Archaic Words Research Articles

АРХАИЧНАЯ ЛЕКСИКА В РОМАНЕ «ВЛАСТЕЛИН КОЛЕЦ: БРАТСТВО КОЛЬЦА» КАК ОСОБЕННОСТЬ ИДИОСТИЛЯ ДЖ.Р.Р. ТОЛКИНА

Statement of the problem. The vocabulary of a particular language is constantly updated, getting rid of redundant words, and simultaneously, enriching with new lexical units. The process of word obsolescence is a complex phenomenon, the result of which may be its gradual disappearance. Apart from sporadic cases of reactivation of passive vocabulary, most of the words from the obsolete vocabulary are gradually forgotten, eventually becoming completely incomprehensible to native speakers. Archaic words belong to the field of vocabulary, which is characterized by mobility and changeable sphere of use in any language. The most vivid manifestation of author’s style is in deviation from the literary norm of the language when the writer actively searches for the new linguistic forms or reinterprets archaic ones. One of the urgent problems in modern linguistics is the writer’s influence on the language he uses as the most important element of his individual style. The language of a literary work as a way of conveying content, is not only correlated, but also connected with this content; the lexicon depends on the content and on the author’s attitude towards it. The purpose of the article is to identify the role of archaisms in the formation of the individual J.R.R. Tolkien’s style on the example of the novel “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring”. Methodology is as follows: method of linguistic description, component analysis method, methods of lexicographic and contextual analysis. Conclusion. The modern trend of studying individual style of a writer is based on the principle that every literary work has certain specific features which characterize the writer’s style. The analysis of the language material reveals the fact that J. R. R. Tolkien’s individual style dictionary includes a large number of obsolete words as a hallmark of his individual style. The suggested passages clearly show how the writer uses morphological features in combination with poetic and archaic vocabulary to model the represented reality. The motivated selection of certain lexical units is dictated by the content and genre of the work and includes the use of archaizing syntactic structures, the entire spectrum of obsolete vocabulary, poetic words, author’s neologisms.

Stylometry without Words: Analyzing John Milton’s Grammatical Style

In this article, Harvey Quamen investigates the structures—syntax, grammar, unconscious multilingualisms, hypotaxis, parataxis, punctuation, orthography, archaic words and spellings, ambiguous antecedents, and even simple errors—that support Milton’s language. Quamen demonstrates how contemporary computational methods can go beyond word frequency counts to assist us in learning more about Milton’s literary style, while showing us that the history of computational analysis in Milton studies is surprisingly long. He is meticulous in the methodology he uses, which he describes clearly and carefully in this article; and he concludes with a series of recommendations designed to align the interests of textual scholars and digital humanists.

Lyrical and Stylistics Study of Psalm 23

The research paper focuses on the lyrical, linguistic and literary style of Psalm 23. The book of Psalms in the Bible is a recognised piece of literature. David has written many Psalms, and seventy-three are ascribed to him. Among these Psalms, Psalm 23 is worldly and widely acknowledged as David’s and the most read and recited one. Though many have not read the Bible, they are familiar with the first verse of the Psalm “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want” (23:1). There is much more to discuss in Psalm 23 than just discussing on the shepherd. The style is distinctly Davidian, and the themes range from earthly to heavenly and filled with detailed expressions from his experiences in metaphoric imagery. The analysis shows that the use of archaic words are still in use, and it is highly praised by how it is arranged in a sentence. The choice of words boosts the energy of a reader in times of need and gives the poetry a sense of belonging by the subjective themes, structure and form. Though Psalms were written about centuries ago, they still have life and comfort people today.

О сочинении дорампа Игнен-Чоймпела «Почитание величественного Хан-Бархана: „Драгоценность-чинтамани, быстро исполняющая желания“»

