A textbook tex tbook of translation Theoretical and practical implications
A extbook o ranslation heoretical heor etical and Practical Pract ical Imp Implicatio lications ns
Said M. Shiyab
Said M. Shiyab A extbook o ranslation Teoretical and Practical Implications Antwerp – Apeldoorn Garant 2006 192 p. – 24 cm D/2006/5779/62 ISBN 90-441-1996-6 ISBN 978-90-441-1996-1 NUR 630 Cover Design: Koloriet/Danni Elskens Lay-out: Jurgen Leemans © Said M. Shiyab & Garant Publishers All parts o this book are protected by copyright. Every use beyond the narrow limitations o the copyright law is inadmissible, without the prior written permission rom the copyright owners. Tis is also valid or photocopying, translations and microfilm copies as well as storage and utilization in electronic systems. Garant
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ABLE OF CONENS
Foreword
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Preace
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Acknowledgement
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Dedication
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CHAPER 1: Introduction Perspectives on Translation
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Definition o ranslation ranslation: Past and Present What is a ranslator? Methods o ranslation �.�.� Word or Word ranslation �.�.� Literal ranslation �.�.� Free ranslation ranslation: Art or Science? Why Do We Need ranslation? est Your Knowledge o Chapter (1) ext-Comprehension and ranslation Importance of Translation and Interpretation
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CHAPER 2 Fallacies of Translation
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Introduction Misconceptions about ranslation Students’ and eachers’ Perceptions Other Perceptions
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Ethics and Rules in ranslation est Your Knowledge o Chapter (2) Multiple Choice Questions about Chapter (2)
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CHAPER 3 Some Relevant Terms in Translation
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Introduction Linguistic and ranslation erms est Your Knowledge o Chapter (3)
CHAPER 4 Translation Theory and Practice
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Introduction ranslation Teory Unit o ranslation Effect o ranslation Teory How to Assess ranslation Effective and Successul ranslation est Your Knowledge o Chapter (4)
CHAPER 5 Text and Context in Translation .� .� .� .� .
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Introduction ext-ypes and ext-Functions Discourse, ext-ypes and ranslation ext-ype Categorization ranslation and Factors o Success ..� Pragmatics ..� Semiotics ..� Communicative Context est Your Knowledge o Chapter (5)
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CHAPER 6 Translation: State of the Art
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Introduction ranslation and Meaning
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able o Contents
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ranslation and Culture ranslator’s Perception ranslating vs. Writing ranslating is Personal est Your Knowledge o Chapter (6) Analysis and ranslation o exts
CHAPER 7 Punctuation and Translation �.� �.� �.� �.� �. �.�
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Introduction What is Punctuation? Importance o Punctuation Punctuation in Arabic �.�.� Te semicolon (;) �.�.� Colon (:) est your Knowledge o Chapter (7) Analysis and ranslation o exts
CHAPER 8 Translation and Literature �.� �.�
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Introduction Characteristics o exts �.�.� Expressive �.�.� Denotative �.�.� Formal vs. Functional Characteristics Nature o Literary ranslation Writer-ranslator Relationship Linguistic Context and Literary ranslation est Your Knowledge o Chapter (8) Analysis and ranslation o exts
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CHAPER 9 Translation and Language Teaching
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Introduction ranslation and Language eaching Strategies in Foreign Language Learning est Your Knowledge o Chapter (9)
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CHAPER 10 Translation and Pragmatics of Discourse
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Introduction Intercultural and Interpersonal Communication Culture and Communication Grice’s Maxims Assessment Pragmatic Variables and Interpreting est your Knowledge o Chapter (10)
CHAPER 11 Translation and Scientific Texts
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Introduction Global Language and Science Language o Science vs. Language o Literature est Your Knowledge o Chapter (11) Analysis and ranslation o Sentences and exts Finding Equivalent erms in the arget Language
CHAPER 12 Translation and Legal Texts
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Introduction Legal Language vs. Legal ranslation Characteristics o Legal exts Problems in ranslating Legal exts Strategies or ranslating Legal exts est Your Knowledge o Chapter (12) Finding arget Language Equivalents Analysis and ranslation o exts
Bibliography
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FOREWORD
Peter Newmark, in his well-known book A extbook o ranslation (New York: Prentice Hall International, 1988), states unequivocally that a translator has to have a flair and a eel or his own language. He goes on: “Tere is nothing mystical about this ‘sixth sense’, but it is compounded o intelligence, sensitivity and intuition, as well as o knowledge” (1988: 4). Proessor Said M. Shiyab not only has this sixth sense or his native language, Arabic, but he has also developed it or today’s number one international language, English. Shiyab is a specialist in linguistics and translation theory and application with vast teaching and research experience in the Middle East and the USA. With an outstanding flair and eel or both Arabic and English, he is the ideal author or this superb pedagogical work. Students as well as their instructors can look orward to many delightul hours o intellectual stimulation exploring the thought-provoking ideas in the textbook which ollows. ranslators and interpreters perorm a very valuable service in every country in the world today. In act, the 2005 acclaimed movie Te Interpreter, starring Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn, the first venture filmed at the United Nations headquarters in New York City, demonstrates the glamor, the splendor, and the crucial importance o translation work in today’s increasingly interconnected global marketplace. ranslators have been around, however, long beore the United Nations, practicing both an art and a science (here the author and I are in agreement that translation is both an art and a science). Witness the multilingual scribes o the ancient Near East who produced monuments such as the Rosetta Stone (a trilingual inscription long housed in the British Museum in London) and numerous other texts o various sorts. Te student will find this textbook to be both lucid and enjoyable. Te author has prepared a unique book or the next generation o translators, and i students careully study its pages, they will come away with a fine appreciation o this academic, scholarly, and
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practical field where many o today’s linguists are earning their living by oral and/or written translation-interpretation endeavors. Proessor Shiyab notes in his preace to the tome that he has been involved in this exciting area o intellectual inquiry since 1980. Chomsky was challenging or him, or as he writes, “provoked me at the beginning,” yet somehow lacked the ascination he would soon develop or systemic linguistics and discourse analysis. Indeed the author has succeeded in amalgamating the two aorementioned fields o systemic linguistics and discourse analysis with the theoretical and applied aspects o translation studies. His 23 years o teaching experience, vast reading in the field and allied areas, and personal research efforts resulting in numerous publications all combine to engage the student – to channel him or her into a stimulating journey into a wonderul specialization within the area o general and applied linguistics. Te book, conveniently organized into a dozen chapters, is a thorough and comprehensive survey o a vibrant and exciting discipline with a rich bibliographical tradition (see the exhaustive bibliography at the end o the volume). Chapter 1, “Introduction: Perspectives on ranslation,” looks at the history o the dis-
cipline rom the point o view o leading 20 th-century linguists, such as Roman Jakobson and John Rupert Firth. I certainly agree with Shiyab when he asserts: “... translating any text rom one language into another yields a particular kind o ambiguity which cannot be clarified unless the intentions o the text-producer within his/her own social, cultural, denotative, connotative, and rhetorical contexts have been accounted or” (p. 22). Chapter 2, “Fallacies o ranslation,” stresses that “one course in translation cannot and
will not make the student a good translator” (p. 32). Shiyab paints a very vivid picture that translation is an intricate process and he is certainly speaking or the proession itsel when he affirms that translation “entail[s] artistic strategies and scientific methods and processes” (p. 34). Tere is much ood or thought to engage even the least curious o students into a real dialogue involving provocative essay and multiple-choice questions that orce the students to come to grips with the most pertinent and significant issues. Chapter 3, “Some Relevant erms in ranslation,” presents the necessary tools o the
trade – the relevant terminology o important concepts, among which are: back translation, borrowing and loanwords (Arabic kumbyuutar < English computer ), calques (loan translations) such as haati ‘telephone’, idiomaticity, and so on. Every scientific field has its jargon, so to speak, and translation studies are no exception. Chapter 4, “ranslation Teory and Practice,” convincingly argues that translation work
combines both theory and practice. A translator can thus be compared in many ways to a surgeon. Just as the M.D. studies human anatomy and the causes o diseases or many years, only then learning how to use a scalpel and cut into organs and tissues to assist in
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Foreword
the eventual healing o the patient, so too the translator studies semantics and stylistics, e.g., beore becoming a proessional practitioner. Moreover, experience counts or a lot in both spheres. I having cataract surgery, a surgeon with 10,000 successul operations is preerable to the novice surgeon just beginning a surgical career! So true or a translator as well! In other words, one gains experience on the job itsel. Chapter 5, “ext and Context in ranslation,” is a tribute to teaching total communica-
tive competence over mere linguistic competence. Shiyab is right to argue that “translation is to be based on the interpretation o the contextual variables such as pragmatics, semiotics and the communicative contexts” (p. 59). In this regard, it should be emphasized that language is the symbolic system par excellence, which justifies considering linguistics as a part o semiotics in general. Chapter 6, “ranslation: State o the Art,” makes the all-important point that translation
“involve[s] conveying what is implied and not what is said” (p. 76). Using a Shakespearean example (Hamlet ), Shiyab contrasts the implications o our published translations o the English word scholar : (1) aqiih, (2) aSHii 9aalim; (3) rajul muthaqqa wa aSiiH ; and (4) rajul muta9allim (p. 81). Tese real-lie examples will stimulate productive student discussion yielding a real understanding o many tangential cultural issues. Chapter 7, “Punctuation and ranslation,” examines the uses o the colon and semico-
lon, specifically, and other punctuation marks, such as the comma, in both English and Arabic. Te author is correct to emphasize that the entire system o Arabic punctuation does not have well-established, universal rules in use throughout the Arab world today. “Tereore,” he rightly maintains, “much work needs to be done in order to identiy what is considered to be the sentence in Arabic i one wants to establish a coherent system o punctuation” (p. 97). Chapter 8, “ranslation and Literature,” is geared to be o service to the more advanced
student who already has a solid command o translating newspaper and magazine articles. ranslating literary works, such as Shakespeare or Naguib Mahouz (the Nobel Prize winner or literature in 1988), but especially poetry, drama, and religious works (e.g. the Bible, the Koran, etc.), is the most difficult and sophisticated material or a translator. A prose vs. a verse translation o an Arabic poem shows the beauty o the latter over the ormer (p. 107). Chapter 9, “ranslations and Language eaching,” presents some good arguments that
translation can provide a solid oundation or teaching oreign language structures as, e.g. collocational nominals in the two languages. For instance, the expression fish and chips
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A exbook o ranslation
collocates in English but not in Arabic, whereas xubz wa milH ‘bread and salt’ collocates in Arabic but not in English. Chapter 10, “ranslation and Pragmatics o Discourse,” looks at the crucial matter o
“pragmatic variables in an intercultural and interpersonal context” (p. 117). Here Shiyab introduces the importance o H. P. Grice’s pragmatic Maxims, which were made amous in a series o William James Lectures at Harvard University in 1967. Finally, Chapters 11 and 12, “ranslation and Scientific exts” and “ranslation and Legal ranslation,” give marvelous examples in the arenas o translating scientific and legal texts – two o the most difficult oci. Many recent texts provide valuable training to achieve practice to attain competence and fluency; e.g., xabiith ‘malignant; cancerous’ and mujrim or mudhnib ‘criminal’ (depending on the context). Indeed the differences between Islamic Law (sharii9ah) and western (e.g. American) law are excellent pieces o evidence one may use to demonstrate the interrelationships between language and culture. Proessor Shiyab’s translation textbook is an up-to-date and well-organized presentation o all the important linguistic, pragmatic, and cultural ramifications necessary or success as a working translator and/or interpreter. But keep in mind that as with all textbooks, student progress is ofen measurable by the amount o concentrated, ocused study o the contents, which can be satisying and enjoyable. Alan S. Kaye Caliornia State University, Fullerton (USA) May 2006
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PREFACE
I started my journey with translation in 1980 afer which I started to look at language in a somewhat unique way. How do languages express various messages and what effect do such messages have on the audience? Every time I heard a politician talking, I got tuned to his/her tone, winks, gestures in an attempt to understand the many different implications behind such acts. It was those moments that enabled me to look urther into how languages work. Indeed, languages always ascinated me since they represent human beings, their culture and traditions. Language is an important means o communication where communication at times and under certain circumstances does not take place in a verbal orm. It was then that I realized that studying languages across cultures can be a rewarding experience. Languages, in the real sense o the word, maniest real people. Behind each piece o language, there is a vehicle o thought. Only those, I thought at that moment, who scrutinize or look deeply into language codes and symbols can understand the real meanings behind the uses o language. I have to admit that Chomsky’s syntactic structures provoked me at the beginning, but not to the extent where I see language in everyday work. Ten I moved into systemic linguistics and discourse analysis, and there I started to see where I belong. What a ascination! Te ascination o translation studies prompted me to look urther into languages across cultures. I ound that translation is not only a matter o decoding and re-encoding messages. In act, it is the transmission o one culture into another. It is an approximation between two different people. In this book, I define many different theoretical and practical aspects o translation. My attempt is to enable translation students and translation teachers understand the real
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core o what translation is all about, minding the reader that a lot has been written about translation, and unortunately such writings created more conusion about this important proession. With this modest work, I hope readers would discover what is translation, what are the different types o translation, what is translation theory and what is its effect, translation in its linguistic and cultural contexts, and above all translation and its literary orms. Tis book not only explains and discusses all these aspects, but also presents real and live examples rom everyday writings. Furthermore, I always thought that once I finish my teaching career, I will start writing books on translation. However, afer 23 years o teaching linguistics and translation, I started to see many orgotten areas that are not accounted or. Tereore, this book explains many o these areas. In this book, I have included 12 chapters. Chapter one defines translation, provides readers with a background on the past and present history o translation. It also provides them with methods o translation, and explains whether translation is a science or an art. In chapter two, I tried to clariy some allacies about translation whether they are student-teacher allacies or communal allacies. In order to amiliarize the reader with translation, chapter three defines the most important concepts in translation. Some o these concepts may have to do with linguistics as well. In chapter our, I attempt to answer the dilemma whether translation is a theory or practice, ollowed by chapter five where I discuss the importance o context in translation. ranslation as the state o the art is the main ocus o chapter six*. Tis chapter discusses different concepts that are interrelated to translation. Tese are translation and meaning, translation and culture, perception and translators, and translation. Tis chapter also compares between translating and writing. Chapter seven explains the importance o using punctuation marks in translation. Although this chapter makes reerence to the Arabic punctuation marks, most o the issues discussed in this chapter can be applied to other languages as well. Chapter eight discusses one o the important areas in translation and that is the translation o literature. Te characteristics o literary texts, their nature, writer-translator relationship, and linguistic context and literary translation are all defined in this chapter. As or chapter nine*, it demonstrates how translation can help learners to enhance their second language. It introduces strategies or learning a oreign language, and the problems associated with it. Chapter ten examines the pragmatic variables in translation, and shows how such variables can give rise to intercultural and interpersonal communication. Grice’s maxims and how they are relevant to successul communication are also discussed. In chapter eleven, the process o translating scientific texts is introduced. Since
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Preace
not many textbooks have included material on scientific translation, this chapter provides the missing link. Tereore, English as a global language and its relation to science was discussed. Also, a distinction was made between the language o science and the language o literature. Tis is ollowed by a list o scientific terms where students were asked to find their equivalents in the target language. Last but not least, chapter twelve examines the link between language and law. It highlights the characteristics o legal texts, and how the construction o language can affect the interpretation o law. Te chapter also defines the characteristics o legal texts and the problems associated with their translation. One o the important sections in this chapter is the discussion o the problems o translating legal texts. Tis is, o course, ollowed by a list o legal terms that are commonly used in legal texts. All in all, the twelve chapters are all important in teaching any translation course, simply because they deal with both theoretical and practical aspects o translation. Tese chapters can also be used to teach any course introducing students to the field o translation. One other distinguished aspect o this textbook is that at the end o each chapter, there is a set o questions, testing the student’s knowledge o the chapter. In addition, some relevant texts are provided or students to translate into the target language. Tis is something that is hardly ever ound in textbooks on translation.
* Some o topics discussed in chapters six and nine were taken rom two co-authored articles with Khanji, Latee and Shiyab (2001).
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ACKNOWLEDGEMEN
In addition to those who helped this textbook along its way, I would like to thank my colleagues Proessor Alan Kaye, University o Caliornia Fullerton, Proessor Ben Bannani, and Dr. Michel Lynch, UAE University or their valuable input and observations. I also would like to thank the Scientific Research Office at the United Arab Emirates University and the Office o Rare Diseases in Bethesda, Maryland (USA) or providing me with inormation used in this book. Grateul acknowledgment is also made to my amily, particularly my wie, ammy, who constantly supported me throughout my work. Without their insight and encouragement, this textbook would never have seen the light.
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DEDICAION
Tis book is dedicated to all those who have contributed to its production, especially those who happen to read it, review it and write about it.
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CHAPER �: INRODUCION
Perspectives on Translation 1.1
Definition of Translation
In this introduction, I will attempt to provide various perspectives on the term “translation”. What do we mean exactly by translation and how is it understood by linguists as well as translation proessionals? First, let there be no doubt that translation is not a new act perormed between two languages. It is as old as the history o our universe. Te question that always arises is “what is translation?” o answer this question, numerous and various definitions come to the surace. Looking at translation rom a semiotic perspective, oury (1980: 12) believes that translation, in particular translation o literature, is a matter o transerring entities, underlying codes, and sets o relationships and signs rom one language to another. ranslation is the process o communication in which the translator is interposed between a transmitter and a receiver who use different languages to carry out code o conversation between them (anke 1975). Tis latter definition may seem applicable to almost all types o translation, simply because no attempt was made to identiy the ramework into which literary translation is used. In a different article, anke (1976: 22) provides a more complete definition o translation. He suggests that translation be viewed as the transer o a text rom a source language into a text in the target language, the objective being a perect (my italics) equivalent o meaning between the two texts. However, this definition lacks clarification as to what constitutes “perect equivalent o meaning.” Others define translation as that which preserves the meaning o the original in another language (Ross 1981: 9). ranslation is always an interpretation (Bennani 1981: 135); it is the final product o problem solving and sign production o a receptor (Diaz-Diocretz 1985: 8). “ranslation is the reproduction in the receptor language o the closest natural
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equivalent o the source language message, first in terms o meaning, and second in terms o style” (Nida & aber 1969: 210). Newmark (1988: 5) defines translation as “rendering the meaning o a text into another language in the way that the author intended the text.” From a linguistic point o view, De Beaugrande (1978: 13) suggests several hypotheses to work with when it comes to the theory o poetic translating. De Beaugrande believes that translating should not be studied as a comparison and contrast o two texts, but as a process o interaction between author, translator, and reader o the translation. Te act o translating is guided by several sets o strategies responsive to the directives within the text. Whatever definitions we come across, almost all o them can be subsumed under two definitions. Te first definition is the replacement o one written text rom one language to another in which the main goal o the translator is meaning. Te second is the transerence o a message communicated rom one text into a message communicated in another, with a high degree o attaining equivalence o context o the message, components o the original text, and the semiotic elements o the text (i.e. social, connotative, addresser-addressee relationship, etc.). As or literary translation, it lies within these two definitions o translation. Sometimes it may even go beyond these two extremes, as the characteristics and the norms o literary translation are o different nature. Literary translation is mainly concerned with text unctions maniested in the text’s characteristics (Shiyab 1994: 234-235). 1.2
Translation: Past and Present
Despite the large amount o literature that has been produced on the process as well as the theory o translation, it can be said that translation is still viewed as a mysterious phenomenon that defies understanding (Bell 1991). Tere is, o course, a considerable variation as ar as speculating on this process; this variation has made a small, but useul, contribution to the attempt o identiying the theoretical rameworks or doing such translation. In some respect, there is very little consensus among linguists, translation theorists, and translation practitioners regarding the principles, rules, and methods o translating. Te best indication o such disparity o views is the act that translation has many definitions. Tis reflects the act that it involves many DIFFEREN strategies. ranslation has been defined in many different ways. However, or the sake o clarity, these definitions, roughly speaking, will be classified into meaning-based definitions such as Nida & aber (1969), Nida (1964), Rabin (1958), Newmark (1981, 1988), and semiotic-based definitions such as Jakobson (1959), Steiner (1975), Frawley (1984), etc. Meaning-based definitions are those which take meaning as the base or interpreting and then convey the meaning o
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Introduction
the original text into that o the target. Here, meaning necessitates reerence to linguistic characteristics such as lexical, grammatical, phonological, etc; it also necessitates reerences to non-linguistic characteristics such as thought, situation, knowledge, intentions, and use. Semiotic-based definitions, on the other hand, are those definitions which take translation as the study o signs, symbols, codes, etc. Within this semiotic approach, the cultural, social, rhetorical, and communicative patterns o human behaviors are studied. Also all aspects o human communication are analyzed as systems o signals; they are the means which semioticians use or the interpretation and analysis o texts. Te interrelation o these definitions is illustrated in the ollowing table. Te letter (M) stands or meaning based definitions, (S) stands or semiotic based definitions, and (S or M) stands or either one.
Nida & aber (1969: 210)
ranslation is the reproduction in the receptor language o the closest natural equivalent o the source language message, first in terms o meaning , and second in terms o style. (M)
Steiner (1975: 414)
ranslation is the interpretation o verbal signs in one language by means o verbal signs in another. (S)
Rabin (1958: 123)
ranslation is a process by which a spoken or written utterance taken place in one language which is intended and presumed to convey the same meaning as previously existing utterance in another language. It thus involves two distinct actors, a ‘meaning’, or reerence to some slice o reality. (M)
Catord (1965: 20)
ranslation is the replacement o textual material in one language (SL) by equivalent textual material in another (L). (M)
Savory (1957: 11)
ranslation, the surmounting o the obstacle, is made possible by an equivalence o thought which lies behind the different verbal expressions o thought. (M)
Jakobson (1959: 233)
Inter-lingual translation or rewording is an interpretation o verbal signs by means o other signs o the same language. Inter-lingual translation or translation proper is an interpretation o verbal signs by means o some other language. Inter-semiotic translation or transmutation is an interpretation o verbal signs by means o signs o nonverbal sign systems. (S)
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Frawley (1984: 159)
ranslation means re-codification. (S)
Firth (1968: 76)
Te basis or any total translation must be ound in the linguistic analysis at the grammatical, lexical, collocational, and situational levels. (M)
De Beaugrande (1978: 13)
ranslation should not be studied as a comparing and contrasting o two texts, but as a process o interaction between author, translator, and the reader o the translation. (S or M)
ytler (1979: 9)
ranslation should give a complete transcript o the ideas o the original work. Te style and manner o writing should be the same character with that o the original. ranslation should have all the ease o the original. (M)
Newmark (1988: 5)
ranslation is rendering the meaning o a text into another language in the way that the author intended the text. (M)
Ross (1981: 9)
Te most natural view is that translation preserves the meaning o the original in another language or orm. ranslation is not a restatement, where differences are minimized, but highlights certain equivalence in the context o important dissimilarities. (M)
Diaz-Diocaretz (1985: 9)
ranslation will be understood as the final product o problemsolving and sign production o a receptor-text (R) unctionally equivalent to a source text (S), by a human being in a given language or a given group o text receivers. (S)
able (1) Interrelation Definitions o ranslation
In act, there are many other definitions and principles that give more or less the same inormation, and a ull account o these definitions as well as their shortcomings is be-
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Introduction
yond the scope o this book. However, the existence o these various definitions suggests that translation is ar rom having a generally accepted theoretical ramework. What is also clear is that different translation theorists have concentrated on different types and strategies o translation. For example, there are strategies or theories that are mainly concerned with translation in a ‘literal sense’ (Vachon-Spilka 1968). Tese theories demand word-or-word translation. Other theories, on the other hand, are mainly concerned with the reproduction o equivalent lexical items o the original text (Nida 1964; Nida & aber 1969). Different attempts have been made to look at translation rom a pragmatic and semiotic view in which the essence o translation is treated as an interaction between text-producer and the message along with social and cultural contexts in which a particular piece o language is used (Jakobson 1959; De Beaugrande 1978; Mason 1982; Wilss 1982: 135; and Hatim 1987). What is meant by pragmatics here is the study o purpose or which the texts are used; it is the intentionality behind all the choices made (Newmark 1988). Tis includes the text-producer’s intentions and the intended unction o the text. As or semiotics, it is the interaction o various elements in the text as signs; it includes the social, cultural and psychological reality o a particular community. In this component, the social, cultural, and anthropological characteristics o a text are brought together to assess its meaning. Te interaction o these signs with one another creates the semiotic meaning o a text. Although these context specifications illuminate the intentions o the text-producer and shed some light on the semiotic contexts in which the text is used, there is still some kind o uncertainty as to what constitutes these particular contexts. Tat is, it is very hard to always make accurate and complete predictions about the intentions o the text-producer. Even Halliday (1985: 345) seems skeptical o the possibility o studying the HOW and the WHY choices made by the text-producer. Also, it could be argued that there are some choices that are easily decoded by the writer and can thereore be more easily interpreted than others. All that we do is in act speculate/ make predictions on his communicative intent through the structure o the text. Tese contexts do in act acilitate translation but do not make it adequate in all respects, because understanding the pragmatic and semiotic meaning o a text is not an easy task, since this involves more than changing the words o the original into that o the target. While the translator tends to ignore the unction and style in a word-or-word translation, in a sense translation (i.e. one in which the translator relies on how the text eels by using his own senses), there is an imitation o the source text in terms o its unction, style, semiotic and pragmatic values. By the same token, there is a tendency to stress on the aesthetic criteria o the target text.
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Te above discussion is only brie. However, most writers on translation emphasize the importance o language within its own cultural context, as the meaning o words or lexical items is rooted in their text-producer’s intentionality and within his own culture. Lado (1957) argues that learning the structure o a language involves learning its culture. One cannot really understand a oreign language without taking into account the culture o which it is a part. Tis is why translating any text rom one language into another yields a particular kind o ambiguity which cannot be clarified unless the intentions o the textproducer within his/her own social, cultural, denotative, connotative, and rhetorical contexts have been accounted or. 1.3
What is a Translator?
Many definitions have been proposed to illustrate the role and the unction o a translator. While the majority o linguists and translation theorists define a translator as the one who transers the meaning and the orm o a text rom one language to another, others look at the translator in a broader context. Adams and Telen (1999), in Te Journal o American History, beautiully argue that at a time when people and their cultures and ideas travel across the world, translation becomes the only possible way to interact. Tey argue that being a translator is not easy, simply because it involves making crucial choices on how to transer the text across the barriers behind which cultures have developed characteristics and linguistic ways o seeing and thinking things in other cultures. Adams and Telen state that all throughout history, people can see the creativity o individual translators pushing their texts through filters o culture and language. Delisle and Woodsworth (1996), in ranslators through History, highlight the importance o a translator by saying that the ancient Greek word or translator-interpreter is hermêneus, related to Hermes, the messenger o the gods, the god that presided over travel, trade, and communications. Te verb hermêneuo means to interpret oreign tongues, translate, explain, expound, put into words, express, describe, write about . Te many urther meanings o the Greek word or translator-interpreter ( mediator, go-between, dealbroker, marriage-broker ) suggest that interpreters almost certainly had to exist during prehistory – the period beore writing was even invented. For more inormation, see Delisle and Woodsworth (1996). In ancient times, Delisle and Woodsworth (1996) suggest that ideas used to be primarily transormed into other civilizations and cultures through travelers and tradesmen. Slowly but surely, translation became a key actor in the growth and expansion o other world civilizations and cultures. One may point out the role translation played in transerring knowledge rom Ancient Greece to Persia, rom India to the Arab world, above
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all rom Islam to Christianity and rom Europe to China and Japan. In a nutshell, Delisle and Woodsworth (1996: 68) argue that: ranslators have invented alphabets, helped build languages and written dictionaries. Tey have contributed to the emergence o national literatures, the dissemination o knowledge and the spread o religions. Importers o oreign cultural values and key players at some o the great moments o history, translators and interpreters have played a determining role in the development o their societies and have been undamental to the unolding o intellectual history itsel. Along the same line, Robinson (2003: 162) makes a distinction between a novice and a translator. He states that the key term is experience. According to Robinson, a translator has experience, whereas a novice does not. Also, a translator talks, acts, and writes like a translator, a novice does not. A translator has certain proessional assumptions about how language works and how translation is done, but a novice does not have any o these qualities. All these characteristics can clearly make the difference between a proessional translator and a mediocre one. Tere are many instances in which translation played an important role in introducing one civilization to another. For example, translation helped introduce the Buddhist literature rom different Indian languages into Chinese. Another example is the introduction o Greek philosophical works into Arabic, and in so doing it introduces them to the Islamic world. It is this constant exposition o ideas and values that made translation a key element in the development o cultures and societies. Robinson (2003: 35) eloquently elaborates on the undamental assumptions underlying his approach to translation by saying: 1. ranslation is more about people not words. 2. ranslation is more about the jobs people do and the way they see the world. 3. ranslation is more about the creative imagination than about rule-governed text-analysis. 4. Te translator is more like an actor or a musician (a perormer) than a tape recorder. 5. Te translator, even o highly technical texts, is more like a poet or a novelist than a machine translating system. 1.4
Methods of Translation
Many different methods o translating a text have been proposed. In his book entitled A extbook o ranslation, Newmark (1988) highlights the different methods o translating
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texts: word-or-word-translation, literal translation, aithul translation, semantic translation, communicative translation, idiomatic translation, ree translation, and translation as adaptation. While Newmark’s classification o translation methods is undoubtedly helpul, his categorization o the types o translation methods is a bit conusing. In other words, which o his methods have no bearing on meaning? In act all o them, otherwise the translation becomes incomplete or unacceptable. What is the difference between semantic translation and ree translation, i the ultimate goal o the translator is to capture meanings at dierent levels? Also, in reality, how is aithul translation different rom semantic translation? Because o such overlapping, I believe Newmark’s classification o translation methods is a bit over exaggerated. Based on this, one can say that when we attempt to translate a text rom one language to another, we understand that the translation is made rom the source text (S) into a target text (). Te criterion or doing such translation is that the meaning or these two texts corresponds. ranslation proessionals generally agree that there are many types o translation, but one can sum up these types into three: 1.4.1 Word for Word Translation
Tis kind o translation involves translating a word in the source language to a word in the target language. Although this seems very much like literal translation, in act it is not. Te problem with this kind o translation is that the outcome may not be meaningul; it could be awkward and discomfited, simply because meaning was not the center o translation. 1.4.2 Literal Translation
Tis kind o translation ocuses on the linguistic structure o the source text. It actually ignores the semiotic, pragmatic and contextual connotations o text-structure, while taking into account the linguistic conventions o the target language. While literal translation is not commonly used in translating texts, it is undamental or the study o language structures. It is not recommended or the casual reader where adequacy and clarity o meaning are involved. For example, in translating religious texts, adherence to the word order o the text and idiomatic expressions may make the translation difficult to understand. Tereore, interpreting or explaining the word may give rise to clarity o meaning. 1.4.3 Free Translation
Tis kind o translation is sometimes called idiomatic translation. Other times, it is called elegant translation. What is involved in ree translation is texts are translated into the other language based on their meaning not structure. Interpretation and paraphrasing are two ways o understanding and translating the text into the target language. Tis kind
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o translation is the best simply because the translation outcome is meaningul, clear and effective as in the source text. aking the above three types o translation into account, it should be pointed out that the type o texts, skill o the translator, text context and cultural dimensions are all actors that can help determine successul and effective translation. 1.5
Translation: Art or Science?
