Translation of Phraseological Units

Phraseological units may be classified into three big groups:

phraseological fusions, phraseological unities and phraseological collocations.

Phraseological fusions are usually rendered by interpreting translation: to show the white feather - быть трусом; to dine with Duke Humphry - остаться без обеда. Sometimes they have word-equivalents: red tape - волокита, to pull one's leg - одурачивать, мистифицировать.

The meaning of a phraseological fusion may often be rendered by a series of alternative phrases, e.g. to go the whole hog -делать что-либо основательно, доводить до конца, не останавливаться на полумерах, идти на всё (словарь А.Кунина).

According to the principles of their translation phraseological unities can be divided into four groups;

1) Phraseological unities having Russian counterparts with the same meaning and simailar images. They can often be traced to the same prototype: biblical, mythological, etc.

All that glitters is not gold. - He всё золото, что блестит.

As a man sows, so he shall reap. - Что посеешь, то и пожнёшь.

2) Phraseological unities having the same meaning but expressing it through a_-different- image.

То buy a pig in a poke. - Купить кота в мешке.

Phraseological units of the source-language sometimes have synonymous equivalents in the target-language. The choice is open to the translator and is often determined by the context.

Between the devil and the deep sea - между двух огней, между молотом и наковальней; в безвыходном положении.

In the absence of a correlated phraseological unity the translator resorts to interpreting translation.

A skeleton in the closet (cupboard) - Семейная тайна, неприятность, скрываемая от посторонних.

Target-language equivalents having a local colour should be avoided. "To carry coals to Newcastle" should not be translated by the Russian - ездить в Тулу со своим самоваром. In this case two solutions are possible: a) to preserve the image of the English phraseological unity - ездить в Ньюкасл со своим углём, b) to resort to interpreting translation - заниматься бесполезным делом.

3) Phraseological unities having no equivalents in Russian are rendered by interpreting translation. Little pitches have long ears. - Дети лобят слушать разговоры взрослых.

4) Phraseological unities having word equivalents: shake a leg - отплясывать, hang fire-мешкать,медлить,задерживаться.
Translation of Phraseological Collocations

Phraseological collocations are motivated but they are made up of words possessing specific lexical valency which accounts for a certain degree of stability in such word groups.

They may be translated by corresponding phraseological collocations of the target-language: to take part - принимать участие, to throw a glance - бросить взгляд. They may be also translated by a word (to take part - участвовать) or a free word group (to take one's temperature - измерить температуру).

LECTURE 12

LEXICAL THANSFORMATIONS

There are five types of lexical transformations:

1. Concretization

2. Generalization

3. Antonymic translation

4. Metonymic translation

5. Paraphrasing

Concretizationis a most frequent device in translation from English into Russian. There is a large group of English words of wide semantic volume (спова с широкой понятийной основой). These words belong to different parts of speech; nouns, adjectives, verbs, e.g. thing; point, stuff, stunt, affair; nice, fine, bad; to say, to go, to get, to come, to involve. As the meaning of such words is relatively vague they can be used in different contents, and their valency is therefore extremely broad. In fact they are sometimes used as mere prop-words. So a context, at least a microcontext (a minimal stretch of speech), is necessary to determine their meaning.

He came in sight of the lodge, a long, low, frowning thing of red brick (A. Wilson). - Он увидел домик привратника, длинное, низкое, хмурое здание из красного кирпича.

If the Prime Minister's speech made few new points, it was statesmanlike. And if it was stronger in terms of planned policy than of achieved results, this is often the case with political oratory (The Times, 1965). - Если речь премьер-министра и содержала мало нового, то это всё же была речь государственного деятеля. И хотя в ней куда более решительно говорилось о будущей политике, чем о достигнутых результатах, это часто бывает с государственными выступлениями.

"Many English verbs also belong to this group, particularly verbs of motion and verbs of speech." - «Конкретное лексическое значение, тот или другой лексико-семантический вариант глагола зависит от структуры и лексического наполнения распространяющих его слов». (А.А.Уфимцева. Слово в лексико-семантической системе языка, М., 1968, стр. 90.)