Introduction. The article deals with the xylograph Tegüs čoγtu qan gbar-mkan-u takilγ-a küsel türgen qangγaγči čindamani erdeni kemegdekü orusiba (Worship of the majestic Khan-Barkhan: „Chintamani-treasure, quickly fulfilling desires“) by dorampa Ignen-Choimpel; the treatise is part of the collection kept in the Center of Oriental Manuscripts and Xylographs of Institute of Mongolian, Buddhist and Tibetan Studies of the Siberian Branch of the RAS (Ulan-Ude). It aims to analyze the source along the following lines: i) to identify the author of the manuscript, ii) to transliterate the text and check the accuracy of its reading with a focus on its specific lexical features, iii) to identify the time and place of its compilation and publication, iv) to research similar works related to the cult of Mount Khan-Barkhan, and v) to examine the structure of the text and give a short description of its content. Methods and materials. The methodology of source studies, as well as the textological analysis used by the present researchers helped establish dorampa Ignen-Choimpel’s exceptional knowledge of Buddhist philosophy and of the Mongolian language. Comparative-historical, typological, and descriptive methods were instrumental in examining the transformation of the mountain worship ritual in the process of its historical development. Granted the role of mountains as an essential element in the worldview of many cultures, as well as the significance of the text for practices of Buryats of Barguzin region today, the present research is of much relevance. The article may be used as a source for studies of the factors influencing the current revival of the mountain cult and the present religious practices of the population in the region. Results. The text under study contains new data concerning the veneration of ezhins — host-spirits of local features such as mountains, the Barkhan mountain of Kurumkan region in Buryatia, in particular. Also, this is a piece of important historical evidence shedding light on the cultural and religious processes that took place among the Buryats in the 19th century. Conclusions. The research indicated the presence of syncretic elements in the text of the treatise, including borrowings of some shamanic traditional rituals associated with the mountain worship, as well as the presence of specific lexical elements such as archaic words and expressions. Importantly, Buddhist borrowings of shamanic deities and rituals familiar to the local Buryat people contributed to the promotion of Buddhism among the local population.

Die invloed van die lojaliteite en onderliggende vertaalfilosofie van die vertaler op die vertaalkeuses, met verwysing na die Afr2020 Bybelvertaling

The influence of the translator’s loyalties and underlying translation philosophy on the translation choices, with reference to the Afr2020 Bible translation. When the reader looks a little deeper than the initial superficial ‘Revised’ Old Translation impression that reading the Afrikaans 2020 translation gives you, then one realizes that a great deal of effort had to be put into leading such a large group of diverse translators to understand the essence of a direct translation and to be able to apply it consistently. But it is precisely here that problems can arise. Due to the nature of skopus and the style of the Afrikaans 2020 translation, this direct translation can be categorised on the side of the more literal translations and it thus has a very high percentage of agreement with the 1953 Old Afrikaans translation. If the direct translation is not just another name or a revision of the so-called word-for-word translation, then what is this direct translation? Van der Merwe referring to this translation also touches on this issue when he says: ‘a ‘direct’ translation of the Bible is not new jargon for a word-for-word translation of the Bible. It is an attempt to ‘interpretively resemble’ in good idiomatic Afrikaans all the communicative clues of the source text in the contexts construed for the source text audience’. This underlying fundamental premise brings a lot of tension to the fore. Van der Merwe also confirms this (2014:294) by stating: ‘attempts to translate ancient texts directly (is) an almost impossible ideal (to) pursue’.Contribution: This study evaluated the Afrikaans 2020 translation according to its own criteria, the translation brief and to its self-proclaimed nature as ‘direct’ translation in order to try to make an objective evaluation and assessment of this great work. This process also pointed out where the loyalties of the translators lie, and what the underlying translation philosophy is, and how difficult it is to make a distinction between the direct translation method and using archaic words and terms.

ЛЕКСИКО-СТИЛІСТИЧНІ ОЗНАКИ КОНФЕСІЙНОЇ СФЕРИ В АНГЛІЙСЬКІЙ ТА УКРАЇНСЬКІЙ МОВАХ: ЗІСТАВНИЙ АСПЕКТ (ЧАСТИНА 2)

