Defining translation:
- Translation is the replacement of textual material in one language (source
language) by
equivalent textual material in another language (target language). (J.C.
Catford, 1965)
- Translation is the process of conveying messages across linguistic
and cultural
barriers. (Ian Tudor)
- Translation is rendering the meaning of a text into another language in the
way that the
author intended the text. (Peter Newmark, 1988)
- Translation consists of reproducing in the receptor language the
closest natural
equivalence of the source language message, first in terms of meaning and
secondly in
terms of style. (Nida E Taber, 1982)
- Translation is a process of finding a target language equivalent for a source
language
utterance. (Pinchuck, 1977)
[Link], Intralingual and Intersemiotic Translation:
- Intralingual translation (dịch nội ngữ) – translation within the same
language, which can involve rewording or paraphrase
- Interlingual translation (dịch liên ngữ) – translation from one
language to another
- Intersemiotic translation (liên kí hiệu học) – translation of the verbal
sign by a non-verbal sing, e.g., music or image, or braille (chữ nổi)
3.A prerequisite for study in translation and interpretation:
- General knowledge.
- Cultural knowledge.
- Specific translative/ interpretive skills.
[Link] for doing well in translation and interpretation:
-“A good translator/ interpreter has to be a vertable mine of information no
matter what
subject he is dealing with”
“Besides, vocabulary iss not enough – In order to make any sense out of the
text or a
speech, you have to understand what the author is really saying”
-Translation and interpretation involve ideas, not words.
[Link] of Translation versus Interpretation:
- Translation implies carefully analyzing the message given within the
context of a perticular linguistic code and transferring this message
into another written linguistic code.
- Interpretation, on the other hand, means doing the same but orally
and simultaneously.
[Link] basic types of translation and interpretation:
Prepared translation (biên dịch có c.bị trước): involves the preparation of a
translation
outside the class and it is then constructively critized by both students and
teacher.
Sight translation (dịch có nhiều tài liệu): includes an immediate, oral
rendition based
on a written text.
Consecutive interpretation (phiên dịch nối tiếp – dịch đuổi): is a process of
listening to
a speech of lecture one languge and at a certain moment, transcribing and
summarixing
it orral, in another languge. The time lapse between the speech and your
interpretation
varies.
Simultaneous interpretation (phiên dịch đồng thời/song song – dịch cabin):
involves
the immediate, simultaneous interpretation of what being said into another
languge.
[Link] subskills required for doing consecutive
interpretation:
[Link] to repeat what a speaker has said, first is one’s dominant
language;
[Link] training, e.g. practice in increasing retention of clusters of words
and numbers;
[Link] to take accurate notes;
[Link] to summarize;
[Link] to simplify;
[Link] to paraphrase;
[Link] to clarify;
[Link] to express with confidence and naturalness.
[Link] notion “context” in translation: Context is that which occurs before
and/or after a
word, a phrase or even a long utterance or text
[Link] types of texts identified by Peter Newmark:
[Link]: a dynamic sequence of events with emphasis on verbs, verb
nouns or phrasal
verbs.
[Link]: static, with emphasis on linking verbs, adjectives, adjectival
nouns.
[Link]: a treatment of ideas, with emphasis on abstract nouns
(concepts), verbs of
thought, mental activity (consider, argue, etc.), logical argument and
connectives.
[Link]: with emphasis on colloquialisms and phaticisms.
10. Six principles of translation:
a) Meaning: The translation should reflect accurately the meaning of
original text.
Nothing should be arbitrarily added or removed.
b) Form: The ordering of words and ideas in the translation should match the
originals
closely as possible.
c) Register: Languages often differ greatly in their levels of formalily in a
given context
(say, the business letter). To resolve these differences, the translator must
distinguish
between formave and fixed expressions and personal expressions, in which
the writer or
speaker sets the tone.
d) Source language influence: One of the most frequent criticisms of
translation is that
"it doesn't sound natural". This is because the translator's thoughts and
choises of words
are too strongly molded I by the original text. A good way of shaking off the
SL
influence is to set the text aside and translate a few sentences aloud, from
memory. This
will suggest natural patte patterns of thought in the Le, which may not come
to mind
when the exe is fixed on the SL text.
e) Style and clarity: The translator should not change the style of the original
f) Idiom: Idiomatic expressions are notoriously untranslatable. These include
similes,
metaphors, proverbs, and sayings (as good as gold), jargon, slang, and
colloquialisms,
and phrasal verbs. If the idiom cannot be translated directly, try any of the
following:
1, Retain the original word, in, in inverted commas
2, Retain the priginal expression, with a literak explanation in brackets
3, Use a close equivalent.
