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Literary translation: definition, history. Literary and literary translation Literary translation what

Literary translation- a special type of translation craft, which can confidently be called creativity. But what are the limits of this creativity, to what extent can the translator deviate from the letter of the original, trying to convey its spirit? Where are these boundaries? How to maintain in literary translation that golden mean, that royal path that distinguishes a true master from an amateur? The question is not easy, and everyone solves it in their own way. But we, nevertheless, will try to determine the boundaries beyond which, when working in the field of literary translation, it is better not to go.

Literary translation - what is it?

First of all, you need to decide on an understanding of what it is literary translation, and what are its fundamental differences from other areas of translation activity.

The first and most important difference between it and other types of this craft is that they pursue different goals. Literary translation faces the task of conveying not so much the information content of the original, but preserving the emotional, aesthetic, semantic impact on the mind and soul of the reader that was created by the author of the work. If in technical, journalistic, scientific or other types of translation the accurate transmission of information is placed at the forefront, then literary translation is designed to awaken in the souls of readers the same feelings and thoughts that awaken the original text. This is his main task, and if it is not fulfilled, no amount of accuracy and literalness will make the translation better or of higher quality.

Three principles of literary translation

But let's return to the question posed at the very beginning: to what extent can a translator deviate from the original, trying to convey those qualities that we just talked about? Here we can outline three basic principles, adhering to which you can avoid various excesses.

So, the first principle is to literary translation we need to prepare. What does it mean? This means that the original text must first be read. Read it thoughtfully, trying to perceive it not only with your mind, but also to feel its atmosphere and mood. It is necessary to understand what exactly the author wants to say in his work, what is its purpose and main idea. Only after understanding this can one begin to translate, subordinating all linguistic and visual means to the ultimate task. This general principle of approach to all literary translations, regardless of the authorship, genre and national characteristics of the original texts, will protect the translator from a superficial and unprofessional approach to his work.

The second principle is no ad-libbing. When undertaking a literary translation of any text, every translator must remind himself that he is none other than the “post horse of enlightenment.” He has no right to in any way alter the author’s thought, make his own “amendments,” or change anything at his own discretion: he must convey the author’s text as accurately and adequately as possible, which in the case of literary translations is complicated by the fact that this accuracy and adequacy is measured not only by informational, but also by aesthetic and emotional compliance with the source.

And finally, the third principle - when reading a literary translation, the reader should completely forget that this is a translation at all; it should seem to him that this text was written directly by the author. To follow this principle, the translator must be a bit of an actor, he must be able to get used to the role of the author, adopt his way of thinking, his writing style, his ideological tendencies. We can say that literary translation is a stage on which the translator is both a director and an actor.

Without going beyond these three basic principles that determine the permissible boundaries of a translator’s creativity, he can otherwise give scope to his literary talent (without which, there is no need to take on such a difficult task as literary translation). The framework is quite rigid, but it is really necessary; in addition, for good specialist Such restrictions make the work more interesting - this is some challenge to his professionalism, which he must accept fully armed.

That's how they are literary translations, - the unity and struggle of opposites - they simultaneously give the translator scope for creativity and set strict boundaries that cannot be crossed, otherwise the result will no longer be a translation, but, as they say, a work “based on”...

Literary translation of prose or poetry is a real art. It is not without reason that translators themselves consider literary translation one of the most difficult. It cannot be compared with business translation, when official phrases must convey the information that is expected. It is not like simultaneous translation, where quick response and precise formulation of thoughts are important, but the lack of coherence of the sentence is quite forgivable. It is not surprising that literary translation has many features and, of course, problems that we will consider in the course of this study.

Definition of literary translation

The word “translation” is one of the well-known and generally understood, but it, as a designation of a special type of human activity and its result, requires clarification and terminological definition. It means:

1) a process that takes place in the form of a mental act and consists in the fact that a speech work (text or oral utterance), which arose in one - source - language (FL), is recreated in another - translating - language (TL); .

2) the result of this process, i.e., a new speech work (text or oral utterance) in the TL. .