The paper deals with the contrastive analysis of the Ukrainian (Ivan Ohiyenko) and English (King James Bible) translations of the Old Testament (Genesis, Chapter 1) with the purpose to establish their comparative lexical and stylistic features. The assessment of the stylistic devices in the Ukrainian (UTT) and English (ETT) target texts proves a high degree of their similarity. There is a considerable parallelism in the use of repetition, paraphrase, aphorisms, generic nouns, stylistically coloured lexemes, rhetorical address and homogenous elements’ structure. The polysyndeton is a distinctive feature of both texts as well as gradation and a systematic use of archaic or unusual words. The dissimilarities of the two texts include alliterative repetition in verse 10, a double-focus repetition and a weakened polysyndeton in verse 29 in ETT, repetition in ETT (verses 14-15) which appeared to be impossible in UTT due to the specifi c structure used there and the strengthened verb repetition in the refrain of each period in UTT. Other distinctions include a systematic use of the state verb (be) in ETT, whereas the UTT utilizes a range of dynamic verbs indicating the transition from one state to another; the use of two monotypic metaphors in ETT, as compared to neutral lexemes in UTT; or, conversely, the ETT counterpart of an elevated style word is stylistically neutral in UTT. Another divergence is the use of parceling in ETT, which shifts the stylistic emphasis to the parceled fragment, while in the UTT the preference is given to the double synonymic structure; the use of archaism, metaphor and synecdoche in ETT whereas they are absent in UTT. Other unilaterally used stylistic devices include personifi cation in ETT versus alliteration and assonance in UTT; the use of an infi nitive stricture in ETT and a verbal noun in UTT to render purpose; greater variability of attributes (prepositional, postpositional, subordinate clauses), as well as lexical stylistic means in UTT; greater phonetic and lexical diversity of generalizing attributes in UTT. Overall, a somewhat greater variety of lexical stylistic means in UTT may be assumed, although it can hardly be regarded as the latter’s advantage because the standards of stylistic acceptability substantially vary in diff erent languages and cultures. The scope of further research is outlined. Key words: English and Ukrainian languages, Bible (Genesis), comparative stylistics, comparative lexicology, confessional style, teaching translation and interpreting, comparative lexical and stylistic analysis, lexical and stylistic features.

Устаревшая лексика как один из лексических пластов якутского языка

The article examines outdated Yakut words the study of which promotes a deeper understanding of Yakut culture, traditions and everyday life. The research objective is as follows: to identify and classify Yakut archaic words. Scientific originality of the paper is conditioned by the lack of studies on this problem in the Yakut linguistics. Relying on the findings the author classifies Yakut archaisms and historicisms into the following lexico-semantic groups: nominations of cooking utensils, dishes, household items; clothes and footwear names; words associated with spiritual culture, religion; food and drink names; nominations of dwellings and household buildings; names of professions and occupations; armor names.

Нови същински и несъщински фразеологични изрази в българския медиен дискурс

The prerequisites for spontaneous or premedited phraseological word formation are both cultural and geopolitical, ethnopsychological, socio-economic, contextual and others. Some neophraseologies acquire public usage and multiply, others freeze in the field of the occasional word formation. The main criteria for the excerpt of the phrases in the research are: the chronological one – real (full) and non-real (non-full) phraseologies are analyzed, isolated from media texts during the last 7 years; the semantic one – the semantic motivation is established, which is a result of borrowing, tracing, modification of an element of the phrase or rehabilitation of archaic word combinations; structural – mono-, bi- and polyelement forms; the thematic one – where sustainable units with different conceptual and stylistic affiliation are analyzed. The aim of the study is to differentiate the new real phraseology according to the derivational methods and ways of their emergence through metaphorization, metonymization, irony, hyperbole, substitution, etc. Each of the phrases is analyzed comprehensively according to the specified parameters.

“God's own firedrake”: McCarthy's Allusion to Joyce'sUlyssesinThe Road

AbstractCormac McCarthy's novel The Road contains at least one heretofore unrecognized likely allusion to Joyce's Ulysses: the father's description of his son as a “firedrake,” which recalls Stephen Dedalus's appellation for a bright celestial body that he (misleadingly) claims appeared in the sky at Shakespeare's birth in the ninth episode of the novel, “Scylla and Charybdis,” an event that his “adopted” father Leopold Bloom attempts to describe in pseudoscientific language in the seventeenth episode of the novel, “Ithaca.” McCarthy has the boy's father use this archaic word, which traditionally has meant “dragon,” to describe his son because he recognizes that his son is a spiritual shooting star and a potential future author who can narrate events morally as did Shakespeare and Joyce and even Stephen himself. Through apprehending his allusion to Joyce's novel, we gain a sense of both the boy's light-filled immanence in a line of sons going back to the original Son, Christ, and his emerging facility with narrative as author-in-the-making.