Te status o translation whether it be an art or a science has been controversial or the last two decades. Only those who work in translation can envisage whether translation should be considered an art or a science. From my proessional experience, I believe that translation is both an art and a science. ranslation is not concerned mainly with finding words in the dictionary and replacing them with their equivalents in another language. Tis is not even called translation. ranslation requires artistic skills and sometimes systematic and logical decisions. Apart rom their grammatical differences, or differences in word-order or idioms, very ew words may have one-to-one correspondence. However, some words may have many possible interpretations; others may have words that are replaceable by other words in another language. Tereore, knowing which words to utilize in a given text necessitates good understanding o the text. It also requires good mastery o the target language patterns o thinking, in addition to long experience in text analysis and text rendition. Te examples below may seem common to almost all languages. However, they entail different types o meaning when used in a specific context. Consider the ollowing examples: Decor Honor Attachment Enclosures Department Director Scanner Chair Vehicle Dating
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Now, can you think o the equivalent words in your native language and compare them with those o the target ones? Have you discovered that they entail different lexical items? For example, the word vehicle in English could entail car , bicycle , bus, automobile, etc. Can one explain the different lexical items such words entail in another language? Any discussion o the equivalent meanings o such words may entail moving rom the domain o science into the domain o art. Furthermore, do other languages use the same words or different concepts? What about the word “dating” as in Jane is dating John. Does the word dating contain an equivalent word in the other language? Sometimes, one may find the dictionary inormation conusing, simply because it does not provide the translator with good solutions. Even in similar languages, one may find that certain words may look or sound the same, but in actuality, they express different meanings. Tereore, whether the term is cultural, religious, linguistic, or literary, the artistic talent o the translator and his skills are a liesaver here. Peter Newmark, in his extbook o ranslation (1995), points out that translation should be looked at as a combination o art (applied) and a skill, a taste, and an exercise o choices and decisions. At the same time, others believe that translation is a scientific process o dealing with codes (Eco 2003). However, taking these two views into account, one may look at translation as a systematic way o looking at a particular thing. In medical science, or example, translation is used scientifically and systematically. In social sciences, particularly literature, it is used artistically. Also, all branches o scientific investigations o translation whether linguistic, stratificational, computational, or even machine translation describe translation as a science. 1.6
Why Do We Need Translation?
One o the most undamental purposes o translation lies in its definition. Tat is, the purpose o translation is to transpose the meaning o the original text into the target text. Apart rom this, translation is done or different reasons. ranslation has an important role to play in the cultural lie o a particular society. Tat is, translation o literature provides a society with inormation about its cultures, lie habits, patterns o thinking, and above all its values. In another context, translation is important as it provides us with up-to-date inormation about the latest discoveries. One cannot imagine him or hersel isolated rom knowing what innovations and contributions other cultures or societies have i their work has not really been translated. So transmitting knowledge through translation is a key component to the society’s development and progress. Within a pedagogical context, Kasmer (1999), in an article entitled “Te Role o ranslation in the EFL/ESL Classroom”, believes that there are useul aspects o translation when
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Introduction
used in the ESL or EFL classroom. ranslation can oster a student’s natural ability to learn a oreign language. It can also enhance a student’s confidence and security level through the usage o bilingual immersion, co-teaching, and bilingual text usage. Above all, consciousness raising helps the student’s ability to recognize similarities and differences between his mother tongue and the oreign language as ar as culture, language structure, use o specific and general vocabulary, and the order o presentation o inormation are concerned. 1.7
Test Your Knowledge of Chapter (1)
�. Give two different definitions o translation. Illustrate your definitions with examples. �. Define a translator, and show how a translator is different rom a writer. �. Draw a comparison between the three types o translation and demonstrate in what context each type will be used. �. Do you think translation is an art or a science? Explain your answer. . Demonstrate how translation is important in everyday lie. Can you show the impact o translation activities on your culture? 1.8
Text-Comprehension and Translation
o test your knowledge o the English language and to see how much meaning you can capture at the text level, read the ollowing article on the Importance o ranslation and Interpretation very careully, and translate it into your native or target language using a summary method. Te article is taken rom the Te Ukrainian Weekly , August 17, 1997, No. 33, Vol. LXV. Remember, a summary method ocuses on the main ideas in the article. Tereore, literal translation is not recommended here.
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Importance of Translation and Interpretation by IRYNA KOVALSKA KYIV - Literary translation has always played a very important role in the cultural lie o Ukrainians. In act, it is a actor in nation-building. Almost all major Ukrainian writers have also been translators, being well aware that cultural isolation has always been dangerous. Tus, translators have been the enlighteners o their downtrodden people and fighters or their better lie, having chosen literary translation as a weapon side by side with their original creativity. Afer the second world war – owing to the brilliant school o Ukrainian literary translation – Ukrainian translated literature developed as a kind o compensation or Ukrainian original literature whose development was being thwarted. It has also become a treasure-trove as an effective medium or creating, collecting and preserving expressive means (lexical, prosodic, structural), which now may be widely used by Ukrainian authors. Recently the importance o training translators and interpreters became evident in Ukraine. Te country needs highly qualified interpreters and translators or the United Nations, UNESCO, Council o Europe, Organization or Economic Cooperation and Development, or embassies and a host o other organizations in Ukraine and throughout the world. Tus, discussing various problems o translation and interpreting became an urgent need in Ukraine. On May 29-30, aras Shevchenko State University in Kyiv hosted the international conerence “ranslation on the Treshold o the XXI Century: History, Teory, Methods” (organized by the Common European Project EMPUS – ACIS 85422-94: Ukraine – Spain – France – Italy). Te program included over 80 reports, which covered various problems o modern translation studies. Issues in the history o translation were highlighted by Pro. Oleksander Cherednychenko, who gave a general overview o the development o literary translation in Ukraine and defined the main directions o Ukrainian translation studies, while Pro. Roksoliana Zorivchak discussed the legacy o Hryhoriy Kochur as a translator and a translation studies researcher. Among other speakers, Dr. Orest Zemlianyi spoke about Ukrainian translations o Irish literature. Te researchers accentuated the role o translation as a actor important to the development o intercultural communication. Tus, Pro. Maryna Novykova underlined that translation is part o the spiritual legacy o a nation, a way o thinking that is developed in constant contact with other nations.
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Te majority o the speakers dealt with the theory o translation, suggesting various approaches to the translation norm, methods o research, understanding the nature o the literary translation, etc. Pro. Efim Etkind – not only a brilliant researcher but a fighter or human rights as well – shared his views concerning the notion o “metatranslation.” According to the researcher, the latter is an umbrella term or all texts presented as translations but actually created as something different (e.g. ree rendering, transusion, etc.). Tus, the word “translation” does not cover all the diverse types o contacts between language and literature. One o Pro. Etkind’s studies is titled “Poeziyai Perevod” (“Poetry and ranslation”), but he considers that the German version “Dichtung and Nachdichtung” reflects the essence o this notion, better introducing the element o secondary creativity, and the involvement o a co-creator. Pro. Etkind analyzed different levels and types o metatranslation, providing examples rom German, Italian and English literatures as interpreted by Russian classical writers. Methods o teaching interpreting and translating were discussed by Ion Chobanu, Nelli Kalustova, Zenoviy Partyko, Eduard Skorokhodko and many other researchers. In his report on “Inormation echnologies in ranslators’ raining,” Pro. Viacheslav Karaban stressed the necessity o updating the process o translators’ training, helping them to develop computer skills, and teaching them how to use sofware and the internet. Te participants o the conerence had ample opportunity to listen to the outstanding Ukrainian lexicographer Mykhailo Balla, who spoke about his experience in compiling a great English-Ukrainian dictionary. Te new two volume edition comprising o about 120,000 words was published in Kyiv in 1996. It is an important contribution to Ukrainian lexicography. Te first (rather small) English-Ukrainian dictionaries were published in Canada in the 1920s and 1930s. Te first rather substantial English-Ukrainian dictionary (comprising o 40,000 words) appeared in 1946. Its compiler, Mykhailo Podvezko, continued his lexicographic research in cooperation with Mr. Balla. In 1974 they produced a bigger English-Ukrainian dictionary (about 65,000 words). According to Mr. Balla, he started working on the newest edition o the dictionary almost immediately afer 1974. Te 1996 edition can be characterized as more convenient or users: proper names and geographical names are not given in the appendices but along with common words in alphabetical order, each derived word is supplied with a translation and listed as a separate item.
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Te Kyiv conerence contributed to the establishment o contacts among researchers in translation studies, helping them exchange opinions and share their experience. Conerence participants passed a resolution on the need to organize a ederation o translators and interpreters in Ukraine. Te experience o such ederations in other countries shows that such a body would be able to perorm a number o significant unctions: to arrange orums or discussions on controversial subjects and research; to protect the rights and privileges o translators and interpreters; to represent them at international conerences and seminars; to gain recognition or the important role translators play in modern Ukraine; to create more appreciation or the field o translation; and to improve the quality o translations. Te resolution was passed unanimously. Tus, one can expect that the All-Ukrainian Federation o ranslators and Interpreters will soon become a reality, and that through the organization Ukraine’s proessionals will join the International Federation o ranslators, uniting national societies o translators into a single international body.
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CHAPER �
Fallacies of Translation 2.1 Introduction
Tis section is not intended to discourage students rom majoring or studying translation, but to clariy misconceptions about translation. Unortunately, translation was perceived as an easy task which requires only basic knowledge o the two languages involved. Tis erroneous assumption about translation has misled and is still misleading students about the proession o translation. ranslation is like any other discipline; it requires hard work, good knowledge o other disciplines, awareness and good understanding o the cultures and traditions o the two languages, and above all an artistic talent in analyzing and synthesizing a message. As Gentzler and ymoczko (2002) state, translation is not only a process o aithul reproduction; it involves deliberate acts o selection, construction, and omission. So, in this section, and based on my teaching experience, I genuinely want the translation students to be aware o translation and what it requires beore they embark on this very important discipline. 2.2 Misconceptions about Translation
In an article entitled “Knowing Beore Learning”, Rubrecht (2005) highlights ten concepts he believes translation students should know beore they embark on any translation major. Rubrecht believes that in an age where media and ast communication have transormed the world into an interconnected community, the world is getting smaller and smaller. With the generation and dissemination o new technology, one is more likely to believe that there is a need to prompt global level thinking, and this can be accomplished only through institutions offering translation and interpretation courses. For oreign language specializations, minding you translation students, translation and interpretation
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courses are very undamental simply because they are instrumental tools or language learning. Others make it clear that translation and interpretation courses are becoming more popular. I mysel belong to the latter group. However, with the proper understanding, translation and interpretation courses are seen as valid literary pursuits or learning the literary language. Tey are also seen as important means or learning a oreign language. Whether such courses are part o a university curriculum or offered as a our year degree major, universities as well as teachers must understand there is a mismatch between students’ expectations and what students can actually accomplish during these two or our year courses. Students as well as teachers have too many assumptions as to how these courses are taught and how much students can get out o this lecturing process. In many cases, these assumptions turn out to be alse. Let there be no doubt that academic institutions are not proessional translation and interpretation schools. No matter how experienced the teacher is and how well planned the syllabus is, there will always be a limit as to how much the teacher can give, and by the same token how much students can learn, particularly under the limitations (i.e. time) imposed by a course spanning a period o only one or two semesters. It is extremely important or students to be aware o certain acts about translation and interpretation beore they choose a major or enroll in a translation or interpretation course. As pointed out earlier, this is not to discourage students rom embarking on translation or interpretation courses, or learning but rather provide them with the knowledge and understanding o the expectations o engaging in such courses. Newmark (1991) has outlined the responsibilities o instructors involved in teaching translation and interpretation courses. He believes that students should know important acts about translation and interpretation courses. Tese are: 1. Like any other discipline, translation has difficulties and students should be aware o such difficulties beore they engage in any translation and interpretation courses. 2. Students should be aware o their responsibility towards translation difficulties, not blaming other courses or teachers. 3. Students should have already been involved in some orm o translation activities beore they embark on a translation major. 4. Like physicians, translation teachers cannot cover all that is relevant to literature in one term. Tey can only cover some important works o literary figures such as Shakespeare. One course in translation cannot and will not make the student a good translator; it can only introduce him or her to the nature o the transla-
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Fallacies o ranslation
tion process and provide him or her with the methods and strategies on how to look at or approach a text. In order to help students understand the nature, responsibilities and requirements o taking translation and interpretation courses, and according to Rubrecht’s ten concepts, I believe students’ and teachers’ perceptions o each other are undamentally significant. 2.3
Students’ and Teachers’ Perceptions
First, one o the perceptions students have about translation is that they can be amiliarized with the techniques and methods o translating a text rom one language to another in one course. Tis perception is really not true. Learning the two languages will not enable students to be proessional translators, simply because translation requires a lot o practice and this will happen over a long period o time. Students, and sometimes teachers, erroneously believe that it is possible that students can be acquainted with all relevant issues in translation or that they become good translators once they finish a semester or two. Tis, I believe, is something that is impossible to accomplish in one or two semesters. Let there be no doubt that translation students should undergo extensive training in translation activities; they should also be aware o the primary requirements behind any translation course. As or interpretation courses, students must have skills or immediacy o response, good overall knowledge o the subject-matter, and above all good memory. Students should also be equipped with computer skills. Ward (1992) and Chriss (2000) believe that students cannot appreciate the undamental effect such requirements have on translation students’ lives. Tereore, lack o students’ understanding with regard to these issues may have negative repercussions on their accomplishments. Second, rom personal experience, I believe translation is a complex process. It requires that students have good mental capacity that is extremely important to do the work. Tere are in-class activities and homework assignments that are mentally and physically draining. One can imagine himsel or hersel sitting or hours checking all kinds o dictionaries, thinking o all possible meanings, writing and re-writing the text or hours. It is even more draining or students involved in interpreting as the demand on such students is high and they have to adapt themselves to stressul and atigued environments. Interpretation students should get used to the idea o working without using dictionaries in a short period o time. As or good knowledge, students must have a working knowledge o the oreign language beore getting involved in translation and interpretation courses. Tey should have good knowledge o the native countries o that language.
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Tird, learning a oreign language and translating a text are two completely different things. Learning a oreign language is a prerequisite or translating a text; translation may partially help students learn a oreign language, but it will not be enough to make them good translators. Tere is very little overlap between learning a language and conducting translation and students should be aware o this act. Students should also know that they should be willing to continue learning, as language changes over the years, and translators have to continuously update their knowledge. Fourth, the main objective o translating a text is to convey its similar meaning to another language. ranslators or students o translation must worry about communicating meaning very accurately to the reader. eachers should also teach students ways to communicate a message rom one language to another. Communicating a message depends on context, and teachers must make students aware o the importance o context in translation. Without understanding the context, communicating a message will be impossible or even i it can be communicated, it will be erroneous. Here one can reer to Vinay and Darbelnet (1995) where they state that translation is a matter o equivalence. ranslation should maintain the stylistic impact o the source language text in the target language text. According to them, equivalence is the ultimate method or the translation o proverbs, idioms, clichés, nominal or adjectival phrases and the onomatopoeia o animal sounds (ibid: 342). From a different perspective, Vinay and Darbelnet believe that there are three areas o translation: educational, proessional and linguistic. Educational translation ensures reading and understanding a text to assess its accuracy. Proessional translation ensures text quality and precision. As or linguistic translation, it is mainly concerned with how texts are rendered into the other language and what linguistic means are used to convey text meaning. All these areas o translation should be mastered beore students take translation courses. 2.4 Other Perceptions
Tere is a misconception among linguists and some translation teachers that having a bachelor degree in English language or literature makes you a good translator. Tis assumption, based on my personal experience and some studies (Chriss 2000) turns out to be alse. In order or translation students to be good translators, they have to master the translation skills, including fluency or near native fluency o both languages. Tis may not sound good or our translation students, simply because translation to them is not associated with mastering both languages to an acceptable level. At the same time, translation teachers should not expect to have students with perect command o both languages, particularly beore they enroll in any translation or interpretation courses.
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Fallacies o ranslation
Another misconception about translation ed to students by teachers who lack good knowledge o translation studies is the belie that translation is an easy discipline. Anyone teaching or majoring in translation knows very well that translation is a rigorous discipline. It is a problem-solving technique, entailing artistic strategies and scientific methods and processes. It is time consuming and requires a lot o hard work. Students must realize that doing well in translation helps them do well in other subjects. Tereore, disciplining and organizing their lie and above all independency and sel-discipline rom the beginning o their study are key components to their success. As Ward (1992: 580) states: A translator must be a sel-starter, an independent worker, with a good dose o perseverance and determination to see a project through without any guidance or supervision, and ofen without any help even with specialized terminology. Te translator should also have solid integrity to do the very best job possible, to be absolutely accurate, to avoid any shortcuts or doing any udging. As previously stated, translation should be taken seriously and sensibly, i and only i the translator wants to avoid poor results. Also, education and training in translation are vital and translators must juggle not only languages, but also understand cultures, and the religious and political environment in which texts are produced. Tis is not an easy task, i translators or those embark on translation have thought about the ethics o translation. 2.5
Ethics and Rules in Translation
Once scholars come to grips with reality, they will come to their senses that translation has rules and principles. Eco (2003) believes that translation is not about comparing two different languages, but an interpretation o a text in two different languages, thus involving a shif between cultures. He also states that irrespective o the act that some linguists and philosophers claim that there are no rules on whether one translation is better than the other, translators have to use their common sense based on their long experience o reading, editing, and translating. Within the field o translation, thereore, there is a crisis o ethics. Some might be pertinent to translation; others may be pertinent to interpreting. Te question involving translation evolves around whether the translator is loyal or not, and whether he is competent or not. Te comparison made by some Italian translators that “ranslation is like women: the less aithul, the more beautiul, or the more aithul, the less beautiul”, highlights the quarrel translators had with such questions or many years.
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2.6 Test Your Knowledge of Chapter (2)
1. 2. 3.
Give our misconceptions students have about majoring in translation. According to your understanding o this chapter, do you believe that mastering the two languages involved in the translation is sufficient or someone to be a good translator? Please explain your answer with exemplifications. Argue whether or nor not you agree with the types o misconceptions outlined in this chapter.
2.7 Multiple Choice Questions about Chapter (2)
Based on your understanding o Chapter (2), answer the ollowing questions: 1.
Te term “allacy” means: ☐ a. something good ☐ b. something correct ☐ c. something alse ☐ d. (a) & (b)
2.
According to Chapter (2), i someone has a B.A. in English Language & Literature, he or she will be: ☐ a. a good translator ☐ b. unable to translate ☐ c. able to translate but will ace many problems ☐ d. both (b) & (c)
3. Most allacies about translation studies were ed by: ☐ a. students ☐ b. teachers ☐ c. both students and teachers ☐ d. none o the above 4.
According to this chapter, translators are ………….…… perceived by the community. ☐ a. positively ☐ b. negatively ☐ c. not at all ☐ d. somewhat positively
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5.
Within the field o language learning and language acquisition, studies have shown that translation is a useul means or: ☐ a. learning a oreign language ☐ b. learning only one’s language ☐ c. enhancing both oreign and native languages ☐ d. only ( c)
6.
Since translation deals with my native language, then it is: ☐ a. an easy subject ☐ b. a subject that does not need a lot o reading and writing ☐ c. a subject that only needs practice ☐ d. a subject that needs excellent knowledge o the two languages involved and good knowledge o other subjects with lots o translation practice.
7.
ranslation rom one language to another can be acquired rom: ☐ a. just one simple course ☐ b. two courses ☐ c. the more you practice, the better you become in translation ☐ d. just good knowledge o English
8.
Ethics o translators have to do with: ☐ a. whether they are polite or not ☐ b. whether they lie or not ☐ c. whether they are loyal to the text or not ☐ d. both (b) & ( c)
9.
In order to translate effectively, the translator has to ollow: ☐ a. his own eelings ☐ b. rules and principles ☐ c. what his riends tell him/her ☐ d. only (c )
10. In translation, there are: ☐ a. correct translations and incorrect translations ☐ b. poor translations and good translations ☐ c. well written texts and badly written texts ☐ d. both (a) & (b)
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CHAPER �
Some Relevant Terms in Translation 3.1 Introduction
In this chapter, an attempt will be made to define concepts and terms in translation studies. While it is very difficult to survey and define all terms in the studies o translation, my attempt here is to identiy terms that are relevant to the content o this book. For those who are interested in a more complete translation glossary, see Leman (2005). 3.2
Linguistic and Translation Terms
Accuracy
It is a term that reers to maintaining the meaning o the source text. Te term overlaps with the meaning o aithulness, although the two concepts are somewhat different rom one another. Consider the ollowing words or expressions: jell-O He died. wo heads are better than one. Update me . computer ax television mobile surfing
_________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________
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While it is easy to provide an equivalent or the phrase “he died”, it is very difficult to provide an equivalent word or “jello”, simply because the word does not ring a bell in the mind o the reader. Even though the Arabic equivalent word or “jello” is h ulam, it still makes no sense whatsoever to the common reader. In most cases, i not all, people use the word “jello” rather than hulam. Te same thing applies to words such as “ax”, “computer”, “mobile”, etc. Tese words have equivalent words in Arabic, but they are not used at all. What about the equivalent words or expressions in other languages? Do they have the same equivalents? In French, or example, the word “jello” means gelatine. Such a word, however, is not used in the French culture and instead, they use the same English word “jello”. Te same can be applied to words such as “mobile” or “cellular” (in French ), among other words. Audience
Tis term involves those who read or hear a text. ranslation practitioners must take into account the kind o audience. In order or the audience to clearly and effectively understand the meaning o the translated text, translators must use a language that conorms to the expectations o their audience. Back Translation
Tis kind o translation involves the process o translating a document that has already been translated into a target language back to the original language. Te translation is usually done literally. Te objective behind this kind o translation is to enable a translator or a translation consultant who speaks other languages to understand what a translated text means in the target language. Literality is undamental here so as to enable the translation consultant to identiy the rules and structure o the target text. Borrowing
Tis term involves the idea o taking a word rom another language. Te word that is taken is called a “loan word’. Calques
Tis term reers to a word that is created through loan translation. It involves translating the meaning parts o one language to the meaning parts o another. Te process o translating such meaning parts creates what is called “neologism” (using new words in the language).
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Some Relevant erms in ranslation
Choppy
Tis is a term that reers to the quality o the translation. I the translation is clear, accurate and effective, it is called clear translation; but i it is not, it is called choppy translation. Tereore, choppy translation means a translation in which the parts o the text are disjointed. Clarity
Tis is a term that reers to the quality o the translation. I the translation is clear, accurate and effective, it is called clear translation. Clear translation has the quality o being easy to understand and ree rom any ambiguous or unnatural structures. Cohesion
Cohesion reers to the quality o the text and involves connectedness throughout the whole text. Cohesion also aims at preserving smooth connection and internal unity among the sentences used in the text. Collocation
Collocation involves placing or associating two words with one another. Tese words are always used together and more likely in similar contexts. Collocation also involves the relationship between two words that requently go together. Tese two words always coexist with one another. Consecutive Interpreting
Tis is a strategy where the interpreter starts interpreting a spoken message afer the speaker finishes the sentence. Consecutive interpretation is ofen used at smaller conerences, diplomatic talks, courtroom sessions, etc. It is usually carried out by one interpreter who accompanies the delegate or ollows the speaker. Consecutive interpreting is less stressul, simply because there is no time pressure and the interpreter is ofen close to the speaker. Context
Tis is a term that reers to the environment in which sentences are used. Context also reers to the parts o a written or spoken discourse that precede or ollow a specific word.
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Effectiveness
Tis term reers to the message communicated by the writer or translator. It reers to the highest level o achievement o a communicative unction or objective. Equivalent
When two words have a similar meaning or unction, they are called equivalent words. Equivalence involves two words or sentences having the same semantic value. Faithfulness
Faithulness is a term that reers to the closeness and accuracy o the translated text to the original. It also reers to how much meaning is preserved in the source language compared to the target text. Free Translation
Free translation involves translating the text reely based on its meaning, not structure. Free translation aims at preserving the original meaning o the text and utilizes normal eatures o the target text. Interpretation and paraphrasing are two ways o understanding and translating the text into the target language. Tis kind o translation is the best simply because the translation outcome is meaningul, clear and effective as in the source text. Idiom
Te word “idiom” is an expression which is exclusive to a particular language. Idioms cannot be understood by just analyzing their individual words; they have to be examined with reerence to their figurative meanings. For example, when one says “It is time to hit the sack” , this expression does not involve hitting at all. Its figurative meaning involves going to bed. So what we have done is actually translate its figurative meaning. Idiomatic Translation
Unlike literal translation, this type o translation is used where the meaning o the original text is translated into the orms o the target language. Tese orms should maintain the implicit and explicit meanings o the source language orms. Idiomatic translation is synonymous with other methods o translation such as ree translation, dynamic translation and thought-or-thought translation.
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Inadequate Meaning
When we translate a text rom one language to another we may end up conveying an inadequate meaning, simply because the meaning conveyed is wrong or partially expressed. Sometimes, inadequate meaning involves translating a text in which the translation outcome does not make sense (i.e. incoherent and incohesive). Intention
Tis term involves the intention o the speaker. It also involves the effect the speaker wants to impinge on his reader. It should be pointed out here that in the study o literature, critics avoid assuming an absolute knowledge o the writer’s intention. All readings o intention rom a text are at best provisional. Interpretation
Tis term involves the process o determining the meaning o something. It reers to both written and spoken orms o language. Interpretation can also reer to reading the text to figure out its implicit and explicit meanings. Legal Translation
Legal translation is the translation o legal texts and binding documents. Tese texts or documents are culture-dependent subjects, which means they are embedded with the target language culture. Legal translation is not simple, because any misinterpretation or mistranslation o a legal text can lead to jail or lawsuits. Also, the language o legal texts is very precise and requires good understanding. Tereore, translators have to be amiliar with the legal systems o both languages. Tey should also have good knowledge o the target language culture and good knowledge o the relevant disciplines and subject matters. Literal Translation
Literal translation ocuses on the linguistic structure o the source text. It aims at preserving the orms o the source language. While literal translation actually ignores the semiotic, pragmatic and contextual connotations o text-structure it also takes into account the linguistic conventions o the target language. While literal translation is not commonly used in translating texts, it is undamental or the study o language structures. It is not recommended or the casual reader where adequacy and clarity o meaning are involved. For example, in translating religious texts, adherence to the word order o the text and idiomatic expressions may make the translation difficult to understand. Tereore, interpreting the word and paraphrasing it may give rise to clarity o meaning.
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Loan word
A loan word is a word that is borrowed rom another language. Tat is, a translator may create a word that does not exist in the target language, provided it conorms with the meanings o the source word. Consider the ollowing examples: jello computer ax t.v. mobile
_________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________ _________________________
Machine Translation
Tis is another means o translating a text where the text is translated automatically by a machine. Te computer or any other machine made or this purpose does the translating. O course, machine translations are aster and cheaper, but they are less accurate than human translators. Although machine translation is not as requently used as human translators, it is still helpul when the main idea o a particular text needs to be expressed and done in a limited period o time. Meaning
When one wants to express a message, he expresses its meaning. Tat is, whatever is expressed by somebody, it involves the expression o meaning. Meaning is not only expressed in lexical items, but it is in how such lexical items relate to one another. Natural
When translation is natural, it means that the text is translated in a way where native speakers o that language eel that the patterns o constructing and translating the text, whether lexical or grammatical, match and conorm with the patterns o the native language. Also, the text is natural when its sentences are clear and display the same normal discourse. Pragmatics
It is the relationship between language user and language use. Pragmatics is also understood as language in context. It can also reer to the implicit meanings expressed by the speaker.
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Simultaneous Interpreting
Tis is a strategy where the interpreter starts interpreting a spoken message beore the speaker finishes the sentence. At conerences, simultaneous interpretation is ofen used to interpret seminars, conerences, and meetings. It is usually carried out by panelists using specific equipment. Simultaneous interpreting is a stressul act, simply because o time pressure, unamiliarity o subject matter, voice and accent o speaker, and environment. Target Text
Te language into which translating or interpreting is carried out. Telephone Interpreting
It is a kind o interpreting where the act is done over the telephone. Translation
ranslation can be defined as the process o conveying the meaning o sentences rom one language to another. Translation Theory
ranslation theory involves an examination o the rules and principles o translation. It reers to how language unctions and under what circumstances. Understanding how language works is a key element to all translators. Translating vs. Interpreting
ranslating a text has to do with the written orm whereas interpreting has to do with the spoken orm. In both cases, we translate reely rom the original. Unit of Translation
Unit o translation can be defined as the smallest entity in a text that carries a discrete meaning. It varies all the time, ranging rom individual words through phrases and sentences right up to an entire paragraph.
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Word-for-Word Translation
Word-or-word translation involves translating a word in the source language by a word into the target language. Although this seems very much like literal translation, in act, it is not. Te problem with this kind o translation is that the outcome may not by meaningul; it could be awkward and discomfited, simply because meaning was not the center o translation. World Knowledge
World knowledge reers to whatever extra-linguistic knowledge is transported into the process o translation and brought into the mind o the translator. Sometimes, world knowledge is reerred to as shared assumptions, or common ideas that people share with one another. 3.3
Test Your Knowledge of Chapter (3)
A. Questions 1. What is meaning? 2. Make a comparison between a cohesive text and a coherent text. How can coherence contribute to a successul translation? 3. What are your perspectives on “Natural ranslation” or a “Natural ext”? 4. What is world knowledge, and how can it help the translator? 5. Discuss the differences between translating and interpreting. 6. What is translation theory? 7. Out o the linguistic terms and concepts listed in this chapter, name seven terms that are indicative o a good translation. For example, good translation must be natural, etc. 8. Compare between word-or-word translation and literal translation. 9. Why is idiomatic or ree translation effective? 10. What is meant by the notion “equivalence”?
B. Texts for Translation ranslate the ollowing texts into the target language. Show how world-knowledge is shared. You may also apply other terms or concepts to the text. Also, explain how context and text-structure play an important part in the translation o any text.
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What Determines Skin Color?
Melanin is the substance that normally determines the color o the skin, hair, and eyes. It is the pigment produced in the cells called melanocytes. I melanocytes cannot orm melanin, or i their number decreases, skin color will become lighter or completely white – as in vitiligo.
1 t x e T
Leukoderma is a general term that means white skin. Severe trauma, like a burn, can destroy pigment cells resulting in leukoderma. Vitiligo is just one o the orms o leukoderma. ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________
In this agreement, save where the context otherwise requires, the ollowing expressions should have the ollowing meanings: 1 t x e T
1. 2. 3.
State = the country in which this document is issued Laws = laws o the country Governor = governor o the country
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Philip Morris Incorporated is a corporation organized and existing under the Laws o the Commonwealth o Virginia; it is a cigarette company in the United States o America, and its principal office is located in New York (USA). 3 t x e T
______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
Employees’ Satisaction and Organization Prosperity
Te success o economic corporation is judged by the extent o their profit making abilities and by the power o developing their capabilities so as to enable them to go in sound harmony with the market conditions
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______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ Translate the following expressions into the target language.
