figurative language

The present study aimed firstly at investigating the impact of translators' style on figurative language translation from English into Persian. Secondly, it intended to find which strategies were most frequently adopted by Persian translators to translate figures of speech into Persian. Lastly, the study sought to check the extent of transference of figurative features of literary texts in English-Persian renderings. To achieve these purposes, the English novel, Little Women by Alcott (1880) and its three Persian translations by Raiszadeh (1997), Akhavan (1996), and Morvarid (2000) were used as the materials of the study. The original novel, along with its three selected translations, were first studied carefully by the researchers and about fifty percent of the novel was chosen to be analyzed in terms of figures of speech, which are part of stylistic features of any literary text. Then, the figures of speech in the stated sample, besides the Persian equivalents of each of them used by the three translators, were identified. Finally, a hybrid model incorporating 5 strategies retrieved from Newmrak's (1988) and Baker's (1992) models of translating figurative language was utilized to examine the identified tropes and determine the type and number of strategies employed by any individual translator. The obtained results revealed that figurative language devices were translated from the source into the target language through a variety of strategies, which can be indicative of the translator’s stylistic tendencies.

This study was an endeavor to explore the main sources of EFL learners' writing problems through dialogic interactions. It also investigated the effect of metaphor and metonymy on EFL learners' writing achievement. To achieve this end, the researcher adopted mixed-method research with a sample of intermediate language students from both genders. In the qualitative section, 20 EFL learners were selected through purposive sampling, and in the quantitative section, 120 language students were selected through convenience sampling from a university in Gorgan. Data were gathered through Quick Oxford Placement Test (OPT), writing tests, and a semi-structured interview. After recording and transcribing the interviews, the transcripts of the interviews were formatted using the software NVIVO 11 Pro®. With the help of this software, the textual data were reduced into some statements which could reflect the main ideas of the participants’ lived experiences without any intervention from the researcher. However, the data of the tests were inserted into SPSS software and the ANCOVA test was run to indicate differences between the three groups in terms of their writing improvement. The main results suggested that metaphor and metonymy through dialogic interactions had significant effects on the participations’ writing achievement. As well as that, findings from the analysis of data revealed the four main sources of writing problems as linguistic, personal, epistemological, and ecological.       

The language of the Qur’ān is highly eloquent and rich in rhetoric. Transferring features of languages from different origins is tricky. Although throughout history, scholars have made significant contributions to understanding Qur’ānic idioms, we still face challenges in conveying their meanings. There are language-specific idioms in Qur’ānic Arabic, reflecting Arab culture and environment. The fact that different cultures conceptualize reality in varying ways causes idioms to be shaped by cultural factors. This is why some translations of Qur’ānic idioms fail to convey their full depth of meaning. This article aims to investigate various interpretations and English translations of the idioms in the selected verses of Surahs Al-Isra and Al-Ma’idah. To this end, the translations of twelve prominent translators were compared. Considering the descriptive nature of the work, the researchers analyzed the methods used by the selected translators. The theoretical framework underpinning this study is the translation methods of Schleiermacher. Furthermore, the translations were analyzed and ranked based on Waddington’s holistic model of translation quality assessment. Analysis reveals a spectrum of translational strategies, defying strict categorization within Schleiermacher’s binary framework of ‘naturalizing’ and ‘alienating’ translation. A significant number of translations exhibit hybrid characteristics, displaying a preponderance towards either naturalization or alienation, yet failing to conform exclusively to either pole.