METAPHORS AND TRANSLATION: A STUDY OF ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS OF PASHTO POEMS

Abstract

Metaphor and its translation have a pivotal part in translation studies where many issues and technicalities exist. Keeping in view this dimension of metaphors’ translation, the current study investigates what differences can be found in the use of metaphors in both the source and target texts, and how metaphors from the source text into the target text are translated, i.e., what procedures are mostly adopted. For this purpose, 50 Pashto poems were convenientlyselected. The data was analyzed in light of Lakoff’s (1980) conceptual metaphors and Peter Newmark’s (1988) translation procedures. The data reveal that a blend of different metaphors has been used in both the source and target texts with a difference that in Pashto text, metaphors are used in a greater number. In Pashto text, conceptual and dead metaphors were found frequently. As far as translation of these metaphors is concerned, it was found that transference, literal translation, modulation, naturalization, translation label, functional equivalent, cultural equivalent, descriptive equivalent, synonymy, couplet, and recognized translation have been used in the translated poems. The study concludes that the use of more metaphors in the source text is because of the social and cultural differences as in Pashtun society, mostly, things are presented with meaning conveyed in an indirect and metaphorical sense.