5 t x e T
He is the top dog around here. ______________________________________________________________ He passed the buck. ______________________________________________________________ He is beating around the bush. ______________________________________________________________ She broke my heart. ______________________________________________________________
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It is raining cats and dogs. ______________________________________________________________________ His eyes are bigger than his stomach. ______________________________________________________________________ He is still horsing around. ______________________________________________________________________ Adam spilled his guts. ______________________________________________________________________ She hit the nail on the head. ______________________________________________________________________ You are just pulling my leg. ______________________________________________________________________ He punched his lights out. ______________________________________________________________________ He ell off the wagon. ______________________________________________________________________
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CHAPER �
Translation Theory and Practice 4.1 Introduction
During the past two decades or so, many views have been put orward towards the importance o teaching translation theory to students o translation. Other views advocate the idea that students o translation need only translation practices. In this chapter, I would like to first look at translation as an exercise. Second, I would like to argue that translation is a combination o theory and practice; it is neither a practical nor theoretical exercise, but rather a combination o both. Te comments made here are not intended to be applied only to the process o translating a text rom Arabic into English, but can also be applied to the process o translating all texts. In his article on “Te Role o ranslation Teory in the ranslation Classroom”, Mason (1982) points out that graduate or undergraduate translation students, enrolling in a translation course, will definitely benefit rom making themselves aware o the principles and rules o translation theory. Such rules involve different kinds o topics such as semantics, contrastive linguistics, communication strategies, and above all, the idea o equivalence. Tere may be some theoretical arguments students may capture, but these are at an abstract level. o this effect, translation students may not understand or perceive the link between these theoretical issues and the practical exercise o translating different, non-native texts into their own. Now, translation is taught as a language teaching exercise. Te problem-solution technique involved in the process o reading the text and comprehending it inevitably encourages the learning o language. It also promotes learning the vocabularies, understanding syntax, idiom, and style. All these are to be captured rom a close analysis o the source text which translation requires. Te goal o the translation activities should not be limited to these issues; it should
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involve other modern language exercises at a proessional level. For more inormation on this issue, see Mason (1982: 18-33). Te objective o translation training, as Mason indicates, is to elicit, rom students, activities which do not merely demonstrate the lack o source text comprehension, but which also indicate the appropriateness o the translation as a publishable work. Te most important thing, however, is to demonstrate whether linguistics or, in more specific terms, translation theory, helps students in their translation training. 4.2 Translation Theory
ranslation theory involves studying the rules and principles o translation. It also evolves around how language unctions. ranslation theory identifies different languages as having different orms to encode meaning, although its unction is to give translators insight on how to preserve meaning while maintaining the appropriate orms each language utilizes. In order or translators to produce good and effective translations, they have to explore the effect o translation principles on the actual text to be translated. In addition to this, the rhetorical effects and the notions o both cohesion and coherence should also be examined. Based on the above assumption, translators must have good knowledge o the two languages involved along with the subject-matter they are translating. Since translators explore meaning, in its various orms, then understanding language in its multiaceted nature, is a must or the translator i he/she wants to perorm his/her job successully. Larson (1984) believes that translators find meanings behind the orms o the source language. Te translator’s attempt afer that is to match it with the meaning o the target language. Such a matching process has to take into account that the two meanings in both languages are as close as they could be, including the effect and the intention o the authors/writers. In terms o the choices and decisions the translators make, Newmark (1988) believes that translators should utilize the contrastive linguistics approach simply because it is useul enough to deal with choices and decisions o the source language text (see Mason 1982 or more inormation on this topic). Te contrastive linguistics approach, Newmark continues, is mainly concerned with the mechanics o the text, the technical aspects o the text. “ranslation theory is concerned with choices and decisions, not with the mechanics o either the source language text (SL) or the target language text (L).” In view o the above, the invalidity o the contrastive linguistics approach, as demonstrated by Mason (1982), is asserted simply because translation activity is an entirely
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different activity rom contrastive linguistics. Te purpose o the contrastive linguistics approach is to ocus on the differences between one language and another especially in a language teaching context. It does not ocus on establishing a set o rules, principles, and appropriate methods o handling a particular text. Furthermore, the contrastive linguistics approach is different rom translation activity in the sense that it is a text-oriented activity. Tat is, the contrastive linguistic approach ocuses on language, whereas translation activity ocuses on text (Newmark 1988). Along these lines, Widdowson (1980) views translation as an important pedagogical de vice, especially where a oreign language is being learned. He believes that translation is an affective means o learning a language. aking this into account, one may consider the practicality o the contrastive linguistics approach in improving student’s perormance in language learning. In other words, the contrastive linguistics approach is a technique or teaching languages and not or teaching translation activities. Despite what has been stated against the contrastive approach, Mason (1982) believes that this approach is not to be entirely avoided. At the language level, generalizations supporting translation principles and rules can be made. Any consideration o these rules is indeed helpul or making necessary changes in certain contexts. Tey are also helpul in demonstrating the necessary loss o inormation contained in structures whose constituent parts are not in a one-to-one correspondence. Tis can simply be maniested in the different grammatical categories o the two languages. For example, in an Arabic text where anta “you” and antum “you” (singular & amplified) are used, especially when taking place in a conversation between two people, there is an inevitable loss o inormation when translated into English. Both Arabic pronouns are translated as “you” in English. In the same way, when “you” in English is used, there is a gain o inormation when translated into Arabic, as it can be translated as anta (masc.), anti (em.), antum (singular amplified), antum (plural), antuma (masc. dual) antunna (em. dual). Other issues like gender (absent or present), etc. in various languages may give rise to the same problem. Having said so, languages, as Jakobson (1959) states, are not different in what they can convey; they are different in what they must convey. Tereore, the contrastive linguistics approach emphasizes these non-equivalences as such, and the theory o translation attempts to demonstrate how these issues are compensated or in certain situations. For more inormation on this issue, see Mason (1982). 4.3 Unit of Translation
It should be made clear that, to the translator, the minimum unit o translation is not a word or a phrase, but a text. Any attempt to look at translation in terms o words or
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phrases would definitely yield unacceptable results. Some suggest an approach in which one can analyze words into their main components. Tis method is known as the ‘componential analysis’ method (Newmark 1988). Unortunately, however, this method, as pointed out by Mason (1982), has some drawbacks, some o which are represented in its unsuitability to the training o translators. Second, this approach ocuses on semantic distinctive eatures isolated rom context. Also, this method is o limited applicability, simply because a word taken in isolation rom its context is not a translation unit. In this connection, it has been suggested that the relevant language unit or translation is not the individual word, but rather the text (De Beaugrande 1978).
ranslation ion Theory 4.4 Effect of Translat It was stated that a text is the minimum unit o analysis in translation. Any analysis o the source text consists o inducing inormation about orm and content together with inormation regarding source, authorship, and aim. Te relevant branch that ocuses on the analysis as well as the description o texts is called pragmatics. Here, pragmatics pragmatics reers to the relationship between the sender o the message, the message itsel, and the receiver o the message. Te relation is represen represented ted in Figure (1).
Sender
Message
Receiver
Interaction Figure (1) Sender-Receiver and Message Message Interaction Interaction
Tere is a constant interaction taking place between the sender, message, and receiver. Te aim or which the text is written, and the readership or whom the text is addressed establishes the characters o any text. Here the translator should be able to know whether or not the text is religious, political, literary, journalistic, legal, or technical. Once the text is characterized, the translator is not only identiying the text subject matter,
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but also delimiting the social context in which the text is produced. Tereore, situating a text in a particular context, and amiliarizing himsel with the text in a particular context, and amiliarizing himsel with the text and its English equivalents is indeed the translator’ss first priority. translator’ Afer establishing the domain o the text, eatures such as tone, unction, and eeling are to be taken into account. Awareness Awareness o these, as Mason (1982) points out, will w ill have a great bearing on the translator’s rendition o the text. Emphasis should also be placed on the ormal eatures that are significant to the make-up o the t he text. Such eatures are important in terms o the text-linguistic and text-unction categorization, i.e. whether the text is persuasive, narrative, descriptive, etc. Within text-unction, awareness o the reerential meaning o lexes is also significant in determining the nature or domain o the text. Emotive and associative meanings, in Yule’s sense (1985), will partly account or text-unction. Words Words put together are all means o ini ndicating the field, unction, and tone o the text. For example, example, the use o contracted orms are pointers to inormal English. Te use o infinitives is also indicative o instructional texts. Tese issues are pointers to the texture and structure o the text through which a number o ‘speech acts’ can be recognized. Unders Understanding tanding the conditions represented or an utterance may give insight into how language is used. In terms o the linguistic categories o text, a scientific text may exhibit a series o acts or definitions, classifications, generalizations, and/or qualifications, orming larger communicative units such as explanations, descriptions, and reports (Widdowson 1980). Te translator may analyze a text in a way in which its ormal eatures are demonstrated. However, an experienced translator may not need to do that; he may intuitively draw these conclusions. Tereore, a translation exercise should make the translator more aware o the multi-aceted nature o translation. It should also enable him to instinctively i nstinctively single out the text’s linguistic eatures. For more details, see Mason (1982). Based on the above, any analysis o text may yield inormation relevant relevant to text-structure. Once this is achieved, the text-message becomes very clear. It is this message that has to be rendered effectively and communica communicatively tively,, simply because, according to Mason, it may lead us to a particular translation method. However, the question remains as to whether we should look at this message in terms o its literal vs. ree sense, or ormal or dynamic equivalence, or whether emphasis should be placed on orm or unction. For example, an Arabic translator may translate ‘Ahmad kicked the bucket’ as ‘tuwuffiya ahmad’ . Here the translator renders this expression unctionally, unctionally, making the ‘meaning o the message message’’ or its unction his point o departure. I the translator adheres to orm rather than unction, his translation would be unacceptable or irrelevant.
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Sometimes the translator may resort to adherence to the orm o the text. Tis is applicable to literary translation. In these texts, the main concern o the translator is to highlight the effectiveness o the same semantic and syntactic structures o the t he source text. Important eatures should be accounted or such as tone, rhyme, order, order, etc. because b ecause these are all essential elements to the make-up o texts. Within literary translation, the textual and contextual pressures are not only semantic. Te visual or physical presence o the text and its international qualities are also significant. Te non-correspondence between either prosodic or semantic structures does not necessarily imply the impossibility o translating a given unit (Diaz-Diocaretz 1985). On the contrary, it can be an opportunity to actualize the potential structures maniested in the original text, and recorded in the translation o the text that will be semantically dependent and rhythmically independent. Furthermore, repeated lexical items, nominal vs. verbal sentences, etc. may not remain acceptable items or sentences when translated into English. Tis results rom the t he act that Arabic and English are linguistically and culturally remote languages. In order to produce some publishable work, the translator has to assess the text textually and structurally, and then find the best strategy and style that would yield adequate translation.
ranslation ion 4.5 How to Assess Translat In his article entitled “Te Role o ranslation Teory in the Classroom Class”, Mason (1982) points out that assessing the final product o a particular text is the translator’s main concern. Such an assessment is maniested in what is called ‘a translated text’. Looking at a translated text, Mason tried to trace such a text rom its authorship to its final product. One significant eature to be accounted or as a final product, he states, is its acceptability or readability. Acceptability and/or readability have to be assessed according to the text-producer’s intention. o o increase the amiliarity o significant aspects o translation, one has to view this along with the communicative theory, as this theory has an important role to play in bringing up the theoretical course. It also introduces the student translator to the inormation theory, i.e. what is important or what is not in a message. It is possible that some o the natural linguistic and cultural trivialities may be avoided i not lost in translation, thus bringing orth the important inormation. For an in-depth analysis o this topic, see Mason (1982). Te message Mason is trying to convey is that when evaluating a text, the translator should take into account the intention o the S and its impact on the reader. Te relationship between author and reader has to be checked. Also, does the translation aim at
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a reader or particular readers? In any kind o translation, the translator’s main aim is to produce a text that is equivalent in response to the S. From a pedagogical point o view, the student translator may find comparing the original text and target text significantly useul. Tis activity does not involve finding the translator’s mistakes, but rather analyzing the problem and finding the solution. Similar exercises are also helpul in terms o enabling students to differentiate between important and unimportant inormation. 4.6 Effective and Successful Translation
In order to attain effective and successul translation one may ask the ollowing questions: 1.
How long does a quality translation take?
Some translations can be completed within hours. Others may take longer. ranslation depends on the length o the text and the type o text. I the text’s language/topic is complicated (i.e. scientific) it would take a long time. 2.
What does it mean to translate from one language to another?
o translate is to decode the meaning o the source language text and re-encode it in the target language text. Encoding requires that the translator recognizes the text’s main eatures. Tis is ollowed by interpreting, analyzing, and understanding the segments o the text (translation units). Te process o decoding a text rom one language to another requires good knowledge o the source language grammar, semantics, syntax, idioms, and those that are equivalent or similar in the target language. In addition, the cultures o both languages must be perectly understood. 3.
How can we define a well and effective translation?
In order to guarantee effective translation, the translator has to ensure that both the source language and the target language texts convey the same message, taking into account the many different constraints placed on the translator. In almost all circumstances, a good and successul translation can be assessed according to two key actors: A. Was the translator aithul while translating the text? In other words, to what extent the
translation accurately conveys and expresses the meaning o the source text, without adding to it or deleting rom it, and without intensiying or weakening any part o the text’s meaning.
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B. Was the language o the translated text natural? Tat is, to what extent the translated
text sounds natural to a native speaker o the target language to have originally been written in that language, and conorms to the language’s grammatical, syntactic and idiomatic conventions. 4.7 Test Your Knowledge of Chapter (4)
�. Define translation theory and show how translation theory is important or the translator. �. What are the advantages and disadvantages o using a contrastive linguistics approach to the analysis and translation o a specific text? �. Can translation be assessed? How? Explain your answer. �. What is meant by “inormation theory”? . Define the term “pragmatics”, and show its relation to translation. �. In evaluating a text, what criteria should the translator take into account? �. eacher should ask students to translate a text and see how understanding translation theory can contribute to successul and effective translation.
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CHAPER �
Text and Context in Translation 5.1 Introduction
Various attempts have been made to look at translation in terms o words or sentences as the minimal units o translation (Newmark 1981: 140; Nida 1964: 12-24), but unortunately, these attempts have achieved little since they ignored the situational elements in which words and sentences are embodied. In this chapter, I would like to argue that translation is a text-oriented activity; it involves the approximation o text unction. ranslation is to be based on the interpretation o the contextual variables such as pragmatics, semiotics and the communicative contexts; these are the basic components and the determining actors that can lead to successul and adequate translation. It should be pointed out that communication has two appropriate existing orms: linguistic and non-linguistic. I communication takes a linguistic orm, then it appears in textual orm (i.e. sentences, paragraphs, texts, etc.). In other words, it takes a orm o written translation. I communication takes the non-linguistic orm, then it appears in a non-textual orm (i.e. sign, gesture, intention, movement, implication, etc.). ranslation should combine both orms (linguistic and non-linguistic). exts, thereore, are the basic orm o linguistic and non-linguistic maniestation. Tey show various conditions or origins, structures and various unctions. Diagram (1) is a representation o both orms o communication o this effect, texts are designed or different types o text receivers; they are produced or a large spectrum o communicative purposes. From another perspective, texts have different orms and structures; they also perorm different unctions and have different purposes (i.e. entertaining, exposing, inorming,
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Smoking prohibited in this area
Diagram (1) Representation o Forms o Communication
persuading, etc.). exts are written or various readers. Along these lines, Snell-Hornby (1995: 49) suggests that text, or what she sometimes calls “the concrete utterance”, is a real-lie situation. It is a real reflection o the system o language. exts are not neutral vessels only filled with inormation. Tey are actually a piece o writing that carries with it a section o the world view o the language users (Neubert 1988: 15). One may think o the ollowing exchange as strange, peculiar or irrelevant, but in act it represents an everyday exchange between parents and their kids. Father: Sara: Father:
How did you do in school, Sara? I got 3 out o 10 in the Math exam. Wonderul.
Now, one may look at these sentences as unrelated. However, within the context o amily concerns, we can understand that the ather was sarcastic. Te word wonderul cannot be understood here as the ather’s admiration o his daughter’s perormance in the Math exam, but as a negative response showing the ather’s eeling about his daughter’s low perormance. Another example to show how context plays an important role in understanding a text is to look at a sentence as a whole, taking into account what comes beore or what comes afer. Examine the word rose in the examples below: People rose. Tis is a nice rose. Only rose! As shown above, the word “rose” has been used in the three examples, indicating different meanings. First, the translator may have in mind the meaning o “rose” as the past tense
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o “to rise” or he/she may have in mind the meaning o “rose” as the adjective in “this is a beautiul rose”, to mean a flower. Te translator here has to understand that a word is part o its multiword expression, and to render this word accurately and appropriately, he has to think o it as part o a whole, otherwise, his translation will be ambiguous, incomplete or unintelligible. Tereore, only context can determine whether the word “rose” means “to rise” or a sort o flower. Let us consider other examples where context has an important role to play in translation: Adam broke the record this year. Here, the word “record” cannot be understood unless it was treated as part o the expression “break the record”. I these two words are isolated rom the context in which they are used (i.e. collocational or idiomatic contexts), then “break” means to shatter or smash and the word “record” means a “disc”. O course there are other meanings or the word “record”, but to take it out o its collocational context may alienate or ambiguate its actual meaning with the phrase. So, “to break the record”, as an idiomatic or collocational expression, has nothing to do with “smashing a disc”. Its contextual or what is sometimes called collective meaning indicates that “break the record” has one unit o meaning, which indicates “the act o doing better than anyone else”. aking all this into account, translation activities should deal with texts and not only words or phrases unless these words or phrases are preconditioned to meet certain communicative unctions. Tat is, they are used in a specific way and denote one particular meaning. Tis, in turn, and in addition to real lie language and the language system, activates the ramework or the development o translation theory. Tese layers o meaning (i.e. denotative, preconditioned and implied) can be applied to translation simply because the translator is supposed to go beyond words or sentences, unless these words or sentences have a status o being texts (De Beaugrande & Dressler 1981: 19-21). Furthermore, texts are o great significance as the clearing-house or thoughts and ideas (Neubert 1988: 15); they should be regarded as the way in which society is structured; they should also be considered as a house where inormation gets sorted out, classified and distributed. exts bring together all kinds o transactions among words, sentences and exhibit the way in which they are organized. Tis is, in act, how communication is carried out and how it provides accurate and deep understanding o a community within a particular society, particularly when it comes to the use o different symbols, the representation o its history, its aspects o lie, and the way it divides its communicative labor. Also, the way texts are produced and received is regarded as an activity that has a bearing on the bonds that bring the society together.
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Robinson (2003: 75) believes that the setting in which things exists is undamental to the association o meaning. He states that without context, words have no interlocking network o meaningul things. Te physical and cultural contexts in which a learner learns can also help figure out the exact meaning o a specific word. 5.2
Text-Types and Text-Functions
One o the important eatures o texts is that they should be understood within their specific contexts. o characterize texts as minimal units o translation, one has to examine texts in accordance with their communicative unctions. Tat is, texts are supposed to perorm several communicative unctions, and it is in this particular context that texts can be categorized into text-types (argumentative, descriptive, narrative, etc.). As or translation, I have argued (Shiyab 1994: 7) that every text has its own writing strategy and this implies that it requires its own translation strategy too. In other words, the methods o transerring the original text into that o the target language are different rom one text to another. For example, in transerring a literary text, does the translator use the communicative or the semantic approach? According to Newmark (1981: 52-53), communicative translation attempts to produce on its reader the same effect as close as possible to that obtained on the reader o the original. Semantic translation attempts to render, as closely as the semantic and syntactic structures allow, the exact contextual meaning o the original. Also, in semantic translation, there is emphasis on the content whereas in communication translation, the emphasis is on the orce o the message. o this effect, texts maniest different elements and require different strategies; each strategy tends to emphasize a particular element at the expense o another. For the translator, it is extremely important to understand the inrastructure o the text (i.e. the internal structures o texts); he should analyze and interpret the text in a way that enables him to understand the text’s syntactic, semantic, stylistic and pragmasemiotic dimensions. In the interpretation o texts, the recipient’s perception and the meaning o the text should ideally be in agreement with the intentions o the text. As Hlebec (1985: 130) suggests, interpretation depends on knowledge o language; it also depends on the cultural background and events in the community in which the text is produced. Hlebec believes that interpreting the text requires learning the acts about it that influence its interpretation; it also implies the identification o the significant codes in a text which require special attention in the reproduction o it. It is only in this particular way that the translator is able to translate a text rom the source language and carry it over adequately into the target language. It ollows rom all this that translation requires combining linguistic, socio-linguistic and psycholinguistic aspects o the language involved; it should also seek the aid o significant
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theoretical issues involved such as the definition o text, its delimitation, coherence, cohesion, textuality, inter-textuality, etc. aking all this into account, it should be emphasized that while attention should be placed on contextual actors embodied within the texts, special emphasis should also be placed on the type o text. Te act that translation deals with different types o texts has led Neubert (1988: 123) to classiy texts into types. Te criteria taken or such classification is translatability. o this effect, Neubert suggests that text-types are never fixed once and or all; he classifies texts as ollows: 1. Easy texts. 2. Intricate texts. 3. Literary or dramatic texts. Neubert (1988: 123-125) argues that every text-type represents a degree o translatability. Tat is, texts can be classified into easily translatable texts (i.e. technical and descriptive texts), intricately translatable texts, and literary or dramatic texts. exts that are easily translatable should display clear structure and texture while intricately translatable texts display textual as well as non-textual complexity that the translator may not find easy to convey into the target language. Tereore, each o these texts requires a different transerring method, a method that is incongruent with its surace structure as well as its deep structure. All these have an impact on the translation adequacy and translatability o texts. 5.3
Discourse, Text-Types and Translation
In the previous section, I examined texts in terms o their communicative unctions. In order to understand the theoretical issues relevant to text-structure, an attempt will be made to investigate the interrelation between discourse, text-types, and translation. Since discourse is defined as a social phenomenon by which meaning is communicated and constructed, it ollows that discourse relies heavily on the domain o sociolinguistics (i.e. the study o language in relation to society (Lyons 1981). Te interrelation between discourse and translation is evident in the act that translation involves the social unction o discourse within a society, reerence to its context o situation, the speaker’s role in constructing a text, (i.e. his intentionality), and its contextual configurations, (i.e. field, mode, and tenor), all o which make up the social reality o the text. Tese elements are unequivocally important components or translation. ranslation is not mediation between two languages; it is not the use o one language to convey a message whose orm and content were originally directed to different language users (Neubert 1988). Rather,
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it is the construction o the social reality, the linguistic and rhetorical patterns o thought that suit the target language and the community in which language is used. Te history o translation, past and present, has many examples indicative o triumph and ailure in terms o the way translation should be carried out. Tese examples reflect, in a way, the gap between the original and the target text. It is the talented translator who is unequivocally aware o the importance o bringing, as much as possible, the source and the target texts together. Tis involves the speaker’s intentionality, text unction with reerence to its semiotic components (i.e. social and cultural), and the context o situation. All these pragmatic, semiotic, and contextual elements may bridge the gap between the source text and the target text. 5.4 Text-Type Categorization
Having demonstrated the connection between discourse and translation, and that o translation, meaning and culture, an attempt will be made to show how text-categorization into text-types gives insights to the main components o text. Such categorization helps us translate the text and then convey it into the target language. It should be noted here that in the last decade or so, a considerable amount o material has been produced on methods o text-categorization (Longacre 1976, 1983; De Beaugrande 1980; De Beaugrande and Dressler 1981; Werlich 1983; Zydatiss 1982; Hatim 1983, 1984; and John 1988). Tese approaches have not been studied and developed relatively independently o each other. Bearing this in mind, this section is an attempt to compare three approaches: De Beaugrande and Dressler (1981); Werlich (1983); and Hatim (1984). Conclusions will be drawn and the similarities and differences will be noted. Te above mentioned approaches lead to similar categorizations and definitions o texttypes (i.e. argumentative belies). However, they are different in the way they look at and approach text-types. Tis is to say that they are different in terms o how they ocus on a particular text. For example, De Beaugrande and Dressler’s model is different rom that o Werlich’s (1983) in that De Beaugrande and Dressler differentiate text-types along ‘unctional lines’. ext-types are supposed to perorm specific and intended unctions and in so doing contribute to the process o human and social communication. De Beaugrande and Dressler adopt this analysis because they look at text-types as a linguistic product, whereas Werlich looks at text-types as a linguistic process occurring in the communicant’s mind (i.e. judging, planning, comprehension, etc.).
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In distinguishing between ‘text’ and ‘non-text’, Werlich takes the variables ‘completion’ and ‘coherence’ as the main determining actors. He believes that the categorization o texts, which is unequivocally significant or the translator, is mainly concerned with their underlying structures and how these connect or relate to specific contextual actors. In identiying a particular text, Werlich (1983: 21) believes that “texts distinctively correlate with contextual actors in a communication situation”. Tat is, texts ocus attention on specific circumstances rom the total set o actors. As a result, texts can be grouped together and classified on the basis o their dominant contextual ocus. Such groupings are hypothesized in terms o the ollowing five dominant contextual oci: 1. When the ocus is on ‘actual phenomena’ such as persons, objects, and relations in the spatial context, texts are called D����������. 2. When the ocus is on ‘actual’ and ‘conceptual’ phenomena in the temporal context, texts are called N��������. 3. When the ocus is on ‘de-composition’ (analysis) into constituent elements or ‘composition’ (analysis) rom constituent elements o concepts, texts are called E���������. 4. When the ocus is on ‘relations between concepts’, texts are called A������������. 5. When the ocus is on the ‘ormation o uture behavior’, texts are called I����������. Unlike De Beaugrande, Werlich maintains that contextual actors are not sufficient to determine text-types. Werlich believes that contextual actors and innate biological properties should be correlated or such a classification. Werlich (1983: 21) states: exts do not only correlate distinctively with specific contextual actors but also appear to correlate with innate biological properties o the communicant’s mind. Werlich explains this in the ollowing terms: A text grammar can be based on the hypothesis that texts, conceived o as assignable to text types, primarily derive their structural distinctions rom innate cognitive properties. Accordingly, the five basic text types correlate with orms and range o human cognition. Tey reflect the basic cognitive processes o contextual categorization. Tese are: (1) Differentiation and interrelation o perceptions in space in the text type o description; (2) Differentiation and interrelation o perceptions in time in the text type o narration;
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(3) Comprehension o general concepts through differentiation by analysis and/or comprehension o particular concepts through differentiation by subsumptive synthesis in the text types o exposition; (4) Establishment o relations between and among concepts through the extraction o similarities, contrasts, and transormations rom them in the text type o argumentation; (5) Planning o uture behavior by subdivision or subsumption in the text type o instruction. Like Mason (1982), Hatim shares with De Beaugrande and Dressler, in general terms, the notion o ‘unction’ (i.e. that a text may be known by its unction). However, according to Hatim, this is not the whole story. Hatim believes that “it is a definition o text unction which determines the efficiency, effectiveness, and appropriateness o textual occurrences” (Hatim 1987: 104). Hatim also believes that, or translation purposes, variables such as pragmatics, semiotics, and communicative purposes should be introduced. Tese variables have to be presented to define the interace and the correlation between linguistic expression and categories rom ‘social theory’. Pragmatics here reers to action on the environment; semiotics reers to interaction with the environment, and communicative purpose reers to the transaction which creates an environment in which ‘text-typological ocus’ realizes the communicative purpose o a given text. Neither De Beaugrande and Dressler nor Werlich speciy these variables. Hatim’s interest then may be due to the act that his study was conducted at a later stage when there were different approaches to text-typology that had been explained and developed. Unlike Werlich, Hatim adopts De Beaugrande and Dressler’s notion that a typology o texts must be correlated with typologies o discourse and situations. Unless the appropriateness o a text-type to its setting o occurrence is judged, participants cannot even determine the means o upholding the criteria o textuality. For De Beaugrande and Dressler, the demands or cohesion and coherence are less strict in conversation, whereas the demands in scientific texts are elaborately upheld. According to De Beaugrande and Dressler, one would at least be able to identiy some ‘dominances’, though without a strict categorization or every conceivable example. Te term ‘text-type’ according to De Beaugrande and Dressler (1981: 186) is: A set o heuristics or producing, predicting, and processing textual occurrences, and hence acts as a prominent determiner o efficiency, effectiveness, and appropriateness.
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aking this wide perspective into account and the kinds o parameters each approach has, one can illustrate these three models diagrammatically as shown on the ollowing pages. One other difference that needs to be analyzed between Werlich’s approach and Hatim’s is the notion o ‘context specification’. As shown in Diagrams (2) and (3), Hatim’s model is different rom that o Werlich in that he takes context as an alternative to the commonly adopted notion o ‘register’. According to Hatim, the analysis o register, in practice, is very important but is not sufficient or explanatorily adequate. Tis analysis, he argues, produces the so-called “languages” such as the “language o science”, while ignoring the rich range o textual activities which characterize the communicative potential o “doing a science”. In commenting on Werlich’s model, Hatim (1984: 146) states: Te analysis o context in terms o language use (field, etc.) and user (idiolect, regional register analysis, leaves important aspects o textuality unaccounted or. Tis inadequacy sum total o its constituent parts.
Functional approach
Discourse and Situation
Subsuming Functional Speaker’s Intention
Give Rise o
ext-ypes
D���������� describe objects or situations
N�������� arrange actions and events
A������������ promote acceptance o belies and ideas
Diagram (1) Te interpretation o text-categorization o De Beaugrande (1981)
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Contextual & PsychoAnalytical Approach
Contextual Factors Innate Biological Properties Give Rise o ext-ypes
D���������� (ocuses on actual phenomena & relations in space)
N�������� (ocuses on actual phenomena & relations in time)
E��������� A������������ I������������ (chooses con(purpose rela(tells X stituent elements tions between what to do) maniested in a concepts o term or a mental phenomena) construct maniested in a text)
Diagram (2) Te interpretation o text-categorization according to Werlich (1983)
Pragma-SemioCommunicative Approach
Context Specifications
Pragmatics Semiotics Communicative Purpose
Give Rise o ext-ypes E���������
A������������
I����������
D��.
N��.
C���.
(ollowing uture behavior)
(ocuses on objects and relations In space)
(ocuses on events and relations in time)
(ocuses on concepts)
(can be overt (counter argument) or covert (propaganda tract))
Diagram (3) Te interpretation o text-categorization according to Hatim (1984)
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It is evident that there is a clear resemblance between Hatim’s text-typology and that o De Beaugrande and Dressler. Hatim is partially concerned with the act that text-linguistics involves the setting up o a text-typology in which language is classified in terms o text-communicative purposes. It has also been argued by Zydatiss (1982) that the whole notion o text types is not a linguistic one, but that linguistic analysis must be supplemented and correlated with the analysis o ‘unction’ o language in the process o communication. For Hatim as well as or De Beaugrande and Dressler, language users (writers, producers as well as receivers o language) approach texts by reacting and interacting with different kinds o contexts. Tis is done through a process o construction which identifies a number o contextual variables; these are called context-specifications and involve pragmatics, semiotics, and communicative purpose (as discussed above). Basing himsel on context-specifications, Hatim (1983) goes urther than De Beaugrande and Werlich to work out his own text-typology. In modiying Werlich’s model, or example, Hatim reduces Werlich’s five text-types to three (see Diagram 3). Hatim considers ‘Descriptive’ and ‘Narrative’ sub-text types as ‘Expository exts’. Tis is due to the act that both o these texts exhibit or provide similar inormation. Hatim also introduces another ‘sub-text-type’ within the expository text, and that is the ‘conceptual text’ (ocuses on concepts). All these texts are subsumed under the category “Expository exts”. Within these context-specifications, unlike Werlich, Hatim demonstrates that the user o language responds to a set o signals related to text or discourse. He argues that these signals constitute the most avorable conditions or the successul realization o texts. Hatim (1984: 147) says: It is this pragma-semio-communicative decision on the part o discourse users, and the acceptance o such a decision by discourse receivers, which constitute the optimum conditions or the successul realization o the text. o sum up, text-types are characterized or defined similarly by the three models presented above. However, they are different in terms o ocus. In their unctional approach, De Beaugrande and Dressler suggest that discourse actions or situation and the speaker’s intention (unction o the text) appear to be the determining actors between text-types. In contrast, Werlich, using a psycho-analytical approach, believes that not only contextual actors but also innate biological properties in the communicant’s mind should be correlated in order to identiy text-types. De Beaugrande and Dressler look at text-types as a linguistic product stemming rom the unction o process occurring in the speaker’s/hearer’s mind. Above all, De Beaugrande and Dressler view text-types rom a theoretical perspective; they are not interested in structural analysis which is orientated towards applied linguistics.
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Hatim believes that contextual variables o pragma-semio-communicative/conceptual/ spatial/temporal transaction give rise to text-types. Tese context-specification variables should be presented to define the interaction between linguistic expression and the categories rom social theory. While Hatim’s text-typology is relatively useul, his definition o what he calls ‘context-specifications’ seems to be always changing and inconsistent. In defining ‘pragmatics’ and ‘semiotics’, Hatim proposes varying definitions. For example, Hatim (1984: 147) defines pragmatics as ‘action on the environment’; later, he defines it as ‘when language users react to signals’. Hatim (1987: 102) defines it as ‘what the textproducers attempt to achieve’; and in Hatim and Mason (1990: 12), they define it as that ‘which attempts to account or the ways in which we perceive the underlying meaning on the basis o what we already know or assume to be the case’. At the same time, Hatim and Mason (1990: 51) propose a definition o ‘unctional tenor’ as “what language is used or”. Tis kind o definition represents their definition o ‘pragmatics.’ As or ‘semiotics’, it is almost the same case; sometimes it is defined as interaction with the environment (Hatim 1984: 147); at other times, it is defined as when language users react to signals related to interaction with the environment; it is treating a communicative item as a sign within a system o signs (Hatim and Mason 1990: 57). Tis kind o inconsistency will reflect negatively on Hatim’s context o specification. As or Werlich’s shortcoming, John (1988) claims that one o the delinquencies o his approach, which is not realized by Hatim, is that he does not account or poetic texts (e.g. poems), although some poetic texts can be discovered which are congruous to at least some o the types o texts recognized by Werlich such as “Te Rhyme o the Ancient Mariner”. Tis poetic text can be identified as ‘narrative’. Despite these shortcomings, the model o Werlich as well as those o De Beaugrande and Dressler, and Hatim are helpul in terms o the process o text-categorization and analysis o text-typology. Basing mysel on the text-typological model o Hatim in particular, I see text as the product o interaction o the producer/writer o the text and the expected reaction o the text receiver. For translation purposes, this is important or the receiver in order to understand the properties and the main purpose o the text. Te text-producer’s interaction has to meet the text-receiver’s reaction in order or the text to be effective, appropriate, and meaningul.