As part of our project, we will consider the second meaning of this term, namely a new speech work obtained as a result of the translation process. Following the theme of the project, our focus will be on literary translation.

Literary translation as an activity is a type of literary creativity in which a work written in one language is recreated in another language, as close as possible to the original text, conveying all its nuances. Accordingly, we will consider the result of this process - a literary work written in the source language and recreated by means of the translating language.

In the practical part of this work we will try to find out what makes a literary translation a good literary translation. To do this, we need to find out how and by what audience the translation will be evaluated.

According to the formulation of the Slovak scientist F. Miko, “translation is one of the forms of existence of a literary work.” IN in this case We are, of course, talking about literary translation. Translations of literary works are perceived by the reader as original works.

The extent of understanding them as a special layer of literature, located at the junction of “one’s own” and “alien”, each time depends on the specific reader. So Pervushina E.A. in his work “Literary translation as a problem

Comparative Literature" noted the phenomenon of translated literature, which occupies a special supranational niche in the context of world literature. However, with all the differences in the perception of a translated work, as well as in its functioning, both elements are always present: its belonging to the art of speech (common with domestic literature) and its “foreign language” origin (associated with the art of translation and distinguishing it from domestic literature).

Behind the perception of a translation as a literary work in a new language environment are the processes of its creation and the figure of the translator, its creator, as well as its impact on the new audience and the object of influence itself, and the object of influence must be understood not only as the individual reader, but also as a whole of literature , in which the translation was made, in the aggregate.

Translation functions in a different language environment as an independent work of verbal art and only within its limits can it be perceived and evaluated; but from the point of view of comparative literature it can be compared with the original - and other translations into the same language, and translations into other languages ​​- as a typologically similar phenomenon, and the differences between them can be understood within the framework of the differences in social norms that existed at the time of creation one translation or another.

Like any social norm, the translation norm is a mechanism through which society determines individual behavior. According to the definition of Schweitzer A.D. The social norm of translation is a set of the most general rules that determine the choice of translation strategy. These rules ultimately reflect the requirements that society places on a translator. Without being something given once and for all, they vary from culture to culture, from era to era, and from one type (genre) of text to another. However, differences (sometimes very significant) in translations of the same literary work made by contemporary translators cannot be explained only within the framework of social norms. Living at the same time, they are influenced by one social norm, which, as noted earlier, offers only the most general rules choosing a translation strategy.

A brief overview of the history of the development of literary translation will help to identify the reasons for the differences.

Any translation in general is a very painstaking and complex process that requires full dedication, concentration and care from the translator. First of all, it is worth mentioning that translation can be technical and literary. Literary translation is more difficult to translate than technical translation.

According to Komissarov V.N. [Komissarov V.N. 2002] definition, literary translation is a type of translation activity, the main task of which is to generate a speech work in the TL that can have an artistic and aesthetic impact on the TL.

The main difference between a literary text and other types of translation should be recognized as the fact that the translation text belongs to works of the target language that have artistic merit. In other words, literary translation is a type of translation activity, the main task of which is to generate a speech work in the target language that can have an artistic and aesthetic impact on the reader [Komissarov V.N. 1990].

To translate literary texts, the translator must have not only knowledge of the language, but also his background knowledge and command of the syllable play an important role. It is not enough to simply convey to the readership the meaning and content of the original, as was said earlier. You need to be able to do this so that the reader is imbued with the text of a given author. Literary translation from any language must be done in such a way that the atmosphere of the plot and the author’s style are fully preserved.

Modern translation activity is associated with original texts of different styles. Conveying the feelings, emotions, state and experiences of the author during translation is a very difficult matter. For this, it is not enough to have a large vocabulary, although this plays an important role. It is necessary to be able to recognize expression in the translated text. The translator sometimes deliberately resorts to the use of stylistic devices to give greater expressiveness and sensuality to the created text.

Translation of metaphors, metonymies, comparisons, allusions, personifications and various epithets forces even the most professional translator to treat the work very thoughtfully. It should also be noted that the problem of translating expression confuses not only beginners, but also professional translators.