4, Use a non- idiomatic or plain prose translation
If the idiom does not work in the L1, do not force it into the translation.
Vd: No pain no gain: k có áp lực k có kim cương//Seeing is believing Tai nghe
k bằng
mắt thấy//Love is blind: tình yêu mù quáng//Out of right, out of mind: xa mặt
cách lòng
11. The notions “language” and “culture”. Explain why translation and
culture are
intimately connected:
Language is a set of verbal symbols that are primarily auditory, but
secondarily written.
Language also constitutes the most distinctive feature of a culture, which
may be
described in a simplistic manner as the totality of the beliefs and practices of
a society.
-Competent translators are always aware that ultimately words
only have
meaning in terms of the corresponding culture
-A phrase that appears easy to translate may actually contain cultural
subtleties that,
unless they are accounted for, can bring just the opposite meaning than is
intended.
Translation without deep cultural context can be dangerous, especially when
meanings
are critical.
12. Connotative meaning and denotative meaning. Give examples for
illustration:
Connotative meanings refer to the additional meanings that a word or phrase
has beyond
its central meaning ( =denotative meaning).
A translator must be aware of the positive and negative connotation of
words in the
source language so as to translate with an appropriate
connotation in the target
language.
Vd: run suggest haste
Sofa------comfort
Tropic ----heat
14. Four types of translational equivalence:
(1) Linguistic equivalence, where there is homogeneity on the linguistic level
of both
SL and TL, i.e. word for word translation.
(2) Paradigmatic equivalence, where there is equivalence of “the
elements of a
paradigmatic expressive axis”, i.e. elements of grammar, which Popovic sees
as being
a higher category than lexical equivalence.
(3) Stylistic (translational) equivalence, where ther is “functional
equivalence of
elements in both original and translation aiming at an expressive
identity with an
invariant of identical meaning.”
(4) Textual (syntagmatic) equivalence, where there is equivalence of form
and shape.
13. Two types of untranslatability: - Linguistic untranslatability is due to
differences
in the SL and the TL, whereas, cultural untranslatability is due to the absence
in
the TL culture of a relevant situational feature for the SL text.
14. Loss and gain in translation: - Loss: The disappearance of certain
features in the TL
text which are presented in the SL text.
- Gain: The enrichment or clarification of the source language text in the
process of
translation.
15. Translation methods:
1. Word for word translation: (dịch từng từ): Demonstrated as interlinear
translation
The TL immediately below the SL words SL word-order is preserved, the
words are
commonly translated singly out of context. Used as a pre-
translation process to
understand the mechanics of sl text.
2. Literal translation (dịch sát nghĩa): SL grammatical constructions are
converted
nearest TV equivalents, but the lexical words are still translated singly, out of
context.
As a pre-translation process, this indicates s 1 the problems to be solved.
3. Faithful translation: (dịch nguyên văn): Attempts to reproduce
the precise
contextual meaning of the original within the constraints of the
TL grammatical
structures. It "transfers" cultural words and preserves the degree of
granimatical and
lexical "abnormality". "abnormality". Translation of this type attempts to be
completely
faithhel to the intention of SL writer
4. Semantic translation: The distinction between "faithful" and "semantic"
translation -
s that the first uncompromising and dogmatic, while the second is more
flexible.
5. Adaptation (phỏng dich): This is the 'freest' form of translation. It is used
mainly for
plays (comedies) and poetry: the themes, characters, plots are usually
preserved, the SL
culture converted to the TL culture and the text rewritten by an established
dramatist or
poet.
6. Free translation (dịch tự do): Reproduces the matter without the
manner, or the
conten without the form of the original. Usually, it is a paraphrase much
longer than the
original, a so-called 'intralingual translation', not a real translation at all
7. Idiomatic translation (dịch thành ngữ): Idiomatic translation reproduces
the 'message'
of the original but tends distort nuances of meaning by preferring
colloquialisms and
idioms whe these do not exist in the original.
8. Communicative translation: Communicative translation to render the
exact of the
original in such a way that both content and language are readily and to the
relationship.
16. Sematic translation and communicative translation: Communicative
translation
attempts to produce on its readers an effect as close as possible to that
obtained on the
readers of the original. Semantic translation attempts to render as closely as
possible the
semantic and syntactic structures of the second language allow the exact
contextual
meaning of the original