FOREIGN TRADE UNIVERSITY

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MID-TERM FIELD REPORT
AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE STRATEGIES
FOR TRANSLATION OF COLLOCATIONS
IN THE BOOK GONE WITH THE WIND BY
MARGARET MITCHELL
Student :
Student ID :
Class :
Supervisor : Doan Xuan Phu

Ha Noi, November 2013
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I am specially grateful to Mr. Doan Xuan Phu, M for his time and invalua!le
assistance to help us !etter understand the report.
I "ould also li#e to than# all the classmates I have "or#ed "ith over the "ee#s for
providing support, encouragement and comments.
$% &'i, &ovem!er ()1*
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Table o Co!"e!"#
A$%!o&le'(e)e!"
I!"*o'+$",o!
C-a."e* /: LANGUAGE BACKGROUND
/0 T*a!#la",o!
1.1 Definition of +ranslation
1.( ,-uivalence and +ranslation
1.* &on.,-uivalence and +ranslation
1./ 0anguage, Culture and +ranslation
1.1 +ranslation Pro!lems 2grammatical, stylistic, cultural, le3ical4
1.5 +ranslation Strategies
(. Collo$a",o!#
(.1 Definition of Collocations
(.( Collocational 6ange and Collocational Mar#edness
(.* Collocation and 6egister
(./ Collocational Meaning
(.1 Some Collocation.related Pitfalls and Pro!lems in +ranslation
C-a."e* 1: STRATEGIES FOR THE TRANSLATION OF SELECTED
COLLOCATIONS
1. Illustrations of +ranslation Strategies
1.1 +ranslation !y More &eutral and 0ess ,3pressive 7ord
1.( +ranslation !y Cultural Su!stitution
1.* +ranslation !y 8sing 0oan 7ords
1./ +ranslation !y Paraphrase 8sing 6elated 7ords
1.1 +ranslation !y Paraphrase 8sing 8nrelated 7ords
1.5 +ranslation !y 9mission
1.: +ranslation !y Compensation
(. ;indings and discussion of the findings.
CONCLUSION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
*
I!"*o'+$",o!
0anguage is a system of communication that is used !y a particular community of
users !ased on four main language s#ills namely listening, spea#ing, reading, and
"riting. +ranslation is recently considered a s#ill < the fifth macro s#ill. translator=s
main o!>ective is to mediate communication among people, no matter if the
communication is in "ritten or spo#en form. $e has to transfer a message to a
recipient in such a "ay that the recipient can understand it. It is important to employ
such devices "hich "ill convey the message in the same "ay as it "as originally
"ritten.
In translation, understanding and conveying the meaning of collocations play an
important role. Collocations are the com!ination of certain "ords "hich have a
tendency to regularly go together in a given language. t one level, that tendency has
to do "ith the preopositional meanings of those "ords. Meaning, ho"ever, cannot
al"ays ma#e up collocational meaning. +hat is the reason "hy the translator has to
find proper solutions to translating collocations.
/
C-a."e* /: LANGUAGE BACKGROUND
A! I!"*o'+$",o! "o T*a!#la",o! a!' Collo$a",o!#
+ranslating collocations is one of the most difficult tas#s for translators. +he main
pro!lems lie in ho" to recogni?e a collocation, understand it and convey its meaning.
iming at investigating the pro!lem of recognition and comprehension of
collocations, this chapter of t"o parts gives a detailed theoretical !ac#ground a!out
collocations. Part one is an introductory section that provides some definitions of
translation, e-uivalence and non.e-uivalence and culture. It also lists the translation
difficulties and the accurate strategies that may help translators to solve these
pro!lems.
Part t"o, ho"ever, is more detailed. It includes many definitions of collocations
together "ith their different characteristics, types and ho" to interprete them. In
addition, an e3planation of the "ay collocations should !e used and interpreted is
given.
/0 T*a!#la",o!
1.1 Definition of +ranslation
+ranslation is a contact !et"een t"o different languages as "ell as !et"een t"o
different cultures. n e3pression in one language not al"ays has the same meaning
and the same cultural connotations as its counterpart in the other language. +his can
!ring many pro!lems to the translator, "ho has to overcome these !arriers and
transfer the message in suita!le "ay for the recipient. In accordance "ith Mounin=s
!oo#, contact !et"een t"o languages occurs "hen the same people are using !oth of
them alternately.
