Collocative and Allusive Meaning in Translation
Collocative Meaning in Language
Collocative meaning: is the meaning given to an expression beyond its literal meaning by the meaning of another expression it commonly appears with. For example, in ‘a flash of lightning,’ ‘flash’ strongly associates with ‘lightning,’ evoking its meaning. Conversely, ‘a flash of moonlight’ feels unusual because the connotation of ‘flash’ (sudden bright light) clashes with ‘moonlight’ (steady muted light). Similarly, ‘pretty’ and ‘handsome’ have gender-specific connotations, with ‘pretty’ often used with females and ‘handsome’ with males.
Some collocative meanings are very strong. For instance, ‘intercourse’ in modern English almost always evokes ‘sexual,’ becoming nearly synonymous with ‘sexual intercourse.’ Collocative meanings are crucial for translators to avoid unwanted clashes in the target text (TT). For example, translating ‘¿Tienes las vacaciones reservadas?’ as ‘Have you reserved your holiday yet?’ creates a clash because in English, holidays are ‘booked,’ not ‘reserved’.
Miscollocation can also cause issues. Translating ‘Quisiera reservar este libro para mañana’ as ‘I’d like to book this book for tomorrow’ is incorrect; books are ‘reserved,’ not ‘booked.’ Collocative clashes threaten idiomaticity, especially when the target language (TL) has a similar expression to the source text (ST). For example, ‘floods of tears’ versus ‘an ocean of tears’ for ‘un mar de lágrimas,’ or ‘to sweeten the pill’ versus ‘to gild the pill’ for ‘dorar la píldora.’ Failure to recognize the need for communicative translation can also cause clashes, such as translating ‘más blanco que la nieve’ as ‘whiter than snow’ instead of ‘as white as snow.’ Translating ‘es un chaval hermoso’ as ‘he is a pretty boy’ distorts the meaning; ‘he’s a nice-looking lad’ is better.
Allusive Meaning in Language
Allusive meaning: occurs when an expression evokes the meaning of an associated saying or quotation, adding to the overall meaning. It relies on indirectly evoking sayings or quotations that an informed listener can recognize. This creates an added innuendo that modifies the literal meaning. For example, saying ‘there are rather a lot of cooks involved’ evokes ‘too many cooks spoil the broth,’ suggesting the event might be over-organized.
When dealing with allusive meaning in STs, translators face three challenges:
- Recognizing the allusive suggestion in the ST.
- Understanding the allusive meaning by referencing the evoked saying or quotation.
- Conveying the allusion’s force in the TT, ideally using a similar allusion in the TL.
For example, ‘y aquí paz’ alludes to ‘Aquí paz y después gloria,’ meaning ‘and that’s that.’ Similarly, ‘Y quién me había de decir que yo bebería de este agua’ alludes to ‘Nunca digas de esta agua no beberé’ (‘Never say never’). Recognizing these proverbs is key to understanding the STs. Translators must decide whether to use similar allusive means in the TT or compensate in other ways. For ‘y aquí paz,’ a communicative rendering like ‘and that’s that’ is best. For ‘Nunca digas de esta agua no beberé,’ a cliché like ‘Never say never’ could work.