For example, N.F. Danovsky [Danovsky, 1925] compares the art of translation with the art of war. He presents the stylistic requirements of the work as strategic problems. You can take the word “poet” as an example. In the Russian language, this concept has many varieties, shades, synonyms: poet - piit - bard - vitiya - button accordion - minstrel - ashug - akyn - poet - versifier - storyteller - epic - buffoon - ditty - rhymer - rhymer - verse-weaver - verse-weaver.

But in order for the translator to decide which synonym he should use in this particular text, he needs to turn to the stylistic structure, to the stylistic features of the original of the entire work. Thus, the specialist has an excellent opportunity to select stylistic and rhetorical figures and tropes. It is stylistic consistency that will be the final criterion for the translator, which will help him in selecting the necessary vocabulary, grammatical forms and sentence structures.

A professional translator uses ways to convey some of the stylistic devices used in the original in order to give the text greater brightness and expressiveness. At all times, translators have faced a dilemma: either try to copy the technique of the original, or, if the first is impossible, create their own stylistic device in the translation, which has a similar emotional artistic effect. This principle is often called the principle of stylistic compensation, about which K.I. Chukovsky [Chukovsky, 1919] said that it is not necessary to convey a metaphor with a metaphor, a comparison with a comparison, but a smile with a smile, a tear with a tear, etc. But for beginning “masters of words” “It is necessary to remember that it is not so much the form that is important, but the function of the stylistic device in the text. This means a certain freedom of action: grammatical means of expression can be transferred to lexical ones and vice versa. By omitting a stylistic phenomenon that is indescribable into Russian, the translator will return the “debt” to the text by creating in another place in the text - where it is most convenient - another image, but of a similar stylistic orientation.

If a novice translator does not have experience in comparing different translations or a translation with the original, then his attitude towards some texts will be unambiguous: numerous participial phrases, all kinds of morphemes and allusions will cause him great difficulties. As a result, the translator and the translation are left out of the equation. On the other hand, there is a possibility that the author himself will disappear if the translator is aware of the complexity and importance of his work, knows how to talk about it and compare, and has extensive experience. In this case, the text becomes the translator’s creation, replete with his personal thoughts, feelings, and experiences. In both cases, it should be remembered that the translator is responsible for the stylistic aspects of the text.

Many people like to read foreign authors. Shouldn't we think that this is due to the translators? Consequently, when speaking about their love for a certain foreign author, people to a large extent also imply the level of skill of the translator who made this text accessible to the readership.

Thus, we can say that literary translation of prose or poetry is real art, creativity. And creativity is incompatible with corrosive literalism. Thus, a translator of literary texts is the same writer who practically writes the book anew, creating it again for the reader. Without at least a modicum of writing talent, a translator will not be able to create a high-quality, beautiful text of an artistic original.

It is known that literary translation is one of the most difficult. It cannot be compared with business translation, when official phrases must convey the information that is expected. It is not like simultaneous translation, where quick response and precise formulation of thoughts are important, but the lack of coherence of the sentence is quite forgivable.

To manage to make the text interesting and readable, to preserve its style, to convey the author’s idea is the talent and merit of the translator who took on this work. A true translator will have to master the theory and practice of literary translation all his life.

It is not surprising that literary translation has many features and problems, which we will consider in the next paragraph.

Literary translation is a special branch of translation activity, which is the written translation of literary works from one language to another. The main difficulty of literary translation lies not in conveying the meaning, but in conveying the unique author's style of the work, its aesthetics, the richness of linguistic means, as well as the atmosphere, humor, character and mood embedded in the text.

Literary translation is fundamentally different from legal or scientific and technical translations, which require extreme accuracy, almost “verbatim”, when reproducing texts.

Literary translation is not limited only to the field of linguistics and philology; it can be said to border on art.

According to many experts, literary translation is the most difficult type of translation activity. It is extremely difficult to learn such translation, and in most cases impossible. After all, in order to translate works of art with high quality, you must have a special innate talent, which should be developed and improved throughout your life.

