Translation studies notes
4.1
1. Viney and Darbelnet’s model
Strategy overall orientation of translation
Procedure specific method or technique used by the translator
Two main strategies: 1. Direct translation 2. Oblique translation
Overall they have 7 procedures from which direct covers only three:
1. Borrowing word is translated literally in target language. (words like
rouble, datcha)
2. Calque special kind of borrowing where structure is transferred in
literal translation
3. Literal translation word for word translation is most common
between the languages of the same family and culture
Oblique translation procedures:
1. Transposition change of one part of speech for another
It can be obligatory and optional
2. Modulation changes the semantics and point of view of the source
language.
It also can be obligatory or optional
Modulation is a procedure that is justified ‘when, although a literal, or
even
transposed, translation results in a grammatically correct utterance, it
is
considered unsuitable, unidiomatic or awkward in the TL
3. Equivalence or idiomatic translation cases where languages describe
the same situation by different stylistic or structural means.
Équivalence is
particularly useful in translating idioms and proverbs.
4. Adaptation changing the cultural reference when a situation in the
source culture does not exist in the target culture.
4.2 supplementary translation procedures:
1. Amplification uses more words, often because of syntactic
expansion.
2. False friend A structurally similar term in SL and TL which
deceives the user into thinking the meaning is the same.
3. Loss, gain and compensation . Translation does inevitably involve
some loss, since it is impossible to preserve all the ST nuances of
meaning and structure in the TL. However, importantly a TT may
make up for (‘compensate’) this by introducing a gain at the same
or another point in the text. One example is the translation of
dialogue.
4. Explicitation : Implicit information in the ST is rendered explicit in
the TT. This may occur on the level of grammar, semantics,
pragmatics or discourse.
5. Generalization The use of a more general word in the TT
Levels of translation:
These three levels reflect the main structural elements of the book:
1. Lexicon
2. Syntactic structures
3. The message
Two further levels are introduced:
1. Word order and thematic structure
2. Connectors
Difference between servitude and option:
1. Servitude refers to obligatory transpositions and modulations due to
a difference between the two language systems. Thus, a translator will
normally have no choice but to translate the Spanish noun–adjective
combination agua fría [lit. ‘water cold’] by cold wate
2. Option non-obligatory changes that may be due to the translator’s
own style and preferences, or to a change in emphasis.
Analytical steps:
There are 5 analytical steps:
1. Identify the units of translation.
2. Examine the SL text, evaluating the descriptive, affective and
intellectual content of the units.
3. Reconstruct the metalinguistic context of the message.
4. Evaluate the stylistic effects.
5. Produce and revise the TT.
Catford and translation shifts:
Translation shifts are linguistic changes occurring in translation of ST to TT.
Catford makes an important distinction between formal correspondence and
textual equivalence, which was later to be developed by Koller:
1. A formal correspondent ‘any target language category (unit, class,
element of structure, etc.) which can be said to occupy, as nearly as
possible, the “same” place in the “economy” of the target language as
the given source language category occupies in the SL’
2. A textual equivalent ‘any TL text or portion of text which is observed
on a particular occasion . . . to be the equivalent of a given SL text or
portion of text
formal correspondence is a more general system-based
concept between a pair of languages while textual equivalence
is tied to a particular ST–TT pair.
When the two concepts diverge a translation shift is deemed to have
occurred. Catford considers two kinds of shift: (1) shift of level and (2)
shift of category
1. Shift of level would be something which is expressed by grammar
in one language and lexis in another
2. Category shifts are subdivided into 4 shifts:
a. Structural shifts (most common)
b. Class shifts(from one part of the speech to another)
c. Unit shifts (: These are shifts where the translation equivalent in
the TL is at a different rank to the SL. ‘Rank’ here refers to the
hierarchical linguistic units of sentence, clause, group, word and
morpheme.)
d. Intra-system shifts: These are shifts that take place when the SL
and TL possess approximately corresponding systems but where
‘the translation involves selection of a non-corresponding term in
the TL system’
