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Article published In: Target
Vol. 15:2 (2003) ► pp.269–294

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Deixis as an interactive feature in literary translations from Romanian into English

 | Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh
 | University of Leeds
Published online: 12 May 2004
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https://doi.org/10.1075/target.15.2.04mas
This study aims to investigate the use of deixis in a corpus of translations from twentieth century Romanian literature (novels and short stories) into English. Viewing deixis as an interactive feature of texts, it endeavours to find whether there are significant differences between the use of deixis in source texts and translations, and to see how systematic shifts as well as single occurrences can contribute to the shaping of a translated text which positions the reader in a different way from the source texts. It also explores ways in which the translators position themselves with respect to the text. The study finds that the main tendency is one of distancing, whereby proximal deictics tend to become distals, with the effect that readers will be presented with a translation which elicits less involvement on their part than the original text did in its context.
Résumé
La présente étude a pour objet d’examiner l’usage des marqueurs déictiques dans un corpusde traductions anglaises de textes littéraires roumains (romans et nouvelles) du XXe siècle.Partant d’une conception de la deixis en tant que vecteur de l’interaction textuelle, l’articlese donne pour tâche de découvrir d’éventuelles différences déictiques entre les textes dedépart et les textes-cible et de décrire la part des glissements systématiques ou individuelsdans le positionnement du lecteur de la traduction. L’analyse portera également sur lepositionnement du traducteur vis-à-vis du texte. Il s’avère que la tendance prédominantemanifestée par le corpus est celle de la distanciation : les marqueurs proximaux ont tendanceà se transformer en marqueurs distaux; d’autre part, les lecteurs se trouvent confrontés à unetraduction qui les implique moins que le texte de départ n’impliquait les premiers lecteurs.
Article outline
  • Deixis as an interactive feature in discourse
  • Data and sampling
  • Shifts in the translation of deixis
  • Deictic shifts in Romanian literature translated into English
  • The distancing trend in Romanian-English literary translations
  • Conclusions
  • Notes
  • References
  • Primary texts
References (39)
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