СТИЛИСТИЧЕСКИЕ УДАЧИ И НЕУДАЧИ В ПЕРЕВОДЕ ПРОЗВИЩНЫХ ИМЕН И РЕАЛИЙ В АНГЛИЙСКОЙ ДЕТСКОЙ КОМИЧЕСКОЙ ЛИТЕРАТУРЕ (НА МАТЕРИАЛЕ ЦИКЛА РАССКАЗОВ «HORRID HENRY» Ф. САЙМОН)

Introduction

Literary comic works require non-standard solutions when translating because they need to preserve not only the meaning but also the stylistic colouring. The subject of this research is modern English comic literature for children. The quality of translation of such literature deserves special attention as it has a very demanding reader. The purpose of this research is to identify the ways and specifics of translating charactonyms, or characterizing nickname, and English realities connected with children’s toys. Humorous stories about children by F. Simon translated by N. Koncha and M. Melnichenko were used as an illustrative corpus.

Method

We analyzed the definitions and features of characterizing nickname (charactonyms) basing a number of theoretical works on the question of translation and anthroponomy. To achieve this goal, we used the method of continuous sampling of examples to select an illustrative corpus, the method of observation and interpretation, as well as elements of lexical and semantic analysis were used to analyze the material for the article.

Discussion

There are different approaches to the issue of translation. Russian scientist V. N. Komissarov in his works offers denotative and transformational approaches to translation [5, P. 138]. The denotative approach implements translation as a process including three stages: 1) the stage of perception of the message in the source language; 2) the stage of forming a mental image (concept) of this message; 3) the stage of interpretation of this image by means of the translation language. The transformational approach defines translation as the transformation of objects and structures of one language into objects and structures of another language according to certain rules and at morphological, lexical and syntactic levels [4, P. 63]. In practice the combination of both methods is used to translate fiction. The type and genre of the original text are also important in choosing the method.

According to I.V. Arnold, translation requires a linguistic basis. The comparative study of language phenomena and the establishment of regular correspondences between the original and translated languages should be that basis. I.V. Arnold identifies three groups of regular correspondences: 1) equivalents; 2) analogs; 3) adequate substitutions [1, P. 157].

The concept of charactonym (a characterizing nickname) in English language linguistics is interpreted in different ways. E. Partridge gave the definition of the term nickname as "an addition or substitution of a name" but he contradicted his definition when the concept of nicknaming includes familiar or disparaging use of derivatives of personal names [8, P. 99]. According to the semantic meaning distributed between the elements, mixed type nicknames can be divided into endocentric, equicentric and exocentric nicknames [2, Р. 44].

To make the equivalent correspondence of an English characterizing nickname functional the translator should know what type of an English charactonym belongs to, and choose a Russian nickname [7, P. 57]. In modern satirical or humorous literature characterizing nicknames reveal the internal structure quite easily. They serve to characterize the heroes or to achieve a comic or eccentric effect [5, P. 134].

In her humorous short stories F. Simon prefers using equicentric charactonyms to describe the character and give a cheerful tone to the text [9]. Besides, the writer uses the alliteration technique to give the nickname a special melodic effect and set the reader up for a cheerful mood: Anxious Andrew, Goody-Goody Gordon, Spotless Sam. Equicentric charactonyms of a mixed type are mostly susceptible to component-by-component translation.

To translate the anthroponymic components in charactonyms a transcription method was used: Moody Margaret – Мрачная Маргарет; Lazy Linda – Ленивая Линда; Rude Ralf – Резкий Ральф. As for the common elements of names in the stories about Horrid Henry, the translators were to find the correspondences to convey the emotional tone of the English equivalent to the same extent so that the comic effect would not be lost. At the same time there was a difficulty to preserve the alliteration in charactonyms as it was also important in creating the same effect: Lazy Linda - Ленивая Линда; Pimply Paul – Прыщавый Пол; Stuck-up Steve - Самодовольный Стив. There were no difficulties in translating those charactonyms because the English common elements had the Russian equivalents beginning with the same letter.

If there was not possible to find a Russian equivalent to an English adjective that was a common noun component, a close word to the original adjective was chosen: Perfect Peter – Послушный Питер. In Russian dictionaries one can find the meaning of the word perfect as идеальный, безукоризненный, совершенный. But the initial letter of the anthroponymic element does not coincide in Russian variants. To preserve alliteration, the word послушный (obedient) was chosen although, it would be better to use the translation of that charactonym as Правильный Питер or Паинька Питер (our translation, S. K.) according the humorous tone of the story.

