Riassunti language to language PDF

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1 LANGUAGE TO TAYLOR CHAPTER 1 PART ONE: CHAPTER theoretical issues vs Part practical look at what is involved in translating a specific transferring the meaning of a source text A to the language of a target text B. Texts may be the amalgams of a number of different linguistic, pragmatic or stylist...

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LANGUAGE TO LANGUAGE-CHRISTOPHER TAYLOR CHAPTER 1

PART ONE: CHAPTER 1 theoretical issues vs Part two practical look at what is involved in translating a specific text transferring the meaning of a source text A to the language of a target text B. Texts may be the amalgams of a number of different linguistic, pragmatic or stylistic components, as a consequence a text needs to be analysed thoroughly, before it is translated PRE-TRANSLATION ANALYSIS -Until translators have explored every angle of a source text in order to make the correct target text choice at all levels a translation remains a kind of VIRTUAL TEXT  the inherent difficulty lies in the fact that translator has to work simultaneously at several levels of meaning:  the literal sense of the words;  the semantic connotations that may lie behind the literal sense;  the pragmatic force;  the stylistic conventions relating to the register or genre of the text all these aspects are the LAYERS OF MEANING.

ROLLING TRANSLATION The device of the “rolling translation” is at the heart of the methodology presented in Taylor’s book, and is descriptive of the way in which a translation “unfolds” in interim (provvisorie) versions. Making up one part of the translation process, rolling is said to come into play after the first reading and pre-translation examination of the text, namely, after the translator has created an internal picture (“traduzione interna”) of the text. At this point there is a stage by stage transposing (or rolling) of the text from a first, largely literal version to subsequent versions incorporating modifications resulting from contrastive linguistic, lexical and terminological considerations. All of this occurs before subjecting the text to a deeper analysis of its semantic, pragmatic, stylistic and cultural features as appropriate

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Taylor’s concept of the “rolling” translation  it is first necessary to understand the historical and sociolinguistic context. Then it’s possible to start with a literal, word-for-word translation (or, nowadays, the first version could be produced by translation software). Then there are repeated redrafting until a final version is achieved.

Firth’s translation method:  Interlinear word-for-wordliteral transposition;  Bit-for-bit freer translation of larger chunks where literal translation would be incomprehensible;  Free a much freer approach based on the semantic message.

TRANSLATION linguistic phenomenon.

LANGUAGE STRUCTURE-STRUCTURALISM the way words are put together on logical and grammatical sequences and the way words are chosen by speakers-writers is studied in terms of SYNTAGMATIC and PARADIGMATIC STRUCTURES  they are the main ideas of linguists such as De Saussure, American linguists (Bloomfield) known as STRUCTURALISTS.

THE PRAGUE SCHOOL it explained the way texts are organised and how they present information. Collocation the way words go together CLAUSE (proposizione) it is the basic unit of grammar. It must contain a verb; it is made up of a subject, a verb phrase and sometimes a complement: -I’ve eaten; -The sale starts at 9 am.

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SENTENCE (frase) it is a unit of grammar, it must contain at least one main clause. It can contain more than 1 clause. In writing a sentence typically begins with a capital letter and ends with a full stop: -She spoke to me; -I looked at her and she smiled at me (2 main clauses).

DE SAUSSURE contributed to the study of language structure. He described the HORIZONTAL NATURE of structure in terms of the joining of words or longer units (syntagms) to form grammatically acceptable and meaningful clauses and sentences SYNTAGMATIC SEQUENCE: pronoun+ verb+ temporal adverb.

VERTICAL SYSTEM choosing of linguistic options available to speakers within a syntagmatic sequence “he leaves tomorrow”: HE could be replaced by SHE, YOU, etc, and the verb LEAVES by GOES, etc. Once words or word groups have been chosen from the paradigmatic axis by the speaker/writer, they must be combined syntagmatically to create meaning. Syntagm and paradigm govern how signs relate to one another. A syntagmatic relationship is one where signs occur in sequence or parallel and operate together to create meaning. A paradigmatic relationship is one where an individual sign may be replaced by another.

