Файл: Перевод реалий.pdf

of the foreign text. It is the most unwanted method in the transmitting of the artistic text because not only the colouring is lost but also the meaning the author gave to reality inputting it to his text.

II. Practical part. Examples of translation of realities in the artistic texts.

For the better visuality the concrete examples of the translation of the realities from English into Russian with necessary notes will be observed in the roman “The Silence of the Lambs” by T. Harris.

The examples of translation realities from Russian into English will be taken from the roman of M.A. Bulgakov “The Master and Margarita”. We will observe three different variants of translation (by R. Pevear and L. Volokhonsky; by K. O’Connell and by M. Glenny).

1. Examples of translation of realities from English into Russian.

1. Borrowing.

• 1. Transcription. This method, as transliteration, is used in the transmission of the realities, especially proper names, and sometimes is accompanied by the additional means of comprehension.

In “The Silence of the Lambs” there is the following example: 1) “The Law Enforcement Bulletin says you're working on a database, but you aren't operational yet”, in the translation - “В “Ло инфорсмент бюллетен” писали, что вы активно работаете в этом направлении, но пока без особых результатов”. The translator uses the method of transcription without explanation of the meaning of reality, because it can be easily output from the context: The Law Enforcement Bulletin is the magazine monthly published by the FBI). There is one more example from this roman: 2) “ ...the Italian edition of Vogue” - “ ...итальянского издания журнала «Вот»”. Unlike The Law Enforcement Bulletin Vogue is the worldwide known American magazine, so, in my opinion, it would be more appropriate to save the original form of its name - “Vogue”.

Finally, there is an example of the same text: 3) “I had a ticket to Holiday on Ice”, in the translation - “У меня был билет на «Холидей он айс»”. Proper names are usually translated with the transcription/transliteration, but this name would not be clear to the Russian reader, the comment given by the translator in the notes is necessary: “«Холидей он айс» - «Праздник на льду» - is the popular ice show troupe, where the famous stars of figure skating perform”.

• 1. Transliteration

In “The Silence of the Lambs” we find the following example: 1) “It started as a bad joke in Kansas City homicide” - “Это началось с неудачной шутки в Отделе по расследованию убийств Канзас-Сити”. It does not require any additional explanations because it is clear that Kansas City is the locality. The next occasion is from the same roman: 2) “What do you know about Buffalo Bill?” - “А что вы знаете о Буффало Билле?” In the original the author when making up the name for the serial killer resorted to the allusion (Buffalo Bill is the nickname given to William Frederick Cody, the American hunter, because once he had killed the record number of buffalos). The explanation of the reality would make the text of the translation more cumbersome, that is why the translator uses two methods at the same time: transliteration and compensation to the equivalent transmission (“.. .он сдирает с них кожу, словно с горба буйвола”).

1. Translation
   1. Input of the neologism
      1. Caique - is a quite popular method of the translation of the realities such as natural objects, names of states, state institutes, positions etc.

There are some examples from “The Silence of the Lambs”: 1) “The caller was Catherine's mother, the junior U.S. Senator from Tennessee” - “Звонила мать Кэтрин — младший член сената США от штата Теннесси”. In this example the data about the USA voting system were excess because the reading public is well- acquainted with the concept “senator”, that is why the translation with the caique is quite adequate. 2) “...just like the arms on the popular Disney watches” - “...так же как стрелки на всем известных диснеевских часах” - here the translator resorts to the caique and explains the meaning of the reality in the notes to the text. In the translation it would be impossible to explain its meaning avoiding the burden of the text style; moreover, this activity is not compulsory because the author of the original mentions the similarity of the Disney watches of the hero, the description was given in the text. 3) “Next question: Do you know the Fourth Amendment stuff for Friday?” - “...ты хоть что-нибудь знаешь к экзамену по Четвертой поправке?” - the translator also explains what does the Fourth Amendment mean in the notes to the text (the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the USA proclaims the rights on the personal and property inviolability and forbids unfounded searches, detentions, seizures and arrests). In the next example the explanation is not required at all because the concept “FBI” has already become the international reality: 4) “.. .a Section Chief of the FBI...” - “...начальник отдела ФБР...”.