The main character’s name also consists of two parts: the charactonym Horrid (ugly, terrible) and the name Henry. In the first edition of the book his name was translated with preserved alliteration as Гадкий Генри but in the subsequent edition it was replaced with Ужасный Генри for pedagogical reasons so that young readers do not have a wrong idea about the main character because he does not do anything disgusting, he is not ugly by nature, he is just a naughty boy.

Moody Margaret – Мерзкая Маргарет. To describe the character of the heroine Margaret by name who is always dissatisfied with everything and all the girls the translators used the best equivalents of the word moody: dull, sullen. In our opinion, the translators should choose the adjective мрачный which also indicates the heroine’s constant dissatisfaction. But the translators chose the adjective мерзкая as an anthroponymic element. Probably, they were guided by the extremely negative attitude of the main character Henry to Margaret described in all the stories, as he feels that she is competing with him in leadership and she has never been satisfied with his actions and the actions of other people.

Beefy Bert - Бочка Берт. The stories don't mention that Bert was a full-grown boy. He got the nickname Beefy because he liked eating beef. Beefy can also be translated as крепкий, мускулистый (strong, muscular). But a small boy can hardly be called muscular, and it is not possible to translate beefy in one word without transforming the sentence. Therefore, we agree with the translators’ choice as it could be assumed that the boy ate a large amount of meat and got fat, and that is why Henry compared it to a barrel coming up with a nickname. The anthroponymic element in this charactonym is transliterated to make it easier for the child to read.

Clever Clare - Классная Клэp.  To preserve alliteration, the translators used the adjective классная instead of умная. However, taking into consideration the fact that all the negative characterizing elements were given to the children by Henry, a reader may decide that Henry likes Claire. Claire is not only smart and reasonable but also a very nice and kind girl at school. In our opinion and basing on the context, the anthroponymic component should be translated with the school slangism клёвый and then the heroine’s characterizing name would be clearer to a young reader (our translation, S. K.).

Sour Susan - Скучная Сьюзан. The adjective скучная was chosen to characterize the girl but does not convey her character traits. In the stories Susan is always shown dissatisfied with everything especially the fact that the Moody Margaret likes to manipulate her. The dictionary gives the translation of the word sour as мрачный, угрюмый, кислый. By choosing the appropriate synonyms for these adjectives, we would offer to use adjectives: cварливая or cердитая which makes it clearer how Susan behaves most of her time (our translation, S. K.).

Realities are considered a peculiar complex and ambiguous category of non-equivalent vocabulary [3, Р. 34]. The realities are typical for any language. So any reality has a corresponding national or historical colouring [11, P. 15]. Translating of realities in children's literature, especially in comic literature, is particularly difficult as the translator must not only be able to adequately convey the meaning of a word unfamiliar to Russian linguoculture but also to ensure that the translated word can amuse young readers. In the stories by F. Simon about Horrid Henry the realities are associated with children's toys, TV programs or fairy-tale characters.

Toy Heaven catalogue – каталог Игрушечный рай. Each word of the catalogue title was replaced with Russian lexical correspondences. Approximate translation is often chosen when translating realities into Russian. The difficulty is to find Russian lexical units that are closest in meaning to English lexemes.

Goo-Shooter – Гипербластер. A descriptive method was used to translate the name of this toy: a kind of weapon that shoots slime. But such a translation would be unattractive for a child. Calculus involves translating both parts of the word separately: Goo means something sticky and viscous. Shooter means firearms. The name of the toy should arouse interest and awaken the imagination of a child. In this case, the translation of the name of the toy as Гипербластер seems to us very successful.

Boom-Boom Basher - Джип-убийца. It's hard to guess what the name Boom-Boom Basher means. It is necessary to convey that the toy creates a lot of noise, therefore, it could be assumed that the toy is a car, so the word джип is suitable for translation. The second part of the title is translated as киллер which is not a correct word as the main readers are children. In our opinion, it was worth choosing a word with a less negative meaning. For example, разрушитель.  Джип-разрушитель seems more appropriate for use in children 's literature than Джип-убийца.

