XV. Comment on the excerpt from the Russian translation of Long Days Journey into Night. Use it for simultaneous back translation into English. Work in pairs.
: ! ( .) ! , , , !
: ( ) ! ! ( , , ) ? ? ( . .) ! ! ! , , , , .
: (, ) ?
: ( ) , ? , , . , , . - , . , , , . . ( ) . , . , . , , , , . , , , . , . , , , .
: ( ) , , . , ?
: ( ) , . - .
: ( ) ! , , , , , .
: ( ) , , ( ). ! ! !
: () . , !
E. Nida Morphology: The Descriptive Analysis of Words
Midfifties of the XX century mark a period of intensive development of American linguistics and Structural (Descriptive) Grammar in particular. E. Nida, Z.S. Harris, R. Wells concentrated their attention on formal operations, the so-called grammar discovery procedures, their aim being to discover and describe the features and arrangement of two fundamental linguistic units (the phoneme and the morpheme as the minimal unit of grammatical structure) without having recourse to meaning.
|
|
|
The passage from the book by E. Nida elected for discussion is a sample of scientific prose. The language of science is governed by the aim of the functional style of scientific prose, which is to prove a hypothesis, to create new concepts, to disclose development, relations between different phenomena, etc. The language means used, therefore, tend to be objective, precise, unemotional; there is a striving for the most generalized form of expression.
The first and the most noticeable feature of this style is the logical sequence of utterances with a developed and varied system of connectives. A second and no less important feature is the use of terms specific to each given branch of science. Words of the general vocabulary also tend to be used in their primary logical meaning.
Another observable feature of the style of modern scientific prose is the use of quotations references and foot-notes.
The impersonality of scientific writings can also be considered a typical feature of this style. This quality is mainly revealed in the frequent use of passive constructions. Syntax in general is governed by logical reasoning, and there are no emotional elements whatsoever.
The characteristic features enumerated above do not cover all the peculiarities of scientific prose, but they are the most essential ones.
1) Time. Time is usually called tense, and the tenses are basically three: past, present and future. Relative tenses also occur, for example, the pluperfect, indicating time before the past and translatable as had done so-and-so, and the future perfect indicating time before the future and translatable as will have done so-and-so. The perfect tense indicates an action performed before the present, but the implications of which usually carry over to the present. It may be translated as have done so-and-so. Other relative tenses may likewise be expressed. Some languages differentiate between the immediate future, the regular future, and the remote future, and also between the immediate past, the regular past and the remote past. The range of possibilities for differentiations of tense is considerable, particularly when they are combined with the aspect of the action.
2) Aspect. The aspect of the verb denotes the kind of action. It is difficult at times to distinguish between the tense and the aspect, for the two are often combined. Aspect in itself defines the character of the action.
An action may be considered a single unit, performed at a point of time, or it may be considered a continuous performance, extending over a period of time; similarly, an action may be characterized as repeated or increased or diminished. All these characteristics of action may be considered aspects. []
3) Voice. The voice defines the relationship between the actor, the undergoer of the action, and the action. This may be considered a rather mechanical relationship between the subject and the verb. A verb in the so-called active voice indicates that the subject is performing the action expressed in the verb. If, on the other hand, the voice is passive, the verb form indicates that the subject is undergoing or is being subjected to the action of the verb. In the active voice further differentiation may indicate (1) the transitive, in which the action is carried across to an object, or (2) intransitive, in which there is no object. In addition to the active and the passive voices, some languages distinguish a so-called middle voice, in which one does something to or for oneself. If, however, the action is always performed by the subject and upon himself, this is normally called the reflexive. If the action is performed by two or more subjects and if these subjects act upon each other, the relationship of voice is generally called reciprocal. []
|
|
|
4) Mode. The mode, or, as it is also called the mood indicates the psychological atmosphere of the action as reflecting the speakers attitude. These psychologically conditioning features of the verb form, consisting of any type of morphological formative, may indicate a variety of semantic domains.
(Theoretical Grammar through Practice by E.J. Morokhovskaya)