paradigmati c

A

DOG

FELL

IN

THIS

CHAIR

THE THAT

CAT MAN

SAT ATE

ON BY

THE A

MAT HAT

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STRUCTURALISTS analysed the constituent parts of sentence structure parsing techniques BLOOMFIELD immediate constituent analysis: enabled grammarians to split sentences, and clauses into their component parts: -The meeting broke up at midnight and the delegates went home:  The meeting broke up at midnight CLAUSE  AndCONJUNCTION  the delegates went home CLAUSE -the meeting noun phrase -broke up verb phrase -at midnight temporal adverb phrase -and conjunction -the delegates noun phrase Even single words could be split into meaningful MORPHEMES: example QUICK-LY (adverbial suffix) AUTONOMOUS UNITS

CHOMSKY THEORY OF UNIVERSAL DEEP GRAMMAR: there are universal structural elements common to all languages; they may be stable over the time. The CORE LANGUAGE that is innate in all human beings doesn’t change only the SURFACE GRAMMAR changes.

NIDAKERNELS: minimal structures in a language (subj+verb; article+noun) from which the rest can be derived by addition, omission or permutation. If source texts can be reduced to their KERNEL FORM, they will be easier to translate.

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PRAGUE SCHOOL 2 MAIN IDEAS: 1. Functional sentence perspective it sees clauses divided into a THEME and a RHEME. The theme contains information that is dependent on the immediate context or co-text of the communicative act GIVEN INFORMATION it generally appears at or near the beginning of a clause and PREPARES THE GROUND FOR WHAT FOLLOWS. It sets the scene for the RHEME. RHEME it contains context-independent information new information it comes to the end of a clause it’s the new element that keeps us interested. The rheme completes the information and fulfils the communicative purpose. On the other hand if all the information were new, without any anchor in shared knowledge, we would not be able to absorb the load. The weighting of the new information determines the level of COMMUNICATIVE DYNAMISM. THEME consisting of those elements within a clause that form the basis of the information content. 2. communicative dynamism. COULD ACCOUNT FOR potrebbe spiegare/dire

HALLIDAY developed his own concept of theme and rheme as elements of information structure. The Prague School linguistists tended to equate theme with given and rheme with new, and could account for rheme preceding theme in some occasions. But for Halliday theme is invariably found in initial position and may consist of either given or new information, as may the rheme. Embedded clause incisiva The syntactic flexibility of the Italian language and its different thematic organisation enable a number of constructions. For example the verb is regularly thematised (A segnare è stato Rush) that is impossible in English. Ex: è arrivato il Re!  has arrived the King  UNGRAMMATICAL the King is here!

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COHESION it is attributable to Halliday and it is important in the analysis of text organisation. It is created in a number of ways (grammatically and lexically) within a text and indeed refers only to the links that exist within the discourse, through:  Conjunction;  Reference;  Anaphoric reference It means a word refers back to another word for its meaning.  Cataphoric reference Cataphoric reference means that a word in a text refers to another later in the text and you need to look forward to understand.  Ellipsis;  Repetition;  Synonyms;  Antonymy;  Hyponymy-hyperonomy.

Overt=palese The paradigmatic selection of grammatical structures and words and the syntagmatic possibilities offered by the grammar rules and lexical collocations enable us to create language. Lexis (words) vs terms Words are slippery (tricky), ambiguous, polysemous, collocationbound, register-sensitive. Terms on the other hand are unambiguous, monosemic, independent of context. Translators only have the problem to find the right equivalence, because in theory there can only be one equivalent. LEXICOGRAPHY activity or profession of writing dictionaries COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS a means of creating the complete semantic picture of a lexical item. The way lexical items combine will then be considered in a discussion of collocation. The idea was that of breaking a word into its components (man male+human+adult) in order to arrive at its total meaning. Componential analysis is a valid

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instrument of measurement for the semantic features of words lexical items are thus considered in terms of their semantic components.

CONTEXT OF SITUATIONTranslators must gain what they can from the context and take what they can from the word. FALSE COGNATES (FALSE FRIENDS) actually/attualmente, evident/evidente, trivial/triviale.

