IMAGOLOGICAL ASPECT OF RE-CREATING LITERARY IMAGES IN TRANSLATION

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the imagological aspect of recreating literary images in translation. Literary image is understood as an object creatively reproduced in a belles-lettres text as a result of the reality assimilation by the author. This definition implies that any image is always rooted in reality and consequently in some particular culture. It would be logical to assume that the underlying culture for an image is that of an author, but we should also remember that though created by the author, literary images can portray representatives of cultures alien to him or her. In either case the formation and functioning of all literary images are always subject to ethnic stereotypes, either ‘internal’, i.e. concerning the representatives of the same culture as the author, or ‘external’ – concerning the representatives of some other, and thus alien, culture. The importance of belles-lettres literature as a regulator of social life and behavior leads to the fact that literary images turn into a public opinion instrument whose importance should not be underestimated. This fact explains the development of imagology – a new discipline dealing with formation and functioning of images in literary discourse. In its history, Imagology has come a long way: from a comparative analysis theory to a full-fledged branch of philology equally related to its main components: literary studies, linguistics and translation studies. The literary aspect of imagology deals with the genesis and aesthetics of a literary image. The linguistic aspect of imagology is responsible for the selection and arrangement of linguistic and stylistic means of a literary image embodiment. Finally, translatological aspect of imagology sheds light on the translator’s strategies for rendering a literary image in a new and alien linguistic and cultural environment. According to the functionalist approach, the translator’s actions are guided by his or her willingness to adapt a literary image for the target audience proceeding from their cultural norms and values.