The linguistic features and translation specifications of the novel generation “p” by Victor Pelevin

The authors focus on the linguistic features characterising a postmodern novel on the example of the literary work Generation “P” by Victor Pelevin. Firstly, the impossibility of new style invention and the idea of the necessity of different styles combination are highlighted: stylistically marked words such as jargon words, low-colloquial lexis, poetic and archaic words, idioms, and even scientific terms all together create a unique style of the novel. Secondly, the implementation levels of the language game are considered. Two levels of language game representation are analysed: the mix of styles and the loss of figurativeness by phraseological units. The intertextual context of the novel and a common method of postmodernism known as “rewriting” are regarded in the article. A phenomenon of language game and intertextuality are analyzed based on the translation of the novel by Andrew Bromfield.

DILINDƏ İŞLƏNƏN ƏRƏB LEKSİK VAHİDLƏRİ BAXIMINDAN FÜZULİNİN AZƏRBAYCAN ƏDƏBİ DİL TARİXİNDƏKİ MÖVQEYİ

The article shows that if the Azerbaijani literary language in the 16th century was the peak period of the medieval literary language, Fuzuli is the highest creative sample that has demonstrated all the potential of this language in his works. Fuzuli was able to successfully reveal the semantics of Turkish-Azerbaijani origin lexical units in his work, at the same time, he equally succeeded in discovering the semantics of Arabic origin lexical units of his language and their penetration into the Azerbaijani literary language. As a result of Fuzuli's art, Fuzuli's style, the Azerbaijani literary language obtained more communicative features in the 16th century, and played an essential role in the convergence of Western Turkic language with Eastern Turkic language. Thus, if a stylistically archaic word, in connection with a certain style, really ends its life once and for all, if the semantic meaning of that word is as long as the life of a certain style, on the contrary, an archaic word with its original meaning prolongs its life by acquiring new semantic shades. In this respect, it is interesting that in the history of our language there are poets like Fuzuli, whose original semantic meaning in a foreign language is more preserved in his language. And this, surely, depends on how familiar the poet is with the language he uses. In this sense, Fuzuli is one of such poets. Thus, we come across such Arabic lexical units in Fuzuli's language that they more retain their original semantic shades in Arabic. In this sense, there is no other poet in the history of our literary language who can be compared with Fuzuli.

STYLISTIC ANALYSIS ON WALTER SAVAGE LANDOR’S ‘ACON AND RHODOPE; OR, INCONSTANTLY’

This descriptive study is aimed to find out the types and the functions of imagery and to figure out the examples and the functions of archaic words which are found in poem. The documentary data was used in form of poem script “Acon and Rhodope; or, Inconstantly” written by Walter Savage Landor. Content analysis was used by the writer to analyze the content of poem which was adapted from Cohen, et al. (2007, p. 475). The findings showed that there were 174 words or expressions found in poem which were divided into seven types of imagery such as: visual, auditory, gustatory, olfactory, tactile, thermal, and kinesthesia. There were also seven functions of imagery in the poem: 1) visual imagery representing the sense of sight; 2) auditory imagery representing the sense of sound; 3) gustatory imagery or representing the sense of taste; 4) olfactory imagery representing the sense of smell; 5) tactile imagery representing the sense of touch; 6) thermal imagery representing the sense of heat and cold; and 7) kinesthesia imagery appealing to physical sensations of movement, balance, and muscular tension. Also, there were 95 archaic words found in poem to enhance the aesthetical or musical value of the poem, to find out the social life, customs, belief systems and generally cultural richness of the time he emerged, and to make his language old and solemn. It is suggested for the teacher to understand stylistic analysis used by the poets in their poems; and introduce stylistic analysis to the students so that they can improve knowledge of stylistic analysis and understand its meanings. Keywords: archaic words, imagery, stylistic analysis, Walter Savage Landor

Semantic Problems of the Usage of Archaic Morphological Features: Surat Al-Humza (Traducer) as a Model