-gentle≠gentile

COLLOCATION you shall know a word by the company it keeps how words go together. Some collocations are more predictable than others, such as leggere un libro or blue sky. Fixed idioms may have obscure origins (campa cavallo) but are predictable in their collocational power to ride a horse/bicycle... But at the same time it poses enormous problems for translators, because patterns of collocation in one language are often not mirrored in another. There is a certain amount of equivalence in set expressions: time flies. But the most frequent corresponding collocations in Italian would show a great deal of variation: gentle slope/leggero pendio, gentle breeze/brezza leggera, of gentle birth/di nobile origine. Witty remark battute Cricket culture-bound=metaphor for fair play It’s just not cricket= non è fair play it’s a loan in Italian. The important thing initially is for a translator to be able to recognise this kind of false collocation when it appears.

PARTINGTON 3 kinds of transformations adopted by writer/speaker according to their ILLOCUTIONARY INTENT in order to translate idioms:

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1. reformulation 2. abbreviation 3. expansion -That’s the way the cookie crumbles sono cose che succedono! There’s not idiomatic equivalent in Italian. -The milk they cry over “non piangere sul latte versato”. Let: il latte su cui si piange. In both languages the collocational force existing between the lexical items milk/latte and cry/piangere, due solely to the existence of the proverb, is strong enough to maintain the effect. -It was the straw that broke the camel’s back Era la goccia che faceva traboccare il vaso. With regard to the proper names of real people, the criteria for the translation of such names across languages are those of historical importance and rank. Great figures from the past find their names translated. The nearer we get the present day the less this usage persists  now the only proper names that are translated are those of royalty (Principe Carlo, Princess Caroline) and titles of address (Signora Thatcher, President Scalfaro). In the case of the names of places and geographical phenomena there appears to be no norm, though the names of many countries, cities and major rivers are translated. TRANSLATING NAMES OF FICTITIOUS CHARACTERS Cappuccetto Rosso Little red Riding Hood NON CI SONO REGOLE PRECISE CHE STABILISCONO SE TRADURRE O MANTENERE I NOMI PROPRI, DI CITTÀ, ECC.. For example the character called Maxwell House implies amusing association with a well-known brand of coffee. In the Italian version he becomes TEO LIPTON association with an English drink product. -There are some names which have become fossilised and don’t require translation. -The use of footnotes or endnotes or even brackets, is only justified if the information considered necessary is of an encyclopaedic kind and length. -clearcut chiaro -take hold  prende campo, prende piede

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Interest in terminology Post-war years. New discoveries are made and new pathways are explored such new concepts need to be LABELLED. The idea of LANGUAGES FOR SPECIAL PURPOSES (LSP) has introduced a degree of order in the labelling process. ENGLISH it has become the international vehicle for the transfer of scientific and technological information. Texts of special purpose languages consist of labelled terms bound together by appropriate words from the general vocabulary stock. So, as concepts are formulated, terms are created to represent those concepts in the lexicon of the language. In theory one term represents one concept and should be free of any ambiguity. Sometimes the lexical item representing the term also exists in the general language, but is considered to be a separate lexical unit a typical example would be WINDOW in its traditional and computer-connected sense ENLARGEMENT: ampliamento, ingradimento, ingrossamento.

Dictionary definitions of words are often given in the form of synonyms; special language glossaries or technical dictionaries should not need to follow this practice because terms should have no synonyms. Ideally terms should be defined analytically, fixing their meaning in a hermetic way. TERMINOLOGY it is the study of and the field of activity concerned with the collection, description, processing and presentation of terms. Dictionaries in the traditional sense are losing ground to modern subject field glossaries, which are able to respond to the way terms are classified and categorisedgeneric and partitive relations subsisting between terms. -Highly specialised technical dictionaries, data banks, specialised glossaries  help the translators. Data banks will contains more and more of this type of information in line with the developments in lexicography. COMPUTATIONAL LINGUISTICS Computational linguistics involves looking at the ways that a machine would treat natural language, or in other words, dealing with or constructing models for language that can allow for goals such as accurate machine translation of language, or the simulation of artificial intelligence.

