Conceptual Metaphor and Translation Problems (metaphors for LOVE in Andrei Platonov's Chevengur)

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to research the translation procedures of metaphors for LOVE in the novel Chevengur by Andrei Platonov by using a corpus linguistics search tool to explore the potential of corpus analysis in literary translation. The research shows that the analyzed translation is dominated by the M M procedure, that is, translation with the same conceptual metaphor and, more precisely, with the same linguistic expression. A few exceptions can be explained by different conventions of the Croatian language and the Russian, while, certainly, particular translator's motivations remain beyond the scope of the research. The observed dominance of the said procedure does not surprise if one takes into account the possibilities of the source and target languages - the Slavic cultural and linguistic heritage which, at least to some extent, enables the understanding of shared concepts and the usage of the same linguistic expressions. The research also proves the potential of corpus analysis in certain cases when dictionary/-ies reach their limit as a control corpus and when the translator's intuition fails to solve the issues of nuanced deviations from the conventional usage of metaphoric expressions.