This study presents a comparative analysis of the translation of the holy Qur'anic verses by Pickthall and Yusuf Ali from one hand, and the translation of Sahih International from the other. By tracing the first translation style, it had been found that they tend to use archaism or old words to a large extent as they trying to make their translation sound like 'scripture' to an English- speaking audience, and this results in loss of meaning pose semantic difficulty in translating the Holy verses. Abdalati M. Ali in his paper (Lexical and Semantic Problems in Translating Quran) proves that Pickthall and Yusuf Ali tend to use archaism in their translation, as he puts that ‘'the translations of Pickthall and Ali appear to be written in an archaic form of English''. In contrast to the first style the Sahih International translation aims to provide a literal rendering of the Arabic of the Qur’an into “plain” English. It has become popular as a more contemporary translation, but focuses more on providing a literal meaning of the Arabic than on providing smooth English. This makes it a useful resource for students who are seeking to learn the literal meaning of the Arabic of the Qur’an. Being a text at the highest degree of eloquence, the Qur’ān, as a whole, poses a serious challenge for translators and linguists alike. The challenging areas within the Qur'anic text are indeed too numerous to count. This paper investigates one of the major problem areas when translating the Qur’ān, namely, archaic words. This linguistic feature is intrinsic to the Qur'anic text and, in turn, has an impact on its translation leading to ambiguity. In this regards the rendition of qur'anic verses is considered as a difficult mission, this is due to Quran is written in a highly symbolic and classical form of the Arabic language, therefore, rendering it requires a deep knowledge and grasping of its meanings in addition to that translators should be able to reflect those meanings into the target language. Based on the mentioned facts usage of archaic and old words will constitute obstacle because it increases the complexities of target text, thus, it will distort the implicit meaning, and confuse target readers. Analytical descriptive method of data collection has been followed which comprises tools, samples, procedures.

Quantitative Analysis of Spoken Discourse Using Memoirs of Old-time Moviegoers

ABSTRACT We present the first quantitative analysis of spoken discourse for the Turkish language using memoirs of a group of old-time moviegoers of varying age groups whose birth year spreads over a period of four decades ranging from the 1930s to the 1960s. They tell their experiences by answering a set of questions. Their responses are evaluated comprehensively with the expectation that various attributes of the participants are reflected by their everyday speaking language. We also investigate their language characteristics in terms of their vocabulary richness and word usage. The results show that the age and gender of the participants can be inferred to some extent from their speech, as is the case for written text. However, the difference is not significant in the language use of younger and older respondents in terms of vocabulary richness and archaic word usage. With additional data obtained for some participants, it is shown that text can be accurately identified as being either spoken or written; however, the spoken text of a person can only be differentiated from their written text with the accuracy level of a random guess.

Фонетическое освоение арабских слов с долгими гласными в тюркских языках

The purpose of our article can be characterized as a scientific review of the vocal system of the Kyrgyz language against the background of Turkic phonology and the patterns of development of the vocal paradigm, the transformation and evolution of long vowels in the historical context (influence of the Arabic language) of Central Asia. Analyzing all data related to the long vowels’ changes in the above-mentioned language and the transformations based on Arabic borrowings. Also, subjected to a detailed analysis of the graphic influences from the side of Arabic graphics in relation to Kyrgyz phonology and linguistic facts about the transformation of Arabic tokens during adaptation in a foreign language context. Nevertheless, to explain the areal features of the Kyrgyz language on the scale of Central Asia. To demonstrate (on the example of archaic words, religious lexicon terms) the stages and patterns of the historical development of the vocal system of a given language in a comparative and cognitive plan. The purpose of this study is, therefore, to identify and describe the patterns of development of quantum phonetics, phonosemantic features of long vowels of Kyrgyz lexemes and phonemes on the one hand, and Arabic guttural and posterolinguistic connectives on the other hand. Kyrgyz and Arabic are multisystem languages. The Arabic language, in a typological sense, is inflectional and belongs to the Semitic group, at the same time, according to some scholars, the Kyrgyz is an agglutinative language and has Altai origin. It is well known that the phonetic spectrum and their variable language palette of the Arabic language is very diverse. In phonetic terms, the Arabic language has a widely developed system of consonant phonemes, on the other hand, the likelihood of the phonomorphological and phonosemantic function of vowels in the Kyrgyz language is quite high too. As part of our research, we tried to identify the seven positions of long vowels in the Arabic language, and in parallel to this show the transformations of Arabic sounds based on the internal phonetic laws of the Kyrgyz language. Consequently, the Arabic long vowels in the process of adaptation in the Kyrgyz language environment, to a certain extent, retained their quantitative character (quantum coefficient) in comparison with other Turkic languages of Central Asia.

