TRANSLATION AND MEANING: A CULTURAL- COGNITIVE ...

4. The contextual evaluation of words can be determined by
linguistic and/or non-linguistic factors. The linguistic factors concern lexical
and grammatical associations which determine and restrict the use of words.
They include collocations and colligations. The former are lexical
associations, the systematic co-occurrence patterns of a word with other
words (Biber et al., 1998; Kennedy, 1991; Jones and Sinclair, 1974;
Mauranen, 2000; Kenny, 2001). They are also called ready-made units,
although their status as ready-made units is still unclear (Heltai, 2004:55).
The latter are grammatical associations, i.e. an association of a word, “seen
as a unique lexical item rather than as a member of its class,” with
grammatical categories (Sinclair, 1991, 1998; Hoey, 1997), or with a
particular position in a sentence or text (Hoey, 1997; Kennedy, 1991). Both
structures (collocations and colligations) are of utmost importance in the
analysis of word meaning (Jantunen, 2004:105). They are among the most
frequent translation traps. For example, ST8: “Am durat perdele ca pe trei ierni.
Am săpat bordeie. Dinspre partea banilor am împăcat pe toată lumea.” (p. 40) → TT8:
“[…] the shelters I made are likely to last for three winters. And I dug mud-huts, I satisfied
everybody, giving each his due.”. The verb a dura collocating with the noun
perdele is used with its second meaning of a construi (Seche, Seche, Preda
1993), and a făuri, a face, a clădi, a zidi, a edifica (Bulgăr, 2003). There is
non-symmetry between the colligation dinspre partea banilor and the TT
syntactic structure and lexical collocation giving each his due (V-ing + IO +
DO).
The non-linguistic factors involve register (spoken, written), dialect
(social, geographic), and style specific (formal, colloquial).
5. Additions are used in order to disambiguate. On analogy with
Jakobsen’s (2002:241-242) model of interpreters’ additions, with written
literary translations we should suggest the following types of additions: a)
with no impact on the semantic and/or pragmatic content of the ST
(repetitions); b) additions with minimal impact on the semantic and/or
pragmatic content of the ST (repetitions), fillers, and explicating additions
such as connectives and explanations used to give culture-bound
information; c) with significant impact (emphasizing additions, and
additions used to bring new information). For example, ST9:
“Ce fel de oameni sunt pe acolo?” (p. 40) → TT9: “And the men, what kind are
they in those parts?” (p. 38); ST10: “Stătea între ei o întrebare crâncenă” → TT10:
“A question that burned in their hearts stood between them”; ST11: “Timpul stătu.
Îl însemna totuşi cu vinerile negre în care se purta de colo-colo, fără hrană, fără
apă, fără cuvânt, cu broboada cernită peste gură” (p. 43) → TT11: “ Time seemed
motionless. And yet she had landmarks on those Fridays when she fasted, went
without food and drink and never uttered a word, walking aimlessly, a black
kerchief drawn over her mouth” (p. 40).