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What normally happens between 2 closely-related languages such as English and Italian is that terms are either translated satisfactorily, calqued or borrowed intact. English terms most of the time were used even when a translation existed or where a neologism had been devised. It becomes clear that the “one concept-one term” ideal of terminology in not always applicable, or in not evident to the non-specialist. Standardisation procedures are still being refined and are still far from complete. On the other hand, technological process shows no signs of slowing down, and as a consequence scientific innovation and the creation of new terminology proceeds rapidly. New terms are practically always formed on the model of existing terms, themselves often derived from Latin or Greek, by AFFIXATION, COMPOUNDING OR ABBREVIATING. For example in the field of computers, lexical items are generated on established models: software, hardware, etc. The formation processes may differ across languages a micro level (while the macro level is the same). The pressure screw two-noun cluster in English translates as a noun+preposition+noun vite a pressione. Diamond drilling and Concrete drilling would appear to be based on the same formation model, but in the first case the drilling is carried out with a diamond tip and in the second case the drilling is done into concrete trapanare con la punta di diamante e trapanare nel cement all these examples show us the English linguistic habit of creating potentially infinite noun strings. The noun string is often complicated by the addition of adjectives or participles qualifying or classifying nouns in the sequence: parallel bench vice/morsa parallela, bag-filling machine/insacchettatrice. The translations in these cases doo not reveal determining patterns and must be considered as SINGLE TERM UNITS.

LEXICAL DENSITY it refers to the proportion of lexical words (words with recognisable concrete or abstract referents: table, elephant, intelligence, beautiful) in a text compared to the number of function words (prepositions, conjunctions, copular verbs...). Written language for example is lexically more dense than spoken language, as the writer has time to compose a more concentrated discourse. The measuring of lexical density can provide a parameter in assessing whether a translator has achieved the right register and right balance of technical expression. It is also possible, with the use of corpus-based

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devices, to see whether different parts of texts are more term-dense than others and organise e translation accordingly. The statistics of lexical density can be seen to confirm or otherwise the translator’s adherence to style and register. LEVEL OF TERM DENSITY ratio of technical terms to ordinary lexical words and function words. The information load is considered to be heavier, often to the extent of being impenetrable to the non-expert abstracts of medical journals.

NOMINALISATION It is a noun phrase generated from another word class, usually a verb. (Other word classes include adjectives and nouns) In other words, the process of nominalisation turns verbs (actions or events) into nouns (things, concepts or people). Nominalisation is an integral feature of academic writing. It is a function that not only helps you to create variety in your writing, but also prevents you from repeating the same verb/word over and over again. Nominalisation is a useful skill to have in academic writing because it conveys an objective, impersonal tone. It can also make the text more concise by packing a great deal of information into a few words. As a consequence of using nominalisation, your writing will be more abstract and more formal.

Problems of ambiguity: 1. HOMONYMY identical words referring to widely different referents 2. POLYSEMY words having more than one meaning 3. HOMOGRAPHY words having the same form but different pronunciation and meaning. We can tackle these problems by consulting dictionaries in fact homonymous items form separate headwords and polysemous items are labelled in some way (1), (2). Such sources of ambiguity are more common in English also due to the lack of morphological variation between grammatical categories (for example ROUND can be noun, verb, adjective adverb or preposition). POLITICA politics vs policy

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ECONOMIA economics vs economy Translators will have to meet the bilingual dictionary halfway by taking what they can from the various entries and applying them to the CONTEXT OF SITUATION. The judicious use of both mono- and bilingual dictionaries is the real secret to the translator’s lexicographical skills. IDIOMS a group of words established by usage. TROPE a significant or recurrent theme; a motif.

CORPUSlarge body of recorded text material, stored on computer and available to the user, and the term’s frequency of use or collocational range can be extracted. There is now a substantial selection of corpora available in a growing number of languages the purpose is to provide a wide representative sample of language in use. For example any word can be consulted in hundreds of different contexts. CONTEXT the non-verbal environment in which a word is used. CO-TEXT the linguistic environment of a word. CO-OCCURENCE It occurs when two or more expressions in a text refer to the same person or thing; they have the same referent  “Bill said he would come”: the proper noun “Bill” and the pronoun “he” refer to the same person  to Bill.

This part discusses the various ways translators can deal with structural and lexical differences between the two ...