A Cultural Contrastive Translation Study of Omission in Gibran's the Broken Wings

Abstract

This study investigates how omission may affect the aesthetic features of the target text (TT) compared to the source text (ST) and does omission lead to a loss of meaning in translating the aesthetic entertaining features of Gibran's ??????? ???????? AL ‘Ajniha AL-Mutakaserah source text (ST) compared to its English equivalent novel target text (TT) the Broken Wings. It aims to discuss the effects of omission in the translation process between Arabic and English and whether this selected technique may affect the semantic level and the loss of meaning of the target text compared to the source text. Consequently, this article detects omission of metaphor, simile, and repetition and how it may affect the semantic levels of the source text (ST). It is a qualitative comparative analysis examines omission of 20 random samples extracted from Gibran’s AL-‘Ajniha AL-Mutakaserah (1912). The sample is grouped in five categories according to the type of omitted figurative expression as (i) Repetitions; (ii) Metaphors; (iii) Adverb of status; (iv) Personification; and (v) Similes. Each sample is assigned according to their functions. The semantic differences in terms of functions were identified to based on Newmark (1988); Petrulione (2012); Nida & Taber (2003); Baker (2011); Farghal & Shunnaq (1999); Jayyusi (1977); Ryding (2011); Al-Batal (1990); Abdul-Raof (2006); Johnstone (1991); Obeidat (1997); Younis (2015) and Leppihalme (1997). The results show that omission in translating such poetic novel causes loss of the aesthetic semantic features. The sense of originality and the figurative language have been lost. The intentional or unintentional omission lessens the embellishment embedded in the source text (ST). Finally, omission produces a different effective version, other than the source text (ST).