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5.5
Translation and Factors of Success
Tere are, o course, certain contextual actors that play an important role in conveying an adequate meaning o the original text into that o the target language. Tese are as ollows: 5.5.1 Pragmatics
Pragmatics evolves around the unction o the text. What are the text producer’s intentions behind writing such a text? Is he trying to persuade, instruct, describe, or tell a story? Tese unctions are what make text-types emerge. Understanding this contextual variable is indeed very significant. Within text unction, the semantic, syntactic, stylistic, and the pragma-semiotic structure o the text are also important; these are what determine the translatability o text. In other words, the content o text, the thematic-rhematic structure and their position and unction, the way the text producer initiates the text, and the chains or bonds utilized within the text are all basic characteristics o written texts (or more inormation, see Shiyab 1996). In understanding text unction, the translator and/or interpreter should careully consider the relationship o the text producer to the text receiver. In other words, does the text producer have something in mind he needs to deliver to the hearer? What is his personal relationship to him (i.e. status, rank, etc.)? Is the language used ormal or inormal? All these, while alling within the pragmatic unction o texts, highlight the communicative presuppositions that are suggested and implied by the text producer. 5.5.2 Semiotics
O equal importance as the pragmatic dimension is the semiotic one in which text is represented as a sign. From a contextual point o view, signs can be classified in terms o the communicative unctions they perorm; this term is now taken to be implied within speech act theory (Austin 1962: Section 6.3). Austin argues that text is a piece o language that depends on certain conditions in order to be adequately understood. Tese are represented through the signs inherent in the internal and external structure o texts.
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Context Message Addressor
Addressee Context Code Diagram (4) Constituents o Speech Event)
Jakobson (1971: 703) points out that there are six constituent actors that make up any speech event; these are represented in Diagram (4). For Jakobson, any kind o communication is composed o a message that requires a contact between the addressor and the addressee; such a contact may take an oral, visual, electronic orm or whatever. Tis orm is maniested in a code, speech, number, writing, sound ormation, etc. Also, the message should reer to a context understood by both interlocutors; it should also make sense through a context. It should be emphasized that Jakobson’s main ocus here is that the message cannot ully provide the totality o the meaning o the transaction, as the meaning o such Jakobson believes that semiotics as the science o sign, evolves around understanding the structures o all signs, their utilization, and the specifics o the various sign system, all o which have a significant role to play in the interpretation o a message. 5.5.3 Communicative Context
It is the context which emphasizes the writer’s awareness o the ormal patterning o his language as opposed to the ormal patterning o the target language; this context helps the translator to be ascertained o the naturalness o the translation and o the totality o meaning o both texts. In this particular category, emphasis here is placed on the significant and unctional appropriateness o language uses. Tis is in addition to the variables affecting all aspects o communication. Above all, the relationship between the communicative unction and the natural orms and patterns o language may give insights into translation theory.
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5.6 Test Your Knowledge of Chapter (5)
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
What is context? Give examples to explain your definition. What is the role o context in translation? Define text-types. What are they, according to Neubert (1988)? How does context give rise to text-types? Explain three actors that determine the efficiency o translation. Choose and explain three words or expressions that show how context helps translators produce more effective translation.
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CHAPER �
Translation: State of the Art 6.1
Introduction
Scholars rom all over the world have requently discussed aspects o technical and grammatical translations rom one language to another. However, I believe a significant aspect o translating texts creatively and artistically has been overlooked. Te term “creative” is treated here as the process o translating texts expressively and artistically through the reader’s lie experiences or through his own senses o the world. Tis does not mean that the translator is completely ree to do whatever he wants, nor should he be literal, but rather ree to be creative and artistic in his work. ranslation is believed to involve transerring thoughts behind words, sometimes between the words, or transerring the sub-text (Delisle 1981, cited in Newmark 1988: 76). Tis is a procedure that should be regarded as the heart or the central issue o translation. 6.2 Translation and Meaning
Because o the act that the connection between translation and meaning is very obvious, there is no need to elaborate. However, it should be pointed out that translation attempts to uncover all the potentialities o meaning in the two languages concerned. o this effect, meaning in all its linguistic and non-linguistic aspects has to be careully considered in translation. As Dummett (1993) argues, to grasp the meaning o a word is to understand the context and the occurrence in which the word is used, and this requires understanding the unction this particular word perorms in language. Meaning revolves around the notion o how language unctions, and such unction is itsel derived rom all aspects o meaning. ranslation aims at using all aspects o meaning in such a way the source text and the target text are approximated to one another rom all linguistic aspects. Mean-
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ing in semantic or lexical terms has been thoroughly studied (Ogden and Richards 1923; Ullmann 1962; Lyons 1968, 1977, 1981), but it has been apparent, at least since Ogden and Richards, that semantic meaning cannot account or all aspects o meaning relevant to the translator. For this reason, meaning in this study will be treated as the totality o the inormation conveyed – not simply that type o inormation which is treatable under a ormal semantic theory (e.g. o a truth-conditional nature). Tis is so because meaning is not an abstract entity but an interaction between the translator and the text. Meaning and/or unction o the text is the interpretation o a given message. Tis usage o meaning coincides with that o Halliday (1970, 1973), Leech and Short (1981), De Beaugrande (1978), and Mason (1982). Tose views share the assumption that meaning is understood as action and interaction; it is a process and, at the same time, a product. Te translator looks at meaning as the intention o the text-producer in the social and cultural environment in which the text is used. Here, Ogden and Richards (1923:187) state that meaning is: Tat to which the interpreter o a symbol a) reers. b) believes himsel to be reerring. c) believes the user to be reerring. When it comes to meaning, translation is believed to involve conveying what is implied and not what is said (Meyer 1974). Tis, according to Meyer, is the meaning behind meaning. However, in translating the implied meaning, i.e. the sub-text, the translator must word a sentence in such a way that the sub-text is equally clear in the target text. One cannot translate the ollowing English sentence into Arabic, relying on the explicit wording o it as ollows: English: When John died, his wie could not send his boy to Harvard. (cindama tuwuffiya John lam tastatic zawjatahu irsala ibnihi ila harvard) In the above sentence, the adverbial expression c indama (when) is translated as a time expression. However, a more appropriate and meaningul translation to this expression would be translating its prepositional meaning. Tereore, the best rendition to this term is bac da (afer). It should be borne in mind here that “when” could be used in the first translation to reer to: at the time o John’s death, as soon as, during the time at which something happens, while, etc. However, the preposition “afer” is used to reer to: subsequent in time to the event, at a later time, because o, aferward, etc.
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Furthermore, the word “Harvard” in the above sentence could also raise the same problem, particularly i one ignores its unction (the most prestigious school in the United States). Tereore, relying on the explicit meaning o the word is not enough. ext-producers bring their own assumptions, presuppositions, and general world-view to bear on their processing o text at all levels. Individual lexical choices are also important. In such cases, the translator should go beyond the explicit meaning towards perceiving the potential meaning o particular choices within the cultural and linguistic community o the source text (Mason 1992: 23). Te translator should careully measure the thought behind meaning as the thought that is carried on by the word is its essential meaning. It is this kind o meaning that should not be tampered with. Based on the above example, it is axiomatic that translation is not a direct transerence o a word in the original to a word in the target text. It is a careul analysis written with a good choice o words. Here, the translator is in a situation where he chooses rom among several more or less equally acceptable target language versions. Tis, according to Gutknecht and Rolle (1996: 2) depends on the ollowing actors: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Te type o text to be translated. Te extent to which the source language text bears stylistic markings. Te intended target language audience. Te extent to which the translator can comprehend the source language text and identiy himsel with. Te translator’s stylistic preerence and his ability to recognize and handle stylistic register.
Now the translator has to consider many things when translating a text. Among the situational actors stated above, translation should be perormed in such a way that the essence, spirit, and sense o sentences are careully maintained. It ollows, thereore, that within the core o the translation process, there lies a choice, or a ree will o the translator that, in one way or another, plays a significant role in the process o translation. Te choice o the translator has to be made i things have to be accomplished, only because what the translator is conronted with is a text whose orms and unctions have been creatively and expressively used by the writer. Regardless o the decision made, whether it is based on careul scrutiny, reconstruction or on the outcome o the translator’s trained instinct, the final decision that must be made has to come down to selecting the choice that the translator thinks is the closest equivalent to that o the target text. At the same time, the translator tries very hard to maintain the norms and unctions o the source text; he also tries very hard not to add new shades
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o differing points or any o the values, norms, orms and unctions that are not included within the text. Tereore, the translator works here as a coordinator who is ree to choose whatever but at the same time responsible or whatever he chooses. 6.3 Translation and Culture
Tere is almost a general consensus that conveying a message rom one language to another does not only arise rom the mere use o different words and symbols, nor rom the arrangement o words together in a sentence, but rather how words, sentences and paragraphs are presented to the oreign reader. Also, it is universally well-acknowledged that languages have distinct realities in which each shapes and moulds its own. As a result, the culture o one language is bound to vary rom another as speakers o a particular language have their own way o thinking. How a writer thinks, thereore, determines how he writes. Tese are the views o Sapir (1951) and Nida (1964). Tey argue that in different cultures, approaches to writing, particularly making a paragraph tend to be different and these approaches are culturally influenced by patterns o thinking. Such a rhetorical device has its real effect when translating a text rom one language to another across two different cultures, where the rhetorical orm o the source language does not conorm ully with the rhetorical orm o the target language. Tis is not to say that the stylistic or rhetorical device o paragraphing in one language is better than in another, but it only shows how languages adhere to their own particular pattern o thought. In English, or example, sentences or paragraphs should actually be joined together, as they are complementary to each other. Tere is no benefit rom paragraphs illogical division, or the reader gets conused while reading the text. It is common to all readers that every sentence or paragraph expresses one single theme, and within such paragraphs, there are signaling devices that inorm the reader when to move rom one point to another. Here is a representation o what the English language patterns o writing might look like compared to some other languages. English Language
____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ _________________________
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Language X
____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ _________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ _____________________________ wo types o paragraphing according to Seale (1979: 5) Along the same lines, Brooks and Warren (1952, 1970), commenting on the paragraph as a ‘convenience to the reader’, argue that the paragraph is a division o composition which signals to the reader that the division which is set off constitutes a unit o thought; it also makes the divisions o the writer’s thoughts visible. Brooks and Warren go urther in saying that this division, or the reader, is a convenience. On the psychological reality o the paragraph, Koen, Becker, and Young (1969) compare the paragraph with the sentence; they argue that i the importance o grasping the underlying structure o the sentence contributes to its understanding, then the perception o the paragraph perorms a similar unction. Also, Kieras (1978) suggests that the role o the paragraph is to minimize memory load: the text-reader does not have to burden his memory by the different kinds o inormation presented in the text. Kieras goes on to say that the unction o the paragraph is to make it easy or the reader to digest the contents o the text. Tereore, common sense dictates that the lack o unified and coherent sentences or paragraphs in any language or i sentences or paragraphs were constructed inconsistently in relation to the language targeted by the translator, there is a possibility that the translated text will not meet the requirement o acceptability and naturalness demanded by the other language reader. Furthermore, it has been suggested that language is a reflection o culture (Jakobson 1985). Tese two concepts are intrinsically correlated and interconnected. Jakobson (1985: 103) argues that “language is a cultural phenomenon”, and culture according to him is: Te totality o behavior patterns that are passed between generations by learning, socially determined behavior learned by imitation and instruction.
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Jakobson goes on to say that learning a language involves learning social conventions simply because language has cognitive and expressive aspects that are cultivated. Similarly, Kaplan (1966, 1983) and Jakobson (1971) stress the act that language affects our conceptualization o reality; they argue that the linguistic categories that orm the way we think are different rom one language to another. Jakobson (1985: 107) says: Language is situated between nature and culture and it serves as a oundation o culture. We may go even urther and state that language is HE [his emphasis] necessary and substantial oundation o human culture. In discussing the impact o culture upon language, Jakobson (1985), Sapir (1921, 1951, 1956), Hymes (1964), and Whor (1956) suggest that each language exists within a particular culture and has its own particular lexicon which shapes the perception o its speakers. Languages reflect cultural differences, and these differences are maniested in the categorization o gender, number, color, etc. Within the process o translation, the awareness o the cultural as well as the socially equivalent rameworks in which a particular text is used is extremely significant, although perect cultural equivalents are indeed unattainable. What is attainable is the approximation o cultural and social context o the two languages, which makes the translated text unctionally similar and relatively natural with respect to its original. Regarding this, Malinowski (1923: 309) states: Since the whole world o things to be expressed changes with the level o culture, with geographical, social and economic conditions, the consequence is that the meaning o a word must always be gathered, not rom a passive contemplation o this word, but rom an analysis o its unction, with reerence to a given culture. Nida shares this notion with Malinowski that any translation that excludes consideration o cultural elements is doomed to be inadequate. Nida (1964: 90) says: Te person who is engaged in translation rom one language into another ought to be constantly aware o the contrast in the entire range o culture represented by the two languages. Tese views indicate that the link between language and culture cannot be ignored, and that a community’s culture consists o whatever it is one has to know or believe in order to create in a manner acceptable to its members. Tis is what makes translation a difficult task as the translator has to be aware that the text he is translating is not only ormed by a
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linguistic capability but it also relates to things, people, cultural and social values, behaviors, and emotions. All these operate within the situational context o the text. 6.4 Translator’s Perception
It is to be noted that translators are different rom one another; they differ conspicuously in their perception o the real world. Tey are also different in their capabilities and talents. It is axiomatic to point out thereore that in translating literature, or example, our translators would more likely produce our different versions or translations o the same text or expression. Tis is highly logical because each translator looks at the text or expression rom his own perspective. For example, in Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, one can see how the expression “Tou art a scholar, speak to it, Horaito”, uttered by Marcellus in Act I, Scene I has been translated differently by our translators: Mutran, Jabra, Jamal, and Al-Khumyri. Because the word “scholar” is polysemous, each one o those our translators has translated it differently, reflecting their own personal talent or possible synonyms available to him/her. Te our translations are listed below or the sake o exposition: (1) anta aqih (you are a jurisprudent) – Jabra. (2) anta ashi alim (you are eloquent and knowledgeable) – Mutran. (3) anta rajulun muthaggaun wa asih (you are both a cultured and eloquent man) – Jamal. (4) anta rajulun muta’ allim (you are an educated man) – Al-Khmyri. aking into account the religious context in which the word “scholar” was used by Marcellus, and because Marcellus looks at the addressee as a man o knowledge, we understand and agree with several literary critics, who avored the Arabic rendition o the above expression you are a jurisprudent simply because it is a more acceptable equivalent than all other words provided by other translators. It also gives the gist o the meaning in this context. However, the question always arises: can the idea that is expressed intelligently by the writer be maintained in the translation? o answer this question, we should note that translation is a matter o interpretation, and when we write about translation, we only write about it rom a translator’s perspective. Te translator generally sees things rom his own subjective evaluation. He sees them rom his untrammeled viewpoint. o him, words have personal perception; they have different kinds o recognition. Tereore, it would be hard or the translator to express the words exactly in the same orm and unction o the target language. In such cases, the translator has to convey the idea according to his own perception.
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When the translator is conronted with a word that has to be conveyed into the target language, his choice makes all the difference in the world. Te lexis he chooses may have almost the same meaning to that o the other language, paying his utmost attention to avoid contamination or not to allow translation nuances to interere and distort the meaning o the original. For the sake o clarity, the translator digs or textual and situational resemblance. Te search or resemblance and synonymity is what made some linguists and translation practitioners believe that translation is a orm o synonymy. Graham (1991: 10) clearly and flatly comments on Quine’s idea o synonymy, stating that the natural alternative is to abandon the notion o two messages synonymous in all respect with one another and replace it with the requirement that similarity o meaning be attained in some particular respects, never all. From a philosophical point o view, Quine (1992: 57-62), while discussing the indeterminacy o translation, proposes that synonymy roughly consists in approximate likeness in effect on the hearer. Quine’s use o the word “synonymy” is not restricted. He points out that the word “synonymy” carried the ull generality o “same in meaning”, whatever that is. Quine distinguishes between two types o synonymy: broad type and narrow type. Broad synonymy can be ormulated in intuitive terms. Tat is, two sentences command assent concomitantly and dissent concomitantly. Tis kind o concomitance is due strictly to word usage rather than how things happen in the world. As or the narrow type, Quine believes that it is synonymy o parts and not synonymy o wholes. Quine states: Synonymy o parts is defined by appeal to analogy o roles in synonymous wholes; then synonymy in the narrow sense is defined or the wholes by appeal to synonymy o homologous parts. Part-whole relationships always exist in synonymy. When two sentences have, what is called by philosophers sameness o confirming experience and o disconfirming experience (Grice & Strawson 1956), then we have wholly synonymous sentences; however, when two sentences partially confirm and disconfirm experience, then we have partially synonymous sentences. Here, one can argue, to this effect, that synonymy involves partial overlapping or whole overlapping. Tat is, the meaning o one message may partially or wholly overlap with the meaning o another and the idea o partial and whole overlapping is something inevitable in translation. In other words, the meaning o one word is wholly or partially covered by the other. Te idea o partial and whole overlapping is represented in Figure (1):
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A
X
Y
B
A&B
Figure (1) Representation o Partial and Whole Overlapping
It is axiomatic to point out that total or complete overlapping, i it exists, does not cause any problem. However, or partial overlapping, one could look at A as the original word or even text. Ten B is the target word o the target text. Te relationship is that o a mirror image, i.e. one word in a text is mirrored to create the target image. Inevitably, this kind o overlapping cannot always be total, because o at least phonological differences. Te most difficult part, however, is that one part is being partially or wholly covered and another part does the covering. Tere is a neutral part that is not covered in partial overlapping, and this is the area where the translator finds himsel ree to move. Here, portion X in the original occupies accompanying meaning which is not encumbered in the meaning o the word B. Also, portion Y holds a concomitant meaning that is not included in the meaning o A. Tereore, the translator, i possible, must target a total overlapping, a very complicated i not impossible task. It is to be noted that complete synonymy does not exist, and the translator seeks to preserve the meaning that is similar to the meaning o the original. Ross (1981: 12) states: Te translator seeks to convey the same meaning in a new language as is ound in the original. Not only must he choose among the various respects in which similarity o meaning is to be preserved; this is less sameness in any particular respect, and is more an equivalence satisactory to the constraints, which govern his work. Te translator here makes his choices with differing degrees o ease or sophistication. Tis actually depends on the subject matter he is dealing with. Furthermore, it ofen happens that one discovers that, upon looking over the printed copy o a translation, particularly when it comes off the press, he could, i given the choice and the chance again, introduce a different alternative. Hence, people/or some translators ofen dislike their translation o a particular subject-matter afer it was published. It could be those translators eel that they have not done well in their translation. However, when one reads his own writing, he reads it with some satisaction; he may not change a single jot.
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Tis is the difference between translating and writing. ranslating, i not done intuitively, is interpretation. On the other hand, writing is an art. It is a creation o the mind. Tereore, translation is done through the creation o the individual’s mind, paying his utmost attention to the original message and the other was done intuitively based on the writer’s intellect and imagination. 6.5 Translating vs. Writing
It is to be noted here that having the capability to write effectively and clearly should have a bearing on translating appropriately. Afer all, translating is writing creatively with the translator’s utmost attention to the meaning o the original text. Te difference between the two activities (i.e. translating and writing), however, is a matter o perception. Writing, particularly in literature, is a matter o creation whereas translating is a matter o text-comprehension, as the idea o the text to be translated has already been determined by the writer. Tereore, writing ocuses on creating the idea whereas translating ocuses on choosing the closest natural equivalent to a particular lexis. Following is a maniestation o these two skills: Writing
ranslating
ext-ranserence
Creation
ext-Comprehension
Figure (2) Writing-ranslating Representation
In this regard, the translator must be modest; he should not be too creative nor should he be too literal. Being too creative may result in distorting the beauty and intricacy o the original text. Being literal may result in ambiguating the text. Tereore, the translator aces a dilemma. Te solution to such inormation immoderation is to be accurate in such a way that the two texts are closely approximated.
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6.6 Translating is Personal
As the translator seeks to choose his closest natural equivalent, he looks backward and orward. He may see that words have changed and thereore he acts upon this. He may also discover that words have drifed, have disappeared over the years, and there is no reason to believe that they will not continue to do so. Tis implies that the translator has a sense o what is called “the other meaning” in relation to the text to be processed. He should experience the text in his own way, eeling words as mobiles, sensing all possible avenues. It is through his own perception he is capable o changing this into likeness. Afer all, he is the “fixer” and the one who puts things into their proper perspective. He is the one who looks backward and orward into language or the purpose o understanding, making changes, maintaining text unctions, etc. In this regard, one finds it relevant to reer to the concept o ‘moving in language’, and in this sense, translating would be a movement in the words used to make language along the context in which words or sentences are used. Bakhtin (1981: 15) states: Te word is not a thing, but rather the eternally mobile, eternally changing medium o dialogical intercourse. It never coincides with a single consciousness or a single voice. Te lie o the word is in its transer rom one mouth to another, one context to another, one social collective to another, one generation to another. In the process, the word does not orget where it has been and can never wholly ree itsel rom the domination o the contexts o which it has been a part. From a different perspective, some believe that translation is an imitation. In translating literature, or example, one ofen finds that Horace details the problems o rivaling Pindar (odes iv. ii) and proceeds to apply his precepts ( odes iv. iv ) on an essentially Roman theme. Horace’s work was an imitation o another, but it was an art that consisted o bending the technique o another author to his own subject and language. Te many different translations o the Arabian Nights or the One Tousand Nights and One Night is another case in point where the style o the original work was imitated by translators although it was alien to them. Furthermore, translation can be viewed as an artistic activity. Kelly (1979: 44) argues that the translator attempts to create his own personal relationship with the text-producer. He ollows this with grasping the inner significance o the text he studies. As or the relationship between the translator and the text, translators should know how to use their minds, not only in a rational way, but also in an intuitive and creative way. Panoulle (1993: 89)
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believes that translators are expected to be creative, because texts, particularly literary texts, use language creatively. Some believe that translation is an interpretation. Te concept Gadamer (1975:10) reers to here is what is called the “hermeneutic circle.” Tis concept reers to knowledge as the lived-experience. Lived-experience is what gives meaning to language and thought. A compelling actor in support o translation as a personal lived-experience is the continual renewal o translating traditional texts. I the goal o the translator were to capture the intentions o the text-producer, one translation o Te Iliad would be sufficient proo. Instead, one finds new and different translations or almost every poetic or literary work.
6.7 Test Your Knowledge of Chapter (6) 1. How can the sense and intuition o the translator play an important part in translation? 2. What is the difference between being creative and being simplistic? 3. Are translators different in their perception o the world? How? Can you provide translation examples demonstrating this? 4. What is synonymy? Give examples. 5. Does “Complete Synonymy” exist? Give examples. 6. How is translating different rom writing? 7. Is translation personal? How? Explain your answer.
6.8 Analysis and Translation of Texts Considering what has been discussed in this chapter, read the ollowing text, examine it careully, and then translate it into the target language. You should examine areas in the text where improvement and clarification must be made once the text is translated. You may also examine the word choices that are indicative o the writer’s personal judgments.
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Dear Dr Beast, Since the University is looking orward to becoming one o the top universities in the world through providing the appropriate support or its students and employees, and since we are aware o the educational programs your college offers, we would like to ask you to approve on nominating Dr. John Jane June to give an English course or the Department staff. Te course will be given outside his official working hours in the college. Te Department will give the lecturer a financial reward.
1 t x e T
We appreciate your cooperation. Wallace E. Stremming Director
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CHAPER �
Punctuation and Translation 7.1 Introduction
Tis chapter attempts to describe the pragmatic and semantic unctions o punctuation marks, particularly the most requently used punctuation marks: semicolon (;) and the colon (:). Te rationale behind describing these two punctuation marks is that no studies have provided a detailed description o the pragmatic and semantic unctions o these marks, which are mostly used in Arabic or intonational or decorative purposes. It was ound that the system o punctuation marks in Arabic is misrepresented as users do not speciy rules or using such punctuation marks. However, in this study, it was ound that punctuation marks have linguistic implications that are not recognized by linguists or by translators. Te implications discussed here are the emphatic, additive, contrastive, and substantiative unctions. 7.2
What is Punctuation?
Punctuation, though a non-verbal communicative process, is an important and cohesive device in all kinds o written discourse. It uses standard marks to separate words, phrases, clauses and sentences or the purpose o cohesion. Writers use such marks to signal the ends o sentences, express strong emotion, to separate closely related sentences or clauses, etc. Inadequate punctuation burdens the reader and orces him to go over the text several times to understand its meaning. At the same time, using too many punctuation marks, and in places where they are not supposed to be used, can conuse the reader. Understanding the uses and unctions o punctuation marks, thereore, is extremely important
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or writers and teachers as well as translators, as their purpose is to clariy the meaning o a particular construction within the sentence and beyond the sentence level. In this chapter, I will try to show how punctuation marks ulfill specific semantic and pragmatic unctions, i.e. substantiation, counter-argumentation, explanation, etc. Tese unctions have a significant bearing on translating an expression or a text rom one language to another. Te marks this chapter attempts to investigate are limited to a couple o intra-sentential ones (Leggett et al 1982). Tey are the semicolon and the colon. Marks like these are called ‘internal’ because they show the relationship o each word or group o words to the rest o the sentence. Te reason or selecting these specific punctuation marks is that they are requent in English written discourse and tend to be problematic when translating into other languages, particularly Arabic. o this latter effect, a questionnaire was distributed to 20 M.A. translation students in the English Department at Yarmouk University, Jordan. Te sample was made up o students who had taken at least eighteen credit hours (theoretical and practical courses), to ensure that they had knowledge o translation practice and theory. Students were asked to translate sample texts rom English into Arabic. Special attention was paid to their translations o the punctuation marks to see whether the students were aware o their semantic and pragmatic uses. Te results were unexpected and illuminating: hardly any o the students were aware o the way in which these punctuation marks are or ought to be used. Te mistakes and translations will be discussed in later sections. 7.3
Importance of Punctuation
Let there be no doubt that we all agree that punctuation is important in all kinds o written discourse; however, ew people know the extent o its importance. I a writer neglects or pays no special attention to the unctions and uses o punctuation marks, or he mispunctuates, it is more likely that he will be misunderstood. Even when the sense o a particular construction is clear, a mispunctuated text may be deprived o its impetus, driving and persuasive orce, spirit, and meaning. In spoken discourse, pauses and gestures have particular unctions to perorm. Tey are used to emphasize meaning and stress, pitch o our own tones and voices. Tey are used in a variety o ways to demonstrate the beginning and the end o a particular unit o meaning or a particular paragraph. In this respect, speech can be ‘punctuated’ as well as a written discourse. For example, the ollowing utterances can express different meanings although the same words are used.
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Private. No parking allowed. (1)
Private? No. Parking allowed.
(2)
It is to be noted here that example (1) indicates that no parking is allowed while example (2) indicates that parking is allowed . What marks the difference between the two meanings is the punctuation marks. Furthermore, through punctuation marks, one can signal different inormation units. Halliday (1985) and Baker (1994) point out that through punctuation marks, one can signal different inormation structures in written language. Baker states, or example, that using a comma can signal new inormation. She demonstrates this by the ollowing examples: (1) (2) DC: NDC:
He was waving to the girl who was running along the platorm (DC). He was waving to the girl, who was running along the platorm (NDC). Defining Clause Non-defining Clause
Te above two examples are similar in terms o wording. Te difference is only realized through the use o the comma. I one careully examines the implications created by the use o the comma, one will observe that the first clause does not add any new inormation; it presumes the reader already knows enough about the girl to identiy her rom this description. At the same time, i one examines the implications created in the second clause, one can observe that there is a particular inormation structure signaled by using the comma, and this structure represents new inormation. Consequently, a comma, as tiny as it appears, makes a big difference between two units o inormation worded similarly. Moreover, in the above examples, two linguistics unctions have been established: defining clause (DC) and non-defining clause (NDC). Tese two unctions are commonly realized through the use o the comma (Quirk et al 1985). In order to clariy the point urther, here is another example: 1. A woman without her man is nothing. 2. A woman, without her man, is nothing. 3. A woman: without her, man is nothing. In the above three examples, one can see that meaning changes based on the specific use o punctuation marks. For example, in sentence (1), there is a general statement that a woman without her man is nothing. Prominence was given to man as the important one.
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In sentence (2), the meaning changes in relation to sentence (1), although we are still using the exact words. Here, prominence is still given to man, but with specific reerence to a woman, as opposed to something else. In sentence (3), there is a complete shif o meaning. Prominence is given to the importance o the woman, as i man does not exist without the presence o the woman. All these meanings have been represented as a result o the different uses o the punctuation marks. From a different angle, discussing the meaning o punctuation requires paying special attention to the delimitation and boundaries between semantics and pragmatics. Almost all the studies that have been done on these two major fields o linguistics have associated the delimitation o the two terms with the delimitation o Chomsky’s competence and the perormance or Saussure’s langue and parole (Hawkes 1986). Te distinction between langue and parole, according to Hawkes (1986: 20) is more or less one that pertains to the difference between the abstract language system simply called in English ‘language’ and individual utterances made by the speakers o the language in concrete everyday situations called ‘speech’. According to Hawkes, langue is both a social product and a collection o necessary conventions that have been adopted by a social body to permit individuals to exercise that aculty. As or parole, it is the tip o the iceberg. Langue is the larger mass that supports parole, and it is implied by it, both in speaker and hearer, but which never itsel appears (Hawkes 1986: 21). Tus, semantics is the input to pragmatics. However, in this book, semantics is used to relate to the language system whereas pragmatics is used to relate to utterances. Many definitions have been proposed or the notions o semantics and pragmatics (see Leech 1974: 319 and 1983; Levinson 1983). In order to show where punctuation lies, I shall adopt Leech’s complementary position in which he defines semantics as what something means. Te weather is hot means Te weather is hot (a statement), and pragmatics as what somebody means by something , i.e. Te weather is hot means Open the window (a request). Te ormer example is mainly concerned with meaning as a property o language whereas the latter example is mainly concerned with meaning as what the speaker intends by his utterance (his intention). From all o this, one can conclude that punctuation and its unctions lie within the field o pragmatics. Te meaning o a particular utterance has to be deduced rom the speaker’s intention with reerence to the context o situation in which the utterance is used. Context here is taken to mean the background knowledge which the speaker assumes to be known to the hearer at the time o speaking; it does not represent brute acts but rather institutional acts o text or context (Leech 1983: 341). In accordance with this view and or the sake o exposition, the semantic and pragmatic unctions will be reerred to together here as linguistic unctions.
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7.4
Punctuation in Arabic
Williams (1982) believes that teachers must take into account the punctuation conventions when teaching composition i they are to orestall some o the problems which they ace; he also believes that a consideration o punctuation may yield some useul clues to the large semantic units which users work with or see themselves working with. In his study o some o the differences between Arabic and English punctuation, Williams describes two systems o Arabic punctuation; the first system is a very simple one in which commas are used to delimit sentences and ull stops are used along with the conventional line break to mark the ends o the paragraphs. Te second system, as indicated by Williams (1991), contains a whole plethora o signs, 21 in all. Tey are as ollows: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21.
comma double comma semicolon ull stop colon dash double dash diagonal line underlining extended line curved brackets square brackets hollow brackets curly brackets dots question mark exclamation mark double quotation marks equal sign ditto sign concluding sign
‘ “ ; . : -/ the ___ ( ) [ ] ( )
{ } ……
(o indicate a paradigmatic group) (o indicate words missed out)
! “ “ = ” ” ” ε
For more detailed inormation on this subject, see Nafi (1981).