The meaning and relevance of literary translation

It is extremely difficult to overestimate the role of literary translation. An indisputable fact is that world literature itself arose, exists and develops, and exists precisely thanks to the artistic translation of various works of literary art. Thanks to him, the names of great writers became known throughout the world, and their works are accessible to speakers of different languages ​​and cultures.

Today, any author or writer strives to win not only a domestic, but also a global readership. A high-quality literary translation in all respects will help you achieve world fame and gain popularity. Agree that even the most brilliant work can leave the reader indifferent, and in the worst case, receive negative reviews if its translation is entrusted to an “ordinary” translator.

The need for gifted literary translators is still extremely high today. This is due to the fact that literary translation is not limited to working exclusively with works of fiction. Translation of journalistic and advertising texts is also within the competence of literary translators. Currently, there are many websites, magazines, newspapers, news, and various articles that need to be translated into various foreign languages.

With the advent of the Internet, the dissemination of information has accelerated significantly, so translation must take place as quickly as possible. The task, as you can see, is not easy.

The field of literary translation also includes translation of:

  • memoirs;
  • children's literature;
  • advertising materials, booklets;
  • scenarios;
  • subtitles for films;
  • song lyrics.

In a word, today literary translation is also in demand in advertising, journalism, theater, music, cinema, and so on.

Features of literary translation

Literary translation is a specific and complex professional activity. A literary translator must be, to one degree or another, a writer. If we exaggerate, we can say that the fate of the author of the work itself is in the hands of literary translators. And if we are talking about advertising texts, then the fate of a particular product or brand is abroad.

So what is so special about literary texts and why are they extremely difficult to translate?

It should be noted that literary texts, as a rule, contain a large number of means of expressiveness and imagery, the transfer of which will require remarkable intelligence, imagination and high professionalism from the translator. Here are examples of means of expressiveness in literary texts:

  • metaphors;
  • comparative turnover;
  • neologisms;
  • repetitions (lexical, phonetic, morphemic, etc.);
  • dialectisms;
  • professionalism;
  • toponyms;
  • speaking titles, first and last names;
  • and others.

It is difficult to convey such means in another language due to the lack of direct equivalents and the presence of certain cultural and other differences. This is a great opportunity for a translator to demonstrate his ingenuity and professional skills. The translator must have a wide vocabulary, including idiomatic expressions and proverbs in the target language, and be able to correctly select and use special reference books and dictionaries. Possession of a large amount of cultural information about the country and native speakers of the target language is a requirement that any professional literary translator must meet.

An important feature and complexity of literary translation is also the rendering of wordplay and humor. It is extremely rare that a literal translation can convey a play on words in the target language. Therefore, the translator has to use his imagination in order to preserve the humorous component of the text. Only creative and creative professional translators are able to cope with such a difficult task.

Professional literary translators of the company "Effect"

Talented translators and writers of the Effectiff bureau carry out literary translations from/to foreign languages, relying on the invaluable experience of the great masters of translation.

Literary translation, according to T.A. Kazakova, is called the translation of works of fiction. Works of fiction are contrasted with all other speech works due to the fact that for all of them one of the communicative functions is dominant, namely artistic-aesthetic or poetic. The main goal of any work of this type is to achieve a certain aesthetic impact, to create an artistic image. This aesthetic orientation distinguishes artistic speech from other acts of verbal communication, the informative content of which is primary and independent.

Since we are talking about the translation of segments of literary speech, the main difference between literary translation and other types of translation should be recognized as belonging to the translation text as a TL work that has artistic merit. In other words, literary translation is a type of translation activity, the main task of which is to generate a speech work in the TL that can have an artistic and aesthetic impact on the TL. An analysis of translations of literary works shows that, in connection with this task, deviations from the maximum possible semantic accuracy are typical for them, in order to ensure the artistry of the translation.

