series of semantic levels dictated by the cultural context (e.g. garbage paradigm or American-Ukrainian cross-cultural illustrations of the aggressiveness concept). Let’s analyze the above examples closely:

Car pool – a group of people who travel together to work, school etc in one car and share the costs (Longman Advanced American Dictionary:2000);

Carpool lane – a special lane on a US freeway which can only be used by cars containing two or more people at times when the roads are very busy – особлива полоса руху

Brown-bag lunch (AE) – to bring your lunch to work, usually in a small brown paper bag (I’m brownbagging it this week)

To take a red- eye (AE) – an airplane with passengers on it that flies at night. I took the red-eye from Chicago to LA. – здійснити нічний переліт

Cultural nuances may be confusing even when using British English or American English. Thus, a public school is 1) a private fee-paying British and especially English secondary school where children usually live as well as study. Public schools are known for their high academic standards and are considered prestigious. They are expensive and attended usually by people of high social status or with a lot of money. The most famous schools include Eton, Harrow and Winchester. 2) (especially in the US and Scotland) a free local school, controlled and paid by the state, for children who study there but live at home.

The word faculty may be ambiguous when translated put of the cultural context. Thus, In BE it means a group of similar subject department in a university: The department of physics is in the Faculty of Science and corresponds to Ukrainian факультет (університету), meanwhile in AE it is used to denote all the teachers and other professional workers of a school, university, or college and is corresponds to Ukrainian професорсько-викладацький склад.

Ukrainian people at home, work, school, a public place etc disposal of both the remnants of food or wasted paper in смітник, відро для сміття, урну для сміття. In intercultural studies little things like the attitude of different nationalities with respect to disposing of trash/garbage are regarded noticeable. When translating these words into English people from Ukrainian culture are to be aware of different cultural patterns and lexical ways of rendering the meaning into the target language. Thus, in the US where the recycling system is employed they have different containers for trash and litter.

While the Yellow Pages are useful, people rely most heavily on staff, friends, and other people. – Yellow Pages – телефонний довідник, а не жовта преса.

He was a make Caucasian. A large man. About six foot two – це був білий чоловік, Кремезний. Зростом приблизно 188см.

The office was an enormous corner suite overlooking the city – a corner office is a sign of success in American business world –Це був величезний кутовий офіс із виглядом на місто (кутовий офіс – як ознака статусу у корпоративній культурі в США)

3 Br/2Ba, nu cpts, lndry, prkg, utils pd – типове американське оголошення про аренду квартири, у якому зазначено, що у помешканні 3 спальні, 2 ванні кімнати, нове килимове покриття на підлозі, паркінг та усі комунальні послуги включено.

He was an Ivy League student – Він був студентом одного з найпрестижніших університетів на східному узбережжі США. (Cultural note: the Ivy League is a group of old and very respected universities in the eastern part of the US, consisting of Brown University, Columbia University, Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Cornell, the University of Pennsylvania, and Dartmouth).

Thus, it is crucial for performing translation to develop the skill to look beyond words into the realm of meaning. Cultural boundaries may never be overcome but they can be lessened to the point that effective interaction may occur. Gudynkust and Kim (1984:196) claim that “people who are effective in communicating with strangers do not use the perspective of their own culture when interpreting the behavior of people from other cultures. Rather, effective communicators use a third-culture perspective which serves as a psychological link between their cultural perspective and that of the stranger”.

Kramsch C. (1991:122) strongly criticized a conventional, tourist’s, approach to learning culture in a foreign classroom: “Culture is commonly seen as making the study of a foreign language more attractive and as providing a welcome relief from grammar and vocabulary exercises. Learning about a foreign culture is not expected to require any intellectual effort since it is generally conceived only as the tourist’s view of the foreign ways of life”. Translating interculturally ia a great intellectual effort.

The multidimensional and multilayered nature of translation proves that it is a decision making process. Translation may be regarded as the “fifth skill” in addition to the four basic communicative skills (listening, reading writing and speaking). Translation is a key to international understanding. A translator/interpreter is considered a mediator between languages and cultures.

Case study: Aggressiveness from American and Ukrainian perspectives

Semantic, pragmatic, and culture-specific functions of the attribute AGGRESSIVE in American and Ukrainian discourses combine to provide a dramatic example of language and culture interaction – and potential misunderstanding. In Ukrainian, the adjective агресивний and everything related to it is viewed in various negative ways as “belligerent” (an understanding that flows from the etymological root of the Latin, aggression). A somewhat different situation is characteristic of an American sociolinguistic context which reflects the peculiarities of the national spirit and culture. In the list of American national traits (Thiederman:1991), a special emphasis is laid on assertiveness. Considerable illustrative data have been accumulated to argue that the adjective aggressive can function as a synonym of the adjective assertive in business-related and general contexts, thus implying a positive connotation, E.g.: “I.B.M.: Is this an ethical issue or just good, aggressive accounting” (Pearce:1994). Aggressive candidates in an American interpretation mean self-starters, i.e. ambitious and proactive people. The Longman Dictionary of English Language and Culture (1998) defines the adjective aggressive as follows: 1) in a derogatory way as always ready to quarrel or attack, belligerent: an aggressive manner; 2) appreciatively as not afraid of opposition, determined and forceful, assertive: an aggressive marketing campaign (emphasis added throughout).

Analyzing an intercultural aspect of assertiveness, Dodd (1995) maintains that assertiveness is defined as the ability to state clearly what you expect or want and work toward achieving that goal. In his observations of the American character, Nimgade (1989) concludes that sometimes “there may be more bark than bite to American aggressiveness”.

Numerous business terms and concepts contain an attribute aggressive as a component of their semantic structure, e.g. aggressive bank management, aggressive dividend policy, aggressive investment policy etc. Most of these terms in a transliterated Ukrainian version are currently registered in Ukrainian professional business discourse as well. But in different patterns of general Ukrainian discourse, the adjective aggressive is used with a strong negative connotation only.

Frequently used concepts such as aggressive management and aggressive marketing – denoting dramatic publicity, successful encouragement, and extensive self-promotion – are central strategies of the Walt Disney Company, evidenced by the following examples from a case of Harvard School of Business Review “Euro Disney “ First 100 Days”(1992):

Known for its aggressive management of operational details, Disney’s stated goal was to exceed its customers’ expectations every day.

Euro Disney was aggressively marketed by Disney as well as other firms.

At the same time Disney aggressively cross-trained managers and supervisors to ensure service quality.

Another vivid example of positive semantic modification and culture-specific functioning of the adjective aggressive is a letter of sympathy from a US professor of economics, as a response to the terrible air-crash at the military air-field in Sknyliv-Lviv, Western Ukraine, which killed or crippled over 200 people during a military air-show on July 27, 2002. It reads: “…so many reasons to cry – we must search more aggressively for more reasons to smile and protect our families and friends”.

Cross-cultural sensitivity and awareness may equip students with an appropriate understanding and interpretation of American aggressiveness in professional and general contexts. Dodd argues that “beyond using language, the study of intercultural communication recognizes how culture pervades what we are, how we act, how we think(1995:3).

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