CC BY
48UDC 378.02:37.016
THE DISCOURSE ANALYSIS IN OVERCOMING DIFFICULTIES ON TEACHING THE LITERARY TRANSLATION
S.A. Boyko
National Research Tomsk State University (Tomsk, Russia).
E-mail: [email protected]
Abstract. The problem of overcoming difficulties existing nowadays in methodical science on teaching literary translation is considered by application of cognitive discourse analysis of the literary text. The various methods of studying of the literary text, existing in modern methodical science are shown. The contribution of Russia's and foreign science in determining approaches to the analysis of communicative and cognitive components of the text and application of interdisciplinary approaches and consideration of cultural aspects of literary texts of target language is emphasized. The need of the development of important translational competences into the process of carrying out cognitive-discourse analysis of the literary text is pointed out. Keywords: discourse; text; discourse analysis; lingvo-cognitive approach; cognitive-discourse approach; cognitive paradigm; structure of discourse; literary text.
Nowadays, in the course of teaching of foreign language and translation the tasks connected with formation of discourse and culturological competences become especially topical. These tasks provide attainment of the purpose of modern teaching of foreign languages which is consisted in formation of the secondary language personality capable to the proper communication in this language. Such set of competences becomes particular important if it is connected with the usage of it in the course of teaching of communication in a foreign language and translation of the texts of culture among of which are especially distinguished literary texts and, more widely, an literary discourse.
For many years the literary text remains as an object of close attention of domestic and foreign researchers, such as Yu.M. Lotman, I. Smirnov, G.A. Zolotova, R. Bart, T. Kuhn, etc. From the emergence in the XIX century of the classical hermeneutics, with which the text was considered as the fact of culture, before the formation of structural researches of the text in the seventies of the XX centuries, the research of literary prose didn't lose its relevance.
Teaching possibilities of the literary texts are well-known. The modern methodical science offers various options of studying of the literary text: philological analysis B.G. Bobylyov [1], linguistic analysis or linguistic interpretation M.I. Gorelikov and D.M. Magomedov [2], L.A. Novikov [3],
A.N. Vasilyev's [4] stylistic analysis, lingvostranovedchesky analysis E.G. Rostova [5], decoding stylistics I.V. Arnold [6].
In the researches of I.V. Karasik, E.S. Kubryakova, E.S. Alexandrova, A.A. Kibrik was confirmed repeatedly that different lingvo-cultural communities possess different cognitive bases that is defined by distinctions in linguistic worldview and classification of surrounding reality. The implementation of the proper cross-cultural communication, as well as an adequate translation is impossible without the knowledge of the cognitive base components of the foreign language linguistic worldview.
The concept of cognitive base as the integral basis of any national mentality sets thinking of what essential knowledge have to be included in the teaching content of foreign language and translation. These knowledge are connected with concept of units representing a national worldview in language consciousness of the native speakers. They are expressed in the certain cognitive structures capable both to store and broadcast the cul-turological information, and to serve the achievement of the methodical purposes. Among such units of lingvo-sociocultural information the researchers Yu.A. Karaulov and V.V. Krasnykh distinguish acknowledged by everyone lingvo-cultural concepts.
The cognitive-discourse analysis of corresponding linguistic and fiction is essential for identification of such units. This analysis would allow to reveal the components of cognitive base of the relevant lingvo-cultural community, whose language is learned as foreign. The cognitive-discourse analyses will help to overcome difficulties, arising in front of methodologists in the process of teaching of translation as a whole and literary translation in particular, on transferring of the fullest information of the original language and strengthening of the dialog among the author and the reader. Nowadays it is one of the topical tasks in the methods of teaching of foreign languages.
In this regard it seems us expedient to consider lingvo-cognitive approach to the analysis and interpretation of the literary foreign-language texts, based on their discursive nature, which is recently developing in a context of the communicative-active approach in teaching of foreign languages.
Considering questions of the analysis of a discourse it is important to define a difference between concepts of a discourse and the text. As it was already repeatedly confirmed, the term "discourse" is close to the concept "text", however it notes dynamic, extended in time character of language communication while "text" appears as a result of language activity. It is known that the part of linguistics studying a discourse is called as the discourse analysis.
Nowadays there is a set of approaches to the discourse analysis. An-drey Aleksandrovich Kibrik [7] in his doctoral dissertation "The discourse analysis in cognitive prospect" picked out the most popular approaches at the present stage to the discourse analysis. On the first place, according to
A.A. Kibrik there is the approach known as "the analysis of household dialogue" (Conversation analysis). Among other approaches the author defines the researches of information stream (information flow) of W. Chafe [8], the cognitive theory of communication of a discourse and grammar of T. Givon [9], experimental discursive researches of R. Tomlin [10], "grammar of a discourse" of R. Longacre [11], "systemic-functional grammar" of M.A.M. Halliday [12], the theory of rhetorical structure of W. Mann and S. Thompson [13], the general model of as discourse structure of L. Polanyi [14], socio-linguistic approaches of W. Labov [15], research of strategy of understanding of T.A. van Dijk and W. Kintsch [16], psycho-linguistic model "creation of structures" of M.A. Gernsbacher [17]. However considering the various approaches to the discourse analysis, you shouldn't forget that a discourse as the scientific direction which has the interdisciplinary research nature is also connected with cognitive linguistics.