Literary texts covering all genre diversity of literature, literary criticism and journalism. They have two main interrelated text-forming functions: impact and aesthetic. In such texts, the form of presentation takes on special significance. Literature embodies not only and not so much rational as artistic and aesthetic knowledge of reality. The aesthetic value of the work and the level of emotional and expressive impact on the reader depend on how and in what form the content materializes. Literary texts use units and means of all styles, but all these stylistic elements are included in a special literary system and acquire a new, aesthetic function. Of course, literary texts should be divided into types, for example, corresponding literary genres. Each type will have its own artistic, linguistic and functional specificity.

Translation of literary texts requires special approach. For this type of translation, it is impossible to limit it to the identified patterns. The natural way of assimilating both native and foreign language- this is the gradual assimilation of colloquial clichés, then stable phrases, and, finally, individual words. IN educational institutions learning is in exactly the opposite order: from words, students move on to composing sentences, bypassing the stage of mastering clichés and set phrases. That is why most translators and people who speak two languages ​​often construct sentences in a foreign language in the image of their native language, experiencing difficulties with monologue speech. Linguistic means in a literary text have the character of a temporary semasiological connection, that is, this is the use of words in a figurative meaning, the use of visual means in the text. It follows from this that each time the translator faces a new, often never encountered before task, which he solves in a new way when conveying the tropes and realities of a speech work. The highest manifestation Literary translation is the translation of poetic texts. As a creative process, professional translation is a linguistic activity in which there is no place for a template. Each time, following a certain creative orientation, the translator himself, at his own discretion, makes a decision, which subsequently materializes in the form of a finished text.

The Italian poet A. Dante wrote: “Let everyone know that nothing included for the purpose of harmony in the musical foundations of a verse can be translated from one language to another without violating all its harmony and charm.”

Thus, texts are basically divided into literary (prose and poetic) and special (scientific, journalistic, technical). Scientific, technical and socio-political texts require the translator to master a certain set of speech correspondences in a specific specialization, while a literary text, that is, a text with rich linguistic means and time connections, requires the translator to have a wealth of extensive knowledge and a creative approach.

Literary translation or translation of poetic and artistic works is sharply different from other types of translation; it presupposes the translator’s verbal creativity and the possession of literary talent. After all, the translation of the same phrase different people turns out completely different. Such translation is a real art, since the aesthetic effect is achieved by appropriate linguistic means, including rhythm, rhyme and alliteration.

Art style- This is perhaps the least studied of all existing styles, since it is the most mobile and creatively developing. The artistic style knows no obstacles on the way of its movement towards something new, previously unknown. Moreover, novelty and unusualness of expression becomes a condition for successful communication within the framework of this functional style.

Works of art touch on a very small range of topics, mainly life, human thoughts, the search for the path and meaning of life, but the number of artistic means used to describe these topics is almost limitless. In addition, every writer strives not to merge with his colleagues, but, on the contrary, to stand out, tell something new, and interest the reader. Thus, each author has his own individual characteristics, called his author's style. And the translator must not only preserve the content of the work, but also the style, genre character of the work, the aesthetics of the author, the means of artistic expression, including the forms of versification. Therefore, we can say that the translator himself must become a writer. This is not always possible, which is why such great poets as A.S. remain unknown representatives of other nations. Pushkin, J. Byron or V. Hugo, but this is something we should strive for.

Literary translation is a very complex, not well-oiled mechanism. There are no specific recommendations on how to translate a work of art - each time this is a creative process requiring titanic efforts, excellent knowledge of the language, history, culture of the language, fiction and creative attitude on the part of the translator. The difficulty of translating a literary text lies in the fact that the translator needs to convey to the reader what was necessary in the text initially, without the reader having the feeling that this is a translation and not an original.

For example, if this is an artistic, detective, or satirical work, then the translator needs to convey the spirit of the work of art without losing the meaning, beauty and style of the language.

Each new text as a whole requires a new approach, a new topic, new turns of phrase, vocabulary, and in general a complete restructuring to a new, completely different stage of work.