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• • 1. Semicaique - is the combination of the caique and translation/transliteration.

Examples form “The Silence of the Lambs” will be observed the first: 1) “...he was a guest lecturer at the University of Virginia” - “...когда он приезжал читать лекции в Университет штата Вирджиния”; 2) “ ...the Maryland Department of Motor Vehicles...” - “... автотранспортное управление штата Мэриленд ...” - here the names of the states were translated with the transcription, the names of the organizations - with the caique; 3) “ Look, I've got some information on Split City Mini-Storage... ” - “ Послушайте, у меня есть кое-какая информация о «Мини-складах Сплит-сити...»”, 4) “ Some duck hunters in West Virginia found a body in the Elk River...” - “ Охотники на уток в Западной Вирджинии обнаружили в реке Элк труп...” - transliteration + caique.

The next fragment contains the following reality: 5) “A venerable twin- engined Beechcraft stood on the taxiway at the Quantico airstrip” - “Почтенного возраста двухмоторный «бичкрафт» стоял на взлетной полосе служебного аэродрома Квонтико” (transcription + caique). From the text of the translation it becomes clear that Beechcraft is a helicopter (it was named after the firm-producer of the training airplanes), that is why the usage of the semicaique is without comments can be considered as sufficient.

As we see, the usage of the semicaique allows attaining the equivalence in the translation without making the text cumbersome.

• • 1. Familiarization - is the adaptation of the reality to the norms of the target language; the new word gets the more familiar form for the language native speaker. There are examples of the familiarization in the observed roman.

1. Квантифицировать (“You'd like to quantify me, Officer Starling” - “Вам хотелось бы меня квантифицировать, офицер Старлинг”) - to determine in the easiest terms;
2. Коронер (“Dr. Chilton is with the coroner and the assistant district attorney...” - “У доктора Чилтона совещание с коронером и заместителем районного прокурора...”) - the investigator proceeding the pre-inquest and defining if the death was violent;
3. Рейнджер (“Starling had declined with thanks the chairs of two Texas Rangers... ” - “Старлинг уже отказалась — с благодарностью — от нескольких стульев, предложенных ей поочередно двумя техасскими рейнджерами...”) - a chasseur, the member of the military security, cavalry policeman;
4. Кетчер (“...crafty catcher, tough when he blocked the plate” - “...ловкий кетчер, стойкий и яростный, когда надо преградить путь противнику”) - a catcher, the member of the baseball team.
   • 1. Semantic neologism - is the new word or word combination which is made up by the translator when the meaning of reality is impossible to transmit. There is an analysis of the examples from “The Silence of the Lambs”: 1) “That Vanderbilt...” - “Вандербильдиха...” In the original this nickname is given to the one of the heroines; this means that the translator had to create the similar nickname but with negative connotation. In Russian this effect can be attained by the addition of the suffix “их” to the surname. 2) “...were sent around to work out at Slenderella...” - “...были направлены в диетические клубы и центры, такие, как «Стройнесса»...” Here the translator had to make up a good name for the fitness centre. In the original it is made up by the mix of the words “slender” and “Cinderella”; the translator on the basis of the same semes “ideal complexion” and “fairy heroine” makes his own word: “стройный” + “принцесса” - “Стройнесса”.
5. Hyponymic translation - allows changing the concept with the narrow sense to the wider one (sometimes vice versa) in the cases when it cannot lead to the considerable meaning distortions.
6. “Hardly the best brains on the campus...” - “Далеко не лучшие университетские умы...” In this example the reality “campus” - “university village” is changed to the wider concept “university”. 2) “...and he doesn't get any Jell-O...” - “...лишит сладостей” - в in the text of translation we have not the name of the firm but the product it produces. 3) “...along the deserted Hogan's Alley...” - “...no опустевшему стрельбищу...”. “Hogan's Alley” - is the training camp of FBI, its name the translator changes on the clearer to the reader word “стрельбище”. 4) “Crawford took a jar of Vicks VapoRub out of his pocket...” - “Крофорд достал из кармана баночку с какой-то пахучей мазью...”. “Vicks VapoRub” -is the producer of the remedy for the hard breath; this information is excess, is maning can be transmitted with by the wide concept “пахучая мазь”. 5) “...collection of Franklin Mint locomotives...” - “...коллекции миниатюрных локомотивов...” - the name of the firm producing different collection objects and souvenirs (“Franklin Mint”) is omitted in the translation; but instead of it the translator uses the attribute “миниатюрный”.