According to E.S. Kubryakova, "the person and language are the main objects of research of one of leading paradigms, which represents the special integration of communicative and cognitive paradigms" [18: 8]. This approach can be interpreted as cognitive-discourse. In this regard it is necessary to stop in more detail on O.V. Alexandrova and E.S. Kubryakova's review "Types of spaces of the text and discourse" [19] in which they emphasize that as "the cognitive science as a whole is directed on research of a cognition, learning processes and achievement in them a certain knowledge. The key concepts of cognitive linguistics are concepts of information and its processing by human reason, concepts of knowledge structures and their representation, on the one hand in consciousness of the person, and with another in language forms" [Ibid: 26]. Therefore, the main objective of cognitive science - to consider a ratio of cognitive structures with their objectivization. From the specified point of view texts and discourses are characterized first of all in connection with information transferred by them and with ways of its dissemination in called units. Thus, the role of concepts of the text and discourse in a cognitive paradigm is defined by their indissoluble connection with transfer of information from one person to another. It means that cognitive-discourse approach to the text, including the literary text, helps to see in the text a special sort of mental activity of the author and to study the representation of knowledge imparted by the author.
It is important as to define a role of application of the discourse-analysis of the text at the process of teaching of foreign language and translation. In our opinion, the usage of the cognitive-discourse analysis of texts in the course of teaching of foreign language is directed on formation of the pupil's abilities, making a basis of a number of important competences. These competences will provide the deep analysis of the text structure, the interpretation of its conceptual field, selection of more equivalent lexicon at the process of translation, and it means that we will reserve high-quality im-
provement of a target text translation. It is possible to distinguish among such competences: "linguistic" which is forming at the student knowledge and skills providing transfer and reception of information in a foreign language - verbal or nonverbal way, and also, "speech" which is promoting formation and a formulation of thoughts. The usage of cognitive-discourse approach promotes the development of "discursive competence", which is including the process of studying of the features inherent to the various types of discourses taking into account their standard content and genre forms of representation. The "culturological competence" belongs to the number of competences having important general education character. It is forming a certain knowledge, abilities and skills providing the possession of culture in its narrow and broad meanings: speech etiquette and rules of polite behavior according to the norms of this or that society in the cross-cultural environment. It is possible to refer to number of these competences also the "esthetic competence", which is promoting mastering of native speaker's speech behavior by pupils and formation of the ideas of conceptosphere's features of literary texts of the country of learned language.
We will review some examples of cognitive-discourse analysis of the original literary text of William Somerset Maugham "The Moon and Sixpence" which key concept is the concept - "painting".
As a result of research it was discovered that in this literary text the key concept "painting" consists of such basic concepts, as: "process of writing", "painter", "art", "picture". These concepts have the following rate of actualization: "the process of writing" - 32, "painter" - 47, "art" - 51, "picture" - 35. The structure of a basic concept of the text "The Moon and Sixpence" - "picture" consists of the following nominees: "picture", "more of smth", "two or three", "Strickland's", "work", "it", "received was", "an emotion", "in the sight which haunts".
Further research of the literary concept "painting" revealed that:
1) the structure of the basic concept "painter" consist of the nominees: "old masters", "work of others", "young men", "a studio", "a personality", "his", "those friends of mine", "him", "his beginnings", "a poor painter";
2) the structure of the basic concept "picture" consist of the nominees: "the painting", "in such things", "a strong vocation";
3) the structure of the basic concept "the process of writing" consist of the nominees: "to draw"; "topaint"; "to do it".
Then we compared plans of the contents and expression of nominees verbalizing the cognitive structures of the conceptospheres of the original and the translated texts on the basis of the discursive analysis of the text. We defined the degree of symmetry / asymmetry of nominees-invariants and their translated versions.
We gave an example of one of nominees of a key concept "painting" -the process of writing. The lexemes-verbalizations are represented in the text as: "to draw"; "to paint"; "to do it".
"to draw" (lexical definition) - to sketch or to trace figures; create a picture or depict by sketching.
(example from the original text) - They were carefully drawn and carefully painted.
(example from the text of translation) - Все они были тщательно выписаны и не менее тщательно раскрашены.
"to paint" (lexical definition) - to produce (a picture, design, etc.) in paint; to represent in paint, as in oils, tempera, or watercolor.
(example from the original text) - Though the flesh was painted with a passionate sensuality.
(example from the text of translation) - Хотя тело было написано с проникновенной чувственностью.
"to do it" (lexical definition) - to perform; to execute. (example from the original text) - It was great fun to do. (example from the text of translation) - Да, писать ее было забавно. According to the dictionary definition of the words - "to paint", "to draw" in the text they are used in a direct sense while "to do it" had the same meaning, but in other form. There was a transformation of the word at the level of sense (implication) in English, and in the Russian translation we can see an explication of this word.
On the basis of the discovered data the following conclusion can be made, that studying of organizational structure of literary texts can help us with the definition of human consciousness structure. It can be true because within cognitive-discourse approach the literature is considered as one of the mental activity's types, based on the same mechanisms and submitting to the same laws, as the other types of cogitative activity.
The subsequent work on the literary text is considered as the communicative and cognitive activity considering features of its perception and interpretation and creating a strong basis for the further teaching of the foreign language discourse, and also for the development of the cognitive-discourse approach in teaching of the foreign languages.
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