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Most o the above Arabic punctuation marks have their equivalents in the English punctuation system; however, there are differences when it comes to the uses o the colon and semicolon. Tese are problematic in translation. Tereore, the linguistic unctions o punctuation will be investigated below and the problems associated with their uses will be highlighted. 7.4.1 The semicolon (;)
Tis punctuation mark indicates a close linkage between two clauses. Apart rom the well-known unctions o this mark, in Arabic as well as in English, it occasionally tends to express a contrastive relation between two clauses. Consider the ollowing example taken rom Te Economist (1983: 52): ext (1) – English
Te Nicaraguan people say that their amilies were taken away by members o the Security Forces; the Sandinists claim that the missing have joined the contras. An inexperienced translator may read the English text and consider the relationship between the two clauses or sentences as that o addition; he may also not realize that the true relationship is significant or relaying the exact meaning o the original. Looking at the students’ translation, it was ound that 12 students translated this punctuation mark as addition, and 6 o them did not even attempt to translate it. Only 2 students translated it correctly. Te relationship expressed here is that o contrast , where two dierent points o view are being stated. Tereore, the translator should utilize the Arabic conjunctive ‘bayanama’ or ‘amma’ “however”. In a different context, the translator may sometimes ail in the opposite way to identiy the exact or intended meaning o this punctuation mark; he may think that the semicolon is always used as above, to contrast between two clauses. However, the semicolon may indeed sometimes be used as an additive conjunctive. Here is an example taken rom Te Economist (1983: 105): ext (2) – English
In America in the mid 1970s, the causes o several helicopter crashes were traced to bogus replacement parts; in 1977, 200 ake fire detection and control systems or Boeing aircraf were discovered.
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It is clear that the original text does not indicate grammatically or structurally whether or not the clause preceding the semicolon and the clause ollowing it have similar values. Te reader has to guess at the writer’s implication behind the semicolon. Te relationship expressed between these two clauses is in act that o addition. Looking at the students’ translations, it was ound that 10 students expressed an addition relationship; none o them expressed a contrast relationship. At the same time, 3 students have not even attempted to translate it. It was observed that 7 students translated it as a (causative), expressing a relationship that is not implied. Tere is another unction which can be perormed by the use o the semicolon. Tis unction is its contrastive emphatic meaning. Tat is, the semicolon in English can be interpreted to mean emphasis, requiring a different mark in Arabic. Tis mark is the conjunction ‘bal’ . It emphasizes the clause in which it is used in a prominent position, compared to the preceding clauses. Here is an example taken rom Cary (1984: 64): ext (3) – English
Loui must have gone to the police. What right had they to persue him like this? He had done no wrong; he was trying to do the right thing, the sensible thing. It was ound that only 3 students translated the semicolon correctly as emphatic; 2 translated it as an additive; 11 students did not translate it at all; 4 expressed a causative relationship. It should be pointed out that the way the semicolon is used in English, in the above three examples, is very clear to the native speakers o English. However, this punctuation mark tends to be problematic in Arabic. Te students’ translation o examples 1, 2 and 3 shows that Arabs tend to treat the English semicolon as additive, as is the case with almost all punctuation marks in their own language. Sometimes it is not even looked into, and the semantic and pragmatic implications are completely ignored. Tis indicates that there is a language intererence problem in the way this punctuation mark is used. 7.4.2 Colon (:)
Tis colon is different rom semicolon in the act that the colon is cataphoric (i.e. reerring or pointing orward). From a semantic point o view, it is a way o marking the identity between what is being expressed and what is about to be expressed. For example, I said this …, where the meaning o what ollows the colon must be equivalent to this but more specific (see Quirk et al 1985: Ch. 12 or more inormation on this topic). From a translation point o view, and according to Newmark (1981), when t he sentence is viewed logically and not grammatically, or used in such a way that it requires clarifi-
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cation or illustration, it is normally punctuated with a colon. Tereore, the colon has a cataphoric unction: it is always ollowed by an explanation or an illustration (Halliday 1985). Tat is, the clause ollowing it is a substantiation o something in the one which precedes it. When it comes to translating the colon, the translator should account or it by marks that have the same semantic and pragmatic unctions. Tese unctions are represented in the ollowing example taken rom Cary (1984: 63): ext (4) – English
om, without thought, answered: “My name is Stone,” and then, angry to see himsel aced by a policeman, went on: “What do you want here? Why should I answer your questions?” It should be noted here that the translator has to interpret the uses o the colon careully; he should account or the non-verbal uses o this punctuation mark during the process o translation. o provide an accurate translation o the above example, the translator should opt or equivalent words such as ‘ a’ (causative) or ‘id ’ (substantative). In the students’ translations, it was ound that 13 students translated the colon as an additive, and only 2 translated it expressing contrast . At the same time, 1 student translated it as emphatic and 3 students did not translate it at all. As the text above shows, the first colon has not been translated; it does not need to be translated simply because what ollows afer the verb ‘answered’ is axiomatically understood as substantiation. However, the second colon should have been translated because its presence in the sentence adds a temporal sequence. Tus, it can be seen how punctuation marks which need to be conveyed into the target language are not appropriately conveyed by translation students. Tis shows that students have only a vague idea about the specific semantic and pragmatic unctions o punctuation marks. It also shows that students, when they attempt to translate punctuation marks, do not think o the distortion they may create rom not conveying the correct meaning o this punctuation mark in the target text. Te ollowing table shows the results o students’ translations o the texts under discussion:
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Punctuation and ranslation
Additive
Contrast
Causative
Emphatic
Not ranslated
ext (1)
12
2
—
—
6
ext (2)
10
—
7
—
3
ext (3)
2
—
4
3
11
ext (4)
13
1
2
1
3
able (2): Students ranslation o the Semicolon and Colon
As the above table shows, students seem to be conused about the uses o the semicolon and colon; they also seem to be influenced by the writing patterns o their native language. It is, thereore, important or translators to be made aware o these unctions and see to it that these punctuation marks are not misunderstood or simply overlooked. Based on their translations, we can observe that students are not only unamiliar with the way most punctuation marks are used in English; they are also not amiliar with the punctuation marks used in their own language. Tereore, it is to be expected that any attempt by them to translate an English text into Arabic will suffer so long as they have not captured the exact meaning (i.e. semantic and pragmatic implications) o these marks. o sum up, the purpose o this chapter has been to investigate the specific semantic and pragmatic unctions o two important but problematic punctuation marks. Tese were the colon and semicolon. Emphasis was placed on how to maintain such implications in the translation process. It was noted that the system o punctuation in Arabic is inadequate because it does not have well-established rules or the use o specific punctuation marks. Tereore, much work needs to be done in order to identiy what is considered to be the sentence in Arabic i one wants to establish a coherent system o punctuation. As or the semantic and pragmatic unctions o the colon and semicolon, they include what is called rebuttal, emphasis, addition, substantiation, and contrast. Moreover, this chapter has illustrated that translating punctuation marks rom English into Arabic is indeed very problematic to translators and translation students. Tis has been exemplified by the translations o the 20 Arab M.A. translation students. Te results were disappointing: it was ound that most o these students are not amiliar with
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the semantic and pragmatic unctions o punctuation marks in general and the specific punctuation marks discussed in this chapter in particular. Tereore, translation students need to be taught not to allow the source language punctuation marks to influence the punctuation marks in their translation, simply because languages have different systems o punctuating. Students should also dig deeper or implications springing rom the use o a specific punctuation mark so as to maintain those implica i mplications tions in their translations. o enhance the student and working translators’ understanding o the essence o punctuation marks, more contrastive studies o the marks are needed, not only rom a linguistic point o view but also rom rom a translation point o view. view. Our hope is to make proessional translators as well as students aware o this important yet problema problematic tic issue.
7.5
1. 2. 3. 4.
Test your Knowledg Knowledge e of Chapter (7) What is punctuation? punctuation? How How is it used in your own own language? Are there there rules by by which speakers use punctuation punctuation marks? What are the semantic and and pragmatic unctions o punctuation? punctuation? Give a ew ew examples where misunderstanding misunderstanding the uses o o punctuation punctuation marks can give rise to translation problems. problems.
ranslation ion of Texts 7.6 Analysis and Translat Read the ollowing text very careully, and then rewrite it using correct punctuation marks where needed.
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*ranslation Rules are Ethical Decisions
Radical individualism should thus be taken with a large grain o salt i works like Luther’s Bible and the King James Version can legitimately be criticized or antasy and inconsistence it nevertheless seems difficult to classiy them as automatically second-rate because o group authorship such prejudice should quietly be absorbed by the more global principle that the collective proession provided the conditions necessary or the rise r ise o the authoritativ authoritativee individual
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* aken rom ranslation Rules are Ethical Decisions at < http://www http://www.ut.es/~apym/o .ut.es/~apym/on-line/ttt/7.html>. n-line/ttt/7.html>.
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CHAPER �
Translation and Literature 8.1 Introduction
Te purpose o this chapter is twoold: (a) to show that translating literature is different rom translating other kinds o texts (i.e. descriptive, journalistic, etc.). Emphasis will be placed on all literary orms, particularly poetry, and (b) to argue that literary texts contain words that are ofen unusual in some way and used to create a special effect on the reader. Tis special effect is maniested in plays, poetry, drama, novels, and other creative written works. ranslating literature is problematic simply because it involves translating the metaphorical or figurative meanings utilized in texts. Te spirit and text’s artistic qualities in such texts play an important role in the make up o what is called a literary text. In order to show the difficulty o translating literature, particularly poetry, an example will be taken rom the works o Philip Freneau, an American poet, to demonstrate this point. Tis example will be translated into Arabic in two different ways: verse and prose. A comparison will be made between the two types o translations to show which type (verse or prose) can attain the highest degree o acceptability and equivalency. Te example has been taken rom Philip Freneau because he is known or his love o nature; his language is figurative and ull o poetic images. Tereore, translating some o his work may give us insight on what is involved in literary translation. It may also give us insight on whether poetry is best translated through verse strategy or prose strategy.
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8.2 Characteristics of Texts
According to Neubert (1988:123), text is not just a neutral vessel filled with inormation. It is actually a piece o writing that ulfills a particular communicative unction. Tis text also carries with it a segment o the world’s view o the language users. It has certain characteristics. Tese are illustrated below. Tere are many different types o texts, and the ollowing are only one such many classifications: 8.2.1 Expressive
One o the main characteristics o a literary text is that it is expressive. Since text is language, then language can be expressive. Te term expressive here is used to reer to works o art whether such art is maniested through the use o compositional elements or symbols. Both means aim at merely suggesting meaning. According to Newmark (1988: 39), the core o the expressive unction is the mind o the speaker, the writer, and the originator o the utterance. Tereore, the translator, like a writer, expresses his own vision o the world; he gives his own realization o a specific reality he wishes to express. Tis is in addition to the act that he speaks his own language, uses his own strategy, expresses his emotions about a specific object, and about his provocation and reaction. In writing poetry, however, the writer chooses his words with ar more attention to their sounds than to what is customary or necessarily known in the writing o prose. Tis is encapsulated in the writer’s mental capacity through which he can write with emotions, rhythm and percipience. 8.2.2 Denotative
Tis unction is mainly concerned with the classification o meaning. It reers to the emotional associations (personal or communal) which are suggested by lexis (i.e. see Lyons 1977, Chapter. 7). A text may maniest emotive, rhetorical, seductive, and stimulative eatures. o this effect, a literary text is not mainly concerned with context or inormation; it is actually concerned with explicit and implicit meanings. For example, tone, melody, and sequence are essential components o any literary text. Tese represent the internal image (Frege 1960: 16) and essential components o the literary message in general, and poetry in particular. Tereore, the loss that may occur is when the original words contain something that is not explicitly stated. Tis “something” may maniest itsel in the harmony between sense and sound. It may also maniest itsel through a subtle alliteration, construction o metaphors, or in onomatopoeia or any figures o speech.
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8.2.3 Formal vs. Functional Characteristics
A literary text is not only a means o communicating something to the reader. It is also a way o provoking the reader. Te objective o literature, in particular poetry, thereore, is not to teach the reader but rather entertain him. In addition, the writer uses a special kind o language, a language o his own. Te style o writing a text is actually a reflection o his own character. Tereore, the writer uses metaphors, creates images, and uses collocations that are not requently used in ordinary texts. Te writer does this as he intends to maniest the nature and unction o the text in a way that we see the image provoked or intended as something never seen beore or at least as something different. Te attitude o the literary translator is also o considerable importance. Unlike translators o other texts, a translator o a literary text should be sel-expressive; he should leave traces o his own character just as an artist leaves his own impressions in his paintings. o this effect, the literary text translator has a high degree o reedom in transerring a text rom one language to another. Tis is contrary to translators o other texts in which accuracy and aithulness to the original texts may be the basic prerequisites. One can imagine, or example, what a wrong translation o heart surgery procedure can do. Also, the kind o effect a wrong translation can have on how a particular machine works. Tese wrong translations can have serious effects on people. However, in literary translation, the translator is relatively ree in his interpretation o a text, as long as he adheres to the overall meaning. As a result o the translator’s reedom, one can realize that it is this particular kind o reedom that translators are capable o adapting, borrowing, arabicizing, and amiliarizing Arab readers with new words. All o these are translation processes in which words are approximated in terms o their target equivalents. Tis is exactly what made Al-Manaluti arabicize a novel or the writer De Saint Pierre, whose title is transormed into “Virtue”. Also, Hafiz Ibrahim translated a novel or Victor Hugo entitled “Al-Bu’asa” (Te Wretched People). All these are being arabicized or translated as a result o the ree activity o literary translation. 8.3 Nature of Literary Translation
Features that are relevant to the translation o literary texts are reflected in the aesthetic values and their implied underlying meanings. A literary text is written in a way that a translator is sometimes incapable o handling. Te language o the literary texts is ar rom the ordinary language and its common orm. Poetry, or example, is never written with simple language. Tereore, the translator should be intelligent and capable o eeling and understanding the poetic text. Also, the translator should be acquainted with the
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literary works in terms o the way sounds, words, imagery expressions, and sentences are conveyed or relayed. Tey should be conveyed careully, conorming to the writer’s original work. For an excellent translator, it is not enough to convey literary works rom one language to another, but such conveyance should be creative, prooundly imaginative and talented. Te translator can limit or identiy the kind o work contemplated and the literary flavor maniested in it. Tis is why translating poetry is different rom translating novels. Also, translating both poetry and novels is different rom translating theatrical texts. Te way theatrical texts are written conorms with the eature o ‘speakability’ (Wellwarth 1981: 140), i.e. the text is written to be read aloud so the writer can have access to the kind o rhythm or projection so as to help the actor perorm his role. Te writer o a theatrical dialogue is also an artist. He has to sense the word, and see whether it suits the actor or not. He eels the text to see whether or not it has a persuasive effect on its audience, particularly i one takes into account that in translating literary works, one deals with eelings, emotions, melodies, senses, and above all, the writer’s own experiences o the world. 8.4 Writer-Translator Relationship
One o the characteristics o a good translator is his capability o writing well. Tere is a difference between a writer and a translator. A person only translating other people’s work is not a translator, he is a conveyer or a text presenter, as he is only reading the text (not his own) and presenting it to another reader who belongs to a different culture. I the translation o a literary text arises out o the reading process, then the writer is the translator o that text. Te relation between the two (i.e. writer and translator) is reflected in what is called “creativity”. Tis may be represented in the ollowing diagram: Writer
ranslator
ranserence
Creative Writing
Proper Reading
Diagram (1): Writer-ranslator Relation
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o this effect, some believe (see Diaz-Diocretz 1985: 33-37) that translation is a process o creation. Te writer does not write his text at one time, but at different times. First he reads it, then writes a draf, and then rewrites it again and again. Te distinction between writing and translating is thereore a matter o creativity. However, both are creative works, but the difference between them is that the translation process is less creative in the way that it is less imaginative. In more specific terms, in writing, the writer has to come up with an original idea or thought whereas in translation, the translator has to base his translation on an idea that has already been ormulated. Tereore, the writing process is more creative, as it requires more imagination. Within the literary translation process, a good translator is not the one who remains aithul and close to the original text, but the one who is close to the mentality and thinking as well as the experience o the writer. Te ormer involves translating the text whereas the latter involves creating the text. As or the first, a given message can be perceived rom quite a dierent perspective (Jakobson 1960: 353). Tis depends very much on the text’s readership. Tereore, the text varies according to its readers. Creative translation creates and reorms the text in a way that the writer and the translator are in ull harmony and conormity. 8.5 Linguistic Context and Literary Translation
Within the ramework o literary translation, the linguistic context is regarded as raw material to the translation process. Literary texts have a more sophisticated context, which implies the approximation o two cultures, two different ways o thinking, two different methods o realization and above all, two different mentalities. For example, in the Arab world, one always hears words such as ird . Tis word cannot be translated as just honor , since the word has different connotations not common in English. Te word ird evolves around a woman’s dignity, amily reputation, chastity, etc. Tese kinds o connotations are not applicable when it comes to its English counterpart. Tereore, it cannot be understood and translated just by relying only on its linguistic context, without taking into account the general context in which the word is used. Te ollowing diagram illustrates the two kinds o context:
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Linguistic Context
Co-text Language-specific Linguistically interpreted
General Context
Linguistic context Culture-specific Culturally interpreted
Contex
Diagram (2): ypes o Context
Another example is the English word dating . Tis word is used reely and requently within the English culture. In Arabic, however, it has no exact equivalent. Tereore, relying only on the linguistic context would provide an unacceptable translation, as the English word implies connotations that are not implied in the Arabic culture (i.e. intimate relations). o this effect, translating literary texts requires understanding paralinguistic eatures. ranslators should possess the capability o analyzing, sensing and eeling the literary text. A mastery o the oreign language and its culture and the translator’s own language and culture would orm a good base or the translator. However, only mastering the oreign language itsel is not good enough or making a good translator o literature, as he needs to be more amiliar with the effects o sounds and the rhythmic setting o the text, particularly in poetry. As or poetry, it is the art o employing words in such a manner as to produce an illusion on the senses: the art o doing by means o words what the painter does by means o colors (Savory 1957: 76). Savory also points out that poetry has certain eatures such as rhythm, metrical rhythm, emotion, sensuous emotion, increased figure o speech, conventional word-order, and above all imagination. Te ability to see eatures as an object or in a particular situation which another might miss is one o the necessities the translator o literature should possess. Full mastery o both languages and cultures enables the translator to at least produce the orm as well as the manner or the style o the original text. As or the strategy o translating poetry, some believe that poetry is translatable either through “prose strategy” or “verse strategy”. ytler (1979: 107) believes that by using “prose strategy”, some o the sweetness and melody o the versification o the poem may perish. Tereore, it is believed that verse strategy is close to the original orm o the text than that o prose. Verse strategy gives us an opportunity to enjoy and experience figures
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o speech. It also allows us to utilize any word-order that may prove to be suitable. o o this effect, the translator may opt or verse strategy in translating t ranslating poetry, simply simply because it has the power o stirring the emotions o readers better than that o prose. o make these remarks more convincing, the ollowing example, taken rom the work o an American romantic poet, Philip Freneau, demonstrates how how verse strategy in translating English poetry into Arabic is more effective and provocative than that o prose. In describing his love o nature, Freneau (1970: 149) wrote: w rote: “Faire flower, that dost so comely grow, Hide in this silent, dull retreat, Untouched thy honey’ hone y’d blossoms blo ssoms blow bl ow,, Unseen thy little branches greet: No roving oot shall crush thee here, No busy hand provoke a tear.” I the translator opts or prose translation, the translation in Arabic should look like this: ranslation (1):
. .
(Below is a literal translation o the above Arabic text.) You are the beautiul flower that grows elegantly. You are hidden in this calm and boring retreat. Your honeyed blossoms blow without someone touching you, and your little branches greet without being seen. Tere will not be a oot that will crush you, nor will be a hand that ools around with you. Compare the above prose translation with the ollowing verse translation, in which the ocus and preerence are given to the orm o the original text. ranslation (2):
.
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You beautiul flower that does comely grow, Hidden in this solitude s olitude and dull retreat, Untouched, your honeyed blossoms blow, Unseen, your little branches greet, No roving oot will crush you here, No busy hand will provoke a tear. Te comparison clearly shows that translation (2) is more effective than translation (1), simply because it stirs the emotions and provides us with an accurate and precise meaning. Verse Verse translation provides us with something that is similar to the way in which these verses in their original context are constructed. constructed. Another literary orm that should be accounted or is drama, which has three main eatures: speakability, speakability, style, and tension (Wellwarth (Wellwarth 1981: 140). Speakability is the way words are enunciated and style is how words are expressed and reormed on stage. As or tension, it is an easy suspense. A good translator is the one who is able to create the tension o dramatic situations without misrepresenting the playwright’s intension o dramatic credibility within the new context.
8.6 Test Your Knowledge of Chapter (8)
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
What is your your definition o literary literary translation? Explain the most undamental undamental unction o literature literature.. What are are the orms o literature? literature? Which orm orm is the most difficult difficult to translate? Why? Why? Why is translating translating a literary text difficult? How is it different different rom other other kinds o translation? What are the characteristics o texts? Can you think o other other text categorizations? categorizations? It is well known that that literary texts are very very expressive? Do you agree? Explain your answer. Explain how “general “general context” context” is different different rom “literary “literary context”? Is there there a difference between a literary context context and a linguistic linguistic context? context? Explain your answer.
ranslation ion of Texts 8.7 Analysis and Translat Read the ollowing texts very ver y careully, careully, analyze their connotativ connotativee and or figurative meanings, and then translate them into the target language.
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*Te Ebony Horse
Once upon a time there was a great and powerul king o Persia named Sabur, whose wealth and wisdom surpassed sur passed all mother monarchs. He comorted those whose spirits were broken, and he treated those who fled to him or reuge with honor.. He loved the poor honor p oor and was hospitable to strangers, and he always sought s ought to deend the oppressed against their oppressors.
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King Sabur had three daughters as beautiul as flower gardens in the ull moon and a son as handsome as the moon. And it was his custom to celebrate two holidays during the year, the New Year, or the Autumnal Equinox. On both occasions he threw open his palace, gave alms to the people, made proclamations o saety and security and prompted prompted his chamberlains and viceroys. Te people pe ople o his realm came to him, saluted him, and celebrated these holy days with joy, and they also brought him gifs, servants, and eunuchs.
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ranslate the ollowing sonnet by William Shakespeare into the target language. You must translate it in two ways: one through prose translation, and the other through verse translation. Afer you finish, compare the two translations. 2 t x e T
Sonnet 130
My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is ar more red, than her lips red: I snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; I hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. I have seen roses damask’d, red and white, But no such roses see I in her cheeks; And in some perumes is there more delight Tan in the breath that rom my mistress reeks. I love to hear her speak, yet well I know Tat music hath a ar more pleasing sound: I grant I never saw a goddess go,-My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground: And yet by heaven, I think my love as rare, As any she belied with alse compare.
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CHAPER �
Translation and Language Teaching 9.1 Introduction
Since we are discussing the status and role o translation in the teaching o a oreign language, it is important to distinguish between translating into the native language and translating into the second language (i.e. the oreign language). According to Barhoudarov (1983), there is an important difference between translating into the native (mother tongue) language and translating into the second or oreign language. In translating into the native language, the oreign text to be translated is the point o departure. Tat is, the oreign text is the first thing the translator deals with and accounts or. Here, the translator runs into the problem o analysis. Tat is, the translator analyzes the text or the purpose o understanding it and perceiving the implicit and explicit shades o meaning behind it. In translating into the second language, the oreign text is the targeted one. Tat is, the translator aims at producing a oreign text not native to him. Here, the translator runs into the problem o synthesis. Tat is, the translator goes into the process o reconstruction and production. Te text to be reconstructed or produced should express all aspects o the intricate meanings (explicit and implicit) maniested in the original. 9.2 Translation and Language Teaching
Te issue o using translation as a means o teaching a oreign language remains a contro versy. Some believe that translation could be utilized as a means o developing language within learners; others have some suspicions about this. Kopczynski (1983) summarizes these or and against arguments on the use o translation by saying that translation should
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not be used in oreign language teaching because it causes language intererence. ranslation can inhibit thinking in the oreign language and can produce compound bilingualism rather then coordinate bilingualism. Besides, using translation in oreign language teaching can interere in attaining automatic habits. It also makes the learner assume that there is one-to-one-correspondence o meaning between native language and oreign language. Using translation directs the learner’s attention to the ormal properties o oreign language items rather than their communicative unctions. From a different perspective, translation is extremely important or oreign language teaching simply because it allows conscious learning and control o the oreign language, and as a result, it reduces native language intererence. It is to be noted here that conscious learning does not preclude automatic habits. Driving a car and tying a tie can be thought o as an example. Using translation can make learning meaningul because the learner is an active participant in the process. Learning a oreign language is not like acquiring a native language, as learning a language involves conscious learning (i.e. through grammar books, etc.) whereas acquiring a language involves unconscious learning. Te act that children acquire the language and become native speakers in it is an example o unconscious learning. Linguists and translators agree to the act that translation, since it is done consciously, is an excellent exercise or language learning, but the pity in it is that most translators have partial understanding o the text they read. In learning a native language, the learner is there to all back on prior knowledge. Such knowledge is extremely important or learning new knowledge. Here, one has to assume that the learner makes use o the prior knowledge that exists within him and, in that, there is a process o mental translation going on throughout the process o language learning. It could be, in this respect, that the use o translation is helpul even more or advanced learners. For beginners, o course, it is useul simply because it expounds grammar and teaches vocabularies. It should be noted that the above pro or against arguments or using translation have been made by different scholars such as translation practitioners, linguists, psycholinguists, sociolinguists, etc. Tose scholars have more likely linguistic and behavioristic backgrounds. However, one attraction towards using translation as a means o teaching oreign language has to do with the teacher, and that is, whether or not the teacher wants language learners to use translation or learning a oreign language. eachers and university proessors, in particular, know this act very well. Tey know, whether they like it or not, that language learners indirectly and unconsciously use the translation method or learning a language. Harris and Sherwood (1978) claim that a child is conscious o his bilingualism and reely switches rom one language to another while learning a language. Harris and Sherwood call this “natural translation” (i.e. translation which is done by peo-
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ple who have not had special training in translation). Tis kind o language learning led Harris and Sherwood to believe that translation is co-extensive with bilingualism. Other studies have touched upon the subject o translation and bilingualism, indicating that rom the earliest stages o bilingualism, the two languages are compounded. Tat is, they are made up rom one another. Tereore, avoiding native language intererences while learning a oreign language is almost impossible (Harris and Sherwood 1978: 10-12). 9.3 Strategies in Foreign Language Learning
Tere are o course strategies in which learners can learn a oreign language and communicate with it effectively. One o these strategies is called “code-switching.” According to Bolinger and Sears (1981) and Crombie (2004), code-switching is a linguistic behavior in which speakers may switch between one language and another; it also means switching between standard orms and regional orms o the same language. Code switching is mixed discourse. Tat is, when a word or phrase is used occasionally in a host language, the user is inserting or using that word in a way that it becomes part o his way o using his own language. Foreignizing is another strategy used in oreign language learning, namely the invention or creation o a word or phrase that does not exist in the learner’s second language, particularly when applying his native language morphology o second language lexical items. ransliteration and interlingual transer are other strategies used in learning a oreign language. According to Bialystok and Frolich (1980) and Izzy (2005), transliteration is a literal rendition o the native language word or phrase. As or interlingual transer, Faerch and Kasper (1980) and Odlin (2001) suggest that interlingual transer is rewording the text and interpreting verbal signs by means o some other languages. Interlingual transer has to account or total and ull translation. Tere are common questions that should be asked when considering the role o translation in oreign language teaching. Tese questions are represented in the type o translation, the unction o translation, or whom we translate, and at which phase o language should we introduce translation. First o all, according to Odlin (2001) interlingual translation is the type o translation that should be ully taken into account in teaching translation or the purpose o leaning a oreign language. In this approach, translation is looked upon as a series o operations o which the point o departure and the end product are unctions within a give culture. Interlingual transer o inormation has to account or total and ull translation. otal or ull translation reers to the translation o language at all levels. It should not be restricted to some partial analysis or analysis at some specific
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levels. Although the word-or-word translation and the grammar-translation methods are the earliest types o translation, one should note that interlinear translation is used in the grammar-translation method, whereas word-or-word and literal translations are used in contrastive analysis. As or the unction o translation, it is to be remembered that expounding and interpreting a text is not only a matter o providing equivalence but, in act, it is a translation o the grammatical and lexical aspects o the text. For example, at the phonological level, students should be made aware o the different and similar sounds between the two languages, the native language (NL) and the oreign language (FL). In Arabic, or example, there are [c], [kh], [h], and [gh] that are glottal and palatal sounds that do not exist in English and are pronounced with difficulty by non-native speakers o Arabic. At the same time, other sounds such as [a], [b], [d], [e], [], [j], [t], [s], [z], [m], [n], [k], [l], and [r], among other sounds, are pronounced the same in English. Tereore, making students aware o the two phonological systems o the two languages is extremely significant and undoubtedly useul. It is indeed useul in the sense that it makes them amiliar with the different pronunciations o the sounds o the two languages. Te other translation approach through which students can learn a oreign language is the semantic approach. Semantics, in its simplest orm, is defined as the study o meaning (Ogden and Richards 1923; Saeed 1997). Trough semantics, students become acquainted with the relations connecting between sentences compared with equivalent sentences in their native language. Tey also become acquainted with the act that the vocabulary o a particular language is not simply a listing o independent items, but is organized into areas or fields with which words interrelate and define each other in different ways (Bolinger and Sears 1981). Furthermore, semantization o oreign language meanings is known to be the oldest use o translation (Kopczynski 1983). Tat is, teachers within this field are mainly concerned with translating words, phrases and sentences into the native language to explicate their meanings. Tis approach was de veloped later as the contrastive linguistic approach by Fries (1999), Lado (1957, 1968), Granger (2003) and later by Stockwell and Bowen (1965), Di Pietro (1971), Fisiak et al (1981), and James (1980). Fries, cited in Kopczynski (1983: 10), states: Te most efficient materials are those that are based upon a scientific description o the language to be learned, careully compared with a parallel description o the native language o the learner. Along the same line, Kuchlwein (et al) (1981) suggest that one o the important techniques o comparing between two languages is translation. Although contrastive linguistics has been through its ups and downs, it has become an established science and
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a necessary component in preparing teaching materials. Even nowadays, according to Kopczynski (1983), it is hard to find a pedagogic grammar which would not make contrastive statements. Furthermore, translation has also been used to teach grammar structures (Marton et al 1976). Here, teachers can show students equivalent and non-equivalent structures. For example, the sentence Adam goes to college can be explained in terms o its grammatical equivalents. Adam is equivalent to (subject ) as in English and goes can be explained in terms o its grammatical equivalent (prepositional phrase). In terms o non-equivalent structures, the ocus in the sentence Adam is a good student should be on comparing adjectives. In English, adjectives precede nouns (S+V+ADJ+N) whereas in Arabic, adjectives ollow nouns (S+V+N+ADJ). Making students aware o these grammatical structures will benefit them significantly in understanding both oreign and native languages. ranslation has also been used or teaching the lexis o a oreign language. Lexis is used here in a variety o technical phrases. It could incorporate a unit o vocabulary (lexical item or lexeme) or a complete inventory o lexical items o a language (lexicon). It could also incorporate items that are cited in a lexicon as a set o lexical entries (or more inormation, see Crystal 1986). As or the translation method o teaching oreign language lexis, Marton (1977) suggests that an example o translation, as an important actor in teaching lexis, is the teaching o what is called conventional syntagms as words that are bound in advanced level o learning. Syntagms are words that are bound in collocation relationships. He rightly states that the problem o learning new vocabulary items at the advanced level is not learning the items themselves, but it is the conventional collocation, which they enter. In a oreign language, there are fixed expressions which are different rom expressions in the native language. Tey differ in the act that their meanings are conclusive rom their component parts. For example, in English, one can say fish and chips as an English collocant whereas the same expression cannot collocate in Arabic. Tat is, in Arabic, fish does not collocate with chips. Te expression khobs and malh (bread and salt) are an Arabic collocant but not in English, as bread does not collocate with salt. Tese collocations and their importance can be put in ocus through translation. It is to be noted that translation can also develop language skills at an advanced level. An experimental project, conducted at Poznan University, Poland, Skowronski (1982), confirms that student groups in the English Department, trained using translation techniques, had better results in developing the skill o speaking and writing than the groups
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that did not use translation techniques. Tis shows that using translation is indeed significant in the teaching o oreign language skills.