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As we see, the hyponymic translation is often used in the cases when the name of the concrete trademark is changed to its production by the translator.

1. Assimilating translation - is the search of the analogue for the foreign reality in the target language, which will be clear to the recipient.
2. “Six inches of sodden leaves, mixed with paper cups and small trash...” - “...горка мусора — промокшие листья вперемешку с обрывками газет, бумажными стаканчиками, обертками от конфет” (inch - горка); 2) “...205 pounds...” - “...82 кг...” (pound - килограмм). In the role of the functional analogue there are objects and the units of measure fit to the comparison of the target language country.

3) “...hound’s tooth jacket...” - “...замшевую куртку...” (узор “hound’s tooth” - material); 4) “We can go in the club car...” - “Можно пойти в вагон- ресторан” (club car - passenger stock with the bar); 5) “ She and old Marty were drinking Tom Collinses... ” - “Она и Марти пили прохладительное... ” (“Tom Collinse - is he soft drink with the ice”); 6) “He was supposed to be my Student Adviser...” - “...oh считался моим репетитором-старшеклассником”; 7) “...his picture in your Year Book...” - “...его портрет в школьном альбоме...”; 8) “They were these dark brown loafers..- “Я эти туфли еще не видел, они были новые. Темно-коричневые...” (loafers/лоферы - is the model of shoes with leather brush as the decoration element); 9) “I got an F in it” - “Я и получил кол”; 10) “...we all had to stand up in the grandstand and give him a locomotive-that’s a cheer” - “...мы должны были вскочить на трибуны и трубить вовсю, то есть кричать ему «Ура!»”

1. Descriptive translation - is the transmission of the reality with the explanation of its meaning. It is used when the usage of other methods is unwanted or impossible.

There are some examples:

1. “Like the Sunday divorce flight from La Guardia to Juarez...” - “Как воскресный рейс Ла-Гардиа — Хуарес, обслуживающий тех, кто стремится побыстрее оформить развод...” (Juarez - is the Mexican city on the board with the USA where the divorce is legalized in one day);
2. “...in the Thanksgiving parade” - “...на параде в честь Дня Благодарения” (The Thanksgiving Day is a state holiday in the USA celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. In Ney York there is a big parade held by the biggest market Macy’s);
3. “...you have a string of gold add-a-beads...” - “...вы прячете нитку золотых бусин, тех, что дарят девушкам по одной на день рождения...”;
4. “...old viewer glowed like a Jack-o'-lantern...” - “...старый диаскоп светился как вырезанный из тыквы фонарь...” (“Jack-o'-lantem” is the name of the main Halloween attributes which came from the Irish legend about miser Jack”);
5. “Clarice Starling leaned against a dice table in the FBI's casino...” - “Клэрис Старлинг, прислонившись к игорному столу (занятия шли в учебном казино ФБР)...”;
6. “.. .this is an affidavit...” - “.. .это — официальное обязательство...”
   1. Transformational (conceptual) translation - there is no accordance for the reality; its meaning has to be cleared up according to the context.