Let us briefly consider some modern trends in the theory of literary translation. In general, literary translation researchers are characterized, in our opinion, by an “essayist” orientation of thought. We believe that this approach does not equip the practicing translator with specific recommendations on how to act in particularly difficult cases. But without a clear understanding by the translator of his tasks, without knowledge of possible ways to solve them (that is, without knowledge of translation techniques), the translator will be, as it were, disarmed and, even acting in the most sincere manner, can actually replace the original translation with an adaptation or paraphrase, retelling or interpretation, or whatever some combination of these elements. But genuine translation does not represent any of the processes mentioned above, and it is impossible to put an equal sign between these processes and translation itself. Confusing translation with the above-mentioned processes of transmitting foreign language information would be tantamount to repeating already learned historical truths. Even in the era of John Dryden, a major English translation scholar and critic, in accordance with his teaching, translation was proposed to be divided into: metaphrase, that is, the so-called word-by-word, or interlinear, translation; and paraphrase (paraphrase), which is a more understandable presentation of the text in its entirety or in separate parts (“text enlightenment”), sometimes accompanied by translation explanations (Dryden called this method “translation with latitude”); and imitating translation (imitation). ), which is a translation-imitation of an author's work, when the translator seems to create his work on the basis of the original, without particularly worrying about the accurate transmission of either words or meaning, and takes into account only the aesthetic taste of the public that is dominant in a given era.

Translating works of fiction is not an easy task; poetry can be debated for a long time, and, according to the famous translator R.K. Minyar-Beloruchev, only a select few should be allowed to translate poetic works. This type of translation not only activates mental activity, artistic taste, broadens one’s horizons, but also deepens knowledge of both foreign and Russian languages.

The artistic style knows no obstacles on the way of its movement towards something new, previously unknown. Moreover, novelty and unusual expression becomes a condition for successful communication within the framework of this functional style.

As mentioned above, works of art touch on a very small range of topics, mainly life, human thoughts, the search for the path and meaning of life, but the number of artistic means used to describe these topics has no limit. In addition, every writer does not strive to merge with his colleagues, but, on the contrary, to stand out, create his own individual style, and interest the reader. And the translator must not only preserve the content of the work, but also the style, genre character of the work, the aesthetics of the author, the means of artistic expression, including the forms of versification.

Different cultures create almost more difficulties than different languages. The linguistic principle of translation, first of all, involves recreating the formal structure of the original. However, the proclamation of a linguistic principle as the main one can lead to excessive adherence to the original text in translation - to a literal, linguistically accurate, but artistically weak translation, which would in itself be one of the varieties of formalism, when alien linguistic forms are accurately translated, stylization occurs according to the laws of a foreign language. In cases where the syntactic structure of the translated sentence can be expressed in translation by similar means, a literal translation can be considered as the final version of the translation without further literary processing. However, the coincidence of syntactic means in two languages ​​is relatively rare; Most often, during literal translation, one or another violation of the syntactic norms of the Russian language occurs. In such cases, we are faced with a certain gap between content and form: the author’s thought is clear, but the form of its expression is alien to the Russian language. A literally accurate translation does not always reproduce the emotional effect of the original; therefore, literal accuracy and artistry are in constant conflict with each other.

It is difficult to overestimate the merit of the domestic school of translation theory in the formation of theoretical concepts of translation and improvement of translation practice, therefore the process of literary translation acquired the status of creative efficiency and became a special type of art. The first serious literature specifically in the field of translation theory was specifically named: the book by K.I. Chukovsky and A.V. Fedorov “The Art of Translation”, in which the art of translation was interpreted not only in the traditional sense of the highest level of skill, but also in the philosophical sense - as a religious and practical assimilation of the artistic world, combining education, knowledge, price and human communication.

The constant change of existing linguistic concepts of literary translation generally corresponded to the main directions and concepts of modern linguistics. Thus, one of the largest domestic theorists - V.N. Komissarov in his works sets out four concepts, or linguistic theories of translation and, accordingly, gives four definitions of literary translation. According to denotative theory, literary translation is “the process of displaying, with the support of translation words, the denotations depicted in the original language.” In accordance with his transformational concept, literary translation is “the remaking of units and structures of a foreign language into units and structures of a TL.” In accordance with semantic theory, literary translation consists of “identifying the essence of equivalent connections between the content of the original and the translation.” The theory of the stages of equivalence of the scientist constitutes “a model of translation work based on the idea that these equivalence relationships are carried out between similar degrees of content of the words of the original and the translation.”