An analysis of Acehnese archaic words among North Acehnese speakers

This study concerned about the Acehnese archaic words in Lhokseumawe. The aims were to find out the archaic words, their replacements and their extinction factors. The researcher used qualitative descriptive methods and analyzed using three interactive models; data reduction, data display and verification. The result of this study showed that they are sixty Acehnese words given by informants; 32 words referred to archaism and 25 words referred to semi-archaism, and 3 words referred to non-archaism. 12 of 32 archaic words were replaced and 20 others were not. This condition was caused by the word-borrowing factors from second and foreign languages and also the lifestyle. Therefore, we need to teach Acehnese language to the future generation and introduce the Acehnese archaic words to especially the Acehnese in Lhokseumawe by studying and documenting the language and the archaic words as the language is a part of local cultures.

The Scale of Archaic Words in the Lexicon of Alisher Navoi’s Historical Works

The contribution of the great poet Alisher Navoi to the development, improvement and progress of the ancient Uzbek literary language is incomparable. The Turkish language has acquired a high status thanks to his works. The lexicon used in the work of the thinker, to some extent, serves as the basis for determining the lexicon of the Old Uzbek literary language. Historical works of the author, such as “Tarihi Muluki Ajam” and “Tarihi Anbiyo va Hukamo”, were selected as the object of research. The article analyzes archaic words in the vocabulary of the mentioned historical works. Archaic words in the vocabulary of historical works are taken not for a time, but for the period in which the works were created (XV century). Archaisms in the lexicon of historical works are determined on the basis of the state and development of lexical units in synonymous relations, and this is scientifically substantiated.

The Language Features and Cultural Implication of Cantonese Opera Librettos

Cantonese Opera is a traditional drama popular in Guangfu area. Its script librettos have beautiful language and profound cultural connotation. The beauty of script language is mainly reflected in the rich and colorful vocabularies, which mainly includes nine categories: emotional words, image words, written words, dialect words, reduplicative words, disyllabic words, reduplicative words, archaic words and idioms. The rich and colorful words embody the harmonious unity of “elegance and vulgarity”, “depth and shallowness”, “emotion and scenery”, “movement and stillness” and “truth and beauty”, with distinctive regional cultural characteristics and rich classical cultural connotation. In order to better inherit and develop Cantonese opera, on the one hand, it is necessary to study its language characteristics based on the script librettos; on the other hand, it is necessary to pay attention to the close relationship between language and culture, and fully tap the traditional artistic essence and cultural connotation behind the language.

"A translator is not free": J.R.R. Tolkien's Rules for Translation and Their Application in Sir Orfeo

"A translator is not free":J.R.R. Tolkien's Rules for Translation and Their Application in Sir Orfeo Curtis A. Weyant Amidst a description of many difficulties related to the translation of the Middle English poem Pearl, J.R.R. Tolkien complained in a letter to his aunt, Jane Neave, that "a translator is not free" (Letters 317). While he did not delineate a set of rules by which translators are shackled, over the years of his career as a professor, author, language inventor, and, indeed, translator, Tolkien occasionally offered thoughts about what constitutes a good translation, and in some cases he even prescribed rules—or at least guidelines—which translators should follow to produce a worthy translation. Some of these thoughts are revealed in letters like the one to his aunt, while others are found in the notes of his translations of texts in Anglo-Saxon, Middle English, and other languages. Still others can be discovered in the narrative and apparatus of his fictional works, such as Appendix F to The Lord of the Rings. Pulling together these diverse thoughts on translation scattered throughout Tolkien's writings affords an opportunity to better understand his varied works, both popular and academic, in a new light. It should be stated up front that Tolkien did not write a single set of instructions or rules for translation. The translation guidelines which he did formulate were penned at different periods of his life, often while pursuing disconnected projects. Nonetheless, regardless of the audience, there is some consistency among these disparate statements about translation. While Tolkien made no known attempt to codify a grand unified theory of translation, he nonetheless seems to have worked from a common set of translating principles that changed little, if at all, throughout his life. This paper pulls together Tolkien's various statements of advice, practice, and occasional criticism related to the work of translation into three broad subject areas: archaic words, nomenclature, and style. Following the discussion of these subject areas is an analysis of Tolkien's application of these rules, pulling examples from his translation of the Breton-derived Middle English lay Sir Orfeo. [End Page 63] Tolkien the Translator It is possible to view Tolkien's career and writings, both academic and popular, holistically as a lifelong engagement in various aspects of translation. As Joan Turville-Petre has noted, Tolkien "showed his pupils that the prime purpose of edition and commentary is to free the text from obscurity" (vi); translation is in a sense both edition and commentary wrapped in a single package, since it provides a version of a text along with an interpretation of that text inherent in the translation choices made along the way—even when notes or other information about those choices are not readily available to the reader. The combination of edition and commentary can be observed in Tolkien's translations of Anglo-Saxon poems like Exodus and Beowulf ; his translations of Middle English texts like Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl, and Sir Orfeo ; and of course, the translations of works written in his own invented languages and scattered throughout the various editions and posthumously published drafts of his legendarium. The work of the translator starts well before the final published translated text, as it requires the serious consideration of individual words and phrases, the assimilation of new developments and ideas about the source material, and deliberation over how best to preserve the sense and style of the original work while also making its content accessible to readers who otherwise are unable to decipher it. As such, various phases of Tolkien's career can be viewed as focusing primarily (though never solely) on particular aspects of translation. His early work as a lexicographer, writing definitions for the Oxford English Dictionary and assembling a glossary for use with Kenneth Sisam's compilation of Middle English texts, demanded an in-depth study and understanding of etymologies and the nuances of how word forms, definitions, and connotations changed over time. As a professor at Leeds and Oxford, his lectures, academic articles, and commentaries on the finer points of language in texts like the Finnesburg Fragment, Ancrene Wisse, and The...