There is an extract from the roman “The Silence of the Lambs”: 1) “The other vehicle, an "eyeball van" with one-way glass and surveillance equipment, was parked on Virginia Avenue...” - “Вторая машина — фургон «недреманное око» с оборудованием для наружного наблюдения, с окнами, прозрачными лишь изнутри, — встала на Вирджиния-авеню...”. For the translation of the word combination “eyeball van” (“eyeball” - “глазное яблоко”, “van” - “фургон”) no one from the above mentioned methods can be used; in the original it is a comic nickname for the one car. That is why in this case the translator had to create the similar word combination which would be able to transmit the meaning of this nickname based on the context and described situation.

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1. Omission - in lots of cases this method is unwanted to se, but its usage is possible if it does not lead to the distortion of the information earned by the text. There is an example:

“His voice was both high and hoarse. She was reminded of Aldo Ray” - “Голос у него был высокий и хриплый”. Aldo Ray (1926 - 1991) is an American actor; the voice of the roman’s main hero is associated with his. For the American reader who has watched the films with his participation the understanding of the meaning of this reality is easy. But the Russian reader does

not know the real voice of this actor. That is why the omission of the whole sentence is reasoned and even necessary because this information for the Russian reading public is not really important.

• 1. Examples of translation of realities from Russian into English.

It is obvious that there are a lot of difficulties the translator has to face while translation of such roman as “The Master and Margarita”. The epoch of this roman of full of peculiarities of USSR which will be hard for foreign readers. To understand this without commentaries of translator the reader has to know the politics, problems, traditions, ideology of that time. In this course work we will compare the translation of British translator (M. Glenny), the co-work of Russian and American translators (R. Pevear and L. Volokhonsky) and the work of American translator K. O’Connell.

1. In the first chapter “Never talk to strangers” all the translators use transliteration for the first place mentioned in the book: “Patriarch’s ponds”, but only R. Pevear and L. Volokhonsky gives commentary:The Patriarch’s Ponds: Bulgakov uses the old name for what in 1918 was rechristened ‘Pioneer Ponds’. Originally these were three ponds, only one of which remains, on the place where Philaret, eighteenth-century patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, had his residence.

In this case the commentary is not necessary, but nevertheless it gives additional information that can be used to complete the image of readers.

1. The next occasion is the translation of the name of the literary organization called МАССОЛИТ (Массовые советские литераторы). In all translation we see caique MASSOLIT.

K. O’ Connell gives the following commentary:

MASSOLIT—a very funny acronym in Russian, which might be best conveyed in English as LOTSALIT. Bulgakov found the Soviet passion for acronyms very funny, and made up various absurd ones throughout his career, although the real ones were bizarre enough.

R. Pevear and L. Volokhonsky’s commentary is the following:

Massolit: An invented but plausible contraction parodying the many contractions introduced in post-revolutionary Russia. There will be others further on - Dramlit House (House for Dramatists and Literary Workers), findirector (financial director), and so on.

In my opinion, despite K. O’Connell does not give the explanation of this acronym (Mass Soviet litterateurs), her commentary is more appropriate because it shows sarcastic attitude of the author.

3) Different ways were chosen in translation of the name of the main hero. R. Pevear and L. Volokhonsky use transfonnational translation. They translate the nickname Бездомный as Homeless with the following commentary: Homeless: In early versions of the novel, Bulgakov called his poet Bezrodny (‘Tastless’ or ‘Familyless’). Many ‘proletarian’ writers adopted such pen-names, the most famous being Alexei Peshkov, who called himself Maxim Gorky (gorky meaning ‘bitter’). Others called themselves Golodny (‘Hungry’), Besposhchadny (‘Merciless’), Pribludny (‘Stray’). Worthy of special note here is the poet Efim Pridvorov, who called himself Demian Bedny (‘Poor’), author of violent anti- religious poems. It may have been the reading of Bedny that originally sparked Bulgakov’s impulse to write The Master and Margarita. In his Journal of 1925 (the so-called ‘Confiscated Journal’ which turned up in the files of the KGB and was published in 1990), Bulgakov noted: ‘Jesus Christ is presented as a scoundrel and swindler... There is no name for this crime.’