9.4 Test Your Knowledge of Chapter (9)
1. 2. 3. 4.
Explain how translation contributes to learning a oreign language. What is the difference between language and language acquisition? What are the strategies or learning a oreign language? One o the methods o learning a oreign language is the “Semantic Approach”. Explain this method with exemplifications. 5. What is collocation? Give examples rom your native language.
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CHAPER ��
Translation and Pragmatics of Discourse 10.1 Introduction
Tis chapter has three objectives: first, it examines the pragmatic variables in an intercultural and interpersonal context. Second, it argues that the use o a common language across cultures does not always guarantee mutual understanding. Tird, it highlights areas where miscommunication is likely to occur as a result o intercultural and interpersonal differences. Finally, this chapter provides implications or interpreters in terms o how to eliminate actors giving rise to intercultural/interpersonal misunderstanding. 10.2 Intercultural and Interpersonal Communication
In the last two decades, approaches have been gaining grounds in intercultural and interpersonal communication (Gumperz 1982; Antaki 1994). Tese approaches do not only seek to examine the differences in the verbal behaviors o any linguistic communication, but rather the intercultural and interpersonal communication as well. Intercultural and/ or interpersonal communication is understood here as a strategy used to create meaning in cross-cultural communication. Such an interactional view is also known as the theory o pragmatics, as it solely depends on a specific situation at hand. Furthermore, theories developed within what has become known as pragmatics in recent years are directly relatable to the oral mode o interpreting speakers do all the time. In order to help the theory and the practice to meet as well as possible, one has to look at it rom the end o the oral mode o spoken language, which we call interpreting. I have chosen the oral mode o spoken language because it is easier to perceive the pragmatic variables at work in the oral mode than it is in the written mode. Tis
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is simply due to the many contextual variables such as acial expressions, hand movements, tone and quality o voice, etc. Tese variables may not really be ubiquitous in the written mode o discourse. Tis does not mean that such variables are not all equally present in the written mode o translation, but they tend to be easily maniested in the oral mode o language (i.e. interpreting). Although spoken and written languages in cross-cultural communications are viewed as i they were two separable entities, one has to take into account the act that in both activities, there is a transerence and/or conversion o meaning rom one language system to another language system and rom one community to another community. However, this particular transerence can be done in speech and in writing. It can also be done through subtitling below a television screen or a film screen. In all o this, speaking and writing involves meaning transerence or conversion. Tere is no need to go into the controversy o what constitutes meaning. However, one needs to point out that meaning is generally understood here as the totality o the inormation conveyed in a particular message, whether stated or implied (Shiyab 1990). o this effect, what is called ‘meaning’ in the oral mode o language (i.e. interpreting, is what this chapter is going to investigate). o relate theories o pragmatics to writing in an intercultural/cross-cultural context, one has to understand the relationship between the addressor and the addressee. What was the message and or whom was it destined? Unless these issues are taken into account, understanding will be obscure and murky. One can imagine, or instance, that when speakers have words on a printed page, they (words) are, in a sense, disassociated rom the people who produce those words and rom the people or whom those words are destined. For example, look at a particular message written on a page; one sees the words on the page; however, no one sees who wrote those words in the first place. It might have been the speaker or somebody also. Who knows? In a sense, since we have seen the message, then we are the people whom it is destined or, but we should be aware that it is a message that was not originally destined or us; it was destined or somebody else. It is axiomatic that in a large number o, but not all, situations o speaking, the text-producer and text-receiver are both present in one situation, in one moment in time, and in one place; thereore, it is easy to observe communication happening. One can reflect on the act that during meetings, whether political or social, one might think o the position o chairs and tables in the meeting room beore the meeting even starts. Te point here is that this particular preparation might have taken minutes or even hours. Te question: why is that? I think that when people put a great deal o thought into exactly where they place the tables and chairs, it hardly matters, although there might be a particular configuration o tables and chairs which perhaps may not be an entirely
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symmetrical one and might have its significance, but nevertheless, or such a meeting, it took minutes and hours. My second example is a stylized orm o an exchange that took place between two people coming rom two different cultures. Tese people were speaking English to each other and it was the opening exchange o these two businessmen who had a task to negotiate a business deal, which they ailed to negotiate. Te meeting was unsuccessul and the dificulty can be traced back to the very first words they spoke to each other and these are the first words in a largely stylized orm. Here is the conversation that took place between these two people: A: ‘Hello!’ B: ‘Hello,’ he replied as he turned around to see who was talking to him. A: ‘It has been a long time since we have seen each other.’ B: ‘Yes. oo long, I am araid,’ he replied. A: ‘Well, that depends on what you mean by a long time,’ he remarked. Here one can realize that at this stage o the conversation, something has already gone wrong. Tere is already something not working properly in terms o communication and the questions are: can one identiy what has gone wrong here and where does it start? Te point is, that by the end o this short exchange, a very competitive atmosphere is being created because (A) is saying “it has been a long time” and (B) is saying “well, that is your ault, not mine, etc…” and or people who are trying to work out a successul business deal, they got off on the wrong oot. Tings have already started to go wrong, and instead o being cooperative, they are finding themselves competing with each other. 10.3 Culture and Communication
Based on the above observations, one can relate this to two important points that have been observed when people negotiate with each other. Te first point is that there is a constant need to oster good relations between the people speaking to each other. All o us know that this is not specific to any particular culture in the sense that it is experienced in all cultures; however, it finds its way out linguistically in different orms. When people try to negotiate or even converse with someone, they are aware that there is a constant need to ensure that the relations between the two people speaking to each other are taking place on the right terms; they do things linguistically with language to ensure that happens. Te second point, which is relatable to this and other exchanges, is that in different cultures, there are unwritten rules or when it is someone’s turn to speak (Wells 1981; Gumperz et al 1981; Gumperz 1982). One might have observed this in some cultures
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and/or in some linguistic cultures. In some languages, Arabic or example, it is more acceptable to interrupt the person one is speaking with than it is in other cultures. English is a case in point. But i one is going to interrupt, there are ways o doing it linguistically; there are ways when one should not do it linguistically. Tese, incidentally, are among the most difficult problems acing language learners at all times. We are all amiliar with the kind o difficulty we ace when we learn a oreign language. We actually commit, in one way or another, a number o verbal and non-verbal offences, which are either very aggressive towards the person we are speaking to or not aggressive enough. 10.4 Grice’s Maxims
At this point, one has to introduce Grice’s (1975) maxims. Until the 1970’s, more or less, not a great deal o attention had been paid to the way in which people use language to achieve their own ends and to the rules which people implicitly obey when conversing with other people. It was this that led Grice to talk o what he calls “the cooperative principle”. Grice states the principles as “Make your conversational contribution such as is required, at the stage o which it occurs, by the accepted purpose and direction o the talk exchange in which you are engaged” (Grice 1975: 45). What Grice is saying here is that when you talk to someone and someone is talking to you, it is a natural assumption in the first instance, unless you have evidence to the contrary, that the person talking to you is trying to be cooperative. He is not deliberately trying to mislead you; he is not deliberately going to try and bore you; he is not going to talk to you about a lot o things that are not relevant to you, and so on. Tis is the basic assumption that people make. Here, Grice ormulated these assumptions into a number o what he called “maxims”: quality, quantity, relation, truthulness, and manner. Te first maxim is quality . Tis maxim means that the speaker or writer should include all inormation that the audience requires to understand the message. In other words, speakers should be truthul and say nothing that lacks adequate evidence. I the speaker or writer leaves out significant inormation, there is a possibility that there will be a breakdown in communication or at a least a necessity on part o the speaker to provide urther inormation. Te second maxim is quantity , which has to do with the notion that when people speak to each other, they go on long enough to make their point. Tey should be brie and should not include unnecessary inormation. Tere is no need, on part o the speakers, to keep rambling on without providing new inormation. When they eel they have made their point, they stop talking. In other words, speakers should not be more or less inormative than required. Te point is that when you are having an ordinary conversation with someone, you know that time is limited, because when you are talking, the other person cannot really talk. You know that there is joint cooperation whereby the
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conversation time is shared to a certain conversation cer tain extent. Tereore, you will not go on longer than you eel necessary. I someone asks you a question like, Can you show me the way to the White House?, you will try tr y to give him/her instructions on how to reach the White House, which will be as short and explicit as possible. You You would not say s ay,, “Well, “Well, in America, as a whole, there are many white houses. Tere are small white houses and large white houses. I assume the one you want to go to is the one where the President resides. On the other hand, i you got a taxi, tax i, you could take X street, but i you do not have one, you could take Y street.” No one would do that because they know time is limited. Grice states that the maxim quantity is is to “make your contribution as inormative as is required or the current purpose o the exchange. Do not make your contribution more inormative than required” (Grice 1975: 47). Te third maxim is the maxim o relevance or relation. It is very simply stated “be relevant”. Let us consider the previous example: Can you show me the way to the White House?
You would not normally expect a response such as: I saw a nice woman walking down the street.
Te above would not be b e a relevant reply. reply. Tereore, the maxim indicates i ndicates that i we assume that the person speaking to us is being cooperative, which is the underlying assumption i he/she is being cooperative, then he/she will give us a reply which is in some sense relevant to what we have said in the first place. Te ourth maxim is the maxim o truthulness. Grice states “Do not say what you believe to be alse. Do D o not say that or which you lack adequate evidence” evidence” (Grice 1975: 48). In other words, do not lie, but then why should that be a normal maxim o talk exchanges. One can see that this maxim is very closely related to the maxim o quality, and Grice receives a lot o criticism about the overlapping o both maxims. However, this maxim, as well as the other quality maxim, relates back to this cooperative principle that when someone is talking to you, your first assumption is that they are not telling you a pack o lies. You You may have other evidence, which would lead you to the conclusion that perhaps they are telling you a pack o lies. However, the first natural (my (my italics) assumption is that when you go up to someone and ask Can you show me the way to the White House? , they are not going to show you the way to a white house instead, otherwise their response will be untruthul. Te last maxim is manner and and is stated as “Be perspicuous. Avoid obscurity o expression. Avoid ambiguity. Be brie. Be orderly.” Perhaps “be orderly” is important because what we
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normally expect, when one asks somebody a question, is that the answer that comes back to us will be in a sequence s equence and the elements which are used will be in a certain order. Tis will make it easy or us to understand what has been said. s aid. Tis is the normal assumption. Grice (1975: 51), in trying try ing to show how these maxims work, gives this little exchange: A: I am out o petrol. B: Tere is a garage around the corner. Now Grice says on the ace o it i we just look at this as a sequence o linguistic elements, people could say, say, i they knew nothing about the way the world works, in general, that (B) is not being relevant. (A) says “I am out o petrol” and (B) starts talking ta lking about something that is around the corner. Te point here, however, as Grice says is that “the normal assumption is the person that we say this to “I am out o petrol” is, in act, being cooperative. Tereore, rather than assuming that (B) is being uncooperative, we start looking at the words that (B) says to see i there is some meaning. In other words, there are contextual variables in the utterance that would enable the audience to make a connection between the real world and the t he implication behind uttering that statement. According According to Grice (1975: 45-51), this is called implicature. Tis particular maxim is one that has had a lot written about since it is certainly something essential or interpreters and translators. 10.5 Assessment
Grice’s maxims are very useul in the semantic analysis o texts. Such useulness, however however,, is reduced by the t he generality, generality, not to say vagueness, with which they are ormulated (Lyons (Lyons 1977). According to Lyons, evaluating utterances is ar more difficult diffi cult than quantiying the amount o semantic inormation in an utterance utterance.. aking this into account (i.e. conversation between people) one can say that what is interesting about a breakdown in communication is that the people who are experiencing the breakdown do not even notice that communication has broken down until much later when things start to get aggressive. At this point, one needs to add bi-cultural dimension to Grice’s Cooperative Principle, because Grice is talking about it in relation to all people everywhere. So, what should the interpreter do in cases where the interpreter notices that something is going wrong in the interpreting act or eels that the speaker has lost his way in the conversation? Te dilemma is whether w hether the interpreter can intervene and say, say, “you have got this wrong; you are not understanding each other. Tis is not intended as a criticism. It is intended to be cooperative, etc.” Conversely, do the interpreters have this right?
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Variables and Interpreting 10.6 Pragmatic Variables One can make the proposal that conerence interpreters should be given the right and the duty to actually stop the t he proceeding in an international conerence i they know that some talk exchange is based on a misunderstanding, however slight. Tey should not be criticized or actually intervening. Tere is a linguistic problem, although it is likely to be cultural as much as linguistic. Here one can see two objections: first, this problem places an intolerable burden on the interpreter himsel/hersel. I interpreter interpreterss intervene in an international conerence halway through a speech rom a delegate rom Jordan or Canada or wherever, wherever, they are not going to be appreciated at all or it. What they say had better be right and had better be demonstrably right as well. Te second objection is that in negotiations, people very ofen will wi ll deliberately misunderstand the person they are talking to as a negotiating policy. As a strategy in argument, one deliberately ails to hear something or one deliberately takes the wrong sense o something. It happens all the time and consequently, consequently, how is the interpreter going to deal with this? Tis is a very controversial issue and it is certainly true, tr ue, not so much or conerence interpreters, but or liaison interpreters. interpreters. Tere is a real need or a systematically arranged and comprehensive collection o rules or proessional liaison interpreters, stating what interpreters should do and what they should not do in these situations. At the moment, there is no code co de o practice and consequently interpreters interpreters get criticized or whatever happens. I interpreters allow the miscommunica miscommunication tion to continue, they are criticized. People may not like the idea that interpreters did not clear it up and stop it, then they may find themselves more subject o criticism than i they had said nothing. So, it is an unsolved problem. Consider the ollowing extract between two people coming rom two different cultures. Speaker (A) is a Jordanian whereas speaker (B) is an American. A: B: A: B: A: B: A: B: A: B:
‘Excuse me. What is your name?’ ‘My name is Adam, Adam, he replied, with the sound o curio curiosity sity in his voice. voice.’’ ‘How long have been in this city?’ ‘Well, ‘W ell, I’ve I’ve been here or only two years, years,’’ he answered. ‘wo years, years,’’ huh. ‘What ‘What do you do or a living, he asked? ‘I work in a supermar supermarket, ket,’’ replied the America American n afer some hesitation hesitation.. ‘How much money do you make monthly? monthly?’’ he asked boldly. boldly. ‘I don don’t’t know exact exactly ly,,’ he replied with a rowned ace. ‘You ‘Y ou don’t don’t have to say exact exactly ly how much,’ he recommended recommended.. ‘I you will excuse me, please. I’ve got to go,’ he replied with astonishment as he turned and walked wa lked away suddenly. suddenly.
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In this conversation, there is a problem that is traceable back to the act that (A) kept on asking (B) very personal questions, and (A) finally interpreted this as an attempt to undermine his respect, his position, etc. As a result, both speakers did not get on very well with each other. However, it should be pointed out that this is a finding which comes in via social-psychology that we all have what is known as ‘close group’ and ‘neutral group’. Your ‘close group’ is those people in your immediate surrounding with whom you identiy, with whom you have close relations (i.e. your amily, your close riends, etc.). In dierent cultures, these are defined in different ways and there are different norms. Tere are such things as ‘close group’, although we never meditate or think o who is or is not in the ‘close group’ or in the ‘neutral group’. Nevertheless, we instinctively eel this. O course, there is the ‘neutral group’ which is everyone else. Another complexity in cross-cultural communications is that which results rom differences in the perception o one’s cultural and linguistic elements (Noss 1986). For example, in the Jordanian culture, it is considered polite to welcome strangers rom a oreign country by treating them immediately as part o your ‘close group’. Tereore, at times you ask them some personal questions. It is a way o welcoming people, or getting close to them, trying to make him/her eel at home. However, this is not so or the Americans and consequently one gets these misinterpreted intentions which are a source o difficulty. Now, in going on about that, one may talk about the different kinds o difficulties which people are observed to have, and the sources o intercultural communication dificulties. Tere are our kinds: first, people’s language behavior; secondly, peoples’ non verbal behavior; thirdly, the basis on which we make attribution about other people; and ourthly, the inside/outside group bias. When it comes to language behavior, people may ail to understand each other because they do not understand the language (i.e. cultural aspects) that each other speak. Te point here is that people are behaving linguistically in a proper manner within their own language community, but misinterpreted within another language community due to cultural differences. A similar point to be made here, which concerns different races and cultures, is that it so happens that the socio-economics o a particular country, Britain or example, are such that the people who serve ood in many establishments are largely o Pakistani or Indian origins. Te people receiving the ood, in this case, are mostly British. Te language o exchange between these two groups is English. When we all speak a oreign language very ofen, one o the last things to change is our intonation patterns. We might get the grammar right, but we do not always perceive that intonation patterns carry meaning. In certain languages (i.e. Urdu), people ask questions with alling intonation which might be interpreted as an insult, uncooperative, impolite, and rude in other languages. English is an example. Tis may give rise to breakdowns in communication and may result in
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unpleasant encounters due to cultural barriers. For more inormation on this subject, see Gumperz et al 1981 and Gumperz 1982. o relate breakdown in communication back to the business o interpreting, court interpreting is one o the situations where this is most difficult. It is a well observed act that in a courtroom where there is one interpreter representing what the judge is saying to the witness and what the witness is saying to the judge, the pressures on that interpreter are very great. Sometimes interpreters eel uneasy about what they do because, or the witness or the accused person, they are agents o the court, employed by the court or the court’s purposes and thereore potentially an enemy or hostile. Te accused person tends to treat interpreters as distant people, very much like ‘out group’ people. Conversely, the judge and the magistrates in the court will tend to think people may ask or interpreters because they want to erect a smoke screen; they want to make everything very indirect and “to stop us getting them”. Tey, thereore, distrust interpreters because they regard them as an ally o the accused person. So, interpreters are halway in between and have this problem o loyalties. Under those circumstances, the interpreter, or whom the accused person is, by definition, part o the ‘inside-group’ (may have the same nationality, same age, same cultural background, etc.), has to assume a neutrality which is very difficult to maintain. o sum up, I would like to conclude at this point that there is a need or interpreters to have very explicit training in the pragmatics o discourse and the way in which they operate particularly in an intercultural context. Tis unortunately is not explicitly part o the interpreter’s training. Moreover, what I have stated about interpreting, (i.e. the oral mode o using language), is equally applicable to the written mode o using language. However, the pragmatic variables o discourse in written languages (translating) are more difficult to perceive than in spoken languages (interpreting). 10.7 Test your Knowledge of Chapter (10)
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
What are the main ideas you have learnt rom this chapter? Define the term “pragmatics” and explain how it can effect communication. What are Grice’s maxims? Compare between the maxim o “relevance” and the maxim o “quality”. Are there any codes o ethics in interpreting? Why do you think so? What is Grice’s main principle? Look through this chapter again, and explain the term “Implicature”. Give two actors that contribute to breakdown in cross cultural communication.
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CHAPER ��
Translation and Scientific Texts 11.1 Introduction
In this chapter, an attempt will be made to examine why scientific translation is more important today than it was yesterday. Could it be the act that translation is linked to everyday technology or the impact technology has on translation? Could it be a combination o both? Could it be due to the act that English, as a global language, is important? What are the actors that give rise to problems in scientific translation? Can we reduce the gap between the language o science and the language o art? Tese questions, I believe, have a lot to say about translation and science. 11.2 Global Language and Science
Crystal (2003), in an article entitled “English as a Global Language”, asks many questions about the status o the English language. As he points out, what does it mean or a language to be global? What are the advantages or disadvantages o a global language? Such questions inspired many linguists to debate the prominent role o English as an international language. Witt (2000) states that although English is not the language with the greatest number o native speakers, in Europe or example, its importance or communication is growing. One may find that the English language plays an important role in many fields such as media, oreign language teaching, business, etc. It is the key to access the Western modern sciences and technological advances (Shaobin 2002). Researcher, Graddol (1997), argues that two billion people will be learning English as it becomes a truly “world language”. All this points to the act that since there is a close link between language dominance and economics, technological and cultural power (Crystal 2003: 7), then one expects to see that acts o translation across languages will flourish.
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ranslation has and will continue to play a significant role in human interaction and in the transerence o knowledge (ibid: 11); this unquestionably will put a greater demand on translation. With the dissemination o inormation, whether it be internet or computer inormation, medical terminologies, technological and scientific discoveries, the demand on transerring this knowledge rom one language to another will definitely increase, simply because the world progresses scientifically, and many lexical items emerge by the minute. Tereore, translators have to find ways to render these new items into other languages. At the present time, translators unortunately have little to say about newly scientific terms, and this may hinder the translator rom translating effectively. I assume people as well as linguists have to develop a sense o appreciation o what translators go through beore they read a translated scientific text. Words such as bolt , gaskets, stave sheet , tank chime, all have their own translation problems, resulting either rom the lack o such terms in one language or another or the difficulty o approximating between target language and source language terms. In any act o translation, an engineering project, or example, translators do not only deal with linguistic terminology, but also with terms that are relevant to building projects. Tat is, translators working on an engineering project may work on translating non-existing terminology related to project oundation, grounding, drainage, external paving, electric systems, multimedia communication systems, doors and windows, glazing, pluming, tiling, paintwork, wall covering, carpeting, alse ceiling, lifs, air conditioning, fittings and fixtures o all kinds, etc. Tis is only one kind o environment translators may choose to work in. Other areas o scientific translation may include new discoveries, internet and computer technology, new species or disease discoveries, space and aviation worlds, etc. People may think at times that translation skills are homogeneous, but a cursory look at a simple scientific text will prove the contrary. ranslators have to develop skills to translate scientific texts, but such skills are not the same to translate literary or journalistic texts. Here is a text that maniests one level o difficulty in scientific translation: Notched Panel Installation Supplement aken rom Liquids Storage Erection Manual (2005)
Care must be used in erecting a notched panel tank. Te tank must be protected rom wind damage at all times. Rings should be stable beore attempting to use an inside drive-out ladder. Installation o the notched panel tank proceeds as outlined in the Liquid Erection Manual or the floor and bottom chime connection. Te ollowing procedures are or preparation o the tank panels (gasket and bolts) and
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installation o tank panels. ank panels generally consists o a bottom panel, (figure 1) and intermediate panel, (figure 3) and a top panel (figure 6). Panels can be one row vertically punched without a notch, two rows and three rows vertically punched with a notch. A cursory look at this text indicates that this text is loaded with scientific terms. I wonder how many o these words can be ound in other languages. Tis is a question worth pondering. Also, words such as ax, steering wheel, car switch, sandwich, and any other borrowed words rom English have their roots in all cultures that it becomes very hard to come up with an equivalent. So based on this, there must be some requirements or a translator to be a good translator or scientific texts. Nida (1964), in his book entitled oward a Science o ranslating , elaborates on the dificulty o translating scientific texts. Apart rom describing the undamental elements o translating and setting translation into the context o historical changes in principles and procedures over the last two centuries, and with his emphasis on texts being understood within their cultural contexts, he believes that translating a scientific text entails amiliarity with sciences in different languages. He believes that i translating scientific material rom a language contributing to the progress o science is difficult, then translating scientific material rom a language that is outside the domain o science would be extremely difficult. Nida (1964: 223) states: I, however, the translation o scientific texts rom one language to another participating in modern cultural development is not too difficult, it is not surprising that the converse is true-that translating scientific material rom a modern indo-European language in a language largely outside the reach o western science is extremely difficult. Tis really is one o the pressing problems conronting linguists in Asia today. Having said so, translating scientific material requires different skills and amiliarity with scientific material regardless o its source. Whether a specific language contributes to the progress o technology and science or receives technology and science, translating material will contribute in either way. In an article entitled Aspects o Scientific ranslation, Al Hassnawi (2004) states requirements that are necessary or scientific translation. According to the London Institute, Al Hassnawi points out that to be a scientific translator one should have the ollowing:
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1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
broad knowledge o the subject-matter o the text to be translated; a well-developed imagination that enables the translator to visualize the equipment or process being described; intelligence, to be able to fill in the missing links in the original text; a sense o discrimination, to be able to choose the most suitable equivalent term rom the literature o the field or rom dictionaries; the ability to use one’s own language with clarity, conciseness, and precision; and practical experience in translating rom related fields. In short, to be a technical translator, one must be a scientist or an engineer, a linguist or a writer (see Gasagrade 1954: 335-40; Giles 1995; Latfipour 1996 cited in Al Hassnawi).
Along the same line, Ilyas (1989: 109) describes scientific translation as being difficult since its language is direct and technical. He believes that scientific texts do not express views or opinions, but rather acts, experiments and hypotheses. Tereore, it does not accrue emotional association and implications. Tis, according to Ilyas, explains why a scientific text is more direct and ree rom alternatives. A scientific text is also less artistic, and its language is characterized by impersonal style and a precise signification. Ilyas believes that the difficulty o translating scientific material emerges when one translates rom a language spoken by a developed nation into the language spoken by a developing or underdeveloped nation. One wonders then how the ollowing examples (taken rom Ilyas) can be rendered into other languages: Bismuth Nadir Alcazar Borax Sherbet Algebra Cipher Elixir Alembic Alkali Alcohol Carburetor
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Te question here is whether or not such terms have equivalents in other languages. ranslators, thereore, have to resort to methods o extraction or derivation, loanwords or borrowing, coinage, innovation or creation. 11.3 Language of Science vs. Language of Literature
In an attempt to differentiate between the language o science and the language o literature, Al Hassnawi (2004) highlights some language details pertaining to both types o languages. Al Hassnawi successully demarcates the defining eatures and characteristics between a scientific language and a literary language in the ollowing table:
Scientific exts -
Literary exts
Logicality Precision Reason ruth to particular reality Generalization Reerential meaning Denotation Lexical affixation Idiomatic expressions are rare Use o abbreviations, acronyms, and registers - Standard expressions - Use o scientific terminology, specialized items, and ormulae - No use o elements o figurative language
-
Lack o argumentative progression Vagueness Emotion ruth to the ideal Concretion Emotive meaning Connotation Grammatical affixation Idiomatic expressions are requent. Very ew abbreviations, acronyms, and registers - Almost all varieties - No use o scientific terminology, or ormulae - Expensive use o figurative language
able (1): Differences between Science and Literature According Al Hassnawi (2004)
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Like some other disciplines, science has specialized terminology. It has its own jargon and its own writing style. Jones (1965) presents the ollowing ten stylistic characteristics as a summary o good scientific writing: 1)
It presents acts. It deals with the application o scientific generalizations to specific situations. 2) It is accurate and truthul. It does not guess. It tells the whole truth. 3) It is disinterested. Its purpose is to inorm, not to achieve selfish purposes or to persuade a reader. Facts alone do not make writing scientific. 4) It is systematic and logically developed. 5) It is not emotive. Its appeal is to reason and understand, not eel. When it generalizes, it does so in accordance with the laws o inductive reasoning. It avoids high-level abstraction with emotional appeal. 6) It excludes unsupported opinions. 7) It is sincere. It tells the truth and avoids language that would make a reader question its sincerity. 8) It is not argumentative. It reaches its general conclusions on the basis o acts. 9) It is not directly persuasive. It is concerned with acts, with the general laws that may be derived rom the study o acts, and with the application o general laws to specific problems. I it persuades, it does so by logical reasoning. 10) It does not exaggerate. Because it is disinterested, it does not distort acts. It should be pointed out here that while the above differentiation between the language o science and language o arts is extremely significant, in the end it all boils down to the translator’s experience in this particular field. I believe experience with capacity to visualize the scientific term, and invention and creativity along with the requirements o a scientific translator are key elements to translation, particularly scientific translation. As Robinson (2003) states that experience is everything. While experience is important, he flatly asserts that some experiences are richer and more memorable than others (ibid 136).
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11.4 Test Your Knowledge of Chapter (11)
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What constitutes scientific translation? Provide exemplifications. Describe the language o science. How is the language o science different rom the language o literature? What are the problems associated with scientific translation? What method can be used or scientific translation?
11.5 Analysis and Translation of Sentences and Texts
Read the ollowing sentences/texts very careully, and then translate them into the target language. 1. As the ship moves along, its specially designed hull shape orces any oil it encounters underneath the boat past the holes.
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2. Te standard way o mopping oil spills starts by containing the slick, using large floating booms and then the salvage team uses skimming equipment to scoop up the oil.
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Prevention and Management o Diabetic Foot Ulcers (aken rom Research Affairs, Vol.5, Issue 2, 2003)
1 t x e T
An unwelcome consequence o the dramatic changes in lie style and eating habits that have occurred in the United Arab Emirates in recent times has been the rise o ype II diabetes (ormerly known as maturity onset diabetes or noninsulin–dependent diabetes). It is believed that among the urban population o UAE nationals, the incidence o ype II diabetes is about 20% - 30%, which is among the highest in the world.
Foot ulcers are a major problem or patients with diabetes and statistics indicate that at least 15% o such patients have suffered at one time or another rom this condition. Several actors place diabetic patients at high risk or ulceration o the oot. Tese include oot deormities such as bunions, corns and calluses, peripheral neuropathy (damage to nerves supplying the eet), micro or macro angiopathy (damage to blood vessels leading to decreased blood flow to the eet) and obesity leading to high pressure on the oot. Other risk actors include poor glucose control, duration o diabetes over 10 years and smoking. ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________
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A Slicker Way to Clean up Oil anker Spills (Research Affairs, Vol.5, Issue 2, 2003)
Giant uel tankers spewing oil into the sea are an all too amiliar sight. When an oil spill accident occurs within a marine environment, it usually leads to serious environmental and economical impacts on the whole society. Oil spill mitigation techniques are complex and evolving. In this research project, the research team headed by Dr. Mamdouh Ghannam has investigated the possibility o developing a new technique based on the density difference between crude oil and water as well as the energy o the injected air bubbles to move the crude oil spill towards a recovery unit. Te Unit has been designed and built (see Graphic) by a team o emale students, Nadia Saleh, Nada Naser and Fatima Khaliea, as part o their graduation project during the first semester o the academic year 2002/2003.
2 t x e T
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11.6 Finding Equivalent Terms in the Target Language
Te ollowing terms are scientific terms. Many o the terms are in the fields o medicine, engineering, biology, physics, etc. Some o these terms were taken rom the National Institute o Health (2003) – University o Kansas Medical Center (USA) ; others were taken rom Wikipedia Free Encyclopedia (2006b). Study the scientific terms or concepts below and find equivalents in the target language.
Scientific erms
Definition
L Equivalent
Acceleration
Acceleration is the rate at which the velocity vector changes.
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Acquired mutations
Gene changes that arise within individual cells and accumulate throughout a person’s lietime; also called somatic mutations.
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Adenine (A)
A nitrogenous base, one member o the base pair A- (adenine-thymine).
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Acupuncture
It is the practice o inserting very thin needles in specific acupuncture points or combinations o points on the body to improve health and well-being.
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Variant orms o the same gene. Different alleles produce variations in inherited characteristics such as eye color or blood type.
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Te term “Allopathy” was coined by Samuel Hanemann. Te term “Allopathy medicine” is used most requently in the context o critiques o conventional medicine.
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A protein excreted by the etus into the amniotic fluid and rom there into the mother’s bloodstream through the placenta.
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Alleles
Allopathy
Alpha-etoprotein (AEP)
Amino acid sequence Te linear order o the amino acids in protein
or peptide.
Amniocentesis
Prenatal diagnosis method using cells in the amniotic fluid to determine the number and kind o chromosomes o the etus and, when indicated, perorm biochemical studies.
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Autosome
Any o the non-sex-determining chromosomes. Human cells have 22 pairs o autosomes.
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Bates method
Te Bates method is an alternative approach to eyesight improvement and maintenance.
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Bone marrow transplantation
A procedure in which doctors replace marrow destroyed by treatment with high doses o anticancer drugs or radiation.
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Breathing meditation Deep breathing involves slow, deep inhalation
through the nose, usually or a count o 10, ollowed by slow and complete exhalation or a similar count.
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CAM is an acronym or complementary and alternative medicine. It also includes the recent addition o integrative medicine.
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Carrier
An individual heterozygous or a single recessive gene.
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Catheter
A thin plastic tube.
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Chelation therapy
Chelation therapy is the use o chelating agents such as EDA to remove heavy metals rom the body.