Strategije [Strategies] by Slavoljub Marković

Reviewed by: Strategije [Strategies] by Slavoljub Marković Biljana D. Obradović Marković, Slavoljub Strategije [Strategies] Beograd: Književno društvo Sveti Sava, 2019. 292 Pp. 978-86-6087-134-5 The newest collection of short stories and essays, Strategije, by the well-known Serbian novelist and short story writer, Slavoljub Marković, is rather experimental in many ways. Written in Serbian and printed in the Latin alphabet (which is important as most Serbian books these days are published in Cyrillic because of alphabet politics), it comprises seventeen pieces organized in three parts: Fathers and Children (nine), Old Fears (three), and Strategies (five). On the cover is a photo from the author’s village in Serbia, Jakovlje, near Aleksinac. The motif is of a winter army send-off party for someone’s son, taken in 1959, with old people, women wearing scarves, and a musician with an accordion, which gives us a glimpse of the images we will see in the book. Marković often writes about his native region, although he has moved to the capital, Belgrade, for a better life. Apart from being an active writer, he is also the President of the Serbian Literary Society. The language of this book is rich, varying from some archaic words to very contemporary jargon or slang. The characters are believable. This skilled writer deserves to be read and known—with nineteen books published since 1982. He stands out. His novels are written in cycles—there have been four different ones so far. They were published by different publishers and not in any kind of order. He is a careful observer of life around him, but he also likes to play with form, a characteristic present throughout his career. People living abroad, or people who have moved away from Serbia, may have forgotten life under communism and may not be aware what life is like in Serbia now. Some of these pieces are creative nonfiction, others are made up, stories, yet others are a combination of both. Whereas in the US, it is clear what is presented—truth or fiction—this is not the case in Serbian writing. It is true that so many US writers tend to also write in between genres, so that a piece may begin [End Page 213] as nonfiction, but then writers take liberties and make things up as they go. Marković says that, “In the first part of the book are stories from our area.5 In the second part there are fantasy stories. They could be taken as paranoia, or they, too, can be ‘real.’ Or they could just be fantasies … like the story ‘Tattooing’” in the final section. Nevertheless, it is not clear if the narrator is the author or not … if he overheard these life stories or made them up (except for one which, he told me, he overheard from me6). The first section is the longest and has the most pieces. In “Who Needs Us”, Marković writes about a retired man who feels like he is not needed anymore and is just waiting to die. We learn about socialized medicine, and what it is like to wait at the doctor’s office and how it works (or doesn’t work). The man had saved the life of another man in the war … Now it doesn’t seem to matter—his being a hero is irrelevant. Now there’s trash everywhere, abandoned houses, property, and fifty years of lies on TV. In “Farewell”, a son wants to leave the country and emigrate to New Zealand, as so many have done, in order to have a better future. He wants to take his parents with him, but they don’t want to go. The man had first considered trying to do village tourism and fixing up his grandparents’ old village property. But there was a rise in crime, and so many houses in villages have been abandoned, or robbed, so instead, he leaves … After his parents die, he will return just once more to bury them and sell everything. The past of that family will then disappear. In other stories, he writes about life before and during WWI, WWII, and life under communism, but also the...