Pragmatic equivalence

Pragmatic equivalenceGroup 6Edwin FirmansyahIdah CaridahIndah Mutian HapsakRani TanjungRistinaSanti DamayantiWarnikaDefinitionWhat is equivalence exactly?The dictionary defines equivalence as being the same, similar or interchangeable with something else. In translation terms, equivalence is a term used to refer to the nature and extent of the relationships between SL and TL texts or smaller linguistic units.So, what is Pragmatic Equivalence?When referring to implicatures and strategies of avoidance during the translation process. Implicature is not about what is explicitly said but what is implied. Therefore, the translator needs to work out implied meanings in translation in order to get the ST message across. The role of the translator is to recreate the author's intention in another culture in such a way that enables the TC reader to understand it clearly.Pragmatic Equivalence refers to words in both languages having the same effect on the readers in both languages.CoherenceWhile cohesion concerns the surface relations that organize and create a text, coherence is the network of conceptual relations which underlie the surface text as perceived by the language users.

The mere presence of cohesive markers, such as linkers or lexical chains, is not sufficient to create a coherent text.

Imagine we said:(a) Im terribly tired because (b) bananas are yellow.(c) Im very tired at the end of the week. (d) On Wednesday I usually see my sister.Or:Although a conjunction such as because suggests a cause/effect relationship between the two clauses or parts of the sentence, in fact it would be very difficult to find a logical reason why (b) should cause (a).And although week and Wednesday belong to the same lexical chain, it is hard to find a connection between (c) and (d).Coherence is mostly receiver-centred. It depends on the ability of the hearer/reader to interpret a stretch of language on the basis of his/her expectations and experience of the world. Which, in their turn, are influenced by the society he/she lives in.For example, in order to attribute sense to a stretch like:He looked like Frodo coming down the mountain. The hobbit was walking slowly and singing to himself.One has to know that Frodo and the hobbit are the same person, which means that he/she must have read the novel Lord of the Rings, seen the movie drawn from it, or at least heard about one of the two. If a translation of the sentence were addressed to a public who is not likely to have done any of the above mentioned things, the translator would probably have to intervene and modify it, for instance in the following way:He looked like Frodo the hobbit coming down the mountain. He was walking slowly and singing to himself.Thus coherence is not really a property of text but of the event/situation and of the people and things involved in it.ImplicatureImplicature refers to what the speaker means or impliesrather than what s/he literally says.Implicature must not be confused with idiomatic meaning. Idiomatic meaning is conventional and its interpretation depends on a good mastery of the linguistic system rather than on interpretation. For instance in the following exchange:A. Shall we go for a walk?B. Could I take a rain check on that?The interpretation depends on knowing the meaning of the expression take a rain check in American English, and will be If you dont mind, well do it another time.Implied meaning which is not signalled conventionally derives from the Cooperative Principle and its maxims of Quantity, Quality, Relevance and Manner:Implicatures, then, are pragmatic inferences which allow us to understand a stretch of language beyond its literal meaning by taking into account the Cooperative Principle.This complicates the task of a translator who might knowingly or unknowingly eliminate certain possible interpretations of the original text. Grice suggests a number of factors which can contribute to our success or failure to interpret implicatures, and they are:the conventional meaning of the words and structures used (i.e. a masteryof the language system), together with the identity of any references that may be involved;the Co-operative Principle and its maxims;the context, linguistic or otherwise, of the utterance;other items of background knowledge; andthe fact (or supposed fact) that all relevant items falling under the previousheadings are available to both participants and both participants know orassume this to be the case.COHERENCE, IMPLICATURE, AND TRANSLATIONSTRATEGIESThe conventional meanings of words and structures and the identity of referencesThe meanings of words and structuresThis point is quite obvious. If we do not know the meaning of the words and structures used in the text, we cannot understand its implied meanings. The ability to identify references is essential for drawing inferences and maintaining the coherence of a text. The mention of a type of food or of a fictional character, for instance, that is unknown to the reader can disrupt the continuity of a text.2. The Cooperative Principle and its maximsAccording to Grice, the maxims of the Cooperative Principle are not arbitrary but a feature of rational behaviour, although not all linguists agree with him and consider the possibility that the Principle and its maxims are not universal.3. The context of the utteranceThe context (participants and situation), co-text and linguistic conventions of a community in which an utterance occurs determine the range of implicatures that may be derived from it.The meaning of a word or an utterance or a gesture does not hinge so muchupon a universal, abstract and fixed semantic system but it is strictly connected with the context. 4. Other items of background knowledgeA text may confirm, contradict or extend what we know about the world, as long as it relates to it in some way.Whether a translator decides to explain a reference or not, or to recur to cultural substitution, depends on how much he/she assumes the reader is familiar with it and on his/her freedom of intervention. 5. The availability of all relevant itemsIn order to convey an intended meaning, the speaker / writer must assume that the hearer / reader has access to all the necessary background and can work out any intended implicatures.

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