This is the concept of literary translation as a result; further we will consider it as a process.

Literary texts use countless tropes and figures of speech, which distinguishes this style from others. And the translator must create a text that represents the original in a foreign language culture as fully as possible. Among the criteria for such a translation, of course, one should mention the preservation of as many tropes and figures of speech as possible, as an important component of the artistic style of a particular work. In addition, the translation must indicate the era of creation of the original.

In every work of art there are so-called objects of information design, stylistic devices. The most common of them are epithets, comparisons, metaphors, author's neologisms, repetitions, puns, irony, dialectisms, speaking names and toponyms. Epithets are conveyed taking into account their structural and semantic features (simple and complex adjectives; the degree of compliance with normative semantic agreement with the defined word; the presence of metaphor, metonymy, synesthesia), taking into account individualization, taking into account the position in relation to the defined word and its function. Comparisons are conveyed taking into account the structural features and stylistic coloring of the vocabulary included in it. Metaphors are conveyed taking into account structural characteristics, taking into account semantic relations between the figurative and the subject plane. The author's neologisms are transmitted according to the word-formation model existing in the target language, similar to the one used by the author, while preserving the semantics of the word components and stylistic coloring. Phonetic, morphemic, lexical, syntactic and leitmotif repetitions are conveyed whenever possible while maintaining the number of repetition components and the very principle of repetition at a given language level. A play on words based on the polysemy of a word or the revitalization of its internal form; in rare cases of coincidence in the volume of polysemy of the word played in the original and the translation, both the meaning and the principle of the game are preserved; in other cases, the game is not transferred, but can be compensated by playing on a word with a different meaning that is introduced into the same text. To reproduce irony in translation, first of all, the very principle of contrasting collision, juxtaposition of incomparables is conveyed. Syntactic specificity - the presence of a contrast between short and long sentences, the rhythm of prose, the predominance of coordinating connections, etc. - is conveyed using grammatical correspondences. Dialectisms, as a rule, are compensated by colloquial vocabulary; jargon and curse words are conveyed using the vocabulary of the language with the same stylistic overtones; “Speaking” names and toponyms are transmitted while preserving the semantics of the “speaking” name and the word-formation model typical for the original language, exotic for the target language.

Each translation, as a creative process, must be marked by the individuality of the translator, but the main task of the translator is still the transmission in translation characteristic features the original, and to create an artistic and emotional impression adequate to the original, the translator must find the best linguistic means: select synonyms, appropriate artistic images, and so on.

Of course, all elements of form and content cannot be reproduced exactly. With any translation, the following inevitably happens: some part of the material is not recreated and is discarded. Some of the material is given not in its own form, but in the form of various kinds of replacements and equivalents. Material is introduced that is not in the original.

Therefore, the best translations, according to many famous researchers, which we fully support, may contain conditional changes compared to the original - and these changes are absolutely necessary if the goal is to create a unity of form and content similar to the original on the material of another language. However, the accuracy of the translation depends on the volume of these changes - and it is precisely the minimum of such changes that presupposes an adequate translation.

There are cases when a translator needs not only knowledge, but also special skill. The writer often plays with words, and this game can be difficult to recreate. Some cases of it cannot be translated and force the translator to resort to footnotes. For example, the Russian version of the title of O. Wilde’s play “The Importance of Being Earnest” does not convey the pun it contains, based on homonymy English name Ernest and the adjective earthest - serious. However, the translator can find a correspondence in the Russian language for most cases of puns, although this requires both knowledge various types word games that require different approaches and linguistic resourcefulness.

Particular difficulties arise when the source and target languages ​​belong to different cultures. For example, in the works of Arab authors there are often quotations from the Koran and allusions to its plots. An Arab reader recognizes them as easily as an educated European recognizes references to the Bible or ancient myths. In translation, these quotes remain incomprehensible to the European reader. Literary traditions also differ: comparison for Europeans beautiful woman with a camel seems absurd, but in Arabic poetry it is quite common. And the fairy tale “The Snow Maiden,” which is based on Slavic pagan images, is generally not clear how to translate into the languages ​​of hot Africa. Therefore, differences in cultures create much more difficulties than differences in languages.