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Chiropractic is a popular orm o alternative medicine whose physical mode o action is spinal manipulations that allegedly unblock nerve signals sent by the brain so that the body can heal itsel.
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Clone
A group o identical genes, cells, or organisms derived rom a single ancestor.
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Cloning
Te process o making genetically identical copies.
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Codon
A sequence o three nucleotides in messenger mRNA that specifies an amino acid.
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Colonoscopy
Examination o the colon through a flexible, lighted instrument called a colonoscope.
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Consanguinity
Genetic relationship.
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Conserved sequence
A base sequence in a DNA molecule (or an amino acid sequence in a protein) that has remained essentially unchanged throughout evolution.
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CAM
Chiropractic medicine
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Detailed pictures o areas o the body created by a computer linked to an x-ray machine. Also called computed tomography scan or computed axial tomography scan.
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Current
Current is the rate o flow o electrical charge.
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Diploid
A ull set o genetic material, consisting o paired chromosomes one chromosome rom each parental set. Most animal cells except the gametes have a diploid set o chromosomes. Te diploid human genome has 46 chromosomes.
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Distance
One o the undefined qualities o physics, it measures the separation o two points.
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DNA
Te substance o heredity; a large molecule that carries the genetic inormation that cells need to replicate and to produce proteins.
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A technique or selectively binding specific segments o single-stranded (ss) DNA or RNA by base pairing to complementary sequences on ssDNA molecules that are trapped on a nitrocellulose filter.
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DNA probe
Any biochemical used to identiy or isolate a gene, a gene product, or a protein.
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Domain
A discrete portion o a protein with its own unction. Te combination o domains in a single protein determines its overall unction.
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Double helix
Te shape that two linear strands o DNA assume when bonded together.
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E. coli
Common bacterium that has been studied intensively by geneticists because o its small genome size, normal lack o pathogenicity, and ease o growth in the laboratory.
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A method o separating large molecules (such as DNA ragments or proteins) rom a mixture o similar molecules. An electric current is passed through a medium containing the mixture, and each kind o molecule travels through the medium at a different rate, depending on its electrical charge and size. Separation is based on these differences. Agarose and acrylamide gels are the media commonly used or electrophoresis o proteins and nucleic acids.
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C or CA scan
DNA hybridization
Electrophoresis
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Enzyme
A protein that acilitates a specific chemical reaction.
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Erythrocytes
Te hemoglobin-containing cell ound in the blood o vertebrates, red blood cells.
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Euchromatin
Te chromatin that shows the staining behavior characteristic o the majority o the chromosomal complement.
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Te improvement o humanity by altering its genetic composition by encouraging breeding o those presumed to have desirable genes.
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Cell or organism with membrane-bound, structurally discrete nucleus and other well-developed subcellular compartments. Eukaryotes include all organisms except viruses, bacteria, and blue-green algae.
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Exogenous DNA
DNA originating outside an organism.
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Exons
Te protein- coding DNA sequences o a gene.
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Eugenics
Eukaryote
Fecal occult blood test A test to check or hidden blood in stool. Fecal reers to stool. Occult means hidden. (FEE-kul-o-KUL)
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Florescent in situ hybridization: a technique or uniquely identiying whole chromosomes or parts o chromosomes using florescent tagged DNA.
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Flower essence therapy is a sub-category o homeopathy which uses homeopathic dilutions o flowers. Tis practice was begun by Edward Batch with the Baxch floweer remedies but is now practiced much more widely, utilizing flowers all over the world. Tere are numerous makers o flower essences, using the flowers that are local to their region.
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Use o flow cytometry to analyze and/or separate chromosomes on the basis o their DNA content.
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Male or emale reproductive cell (sperm or ovum) with a haploid set o chromosomes (23 or humans).
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FISH
Flower essence therapy
Flow karyotyping
Gamete
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A unit o inheritance; a working subunit o DNA. Each o the body’s 50,000 to 100,000 genes contains the code or a specific product, typically, a protein such as an enzyme.
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Te process by which a gene’s coded inormation is translated into the structures present and operating in the cell (either proteins or RNAs).
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A chromosome map showing the relative positions o the known genes on the chromosomes o a given species.
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All the genetic material in the chromosomes o a particular organism; its size is generally given as its total number o base pairs.
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Genotype
Genetic constitution o an organism.
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Golden Age o Quackery
Eighteenth-century England is remembered as the Golden Age o Quackery, since Queen Ann patronized and gave credibility to myriad swindlers and rauds.
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Grahamism
Grahamism recommended hard mattresses, open bedroom windows, chastity, cold showers, loose clothing, pure water and vigorous exercise.
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A single set o chromosomes (hal the ull set o genetic material), present in the egg and sperm cells o animals and in the egg and pollen cells o plants. Human beings have 23 chromosomes in their reproductive cells.
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Te concept that both gene requencies and genotype requencies will remain constant rom generation to generation in an infinitely large, interbreeding population in which mating is at random and there is no selection, migration or mutation.
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A gene change in the body’s reproductive cells (egg or sperm) that becomes incorporated in the DNA o every cell in the body; also called germline mutation.
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Te production o identical or similar phenotypes by different genetic mechanisms.
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Gene
Gene expression
Genetic linkage map
Genome
Haploid
Hardy-Weinberg law
Hereditary mutation
Heterogeneity
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Heterozygosity
Te presence o different alleles at one or more loci on homologous chromosomes.
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Heterozygote
Having two alleles that are different or a given gene.
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Homeobox
A short stretch o nucleotides whose base sequence is virtually identical in all the genes that contain it. It has been ound in many organisms rom ruit flies to human beings. In the ruit fly, a homeobox appears to determine when particular groups o genes are expressed during development.
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Similarities in DNA or protein sequences between individuals o the same species or among different species.
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Homeopathy is an alternative medical practice ounded on resemblances. Te underlying theory is that diseases are cured by remedies which produce, on a healthy person, similar effects to the symptoms o the patient’s complaint. For example, someone suffering rom insomnia may be given a homeopathic dose o coffee. Administered in diluted orm, homeopathic remedies are derived rom many natural sources, including plants, metals, and minerals. Numbering in the thousands, these remedies have been used to treat a wide variety o ailments including seasonal allergies, asthma, influenza, headaches, and indigestion.
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Homozygote
Having identical alleles at one or more loci in homologous chromosome segments.
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Hormones
Chemicals produced by glands in the body. Hormones control the actions o certain cells or organs.
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Tose genes expressed in all cells because they provide unctions needed or sustenance o all cell types.
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HUGO
Human Genome Organization.
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Hybridization
Te process o joining two complementary strands o DNA or one each o DNA and RNA to orm a double- stranded molecule.
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Homologies
Homeopathy
Housekeeping genes
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Imaging
Procedures that produce pictures o areas inside the body.
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Immune system
Te complex group o cells and organs that deends the body against inection and disease.
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In situ hybridization
Use o a DNA or RNA probe to detect the presence o the complementary DNA sequence in cloned bacterial or cultured eukaryotic cells.
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In vitro
Outside a living organism.
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Inborn errors o metabolism
Inherited diseases resulting rom alterations in genes that code or enzymes.
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Incomplete penetrance
Te gene or a condition is present, but not ob viously expressed in all individuals in a amily with the gene.
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Inormatics
Te study o the application o computer and statistical techniques to the management o inormation. In genome projects, inormatics includes the development o methods to search databases quickly, to analyze DNA sequence inormation, and to predict protein sequence and structure rom DNA sequence data.
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A type o biological response modifier (a substance that can improve the body’s natural response to disease). It slows the rate o growth and division o cancer cells, causing them to become sluggish and die.
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A type o biological response modifier (a substance that can improve the body’s natural response to disease). It stimulates the growth o certain disease-fighting blood cells in the immune system.
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Te DNA base sequences interrupting the protein- coding sequences o a gene; these sequences are transcribed into RNA but are cut out o the message beore it is translated into protein.
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Iridology
Iridology is the study o the iris to determine health.
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Journaling
Journaling is a technique or reducing stress by writing about stressul events in your lie.
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Intereron (in-ter-FEER-on)
Interleukin-2 (in-ter-LOO-kin)
Introns
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Karyotype
A set o photographed, banded chromosomes arranged in order rom largest to smallest.
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Kilobase (kb)
Unit o length or DNA ragments equal to 1000 nucleotides
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Kinetic energy
Notice that this energy o motion is proportional to the square o the speed. Te unit o Joule may also be expressed as kg(m/sec)(m/sec).
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Ligase
An enzyme that unctions in DNA repair.
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Local treatment
reatment that affects the tumor and the area close to it.
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Localize
Determination o the original position (locus) o a gene or other marker on a chromosome.
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Locus (plural is loci)
Te position on a chromosome o a gene or other chromosome marker; also, the DNA at that position. Te use o locus is sometimes restricted to mean regions o DNA that are expressed.
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Logarithm o the odd score; a measure o the likelihood o two loci being within a measurable distance o each other.
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An almost colorless fluid that travels through the lymphatic system and carries cells that help fight inection and disease.
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Small, bean-shaped organs located along the channels o the lymphatic system. Bacteria or cancer cells that enter the lymphatic system may be ound in the nodes.
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Lod score
Lymph (lim)
Lymph nodes
Macrorestriction map Map depicting the order o and distance be-
tween sites at which restriction enzymes cleave chromosomes.
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Malignant (ma-LIG-nant)
Cancerous.
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Mammogram (MAM-o-gram)
An x-ray o the breast.
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Mass
One o the undefined qualities o physics, mass is the measure o inertia.
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Megabase (Mb)
Unit o length or DNA ragments equal to 1 million nucleotides and roughly equal to 1 CM.
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Te doubling o gametic chromosome number. Meiosis results in our rather than two daughter cells, each with a haploid set o chromosomes.
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Melanoma
Cancer o the cells that produce pigment in the skin. Melanoma usually begins in a mole.
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Metaphase
A stage in mitosis or meiosis during which the chromosomes are aligned along the equatorial plane o the cell.
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Metastasis (meh-AS-ta-sis)
Te spread o cancer rom one part o the body to another. Cells in the metastatic (secondary) tumor are like those in the original (primary) tumor.
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Missense mutation
A change in the base sequence o a gene that alters or eliminates a protein.
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Mitochondrial DNA
Te mitochondrial genome consists o a circular DNA duplex, with 5 to 10 copies per organelle.
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Mitosis
Te process o nuclear division in cells that produces daughter cells that are genetically identical to each other and to the parent cell.
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A group o atoms arranged to interact in a particular way; one molecule o any substance is the smallest physical unit o that particular substance.
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Substances that can locate and bind to cancer cells wherever they are in the body. Tey can be used alone, or they can be used to deliver drugs, toxins, or radioactive material directly to the tumor cells.
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Moxa is an herbal preparation o mugwort dried and rolled into a pole which resembles a cigar. It is not smoked, but used or warming regions on the body including acupunturepoints. Te use o moxa is called moxibustion.
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A change in the number, arrangement, or molecular sequence o a gene.
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Meiosis
Molecule
Monoclonal antibodies
Moxa
Mutation
Examining blood samples rom a newborn Newborn screening (or genetic disorders) inant to detect disease-related abnormalities or deficiencies in gene products. Tere are other purposes or, and methods o, screening newborns.
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Nitrogenous base
A nitrogen containing molecule having the chemical properties o a base.
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Nucleic acid
A large molecule composed o nucleotide subunits.
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Nucleotide
A subunit o DNA or RNA, consisting o one chemical base plus a phosphate molecule and a sugar molecule.
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Genes that normally play a role in the growth o cells but, when over expressed or mutated, can oster the growth o cancer.
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Oncogenes
Oncologist (on-KOL-o-jist)
A doctor who specializes in treating cancer.
Pap test
Microscopic examination o cells collected rom the cervix. It is used to detect changes that may be cancer or may lead to cancer, and it can show noncancerous conditions, such as inection or inflammation.
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Parthenogenesis
Te development o an individual rom an egg without ertilization.
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Pedigree
A diagram o the heredity o a particular trait through many generations o a amily.
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Pelvic
Having to do with the pelvis, the lower part o the abdomen, located between the hip bones.
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Penetrance
A term indicating the likelihood that a given gene will actually result in disease.
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Phage
A virus or which the natural host is a bacterial cell.
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Phenotype
Observable characteristics o an organism produced by the organism’s genotype interacting with the environment.
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Autonomously replicating, extrachromosomal circular DNA molecules, distinct rom the normal bacterial genome and nonessential or cell survival under nonselective conditions. Some plasmids are capable o integrating into the host genome. A number o artificially constructed plasmids are used as cloning vectors.
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Plasmid
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Te phenomenon o variable phenotypes or a number o distinct and seemingly unrelated phenotypic effects.
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Plum blossom is the name o both a tool (also called “Seven Star”) and a technique in traditional Chinese medicine, as well as a metaphor used by several different Chinese martial arts.
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Genetic disorders resulting rom the combined action o alleles o more than one gene (e.g. heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers). Although such disorders are inherited, they depend on the simultaneous presence o several alleles; thus the hereditary patterns are usually more complex than those o single-gene disorders.
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Any enzyme that catalyzes the ormation o DNA or RNA rom deoxyribonucleotides or ribonucleotides.
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Polymerase, DNA or RNA
Enzymes that catalyze the synthesis o nucleic acids on preexisting nucleic acid templates, assembling RNA rom ribonucleotides or DNA rom deoxyribonucleotides.
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Position
Te position o an object is its distance rom zero. Te position depends on the zero (origin) o the measurement.
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Predisposition
o have a tendency or inclination towards something in advance.
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Primer
Nucleotides used in the polymerase chain reaction to initiate DNA synthesis at a particular location.
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Proband
Individual in a amily who brought the amily to medical attention.
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Probe
Single-stranded DNA labeled with radioactive isotopes or tagged in other ways or ease in identification.
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A site on DNA to which RNA polymerase will bind and initiate transcription.
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Pleiotropy
Plum blossom
Polygenic disorders
Polymerase
Promoter
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A large, complex molecule composed o amino acids. Te sequence o the amino acids, and thus the unction o the protein, is determined by the sequence o the base pairs in the gene that encodes it. Proteins are essential to the structure, unction, and regulation o the body. Examples are hormones, enzymes, and antibodies.
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A nitrogen-containing, single-ring, basic compound that occurs in nucleic acids. Te purines in DNA and RNA are adenine and guanine.
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Qigong is an increasingly popular aspect o Chinese medicine. Qigong is mostly taught or health maintenance purposes, but there are also some who teach it, especially in China, or therapeutic interventions.
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An exam that produces pictures (scans) o internal parts o the body. Te patient is given an injection or swallows a small amount o radioactive material. A machine called a scanner then measures the radioactivity in certain organs.
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A gene that is phenotypically maniest in the homozygous state but is masked in the presence o a dominant allele.
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Te natural process o breaking and rejoining DNA strands to produce new combinations o genes and, thus, generate genetic variation. Gene crossover during meiosis.
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Reiki purports to be an energy healing therapy, which is claimed to help the body’s ability to heal itsel through the flow and ocusing o healing energy (Reiki means universal healing energy).
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Disappearance o the signs and symptoms o cancer. When this happens, the disease is said to be “in remission”. Remission can be temporary or permanent.
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Reproductive cells
Egg and sperm cells. Each mature reproductive cell carries a single set o 23 chromosomes.
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Resolution
Degree o molecular detail on a physical map o DNA, ranging rom low to high.
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Protein
Purine
Pyrimidine
Radionuclide scanning
Recessive
Recombination
Reiki
Remission
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Ribonucleic acid, a chemical similar to DNA. Te several classes o RNA molecules play important roles in protein synthesis and other cell activities.
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“Plus and minus” or “primed synthesis” method; DNA is synthesized so it is radioactively labeled and the reaction terminates specifically at the position corresponding to a given base.
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Sarcoma
A type o cancer that starts in the bone or muscle.
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Screening
Looking or evidence o a particular disease such as cancer in persons with no symptoms o disease. Checking or disease when there are no symptoms.
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Determination o the order o nucleotides (base sequences) in a DNA or RNA molecule or the order o amino acids in a protein.
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Shotgun method
Cloning o DNA ragments randomly generated rom a genome.
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Side effects
Problems that occur when treatment affects healthy cells. Common side effects o cancer treatment are atigue, nausea, vomiting, decreased blood cell counts, hair loss, and mouth sores.
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A procedure in which a doctor looks inside the rectum and the lower part o the colon (sigmoid colon) through a lighted tube. Te doctor may collect samples o tissue or cells or closer examination.
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Hereditary disorder caused by a mutant allele o a single gene (e.g. Duchenne muscular dystrophy, retinoblastoma, sickle cell disease).
________________
Hybrid cell line derived rom two different species; contains a complete chromosomal complement o one species and a partial chromosomal complement o the other; human/hamster hybrids grow and divide, losing human chromosomes with each generation until they finally stabilize, the hybrid cell line established is then utilized to detect the presence o genes on the remaining human chromosome.
________________
RNA
Sanger sequence
Sequencing
Sigmoidoscopy (sigmoy-DOS-ko-pee)
Single-gene disorder
Somatic cell hybrid
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ranser by absorption o DNA ragments separated in electrophoretic gels to membrane filters or detection o specific base sequences by radiolabeled complementary probes.
________________
A recognizable pattern or group o multiple signs, symptoms or malormations that characterize a particular condition; syndromes are thought to arise rom a common origin and result rom more than one developmental error during etal growth.
________________
andem repeat sequences
Multiple copies o the same base sequence on a chromosome; used as a marker in physical mapping.
________________
antra
Te word antra emphasizes the connection with the old Indian cultural background where the body is seen as the temple o the soul. Te tantric tradition used sexual rituals or spiritual development – a concept which is ar away rom todays experience. For example in tantramassage as a spriritual approach to sexual blockade. Used in various groups and massage sessions.
________________
Te ends o chromosomes. Tese specialized structures are involved in the replication and stability o linear DNA molecules.
________________
ranserase
Enzymes that catalyze the transer o unctional groups between donor and acceptor molecules.
________________
ranslation
Te process o turning instructions rom mRNA, base by base, into chains o amino acids that then old into proteins. Tis process takes place in the cytoplasm, on structures called ribosomes.
________________
Vector
A sel-replicating DNA molecule that transers a DNA segment between host cells.
________________
Velocity vector
Te “length” o the velocity vector is the speed. Te direction o the motion (Ø) is also part o the velocity vector.
________________
Voltage is an energy measure, the energy carried by one coulomb o electrical charge. Te voltage between two points in a circuit is the amount o energy available or pushing each coulomb o charge rom one o these points to the other.
________________
Southern blotting
Syndrome
elomere
Voltage
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Western blotting analysis
A technique used to identiy a specific protein; the probe is a radioactively labeled antibody raised against the protein in question.
________________
Wholeness
Wholeness has come to connote more than mere completeness or ullness. It implies a reality, system or truth in which all parts or aspects are present in right and healthy relationship with each other.
________________
A kidney cancer (tumor) that occurs in children, usually beore age 5.
________________
Wilms’ tumor
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CHAPER ��
Translation and Legal Texts 12.1 Introduction
Many studies have been conducted on translation, but very ew have been conducted on legal translation. ranslators find it hard to venture into the field o legal translation simply because it involves awareness and amiliarity with the two legal systems o the two languages involved in translation. Tis is not easily attainable since amiliarizing onesel with the two legal systems takes lots o time, effort and perseverance. Also, legal translation is difficult due to the diversity o the legal systems pertaining to the two languages. Furthermore, in an age where the world is becoming a small community, legal translations or legal translators are in demand. International treaties, communal and world conflicts, international trade and joint ventures are all in demand, and so too legal translators. So what is it that puts legal translation at the oreront o this emerging discipline? Could it be the subject-matter itsel or the distinctive language quality? Could it be the collaboration and cooperation between countries? Perhaps it is all o these. I believe legal translation is on the rise since we live in a changing world where technology and economics affect the world community. 12.2 Legal Language vs. Legal Translation
Tere is a correlation and direct link between language and law. I language provides the orm which determines its meaning, then this orm has a great bearing on how legal language is interpreted. According to Wikipedia (2006a), language plays a significant role in the make up and interpretation o law. So those who are mainly concerned with the lan-
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guage o law (i.e. philosophers o law) have to come up with their theory o understanding law and how it is used. Te use o language, according to Wikipedia (2006a), is: Crucial to any legal system, not only in the same way that is crucial to politics in general, but in the specific respect that law makers typically use language to make the law and courts typically use language to state their grounds o decisions. While language has a huge impact on the interpretation o the law, it is sometimes littered with vagueness and ambiguity. Some philosophers o law believe that vagueness is a must in legal language, and vagueness is an inescapable attribute o language (see Christie 1964: 886). Christie believes that the exploitation o vagueness in language reaches maximum utilization when groups in control o the legislators and those in control o the courts are antagonistic to each other. It seems that common people are excluded rom this language as i legal language was destined or only those who utilize the law. It is no wonder that the layman has no capacity to interpret the legal language, and he resorts to lawyers or legal language interpretation. Te way legal language was vaguely construed makes it hard or the ordinary man to understand. As Christie (1964: 889) states: Vagueness has some uses in law which permits men, through the use o language, to achieve more sophisticated methods o social control, or example, the use o vague language in legal directives to postpone ultimate decision. Such postponement may be desired or a variety o reasons that are ofen interconnected. As or legal translation, it is understood here as the translation o binding documents such as marriage or business contracts, birth certificates, agreements, etc. From a different angle, legal translation is the translation o texts within the field o law (Wikipedia 2006a). Te word “law” comes rom the late old English Lagu o probable Germanic origin. According to Wikipedia, law in politics or jurisprudence is a set o rules or norms o conduct which mandate, prescribe or permit specified relationships among people and organizations, intended to provide methods or ensuring the impartial treatment o such people, and provide punishments o /or those who do not ollow the established rules o conduct. Tere are different kinds o law: legal law, civil law, religious law, customary law, common law, etc. Also, within the body o law, there is private law, public law, procedural law, international law, philosophical law, anthropology o law, history law, etc. For more inormation on these types o law, see Wikipedia (2006a). It is really too hard to appreciate what is involved in legal translation, unless one is amiliar with legal language. However, like literary translation, many translation theorists and practitioners believe that legal translation is hard to handle simply because its language is
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ranslation and Legal exts
embedded within its culture. De Leo (1999) believes that legal translation is “littered” with a series o different obstacles that makes the translator’s job extremely difficult. CapellasEspuny (1999) rightly states that terminological problems are among the problems posed by legal translation. Tereore, legal translators have to be proessional translators. Tey should also be aware o the two legal systems involved. 12.3 Characteristics of Legal Texts
Legal texts are texts that are written or describing a specific law. Tey are not written to entertain or to inorm, but to explain what a word means and entails. Tereore, legal texts can inorm, communicate and describe language. It is this multi aceted nature that makes it hard to handle. Sager (1988) believes that any orm o translation must be based on the type o text. Te objective behind classiying texts into types is to delimit their communicative, social and inormative unctions. Legal texts subjected to translation can thereore be classified into different categories. Such categories are outlined by Szabari (1996) as ollows: 1. 2.
3.
Statutes (e.g. constitutions, laws, decrees), whose source language texts are primarily directive and whose target language texts are inormative. International and particularly bilateral treaties and agreements, in which case both source and target language texts are binding upon the audience. Ofen the two texts are articulated simultaneously, so there is in act no point to differentiating between the source and target texts. A good example is the European Union, which drafs statutes binding upon member states in all twelve official languages and working languages. General texts in the field o jurisprudence which examine the elements o a particular national legal system rom a broad perspective, on a high level o abstraction, or by comparing them to other legal systems.
Having classified legal texts into categories, one may realize that the problem o translating legal texts results rom the lack o finding equivalent items in the target language. I wonder i words such as invoice, agreement, contract, white paper, back-up documents, and scripts are all having one to one correspondence. Also, some legal documents can also give rise to some translation problems. For example, words such as draf , original , proo are all types o documents. Can any two languages involved in the translation have exact equivalents?
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12.4 Problems in Translating Legal Texts
In most normal cases, translating legal documents poses many problems to translators. Some o these problems may result rom the nature o the two legal systems o the two languages involved. Culture-specific terminology is an additional problem, and legal translators have to overcome the conceptual differences between the two languages involved. Newmark (1988) clearly states that i a word is denoting an object or reerring to an institution but does not exist in the target language, then it becomes extremely difficult to add a psychological characteristic alien to that language. ranslators thereore have to come up with a solution, particularly or terms that are non-existent in the target language. 12.5 Strategies for Translating Legal Texts
It is axiomatic that law does not entail passion, and thereore, cannot be emotive as the case with literary texts. Te language o law is very precise, although it is subject to semiotic restrictions. However, legal language has a distinctive quality that marks it off rom ordinary language (Grazone 2000). Te distinctive quality, according to Grazone, has been pigeonholed by jurists and jurilinguists, particularly those who have pointed out that the legal translator has to deal with problems that are dissimilar to those encountered in other fields. Some o these problems are: 1. Fidelity:
Tis term reers to whether or not translation is accurate. Although fidelity is exchangeable with the term aithulness, it can sometimes be differentiated rom aithulness in the sense that aithulness reers to how closely the translation acknowledges the target language structure. In legal translation, preserving the letter o the law is hard and traditionally, translators were bound to fidelity o the source text. Tereore, the legal translator’s ultimate goal is to re-enact and recreate the orm and substance o the text as closely as possible. Word-or word translation or literal translation used to be the only acceptable method o translating a legal text. While there are variations as ar as the methods o translating legal texts are concerned, the literal method is still in use. Sarcevic (2002) cites Didier (1990: 280) stating that translating legal documents depends on the kind o text. For example, the method o translating a legislative document is different rom translating a judgment document. According to Didier, the translation o legislation and other inormative texts requires absolute literalness. At the same time, judgments, he continues, can be translated more reely, thus reorganizing that text type also plays an important role in determining the strategy o a legal translation.
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2. Sense Translation:
Tere is still a controversy whether legal translation should be literal or ree. As indicated above, translating legal binding documents can be literal, but at other times they can be translated with some orm o reedom. Te translation strategy used will depend on the type o text. Free translation ocuses on meaning or content whereas literal translation ocuses on orm. From a practical perspective, methods and techniques o translating legal binding texts vary rom one institution to another. Weisflog (1987) cited by Sarcevic (2002) asserts that authenticated translations must be comprehensible. Substance must prevail over orm. Tis is contradictory to what other legal translations have advocated (see Didier 1990). Koutsivitis (1988) believes that legal texts must be translated reely, and the sense o the word in legal texts has to be completely understood otherwise the translated text will be littered with ambiguity. Koutsivitis believes that the translator’s ultimate task is to transer the sense o the original. So what are the ways in which legal texts can be translated? Altay (2002), in an article entitled “Difficulties Encountered in the ranslation o Legal exts”, suggests ways o translating concepts that do not exist in the target language and culture as ollows: 1. Paraphrase: Tis method is used to explain the SL concept that is alien or peculiar to the target reader. Such peculiarity results rom the act that this concept has no equivalent concept in the target culture. 2. Functional Equivalence: Here the legal translator uses the closest equivalent concept. It happens that providing unctional equivalents o a legal SL term becomes very dificult as the two legal systems have nothing in common. 3. Word-or-Word ranslation: Tis method is sometimes exchangeable with literal translation, although there is a slight difference between the two methods. Word-or word translation involves translating a lexical item or a lexical item in the target language. Te translator may make some linguistic adjustments to the text when needed. Adjustments include prepositions, endings, grammatical eatures, etc. Regardless o what method or strategy legal translators use in translating legal documents, I believe it all boils down to the kinds o texts and the constraints surrounding its production. In some parts o the world, legal texts have been adopted rom other western countries (Syria, Lebanon and France are a case in point). Within these countries, translators may find the same legal terminology unless there is a legal institution that does not exist in one country or another. In this case, translators have to extract terminology relevant to the target culture. Capellas-Espuny (1999) maintains that the translation o certain technical terms is impossible because institutions and legal systems in one country may differ rom those in another country due to social, cultural and historical differences. In such
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cases, unctional equivalence is the ideal translation or such technical terms. According to Wikipedia (2006a), when translating a legal text, translators have to keep in mind that the legal system o the source language is structured in a way that suits the culture, and this is reflected in the legal language. Tereore, the target text is to be read by someone who is amiliar with the legal systems o the two languages involved.
12.6 Test Your Knowledge of Chapter (12)
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
What is a legal text? Explain three characteristics o a legal text. What makes legal texts difficult to translate? Give three examples. Explain three methods o translating legal texts. Give two examples o “sense translation”. Is vagueness a characteristic o legal texts or does it pertain to all kinds o text? Explain your answer with exemplifications.
12.7 Finding Target Language Equivalents
Read the ollowing table very careully, and translate the legal terms into the target language. Te list below is an example o how some legal terms and concepts in one language may not have the same or similar equivalents in the target language. Some o the terms were adopted rom the United States District Court – District o Idaho (1997). Others were adopted rom Her Majesty’s Court Service, HMCS (2005). Very ew terms were adopted rom the encyclopedia AllReer.com (2003), listing U.S legal terms and concepts.
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Legal erms
Definition
L Equivalent
Accused
Te person charged. Te person who has allegedly committed the offence.
________________
Acknowledgement o Service
Form o reply to, or confirmation o, service o process.
________________
Acquittal
Discharge o deendant ollowing verdict or direction o not guilty.
________________
Act
Law, as an act o parliament.
________________
Adjudication
Judgment or decision o a court or tribunal.
________________
Administration Order An order by a County Court directing a debt-
or to pay a specified monthly installment into Court in respect o outstanding debts. Te Court retains the payments made and at intervals distributes it between the creditors on a pro-rata basis.
________________
An act by which the rights and duties o the natural parents o a child are extinguished and equivalent rights and duties become vested in the adopter or adopters, to whom the child then stands in all respects as i born to them in marriage.
________________
Voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and another person who is not the spouse, while the marriage is still valid. Tis is common act relied on or divorce.
________________
Advocate
A barrister or solicitor representing a party in a hearing beore a court.
________________
Affidavit
A written statement o evidence confirmed on oath or by affirmation to be true and taken beore someone who has authority to administer it.
________________
Declaration by a witness who has no religious belie, or has religious belies that prevent him/ her taking the oath, that the evidence he/she is giving is the truth.
________________
An alternative method by which parties can resolve their dispute – could be arbitration.
________________
Adoption
Adultery
Affirmation
Alternative Dispute Resolution
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Additional claims (e.g. in respect o maintenance) attached to the petition or divorce/judicial separation/nullity.
________________
Annul
o declare no longer valid
________________
Appeal
Application to a higher court or authority or re view o a decision by a lower court or authority.
________________
Appellant
Person who appeals
________________
Appellate Court
A court o appeals which hears appeals rom lower court decisions.
________________
Applicant
Person making the request or demand (e.g. person who issues an application).
________________
Application
Te act o applying to a court
________________
Appraisement or Appraisal
Valuation o goods seized under warrant o execution prior to sale.
________________
Attachment o Earnings
An order that directs an employer o a debtor to deduct regularly an amount, fixed by the court, rom the debtor’s earnings and pay that sum into court.
________________
Award
Result o an arbitration hearing or the amount o damages assessed by a court.
________________
Bail
Release o a deendant rom custody, until his/ her next appearance in court, subject sometimes to security being given and/or in compliance with certain conditions.
________________
Bailiff
Officer o the county court empowered to serve court documents and execute warrants.
________________
Bankrupt
Insolvent – unable to pay creditors and having all goods/effects administered by a liquidator or trustee and sold or the benefit o those creditors; as a result o an order under the Insolvency Act 1986.
________________
A member o the bar; the branch o the legal proession which has rights o audience beore all courts.
________________
A warrant issued by the judge or an absent deendant to be arrested and brought beore a court.
________________
Ancillary Relie
Barrister
Bench Warrant
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Written instructions to counsel to appear at a hearing on behal o a party prepared by the solicitor and setting out the acts o the case and any case law relied upon.
________________
Usually the first hearing in a multi track claim and an opportunity to take stock and consider the way orward.
________________
Case number
A unique reerence number allocated to each case by the issuing court.
________________
Caution
Notice given to the Land Registry by any person with an interest in particular land to ensure that no action is taken in respect o the land without the person’s knowledge.