At the by-election victory went to the Labour candidate (M.S. 1973). - На дополнительных выборах победу одержал лейборист. The rain came in torrents (I.Murdoch). - Полил сильный дождь.

So far 65 people have died in floods in Dacca Province, East Pakistan (Morning Star, 1973) - По имеющимся сведениям, 65 человек утонуло во время наводнения в провинции Дакка, Восточный Пакистан.

Abstract nouns are often concretized in translation if there is no correlated abstract word in Russian: The Soviet Union's record in medial care - достижения Советского Союза в области здравоохранения.

Not infrequently concretization is resorted to as correlated generalizing words in English and in Russian have a different usage. Thus the word limbs has a wider usage than the Russian члены.

"Thank you", said Margaret, feeling large and awkward and clumsy in all her limbs. (H. Walpole). - «Благодарю Вас», - сказала Маргарет, чувствуя себя неловкой и неуклюжей и не зная, куда девать руки и ноги.

The English word "child" has a wider usage than its correlated Russian «ребёнок» and is often concretized as «мальчик, сын, дочь, деточка».

No one know with what passionate emotion she loved this child (H. Valpoie). - Никто не знал, как страстно ока любила своего сына.

Generalization

This device is the reverse of concretization. Still there is a tendency in the English language for differentiation where the Russian language uses a more general word, e.g. "рука", hand and arm; "нога" leg and foot; "палец" fingers and toes.

In some cases, although there is an equivalent in the target language at the some level of abstraction, generalization may be desirable for purely stylistic reasons:

Since the shooting of Robert Kenney five days ago about 90 Americans have been shot dead. (The Guardian, 1968).

За те пять дней, которые прошли после убийства Роберта Кеннеди, около 90 американцев погибло от огнестрельного оружия.

Generalization is sometimes used in rendering non-equivalents (e.g. summary court - дисциплинарный суд; a summary court is not only a disciplinary court but the least formal one, consisting of one officer, etc.).

Antonymic Translation

Antonymic translation is a kind of grammatical and lexical transformation which substitutes an affirmative construction for a negative or vice versa with some accompanying lexical change, usually substituting the antonym for the original word.

Keep the child out of the sun - He держите ребёнка на солнце. :

"My precious wife", said I, "we must be serious sometimes". (Ch. Dickens), «Моя драгоценная жёнушка», - сказал я, - «Нельзя же вечно смеяться и шутить».

My aunt and I, when we were left alone, talked far into the night, how the emigrants never wrote home otherwise than cheerfully and hopefully. (Ibid.)

Оставшись вдвоём, мы с тётушкой до глубокой ночи говорили о том, что уехавшие всегда писали весёлые письма, полные надежд.

Metonvmic Translation

Metonymic translation is a lexical transformation based on the substitution of contiguous concepts.

On Capitol Hill residents have been assaulted on their porches - in their garages or while waiting for a bus, sometimes within full view of other citizens too frightened to move.

В районе Капитолия на жителей нападали у входа в дом, в их гаражах или на остановке автобуса, иногда на глазах у других граждан, слишком напуганных, чтобы хоть пальцем пошевелить.

London in July with the sun for once continually shining had become a mad place, stiffing, enclosed, dry. (I.Murdoch). В этом году Лондон под палящим июльским солнцем стал невыносимый - удушливый, пыльный, давящий. In all these examples adequate translation has been achieved by means of metonymic transformations.

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing is rendering of the meaning of some idiomatic phrase in the source language by a phrase in the target language consisting of non-correlated lexical units, e.g.

Good riddance - скатертью дорога; In for a penny, in for I pound - назвался груздём - полезай в кузов; взялся за гуж - не говори, что не дюж.

A phraseological unit is rendered by a corresponding Russian phraseological unit expressing the same idea in different words.

LECTURE 13