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K. O’Connell uses the method of caique, so in her book we see the name Bezdomny with the commentary:

Bezdomny—this name literally means "Homeless," and brings to mind an entire series of famous pseudonyms, starting with Maksim Gorky ("the Bitter") and ending with Demyan Bedny ("the Poor"). Bedny is apposite in that he was known for especially egregious antireligious works, such as the 1925 The New Testament without Defects of the Evangelist Demyan. Although some have sought historical prototypes for every character in the novel, few of those suggested for the main characters are convincing. Bulgakov's main characters tend to be a blend of many sources, and sometimes are deliberate abstractions (the Master himself is a good example of this). Minor characters, however, do tend to have recognizable sources in a single figure.

I agree with the method used by K. O’Connell because she saved the original name of the hero.

1. To translate the name of the cigarettes “Наша Марка” all translators use caique “Our Brand”. I think it would be better to use transcription “Nasha marka” to save the Russian colouring.
2. The second chapter “Pontius Pilate” is full of transliterations. All the proper names such as Понтий Пилат, Иудея, Ершалаим, Еалилеи, Гамала, Гегемон, Иешуа Га-Ноцри, Левий Матвей were translated this way: Pontius Pilate, Judea, Yershalaim, Galilee, Hamala, Hegemon, Yeshua Ha-Nozri, Matthew Levi. All translators give historical references to these names.
3. In the third chapter “The seventh proof’ there is the following difference in the result of transcription of the word Метрополь.

R. Pevear and L. Volokhonsky write it as Metropol (A luxury hotel in Moscow, built at the turn of the century, decorated with mosaics by the artist Vrubel. Used mainly by Foreigners during the Soviet period, it still exists and has recently been renovated).

K. O’Connell spells it as Metropole, (the beautiful time-of-the-century hotel in Moscow's center, used at this time for high-ranking foreigners)

The K. O’Connell’s variant is more suitable from the phonetical point of view because the letter “e” softens the last consonant making the word sound as in Russian.

1. The roman was written at the time when the bedsit (коммунальная квартира) was a main feature of ordinary people’s life. So, there was a great task for translators to save this peculiarity with the fullest explanation of this kind of accommodation.

The first peculiarity of the bedsits was the presence of two entrances: front door was only for bedsit’s occupants and the back door was for servants (milkmen, janitors etc). In the fourth chapter “The Chase” there is the following episode describing the typical bedsit:

«Один лунный луч, просочившись сквозь пыльное, годами не вытираемое окно, скупо освещал тот угол, где в пыли и паутине висела забытая икона, из-за киота которой высовывались концы двух венчальных свечей. Под большой иконой висела пришпиленная маленькая - бумажная. Никому не известно, какая тут мысль овладела Иваном, но только, прежде чем выбежать на черный ход, он присвоил одну из этих свечей, а также и бумажную иконку».

"A single moonbeam, having seeped through the dusty, perennially unwashed window, shone sparsely into the comer where, in dust and cobwebs, a forgotten icon hung, with the ends of two wedding candles (two wedding candles: In the Orthodox marriage service, the bride and groom stand during the ceremony holding lighted candles. These are special, large, often decorated candles, and are customarily kept indefinitely after the wedding, sometimes in the comer with the family icon) peeking out from behind its casing. Under the big icon, pinned to it, hung a little one made of paper. No one knows what thought took hold of Ivan here, but before running out the back door, he appropriated one of these candles, as well as the paper icon". (R. Pevear and L. Volokhonsky)

"A single ray of moonlight, struggling through a dirty window that had not been cleaned for years, cast a dim light into one comer where there hung a forgotten ikon, the stubs of two candles still stuck in its frame. Beneath the big ikon was another made of paper and fastened to the wall with tin-tacks. Nobody knows what came over Ivan but before letting himself out by the back staircase he stole one of the candles and the little paper ikon" (M. Glenny).

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