The translation technique does not recognize text modernizations, based on the simple logic of equality of impressions: the perception of the work by a modern reader of the original should be similar to a modern reader of the translation. A modern translation informs the reader that the text is not modern and, using special techniques, tries to show how ancient it is.

“Each era,” wrote K. Chukovsky, “has its own style, and it is unacceptable that in a story dating back to the thirties of the last century, there were such typical words of the nineties as moods, experiences, quests, superman... In the translation of solemn poems addressed to Psyche, the word sister is inappropriate... Calling Psyche a sister is the same as calling Prometheus a brother, and Juno a mother.”

The translator can reflect the era using lexical, morphological and syntactic archaisms. This is how they create an archaic stylization. Stylization is not a complete assimilation of the target language to the language of a past era, but only marking the text with the help of archaisms.

IN original text You can find all kinds of artistic stylistic techniques that are used to give the text greater brightness and expressiveness. The translator has the following choice: either try to copy the technique of the original, or, if this is impossible, create in the translation his own stylistic device that has a similar emotional effect. This is the principle of stylistic compensation, which K.I. Chukovsky said that it is not necessary to convey a metaphor with a metaphor, a comparison with a comparison, but a smile with a smile, a tear with a tear, etc. . For a translator, it is not so much the form that is important, but rather the function of the stylistic device in the text. This means a certain freedom of action: grammatical means of expression can be transferred to lexical ones and vice versa; By omitting a stylistic phenomenon that is indescribable into Russian, the translator will return the “debt” to the text by creating in another place in the text - where it is most convenient - another image, but of a similar stylistic orientation.

Literary translation, both poetic and prose, is an art. Art is the fruit of creativity. And creativity is incompatible with literalism. Russian literature of the 18th century was already clearly aware of this when it distinguished literal and interlinear accuracy from artistic accuracy. She understood that only artistic accuracy gives the reader the opportunity to enter into the circle of thoughts and moods of the author, to visually imagine his stylistic system in all its originality, that only artistic accuracy does not embellish or disfigure the author’s language. The eighteenth century left this view of Russian translation as a legacy to the nineteenth, the nineteenth to the twentieth, and the twentieth, in turn, to the twenty-first. In the article by A.S. Pushkin about Milton and about Chateaubriand’s translation of “Paradise Lost” we read: “... the Russian language... is not capable of interlinear translation, of translating word for word...”

A B.L. Pasternak, in his “comments on Shakespeare’s translations,” put it this way: “... a translation should give the impression of life, not literature.”

But since translation is an art that has nothing in common with the literal craft, it means that the translator must be endowed with the gift of writing. The art of translation has its own characteristics, and yet the translator writers have many more similarities with the original writers than differences. This is beautifully stated in “Junkers” by A.I. Kuprin: “...to translate from a foreign language it is not enough to know this language, even if perfectly, but you also need to be able to penetrate into the deep, living, varied meaning of each word and into the mysterious power of combining certain words.”

Translators, like writers, need multifaceted life experience and a constantly replenished stock of impressions. The language of the writer-translator, like the language of the original writer, is formed from observations of the language of the native people and from observations of the native literary language in his historical development. Only those translators can count on success who begin work with the consciousness that language will overcome any difficulties, that there are no barriers for it.

Every writer, unless he is a true artist, has his own vision of the world, and, consequently, his own means of depiction. The individuality of the translator is also manifested in which authors and which works he chooses to recreate in his native language.

For a translator, the ideal is to merge with the author. But merging requires searching, resourcefulness, adaptation, invention, visual acuity, empathy, smell and hearing. It is necessary to reveal creative individuality so that it does not obscure the originality of the author.

To summarize, we can say that adequate translation of a text requires the translator to make certain substitutions, abandon literalness and search for suitable semantic correspondences.