1.( ,-uivalence and +ranslation
,-uivalence is a term used !y many "riters to descri!e the nature and the e3tent of
the relationship "hich e3ist !et"een the S0 and +0 te3t. 0eonardi 2()))4 states that
for &ida 21@5/:@4 defining and e3plaining the e-uivalence nature and conditions is
considered as the main o!>ective of translation studies. +herefore, &ida 21@5/: A4
ma#es a distinction !et"een formal correspondence and dynamic e-uivalence.
ccording to him, formal correspondence Bfocuses attention on the message itself in
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!oth form and contentC. Its purpose is !eing as faithful as possi!le to the source
culture and it lets the reader, as &ida 2i!id.4 puts it, B#no"s as much as he can of the
customs, manner of thought and means of e3pressionC. Dynamic e-uivalent, on the
other hand, see#s an e-uivalent effect on the target reader. It follo"s that the features
of the source culture are of secondary importance in favour of the fulfilment of the
source te3t=s function and the production of an e-uivalent effect. In this respect, &ida
and +a!er 21@A(4 favor dynamic e-uivalence !ecause it is !ased on Bthe principle of
e-uivalent effectC 2cited in 0eonardi, ())*: para.@4 and it aims at complete
naturalness of e3pressions.
Dy introducing the notion of Be-uivalent in differentC, Eac#o!son 2cited in Dassnett
1@A): *@4 insists on the vie" that translation can al"ays !e carried out regardless of
the cultural or grammatical differences !et"een the S and + te3t. $e "rites 2i!id.4:
B"henever there is a deficiencyC "here the translator cannot find a direct e-uivalent
to a particular S0 "ord or te3t, Bterminology may !e -ualified and amplified !y loan
"ords or loan translations, neologisms or semantic shiftC.
rmstrong 2())1:/14 goes in the same direction of Eac#o!son and he admits that Bfull
e-uivalence is rareC, !ut the translator has to loo# for the nearest possi!le e-uivalent.
1.* &on.,-uivalence and +ranslation
+he pro!lem of non.e-uivalence in translation occurs "hen there is no suita!le
counterpart in the target language. It is not possi!le to use devices either of a!solute
e-uivalence neither of partial e-uivalence and translator has to deal "ith the pro!lem
in other "ay.
ccording to Mona Da#er, there are more #inds of non.e-uivalence influenced !y
variety of factors. +hese factors can !e either linguistic, such as collocations and
idioms, or e3tra.linguistic related to pro!lems of coherence and cohesion. In
connection "ith this, Da#er distinguishes !et"een non.e-uivalence at "ord level and
non.e-uivalence a!ove "ord level. She also suggests some strategies "hich can help
the translator to deal "ith this #ind of pro!lems.
1./ 0anguage, Culture and +ranslation
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+he term culture refers to a set of !eliefs that control a particular country or group
!ehaviors. It is a comple3 "hole "hich includes #no"ledge, !eliefs, customs and any
capacities and ha!its ac-uired !y man as a mem!er of a society. mong these !eliefs,
language is considered as an essential part that constitutes one=s culture. It is as the
0ongman dictionary descri!es it Bthe heart "ithin the !ody of cultureC. +his is
involved in the process of translation through the influence of the source and target
cultures. Culture has a great impact on the process of translation in the sense that the
degree of integration of the source te3t in the target culture may vary, and may cause
serious pro!lems for the translator. In this respect, culture may lead to different types
of translation.
1.1 +ranslation Pro!lems 2grammatical, stylistic, cultural, le3ical4
translation pro!lem is any type of difficulty in the source language te3t that o!liges
the translator to stop translating. +his difficulty is mainly due to grammatical, stylistic,
cultural or le3ical pro!lems.
1.5 +ranslation Strategies
+he term BstrategyC refers to a method or a procedure used !y a translator to solve a
particular pro!lem "hile translating. Da#er 21@@(:*54 summari?es the translation
strategies as follo"s:
+ranslation !y More &eutral and 0ess ,3pressive 7ord: this method deals "ith the
differences in e3pressive meaning. ;or e3ample, if there is no direct e-uivalent for a
particular S0 item in the +0, the translator may use near e-uivalent items "hich are
!oth less e3pressive and more formal.
+ranslation !y Cultural Su!stitution: this strategy is !ased on replacing a culture.
specific item or e3pression "ith a +0 one that has not the same e3act meaning, !ut
has e-uivalent effect on the target audience.
+ranslation !y 8sing 0oan 7ords: this techni-ue "or#s "ell "hen dealing "ith
culture.specific items, modern concepts and !u?? "ords. 7hen using loan "ords, it
"ill !e !etter to follo" them "ith e3planations, especially if they are repeated many
times in a te3t.
:
+ranslation !y Paraphrase 8sing 6elated 7ords: it "ill !e useful to use this strategy
"hen a S0 term has an e-uivalent in the +0, !ut in a different form, and "hen it is
more used in the source language than the target one.
+ranslation !y Paraphrase 8sing 8nrelated 7ords: this strategy is highly used in case
"here a S0 item is not le3icali?ed at all in the target language. It is mainly !ased on
the modification of a superordinate or the unpac#ing of the source item meaning.
+ranslation !y 9mission: this techni-ue is used "hen a particular "ord has no
e-uivalent in the +0, and it plays a little role in the development of the source te3t
2i.e., its omission does not alter the meaning of the te3t4 2Da#er 1@@(:(A.*54.
+ranslation !y Compensation: Dy compensation, &e"mar# 21@A(4 means playing
do"n a particular feature at the point it occurs in the S+, and introducing it else"here
in the target te3t.
