- •Identification of repetition links and creation of a net of bonds in the text
- •3.1. Identification of repetition links and the notion of bonds
- •3.2. Principles of construction of a repetition pattern
- •3.3. An example of text analysis
- •Drug-crazed grizzlies
- •3.4. Interpretation of repetition patterning: central and marginal sentences
- •3.5. Making summary of a text
- •3.6. Practical implications of the described methodology for translators
3.6. Practical implications of the described methodology for translators
Practical application of this method to translation and interpretation is quite obvious. Researchers of translation and interpretation point out that written and oral messaged are perceived by human brain through the so-called peaks of information [Чернов 1987: 166-184] which, in practice, are either lexical items which introduce the theme of the message, or items which describe what happens to that theme (rhematic items). Both are the key words of any texts that are “repeated” in one of the ways described above, thus creating repetition links and bonds and ensuring cohesion of the text. Therefore, if a translator or interpreter does not know a certain word or has missed it in oral interpretation there is a great chance that he/she will be able to reconstruct it from the text that follows due to repetitions. In general, repetition links ensure redundancy of the message that is a natural tool of any language designed to transmit as much information as possible and ensure successful comprehending of information by the reader or listener.
Today suggested method of text analysis is successfully applied not only to linguistic studies of text and translation. It is also used by journalists, political analysts, practicing psychologists and forensic linguists for the analysis of what suspects and witnesses say during investigation and in court.
Another practical application of this method is making summaries of texts (in the original language or in the language of translation), which is a frequent job of any translator2. It’s obvious that a detailed lengthy analysis of all repetition links in a text by a translator is unrealistic due to the time constraints, however most experienced translators will easily separate central and marginal sentences in a text by intuition after having quickly read it. As it has been already mentioned “fully objective” approach to singling out central sentences can be ensured by the use of computer-assisted text processing.
1 This text and its analysis were taken from the book by M.Hoey [1991: 35-48] as a tested illustration of repetition patterns in the text exclusively for teaching purposes.
2 Making summaries is often requested by many companies and organizations for the purpose of quick access to the essential information.