Context

When confronted with the text to be translated, the translator’s first concern is to understand it by assessing the meaning of language units in the text against the contextual situation and the extralinguistic facts. There are two types of context: linguistic and situational.

The linguistic context is made up by the other SL units. It can be microcontext – involving a phrase, macrocontext - sentence or passage, megacontext – a chapter or the whole text.

The situational context includes the temporal, special and other circumstance under which ST was produced as well as all facts which the receptor is expected to know so that he could adequately interpret the message.

It is, only by assessing the meaning of SL units in ST against the linguistic and situational context that the translator can discover what they mean in the particular case and what equivalents should be chosen as their substitutes. Thus, in the following sentences the linguistic context will enable the translator to make a correct choice among the equivalents to the noun “attitude”:

I don’t like your attitude to work.

The photographer caught him in the attitude of prayer.

As often as not the correct substitute cannot be chosen unless the situational context is brought into play. If somebody is referred to in ST as “an abolitionist” the choice of the substitute will depend on the period described. In different historical periods abolitionists were people who sought the abolition of slavery, prohibition laws or death penalty. Accordingly, in the translation the person will be described as “аболіціоніст”, “прибічник відміни “сухого закону”, “прибічник відміни смертної кари”.

Lecture 2

A short historical outline of European and Ukrainian translation.

1. The earliest mentions of translation, the translation development during ancient times until 500 AD.

2. Translation and interpretation during the Middle Ages.

3. Translation during the Renaissance period

4. Translation during the period of classicism and Enlightenment.

5. The epoch of Romanticism and establishment of the principles of faithful translation in Europe.

6. Translation in Kyivan Rus’ during the 10^th-13^th centuries and in Ukraine during the 14^th-16^th centuries.

7. The Kyiv Mohyla Academy and revival of translation activities in Ukraine.

8. Translation during the years of Ukrainian independence and early Soviet rule, post-war period, during the last decade of the 20-th century.

9. Translation at the beginning of the 21-st century, the role of the Vsesvit Journal.

List of literature used and recommended.

1. Корунець І.В. Теорія і практика перекладу перекладу. – К.: Нова книга, 2001.- 446 с.

2. Новий завіт (Проект). – К.: Біблійні товариства, 1997.

3. Семенець О.Е., Панасьев А.Н. История перевода. – К.: Либідь, 1989, 1991.

4. Тисячоліття. Поетичний переклад України – Руси. – К.: Дніпро, 1995.

5. McDowell Josh and Stewart. The Bible. Here’s Life Publishers INC, San Bernadino, California, 1983.

6. Draper J. W. Theory of translation in the 18-th century.