(. Collo$a",o!#
(.1 Definition of Collocations
s mentioned a!ove, collocations are the com!ination of certain "ords "hich have a
tendency to regularly go together in a given language. t one level, that tendency has
to do "ith the preopositional meanings of those "ords. Meaning, ho"ever, cannot
al"ays ma#e up collocational meaning.
(.( Collocational 6ange and Collocational Mar#edness
,very "ord in a language can !e said to have a range of items "ith "hich it is
compati!le, to a greater or lesser degree. 6ange here refers to the set of
collocates, that is other "ords, "hich are typically associated "ith the "ord in
-uestion. Some "ords have a much !roader collocational range the others.
(.* Collocation and 6egister
Collocational patterns are not al"ays typicalFuntypical in relation to the language
system as a "hole. Gou may have noted that all the e3amples used so far have
!een of common, everyday collocations "hich are more or less familiar to all of
us, regardless of our occupations, special interests or ho!!ies. Some collocations
may seem untypical in everyday language, !ut are common in specific registers.
(./ Collocational Meaning
It is disputa!le "hether a "ord on its o"n can mean anything. 7hat "e do "hen
"e are as#ed to give an account of the meaning of a "ord in isolation is to
conte3tuali?e it in its most typical collocations rather tha its rarer ones.
(.1 Some Collocation.related Pitfalls and Pro!lems in +ranslation
A
Differences in the collocational patterning of the source and target languages
create potential pitfalls and can pose various pro!lems in translation. Some of
these pro!lems are more difficula to handle than others. +he follo"ing are some
of the more common pitfalls and pro!lems that are often encountered in
translating non.literary te3ts as follo"s:
+he engrossing effect of source te3t patterning: it is easy to assume that as long
as a collocation can !e found in the target language "hich conveys the same or a
similar meaning to that of the source collocation, the translator "ill not !e
confused !y the differences in the surface patterning !et"een the t"o.
C-a."e* 1: STRATEGIES FOR THE TRANSLATION OF SELECTED
COLLOCATIONS
(.1 Illustrations of +ranslation Strategies
+he term BstrategyC refers to a method or a procedure used !y a translator to solve a
pro!lem of collocations "hile translating. ccording to Da#er, the translation
strategies consists of the si3 follo"ing strategies:
+ranslation !y More &eutral and 0ess ,3pressive 7ord
+ranslation !y Cultural Su!stitution
+ranslation !y 8sing 0oan 7ords
+ranslation !y Paraphrase 8sing 6elated 7ords
+ranslation !y Paraphrase 8sing 8nrelated 7ords
+ranslation !y 9mission
+ranslation !y Compensation
(.(. 6easearch -uestion
H 7hat methods are applied the most to translate the selected collocations in
the !oo# B Ione "ith the "indCJ
H 7hy are these methods applied more !y translator in the !oo#J
(.*. 6esearch methods
H Statistics method
H Kuanitative and -ualitative method
(./. ;indings and discussion
+he result sho"s that the translation strategies "hich translator used the most
to translate collocations in the !oo# are +ranslation !y More &eutral and 0ess
,3pensive 7ord, accounting for /1L, and +ranslation !y Cultural Su!stitution,
ma#ing up (*L
@
+hese t"o translations method are used the most in the !oo# !ecause they are
very effective to deal "ith difficulties in translating a literature "or# art. s far
as translation of a literature "or# art is concerned, finding e3act e-uivalence in
the translation of collacations, in many cases, is impossi!le. +he advantage of
+ranslation !y More &eutral and 0ess ,3pensive 7ord is that this method deals
"ith the differerences in e3pressive meaning. If there is no direct e-uivalent for a
particular S0 item in the +0, the translator may use near e-uivalent items.
$ovever, the versions are !oth less e3pensive and more formal.
6egarding to +ranslation !y Cultural Su!stitution, this method is !ased on
replacing a culture specific item or e3pression "ith a +0 one that has not the
same e3act meaning, !ut has e-uivalent effect on the target audience.
1)
CONCLUSION

+hrough analysing the translations strategies of collocations in the !oo# B gone
"ith the "indC, it can !e concluded that literature factor plays an important role
in translating a literature "or# art. Moreover, due to the differences in culture,
there are no direct e-uivalent for a particular S0 item in the +0, translators have
to use the near e-uivalent items "hich are less e3pensive !ut more formal.
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REFERENCES
rmstrong, &.())1. Translation, Linguistics, Culture: A French- nglish Han! "oo#.
8S: Crom"ell Press 0td.
Da#er, M 21@@(4. In 9ther 7ords: A Course "oo# on Translation. 0ondon:
6outledge.
Dassnet, S. 21@@14. Translation $tu!ies. 0ondon: 6outledge.
Iha?ala, $. 21@@14. Translation as %roblems an! $olutions. 2/th ed4. Syria: Dar ,l.
Malem ,l.ra!i.
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