Dungeon drink kit – Набор «Зелья из подземелья».  The name of the game set is translated into Russian with the help of the calculus method and the transformational translation. In our opinion, the rhyming words зелья and подземелья   were well chosen and therefore this translation sounds very funny.

Manners with Maggie – Учимся хорошим манерам с Мэгги and Mutant Max – Монстр Макс. The translation of these two titles of TV programs for children was not a difficulty in translating their meaning into Russian. In the first case, the method of transformational translation was used and transcription was used in the second one. There was no need in the transformation of Manners with Maggie into Учимся хорошим манерам с Мэгги but as it is an educational program for children, the verb учимся added to the word combination, emphasizes the purpose of the program. In the second example the calculus method and transcription were used. The title of the second TV program makes it clear that the Monster Max is the main character of the events so no transformations were required.

Supersonic nit-blasting shampoo (Shampoo "Superantivosh") – in order that the name of the shampoo against lice which is often mentioned in the text of the story does not look bulky the translators shortened it to two words using the transformation method. We find a good solution the combining the words Supersonic nit-blasting into one word Superantivosh and, in addition, the name Superantivosh sounds funny.

Glop - каша-малаша. It was necessary to pay attention to what this "dish" was made of when the word glop was translated into Russian. It included all sorts of inedible and spoiled products. The approximate translation technique was used and the Russian equivalent of the word glop was found. It is the word combination каша-малаша which is often used by children when they mix some ingredients for the purpose of cooking while playing. When describing the "dish" made by Horrid Henry and Moody Margaret, the author uses numerous attributive lexical units which when translated make it possible to use a variant of the phrase каша-малаша, indicating the consistency of the product the children got: … gooey, gluey, greasy, gummy, gloopy sloppy, sludgy, slimy, smelly sticky, glop – cкользкая, липкая, жирная, вязкая, вонючая, мерзкая, гадкая каша-малаша…

Tooth fairy – Зубная фея. This fairy tale reality is translated with the help of copying. It should be noted that the Tooth fairy is a fairy tale character, traditional for Western culture. No doubt that the majority of Russian children do not know this character. However, it is possible that some children have an idea of the Tooth fairy due to American children's films they watch. In our opinion, to avoid misunderstanding on the part of the reader, a brief description of this character should be given making a footnote on the same page or a brief comment: "the Tooth fairy leaves the child a coin (or sometimes a gift), instead of his fallen baby tooth, put under the pillow."

Conclusion

In conclusion, we would like to sum up the results of our study of charactonyms (characterizing nicknames) and realities. Firstly, if the author gives his heroes characterizing nicknames, it should be reflected in the translation accordingly. In the analyzed stories by F. Simon, the methods of approximate translation, transcription, transformational translation and calculus were used. In general, the translation of charactonyms was successful as the original completely reflected the characteristics of the heroes’ character intended by the author. Secondly, the technique of transcription was used to transmit anthroponymic elements of any charactonyms. The translation of charactonyms into Russian required to pay attention to the common name components of charactonyms, find their Russian correspondences in order to have the same or similar emotional coloring as the English equivalents and to indicate the distinctive character traits of the characters. In addition, it was important to keep alliteration in charactonyms as it played an important role in creating a comic effect.  

If it was not able to find a Russian equivalent to an English adjective in a charactonyms in order to preserve alliteration, a Russian adjective that was similar in meaning to the original word was found or the anthroponymic element of the characterizing nickname had to be changed. More than that it is possible to consciously or unconsciously distort the author's communicative intention and introduce the ideas belonging exclusively to the translator into the work that differ from the original choosing language means for translating a charactonym.  

When translating realities, there are two trends: preserving or deciphering them. The transliteration method is sometimes used but it does not provide any information about the meaning of the reality without an approximate translation or explanation. Therefore, the choice should be made according to the genre characteristics. In a children's story one should refrain as much as possible from transcription/transliteration or when introducing unfamiliar reality into the text, it should be explained at once.

When translating the realities in the stories by F. Simon it was necessary to adequately convey the meaning of such words and also to be sure that the form of the translated word would be as unusual and funny as possible. To solve these problems translators used mainly transformational translation and calculus. Sometimes the translators had to come up with the names for toys and English TV shows themselves if there were no suitable Russian equivalent. In conclusion, perfect translation of a comic literary text that is absolutely adequate to the original in its pragmatic aspect is impossible because the desire to convey the humor of the original meets with resistance from the host culture due to the lack of common concepts and similar situations.