The “likelihood” of certain words occurring with other words and the naturalness or typicality of the resulting combinations The difficulties encountered by translators as a result of difference in the lexical patterning of the source and target languages. Lexical patterning: collocations and idioms (fixed expressions). Focus on: - collocations - idioms and fixed expressions
Collocational related pitfalls and problems in translation Collocational related pitfalls and problems in translation Translators sometimes get quite engrossed in the source text and may produce the oddest collocations in the target language for no justifiable reason. EXAMPLE:Back at the dull mahogany tables of the Commission, I found myself again seated opposite the familiar, tall languid figure of Sir Godfray Le Quesne, rocking gently on his chair, with his hands clasped behind his head, and his eyes closed as he listened or slept through the hearings. He’d been looking into us for four years, and knew our business backwards. What am I doing here, I thought, as I gazed by the hour and by the month at the hole in the sole of his leather shoe, and wondered why Lonrho’s bid was in the hands of his leather shoe, and wondered why Lonrho’s bid was in the hands f a man who couldn’t organise his own shoe repairs. (English ST- A hero from Zero)The French translator of A Hero from Zero (a document produced by Lonrho Plc. about the acquisition of the House of Fraser by Mohamed Fayed) rendered shoe repairs as réparer ses chaussures (“to repair his shoes”), which is a literal translation from English. In French, réparer collocates with things like “fridges”, “cars” and “machines” in general, but it does not collocate with chaussures. The translators should have used ressemeler ses chaussures (“resole his shoes”) which is a far more natural collocation in French.
Collocational related pitfalls and problems in translation Collocational related pitfalls and problems in translation (b) Misinterpreting the meaning of a source-language collocationA translator can easily misinterpret a collocation in the source text due to interference from his/ her native language. This happens when a source-language collocation appears to be familiar because it corresponds in form to a common collocation in the target language. EXAMPLE:All this represents only a part of all that Forbes Magazine reported on Fayed in the March issue mentioned before. In 1983, he had approached the industrialist Robert O. Anderson under the cover of a commission agent. The industrialist had been struck by his appearance as someone with modest means. Mr. Anderson was therefore astonished by his sudden acquisition of a considerable fortune. (English ST- A hero from Zero)The industrialist saw in him a person whose appearance suggests modesty and simplicity. (back-translated from Arabic)
The collocation modest means suggest lack of affluence in English and not a moral quality. So, the translator misinterpreted the source collocation and communicated the wrong meaning in the TT.
Collocational related pitfalls and problems in translation Collocational related pitfalls and problems in translation (c) The tension between accuracy and naturalnessA translator ideally aims at producing a collocation which is typical in the target language while, at the same time, preserving the meaning associated with the source collocation. This idea cannot always be achieved. Translation often involves a tension – a difficult choice between what is typical and what is accurate.The nearest acceptable collocation in the target language will often involved some change in meaning. eg. the nearest acceptable collocation which can replace hard drink in Arabic is “alcoholic drinks”. But hard drinks refers only to spirits in English, for example whisky, gin, and brandy. It does not include other alcoholic drinks such as beer, lager, or sherry. The Arabic collocation, however, refers to any alcoholic beverage.EXAMPLE:Tiny Rowland is a crisper writer than Peter Wright and has an even stranger story to tell. (English ST- The Independent)Tiny Rowland has a sharper pen than Peter Wright’s, and also the story which he is narrating is much stranger. (back-translated from Arabic) Crisp writing is clear, concise writing. The collocation suggests approval, in Arabic, “sharp pen” is a common and typical collocation. But a writer described as having a “shaper pen” in Arabic is a fierce critic. The collocation suggests disapproval.
Collocational related pitfalls and problems in translation Collocational related pitfalls and problems in translation (d) Culture-specific collocationsSome collocations reflect the cultural setting in which they occur. If the cultural setting of the source and target languages are significantly different, there will be instances when the source text will contain collocations which convey what to the target reader would be unfamiliar associations of ideas. They point to concepts that are not accessible to the target reader.
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