________________
A notice given to the registrar that effectively prevents action by another party without first notiying the party entering the caveat.
________________
Certificate o Legal Aid Costs
A certificate o costs allowed ollowing taxation by a judicial or taxing officer.
________________
Cessate
A grant o representation o limited duration which has ceased and expired.
________________
Chambers
Private room or Court rom which the public are excluded in which a District Judge or Judge may conduct certain sorts o hearings.
________________
Charge
A ormal accusation against a person that a criminal offence has been committed.
________________
Charging Order
An order directing that a charge be registered at the Land Registry on property owned by the debtor. Tis is also a orm o enorcing civil debt. An order preventing the sale or disposal o a property until the charge has been cleared.
________________
Te circuit court is the trial court with the broadest powers in a state. It handles all civil cases with claims o.
________________
Circuit Judge
A judge who sits in the County Court and/or Crown Court.
________________
Civil
Matters concerning private rights and not oences against the state.
________________
Brie
Case Conerence
Caveat
Circuit Court
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Te result o the access to justice report by Lord Wool. Te aim is to provide more effective access to justice through quicker, cheaper and more proportionate justice or deended cases. It introduced a unified set o Rules and Practice Directions or the County and High Courts, and Judicial Case Management Te reorms came into effect on 26 April 1999.
________________
Claim
Proceeding issued in the County or High Court.
________________
Claimant
Te person issuing the claim.
________________
Claim orm
Te orm that a claim is issued on.
________________
Codicil
An addendum signed and executed which amends or adds something to a will.
________________
Commissioner o Oaths
Solicitors authorized by the Lord Chancellor to administer oaths and affirmations to a statement o evidence.
________________
Committal
Committal or trial: ollowing examination by the magistrates o a case involving and indictable or either way offence, the procedure o directing the case to the Crown Court to be dealt with.i)
________________
Common Law
Te law established, by precedent, rom judicial decisions and established within a community.
________________
Compensation
Sum o money to make up or or make amends or loss, breakage, hardship, inconvenience or personal injury caused by another.
________________
A direction by a Court that a number o sentences o imprisonment should run at the same time.
________________
A duplicate o the original writ bearing the same date and expiring at the same time as the original.
________________
Conditional Discharge
A discharge o a convicted deendant without sentence on condition that he/she does not reoffend within a specified period o time.
________________
Conduct Money
Money paid to a witness in advance o the hearing o a case as compensation or time spent attending court.
________________
Civil Justice
Concurrent Sentence
Concurrent Writ
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Consecutive Sentence An order or a subsequent sentence o impris-
onment to commence as soon as a previous sentence expires. Can apply to more than two sentences.
________________
Contempt o Court
Disobedience or willul disregard to the judicial process.
________________
Contributory
Partial responsibility o a claimant or the injury in respect o which he/she claims damages.
________________
Co-respondent
A person named as an adulterer (or third person) in a petition or divorce.
________________
Corroboration
Evidence by one person confirming that o another or supporting evidence, or example orensic evidence (bloodstain, fibers, etc.) in murder cases.
________________
Counsel
A Barrister.
________________
Count
An individual offence set out in an indictment.
________________
Counterclaim
A claim made by a deendant against a claimant in an action. Tere is no limit imposed on a counterclaim, but a ee is payable according to the amount counterclaimed.
________________
Sometimes inaccurately reerred to as the Small Claims Court, County Courts deal with civil matters including all monetary claims up to ₤15,000. Many County Courts have extra powers which enable them to deal with divorce and other amily proceedings, bankruptcy actions, matters relating to children and cases involving ships and boats known as admiralty actions. Some County Courts are also branch offices o the High Court known as District Registries.
________________
Court
Body with judicial powers.
________________
Court o Appeal
Civil and Criminal divisions and hears appeals: rom decision in the High Court and County Court and, against convictions or sentences passed by the Crown Court.
________________
It is a generic term or a trial court o original or primary jurisdiction. It hears employment disputes brought by employees.
________________
County Court
Court o First Instance
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Court o Limited Jurisdiction
It reers to courts that are limited in the types o criminal and civil cases they may hear. For example, traffic violations generally are heard by limited jurisdiction courts.
________________
Court o Protection
Te branch o the High Court with jurisdiction over the states o people mentally incapable o handling their own financial affairs.
________________
Court Room
Te room in which cases are heard.
________________
Covenant
A ormal agreement or a contract constituting an obligation to perorm an act.
________________
Creditor
A person to whom money is owed by a debtor.
________________
Criminal
Person who has been ound guilty o a criminal offence.
________________
Crown Court
Te Crown Court deals with all the crime committed or trial by Magistrates Courts. Cases or trial are heard beore a judge and jury. Te Crown Court also acts as an appeal Court or cases heard and dealt with by the Magistrates. Te Crown Court can also deal with some civil and amily matters.
________________
An amount o money claimed as compensation or physical/material loss (e.g. personal injury, breach o contract).
________________
Debtor
Person owing money to another party.
________________
Decree
An order o the Court in proceedings commenced by petition.
________________
Decree Absolute
A final certificate, resulting rom an application, dissolving a marriage.
________________
Decree Nisi
Order or divorce unless cause to contrary is shown within a set period.
________________
Declaration
Court order setting out the rights o a party in the orm o a statement.
________________
Deed
A legal document which sets out the terms o an agreement, which is signed by both parties.
________________
Deault Judgment
Obtained by the claimant as a result o the ailure o a deendant to comply with the requirements o a claim (i.e. reply or pay within a 14 day period afer service o the claim).
________________
Damages
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ranslation and Legal exts
Deendant
Person sued; person standing trial or appearing or sentence.
________________
Deponent
Person giving evidence by affidavit.
________________
Deposition
A statement o evidence written down and sworn on oath, or by affirmation.
________________
Designated Civil Judge
A judge designated to deal with the Civil Justice Reorms or a group o courts.
________________
Detailed Assessment
Where costs are dealt with by the drawing o a bill o costs.
________________
Determination
Act o scrutinizing a bill o costs in criminal proceedings to see i the work done and amount claimed is reasonable.
________________
Devi
Person to whom reehold land is given by a will.
________________
Disability
Te inability o a person to handle their own affairs (e.g. through mental illness or a minor under 18 years o age) which prevents in volvement in civil legal proceedings without representation.
________________
Discovery o Documents
Mutual exchange o evidence and all relevant inormation held by each party relating to the case.
________________
Discontinuance
Notice give by the court, on instruction by the claimant that they no longer wish to proceed with the case.
________________
Dismissal
o make order or decision that a claim be ceased.
________________
District Judge
A judicial officer o the Court whose duties involve hearing applications made within proceedings and final hearings subject to any limit o jurisdiction previously known as Registrars.
________________
As well as having an original jurisdiction o their own, all three divisions o the High Court have appellate jurisdiction to hear appeals rom lower Courts and tribunals. Te Divisional Court o the Chancery Division deals with appeals in bankruptcy matters rom the County Court.
________________
Dissolution or nullity o marriage.
________________
Divisional Court
Divorce
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Dock
Enclosure in criminal Court or the deendant on trial.
________________
Enorcement
Method o pursuing a civil action afer judgment has been made in avor o a party.
________________
Estate
Te rights and assets o a person in property.
________________
Execution
Seizure o debtors goods ollowing non payment o a Court order.
________________
Executor
A person or persons specified to carry out the provisions o a will.
________________
Exempt
o be reed rom liability or allegiance.
________________
Exhibit
Item or document reerred to in an affida vit or used as evidence during a Court trial or hearing.
________________
Expert Witness
Person employed to give evidence on a subject in which they are qualified or have expertise.
________________
Federal Courts
Te court system which handles civil and criminal cases based on jurisdictions enumerated in the Constitution and Federal statutes.
________________
Fee
Monies payable on issue o a claim or subsequent process.
________________
Fiat
A decree o command.
________________
Garnishee
A summons issued by a plaintiff, against a third party, or seizure o money or other assets in their keeping, but belonging to the deendant.
________________
Someone who promises to make payment or another i payment is not made by the person responsible or making the repayments o a loan or hire purchase agreement.
________________
A person appointed to saeguard/protect/manage the interests o a child or person under mental disability.
________________
Guarantor
Guardian
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ranslation and Legal exts
A civil court which consists o three divisions: i) Queen’s Bench (can be known as King’s Bench Division i a King is assuming the throne) – civil disputes or recovery o money, including breach o contract, personal injuries, libel/slander; ii) Family – concerned with matrimonial matters and proceedings relating to children (e.g. wardship); iii) Chancery – property matters including raud and bankruptcy.
________________
A criminal offence triable only by the Crown Court. Te different types o offence are classified 1, 2, 3, 4. Murder is a class 1 offence.
________________
An order by a court either restraining a person or persons rom carrying out a course o action or directing a course o action be complied with. Failure to carry out terms o the order may be punishable by imprisonment.
________________
Insolvency
Te condition o having more debts (liabilities) than total assets.
________________
Inspection o Documents
Following disclosure o each parties documents by discovery, the arrangements made by the parties to allow mutual exchange and copying o documents.
________________
Interlocutory
Interim, pending a ull order/decision, e.g. interlocutory judgment awarded an entered as final judgment.
________________
Intestate
Without leaving a will.
________________
Issue
o initiate legal proceedings in pursuit o a claim.
________________
Judge
An officer appointed to administer the law and who has authority to hear and try cases in a court o law.
________________
Final decision o a court A monetary judgment requires the payment o a sum o money by one party to another.
________________
i) Relating to the Administration o justice or to the judgment o a Court. ii) A judge or other officer empowered to act as a judge.
________________
High Court
Indictable Offence
Injunction
Judgment
Judicial/Judiciary
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A statement contained at the conclusion o an affidavit which states the name o the person giving the evidence, the name o the person beore whom and the place where the oath or afirmation was taken.
________________
Juror
A person who has been summoned by a court to be a member o the jury.
________________
Jury
Body o jurors sworn to reach a verdict according to the evidence in a court.
________________
Justice o the Peace
A lay magistrate – person appointed to administer judicial business in a Magistrates Court. Also sits in the Crown Court with a judge or recorder to hear appeals and committals or sentence.
________________
Jurisdiction
Te area and matters over which a court has legal authority.
________________
Juvenile
Person under 17 years o age
________________
Law
Te system made up o rules established by an act o parliament, custom or practice enjoining or prohibiting certain action.
________________
Lease
Te letting o land or tenements, e.g. rent, or property or a prescribed period.
________________
Legal Personal Representative
Te person to whom a grant o probate o letters o administration has been issued.
________________
Legatee
Person to whom personal estate is given by will.
________________
Levy
A duty carried out by a bailiff or sheriff under the authority o a warrant or writ o fi-a, or a sum o money whereby goods o value belonging to the debtor are claimed with a view to removal and sale at a public auction in an attempt to obtain payment.
________________
A written and published statement/article which iners damaging remarks on a person’s reputation.
________________
Licence
Permission to carry out an act that would otherwise be considered illegal.
________________
Lien
A legal right to withhold the goods/property o another until payment is made.
________________
Jurat
Libel
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ranslation and Legal exts
Listing
Tis orm is used to ensure that all issues are resolved and that the parties are ready or trial.
________________
Litigation
Legal proceedings.
________________
Lord Chancellor
Te cabinet minister who acts as speaker o the House o Lords and oversees the hearings o the Law Lords.
________________
Senior judge o the Court o Appeal (Criminal Division) who also heads the Queens Bench Di vision o the High Court o Justice)
________________
Lord Chie Justice
Lord Justice o Appeal itle given to certain judges sitting in the Court
o Appeal.
________________
A court where criminal proceedings are commenced beore justices o the peace who examine the evidence/statement and either deal with the case themselves or commit to the Crown Court or trial or sentence.
________________
Master o the Rolls
Senior judge o the Court o Appeal.
________________
Matter
Proceedings commenced by way o originating application.
________________
Minor
Someone below 18 years o age and unable to sue or be sued without representation, other than or wages. A minor sues by a next riend and deends by a guardian.
________________
Reasons submitted on behal o a guilty party in order to excuse or partly excuse the offence committed in an attempt to minimize the sentence.
________________
A loan o money advanced to purchase property. Te transer o the property is withheld as security or payment.
________________
Mortgagor
Te party obtaining the loan.
________________
Mortgagee
Te party that advances the loan.
________________
Motion
An application by one party to the High Court or an order in their avor.
________________
Non-Molestation
An order within an injunction to prevent one person physically attacking another.
________________
Magistrates Court
Mitigation
Mortgage
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A exbook o ranslation
Proceedings where the plaintiff has ailed to establish to the Court’s satisaction that there is a case or the deendant to answer.
________________
Notary Public
Someone who is authorized to swear oaths and certiy the execution o deeds.
________________
Notice o Issue
Notice sent by a Court to the claimant giving notification o the case number allocated to their action and details o ees paid. Confirms date o service.
________________
Application to the Court or a declaration that a marriage be declared ‘void’ or be annulled i.e. declared never to have existed or to have subsisted until the Court dissolved it.
________________
Oath
A verbal promise by a person with religious belies to tell the truth.
________________
Official Solicitor
A solicitor or barrister appointed by the Lord Chancellor’s Department. Te duties include representing, in legal proceedings, people who are incapable o looking afer their own affairs, i.e. children/persons suffering rom mental illness.
________________
A method o questioning a person under oath beore an officer o the Court to obtain details o their financial affairs .
________________
Order
A direction by a Court.
________________
Originating Application
A method o commencing proceedings under the authority o a specific act o parliament (e.g. Landlord and enant Act), whereby the applicant asks the Court to grant an order in their avor.
________________
Ouster
An order within an injunction to orce a person to leave a property.
________________
Particulars
Details relevant to a claim.
________________
Party
Any o the participants in a Court action or proceedings.
________________
Penal Notice
Directions attached to an order o a Court stating the penalty or disobedience may result in imprisonment.
________________
Non-Suit
Nullity
Oral Examination
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ranslation and Legal exts
A method o commencing proceedings whereby the order required by the petitioner rom the Court is expressed as a prayer (e.g. the petitioner thereore prays that the marriage be dissolved – divorce proceedings).
________________
Petitioner
A person who represents the petition.
________________
Plaintiff
See claimant.
________________
Plaint Note
See notice o issue.
________________
Plaint Number
Old-ashioned term or Claim Number.
________________
Plea
A deendant’s reply to a charge put to him by a court (i.e. guilty or not guilty).
________________
Pleading
Documents setting out claim/deense o parties involved in civil proceedings.
________________
Possession Proceedings
Legal proceedings by a landlord to recover land/ property (i.e. house, flat, garage etc.).
________________
Power o Arrest
An order attached to some injunctions to allow the police to arrest a person who has broken the terms o the order.
________________
President o the Fam- Senior judge and head o the Family Division o the High Court o Justice. ily Division
________________
A preliminary appointment at which the DIS� RIC Judge consider the issues beore the Court and fixes the timetable or the trial.
________________
Probate
Te legal recognition o the validity o a will.
________________
Probate Court
A court ound in some jurisdictions which is primarily concerned with the proper distribution o the assets o the deceased.
________________
Prosecution
Te institution or conduct o criminal proceedings against a person.
________________
Prosecutor
Person who prosecutes.
________________
Petition
Pre-trial Review
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A person (usually a barrister or solicitor) appointed by the Lord Chancellor as: i) trustee or trusts managed by the Public rust Office; ii) Accountant General or Court Funds; iii) Receiver (o last resort) or Court o Protection patients (Pronounced Puny) High Court judge. Any judge o the High Court other than the heads o each division. Te word puisne means junior and is used to distinguish High Court judges rom senior judges sitting at the Court o Appeal.
________________
Putative Father
Te alleged or supposed ather o an illegitimate child.
________________
Quash
o annul (i.e. to declare no longer valid).
________________
Quantum
In a damages claim the amount to be determined by the court.
________________
Queens Council
Barristers o at least ten years standing may apply to become queen’s counsel. Queens Councils undertake work o an important nature and are reerred to as ‘silks’ which is derived rom the Courts gown that is worn. Will be known as King’s counsel i a king assumes the throne.
________________
Receiver
Person appointed by the Court o Protection to act on behal o a patient.
________________
Recognisance
An undertaking beore the Court by which a person agrees to comply with a certain condition (e.g. keep the peace/appear in court). A sum o money is normally pledged to ensure compliance.
________________
Members o the legal proession (barristers or solicitors) who are appointed to act in a judicial capacity on a part time bases. Tey may progress to become a ull time judge.
________________
An application by a solicitor or counsel or amounts assessed by determination to be reconsidered.
________________
o order an accused person to be kept in custody or placed on bail pending urther court appearance
________________
Public rustee
Recorder
Redetermination
Remand
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ranslation and Legal exts
Respondent
Te person on whom a petition or originating application is served.
________________
Right o Audience
Entitlement to appear beore a Court in a legal capacity and conduct proceedings on behal o a party to the proceedings.
________________
Service
Delivery by post or personal service o the claim, or other court documents.
________________
Sheriff
An officer o the Crown whose duties, amongst other things, consist o the enorcement o High Court writs o execution.
________________
Silk
Queens Counsel, a senior barrister sometimes reerred to as a leader or leading counsel.
________________
Slander
Spoken words which have a damaging effect on a person’s reputation.
________________
Small Claims rack
Te path that deended claims o no more than ₤5000 (and Personal Injury and Housing Disrepair claims o no more than ₤1000) are allocated to.
________________
Member o the legal proession chiefly concerned with advising clients and preparing their cases and representing them in some courts. May also act as advocates beore certain Courts or tribunals.
________________
A type o claim which is issued or a fixed amount o money allegedly owing. Previously known as a liquidated claim.
________________
Squatter
A person occupying land or property without the owner’s consent.
________________
Statement
A written account by a witness o the acts o details o a matter.
________________
Stay o Execution
An order ollowing which judgment cannot be enorced without leave o the court.
________________
Stipendiary Magistrate
A legally qualified and salaried Magistrate.
Subpoena
A summons issued to a person directing their attendance in Court to give evidence.
________________
Suit
Legal proceedings commenced by petition.
________________
Solicitor
Specified Claim
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________________
A exbook o ranslation
Suitor
Person bringing a suit beore the Courts.
________________
Summary Judgment
Judgment obtained by a plaintiff where there is no deense to the case or the deense contains no valid grounds.
________________
Summary Offence
A criminal offence which is triable only by a Magistrate Court.
________________
Summing-up
A review o the evidence and directions as to the law by a judge immediately beore a jury retires to consider its verdict.
________________
Summons
Order to appear or to produce evidence to a Court.
________________
Summons (Jury)
Order to attend or jury service.
________________
Summons (Witness)
Order to appear as a witness at a hearing.
________________
Superior Court
It is a basic county trial court.
________________
Supreme Court
Te highest court in the United States, which has the ultimate power to decide constitutional questions and other appeals based on the jurisdiction granted by the Constitution, including cases based on ederal statutes, between citizens o different states, and when the ederal government is a party.
________________
Supreme Court o Judicature
Collective name encompassing – High Court o Justice, Crown Court and Court o Appeal.
________________
Surety
A person’s undertaking to be liable or another’s deault or non-attendance at Court.
________________
Surrogate Court
A court where a surrogate/an officer especially in some states o United States, presides the probates o Wills and estates, and which has jurisdiction over such probates.
________________
A custodial sentence which will not take effect unless there is a subsequent offence within a specified period.
________________
erritorial Courts
A court in an administrative territory o the United States that has local and ederal jurisdiction.
________________
estor
A person who makes a will
________________
Suspended Sentence
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ranslation and Legal exts
An officer o the Supreme Court whose duties involve the enorcement o High Court arrest warrants.
________________
A civil wrong committed against a person or which compensation may be sought through a civil Court (e.g. personal injury, negligent driving, libel, etc.).
________________
rial Window
A period o time within which the case must be listed or trial.
________________
ribunal
A group o people consisting o a chairman (normally solicitor/barrister) and others who exercise a judicial unction to determine matters related to specific interests (e.g. VA tribunal appeals against the amount o duty levied by Customs and Excise Lands tribunal – appeals against the valuation o land).
________________
rust
Property legally entrusted to a person with instructions to use it or another person.
________________
rustee
A person who holds or administers property in a trust or another.
________________
Verdict
Te finding o guilty or not guilty o a jury.
________________
Vice Chancellor
Senior judge and head o the Chancery Division o the High Court o Justice (although the Lord Chancellor is the nominal head).
________________
A signed agreement by a debtor not to remove goods levied by a bailiff under the authority o a warrant o execution and to allow the bailiff access at any time to inspect the goods, in consideration o which the bailiff leaves the goods in the possession o the debtor.
________________
Te title given to a minor who is the subject o a wardship order. Te order ensures that custody o the minor is held by the Court with day to day care o the minor being carried out by an individual(s) or local authority. As long as the minor remains a ward o Court, all decision regarding the minors upbringing must be approved by the Court (e.g. transer to a different school, medical treatment, etc.).
________________
ipstaff
ort
Walking Possession
Ward o Court
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A exbook o ranslation
Warrant o Committal
Warrant o Delivery
Method o enorcing an order o the Court whereby the penalty or ailing to comply with its terms is imprisonment; the bailiff is authorized to carry out the arrest and deliver the person to prison (or in some instances the Court) rom the debtor and return them to the creditor.
________________
Method o enorcing a judgment or the return o goods (or value o the goods) whereby a bailiff is authorized to recover the goods (or their value) rom the debtor and return them to the creditor.
________________
Warrant o Execution Method o enorcing a judgment or a sum o
money whereby a bailiff is authorized, in lieu o payment, to seize and remove goods belonging to a deendant or sale at public auction.
________________
Warrant o Possession Method o enorcing a judgment or possession
o a property whereby a bailiff is authorized to evict people and secure against re-entry.
________________
A remedy available ollowing illegal re-entry o premises by person’s evicted under a warrant o possession. Te bailiff is authorized to evict all occupants ound on the premises and redeliver the premises to the plaintiff.
________________
Will
A declaration o a person’s intentions to distribute his/her estate and assets.
________________
Winding Up
Te voluntary or compulsory closure o a company and the subsequent realization o assets and payment to creditors.
________________
Witness
A person who gives evidence in Court.
________________
Writ o Summons
A writ directing a person to appear in court to answer a complaint.
________________
Warrant o Restitution
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ranslation and Legal exts
12.7 Analysis and Translation of Texts
Te ollowing two texts are legal texts. Read the texts careully, analyze their distinctive eatures and translate them into the target language. Minutes o Regular General Meeting
A.B.C. Company (Limited Liability Company) On this …….……day o ………..… 19 ...... at 10:30 a.m., the regular Meeting o A.B.C. Company (Limited Liability Company) was held at the Company’s Head Office at …….………., upon an invitation served by registered mail by the Company’s Chairman to Partners, Companies’ Department and the Company’s Auditor.
1 t x e T
Te meeting was attended by Partners representing 100% o the Company’s total capital stock. Te meeting was presided over by Mr. ………., the Chairman o the Board o Directors. Mr. ……………… was appointed a secretary o the meeting. Mr. ………………and Mr. ……………….were appointed as vote counters and their appointment was approved by the attendants. Te attendance list showed that the attendants represented 100% o the total capital stock o 1000.
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A exbook o ranslation
_____________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________
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ranslation and Legal exts
*Articles o Partnership
Articles o Agreement, made ……………..….., 19 by: 1- ………..…. 2- ……..……… Te said parties hereby agree to become copartners, under the firm name o …………….., and as such partners to carry on together the business o buying and selling all sorts o dry goods, at ……………….. street, in the city o ………………...…..
2 t x e T
Te said …………. agrees to contribute wo Tousand Dollars ($2,000) to the capital o said firm; and the said ……………… agrees to contribute One Tousand Dollars ($1,000) to the same; the sum o wenty-Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500) o said capital to be expended in the purchase o a stock in trade. Te said ………….. shall have exclusive charge o all the buying or the firm.
-_____________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ * Passage adopted rom New Webster’s Law or Everyone by Hugo Sonnenschein (1982).
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
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Bialystok, E. and M. Frolich (1980). “Oral Communication Strategies or Lexical Difficulties.” Interlanguage Studies Bulletin, 5, No. 1, pp. 3-30. Bolinger, D.L., and D. A. Sears (1981). Aspects o Language. 3rd ed. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. Brooks, Cleanth and Warren, Robert Penn (1952 ). Fundamentals o Good Writing . London: Dennis Dobson. Brooks, Cleanth and Warren, Robert Penn (1970). Modern Rhetoric. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World. Burton, Richard (ranslator) (1997). Arabian Nights . London: Penguin Popular Classics, pp. 312. Capellas-Espuny, Gemma (1999). “Te Problem o erminological Equivalence in International Maritime Law”. In ranslation Journal , Vo. 3, No. 3. Available at . Cary, Joyce (1984). “Te Breakout”. In, R. Hindmarsh (ed.) Liar! Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Catord, J. (1965). A Linguistic Teory o ranslation. London: Oxord University Press. Chriss, R. (2000). ranslation as a Proession. Retrieved October 25, 2004, rom . Christie, George C. (1964). “Vagueness and Legal Language”. In Minnesota Law Review, Vol. 48, 885 pp. Crombie, Margaret (2004). Dyslexia and Foreign Language Learning . New York: Routledge aylor & Francis Group. Crystal D. (1986). A Dictionary o Linguistics and Phonetics. Oxord: Basil Blackwell Ltd. Crystal, D. (2003). English as a Global Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 240 pp. De Beaugrande, Robert (1978). Factors in a Teory o Poetic ranslation. Assen: Van Gorcum, 186 pp. De Beaugrande, Robert (1980). ext, Discourse, and Process: oward a Multi-disciplinary Science o exts. London: Longman. De Beaugrande, Robert and W. Dressler (1981). Introduction to ext Linguistics. London: Longman. viii + 270 pp. De Leo, Davide (1999). “Pitalls in Legal ranslation.” ranslation Journal , Vol. 3, No. 2. Available at . Delisle, Jean (1981). L’analyse du discourse comme methode d traduction. Ottawa: Attawa University Press, pp. 76 -77. Delisle, Jean and Judith Woodsworth (1996). “Introduction”. In ranslators through History. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamin Publishing Company, 346 pp. Diaz-Diocaretz, Myriam. (1985). ranslating Poetic Discourse. Amsterdam /Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company, vii + 167 pp. Di Pietro, R. (1971) Language Structures in Contrast . Rowley, Mass: Newbury House. Didier, Emmanual (1990). Langues et langages du droit , Montreal: Wilson & Lafleur. Dummett, Michael (1993). Frege -Philosophy o Language. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
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Gumperz, John and Gumperz, Jenny Cook (1981). Ethnic Differences in Communicative Style. In, C. Ferguson et al (eds.) Language in the USA. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 431-445. Gutknecht, Christoph and Lutz J. Rolle (1996). ranslating by Factors. New York: SUNY Press. Halliday, M.A.K. (1970). “Language Structure and Language Function.” In, John Lyons (ed.) New Horizons in Linguistics. Harmondsworth: Penguin. Halliday, M.A.K. (1973). Exploration in the Functions o Language. London: Edward Arnold. Halliday, M.A.K. (1985). An Introduction to Functional Grammar . London: Edward Arnold. vi + 387 pp. Harris, B. and B. Sherwood. (1978). “ranslation as an Innate Skill.” In , D. Gerver and H.W. Sinaiko (eds.) Language Interpretation and Communication. New York: Plenum press, pp. 155-170. Hatim, B. (1983). ‘Discourse context and text-type: contributions rom Arabic linguists’. Paper read at BAAL conerence on discourse, Hatfield. Hatim, B. (1984). “A text-typological approach to syllabus design in translator training.” Te Incor porated Linguist , Vol. 23, No. 3, pp. 146-149. Hatim, B. (1987). ext linguistic models or the analysis o discourse errors. In J. Mohaghan (ed.), Grammar in the Construction o exts . London: F. Pinter. Hatim, B and I. Mason (1990). Discourse and the ranslator . London: Longman. Hawkes, . (1986). Structrualism and Semiotics. London: Methuem. 192 pp. Her Majesty’s Court Service, UK (2005). Available at: http://ino.babylon.com/gl_index/gl_template.php?id=51085. HIebec, B. (1985). “Factors and steps in translation.” Babel 35, 3, pp. 129-141. Hymes, Dell (editor). (1964). Language in Culture and Society. New York: Harper and Row. Ilyas, A. (1989). Teories o ranslation: Teoretical Issues and Practical Implications. Mosul: Uni versity o Mosul. Izzy, C. (2005). “Idioms as the transliteration o oreign words/phrases.” English Language Forum (ESL). Available at: . Jakobson, R. (1959). “On Linguistic Aspects o ranslation.” In, R.A. Brower (ed.) On ranslation. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press. Jakobson, R. (1960). “Linguistics and Poetics.” In, .A. Sebeok (ed.), Style in Language. Cambridge, Mass: M.I.. Press, pp. 348-365. Jakobson, R. (1971). “Language in relation to other communication systems.” Selected Writings, Vol. II, pp. 697-708. Jakobson, R. (1985). Selected Writings, Vol. 7. Gruyter. James, C. (1980). Contrastive Analysis. London: Longman. John, G.C. (1988). owards text-typology. In Alan urney (ed.), Applied ext Linguistics. Six contributions rom Exeter . University o Exeter: Exeter Linguistic Studies. Jones, Paul W. (1965). Writing Scientific Papers and Reports (5th edition). Dubuque, IA: William C. Brown Publishers.
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Kaplan, R. B. (1966). “Cultural Tought Patterns in Intercultural Education”. Language Learning, Vol. 16, pp. 1-20. Kaplan, R. B. (1983). “Contrastive Rhetoric: Some Implications or the Writing Frocess”. In A. Freedman, I. Pringle and J. Yalden (eds.). Learning to Write: First Language/Second Lan guage. London: Longman, pp. 139-161. Kasmer, Walter (1999). “Te Role o ranslation in the EFL/ESL Classroom”. Available at . Kelly, Louis Gerard (1979). Te rue Interpreter: A History o ranslation theory and Practice in the West (Basil Blackwell) 44. Khanji, Raja (et al) (2001). “On the Use o Compensatory Strategies in Simultaneous Interpretation.” Meta, Vol. 45, No. 3. Kieras, D. (1978). “Good and bad structure in simple paragraphs: effects on apparent theme, reading time, and recall.” Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 17, pp. 13-28. Koen, F., A. Becker and R. Young (1969). “Te psychological reality o the paragraph.” Journal o Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 8, pp. 49-53. Kopczynski, A. (1983). In ranslation in Foreign Language eaching . Paris: Round able FIUNESCO, pp. 58-65. Koutsivitis, Vassilios (1988). La trauction juridque, etude d’un cas la traduction des texts legislatis des Communautes europeennes, et en particulier a partir du rancais vers le grec (these de doctorat), Universite de la Sarbonne nouvelle Paris III. Kovalska, Iryna (1997). Kyiv conerence on importance o translation, interpretation. Te Ukranian Weekly, Vol. LXV, No. 33. Also available at Kuchlwein, W.(et al). (1981). Kontrastive Linguistik und Ubersetzungswissenschaf . Atken de Internationalen Kolloquiums rier/Saarbruecken . Munich. Lado, R. (1957). “Problems in Learning the Culture.” In P. Garvin, ed., Report o the Seventh Annual Round able meeting on Linguistics and Language Study. Washington D.C: Georgetown University Press, pp. 141-46. Lado, R. (1968). “Contrastive Linguistics in a Mentalistic Teory o Language Learning”. In, J.E. Alatis (ed.) Contrastive Linguistics and its Pedagogical Implications. Report o the Nineteenth Annual Round able Meeting on Linguistics and Language Studies, Washington D.C.: Georgetown University Press (Monograph Series on Languages and Linguistics; 21), pp. 123-135. Larson, Mildred L. (1984). Meaning-Based ranslation: A Guide to Cross- Language Equivalance. Maryland: University Press o America. Latfipour, K. (1996). “ranslation Principles vs. ranslator Stretegies.” Meta, 41, 3, pp. 389-392. Leech, G. (1974). Semantics. Harmondsworth: Penguin. 386 pp. Leech, G. (1983). Principles o Pragmatics. London: Longman. x + 250 pp. Leech, G. and M. Short (1981). Style and Fiction. London: Longman. Legett, G. (et al) (1982). Handbook or Writers ( 8th Edition). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. iii + 543 pp.
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