A Descriptive Study on Literary Translation in the Context of Eco-Translatology
Nesibe Erkalan ÇakırThe eco-translatology approach, in which the translator is at the center of the translation process and, accordingly, has the responsibility for the ecology of the target text, has recently become a topic of interest to researchers. In the eco-translation approach, the translation process not only highlights the ecological elements in the source text but also creates ecological awareness for the reader of the target text. The ecotranslatology approach was put forward by Chinese translation studies researchers Gengshen Hu and Youlan Tao to examine the act of translation from an ecological perspective. Therefore, this approach brings ecological elements to the forefront in the translation process and in this respect differs from other translation approaches. Therefore, this approach can be said to interpret translation in light of eco-holism, unlike various fields such as linguistics, literature, culture, communications, or art. The study aims to interpret literary translation in the context of the eco-translatology approach. In this context, I have first identified the simile expressions in Yashar Kemal’s book, Yılanı Öldürseler and I compared these simile expressions with their French translations in light of the eco-translatology approach. For the analysis, I’ve taken into account the following fundamental four principles Hu and Tao (2016) proposed within the framework of their approach: the principle of balance and harmony, the principle of multiple eco-integration, the principle of symbiosis and diversity, and the principle of translator responsibility. As a result of the analysis, the simile expressions in the source text are observed to have mostly been translated into French in accordance with the principles of eco-translatology.
Eko-Çeviribilim Bağlamında Edebî Eser Çevirisi Üzerine Betimleyici Bir Çalışma
Nesibe Erkalan ÇakırÇevirmenin, çeviri sürecinin merkezinde olduğu ve buna bağlı olarak çeviri metnin ekolojisinden sorumlu kişi olarak görüldüğü eko-çeviri anlayışı, son zamanlarda araştırmacıların ilgi duyduğu konulardan biri hâline gelmiştir. Eko-çeviri anlayışında çeviri, bir yandan kaynak metinde yer alan ekolojik unsurları ön plana çıkarırken, diğer yandan da erek metin okuyucusunda ekolojik farkındalık oluşturmaktadır. Çin asıllı çeviribilim araştırmacıları Gengshen Hu ve Youlan Tao’nun (2016) bahsettiği ekoçeviribilim yaklaşımı ise çeviri eyleminin ekolojik bir bakış açısıyla incelenmesi ve bu nedenle çeviri sürecinde ekolojik unsurların ön planda tutulması bakımından diğer çeviribilim yaklaşımlarından ayrılmaktadır. Dolayısıyla, bu yaklaşımın dilbilim, edebiyat, kültür, iletişim veya sanat gibi çeşitli alanlardan farklı olarak çeviriyi eko-holizm ışığında yorumladığını belirtmek mümkündür. Bu çalışmada amaç, çeviribilim alanında nispeten yeni bir çalışma konusu olan eko-çeviri yaklaşımını Türkiye’de yürütülecek çeviri çalışmalarına katkı sağlaması açısından edebî eserlerin çevirisi ile ilişkilendirerek yorumlamaktır. Bu bağlamda öncelikle Yaşar Kemal’in Yılanı Öldürseler adlı eserinde geçen benzetme ifadeleri belirlenmiştir. Belirlenen bu benzetme ifadeleri, Fransızca çevirileri ile eşleştirildikten sonra Hu ve Tao’nun eko-çeviribilim yaklaşımı çerçevesinde önerdiği denge ve uyum ilkesi, çoklu eko-entegrasyon ilkesi, ortak yaşam (simbiyoz) ve çeşitlilik ilkesi ile çevirmenin sorumluluğu ilkesi olarak isimlendirilen dört ilke dikkate alınarak analiz edilmiştir. Analiz sonucunda, Türkçe metinde geçen benzetme ifadelerinin büyük çoğunluğunun Fransızcaya eko-çeviribilim ilkelerine uygun bir şekilde çevrildiği görülmüştür.
Ecological consciousness has in fact been becoming more and more important in many fields around the world, and the increasing awareness in ecological issues encourages people to protect the environment. Correspondingly, many in the world today are willing to adopt new eco-responsible practices (George & Faurite, 2020, p. 6). In translation studies, this awareness stands out with the term eco-translation. In this approach, translation not only highlights the ecological elements in the source text but also creates ecological awareness in the readers of the target text.
The eco-translatology approach was proposed and named by the Chinese translation studies researchers Gengshen Hu and Youlan Tao (2016, p. 116) in their study titled “EcoTranslatology: A New Paradigm of Eco-Translation- A Comparative Study on Approaches to Translation Studies.” Their study presented this new approach in the context of ecotranslation, and this approach comprises the theoretical basis for the current study.
This study sets out to interpret literary translations in the context of eco-translation, which is a relatively new field of study among translation research. In this framework, the study first explains the eco-translation approach Hu and Tao (2016) proposed alongside its philosophical and theoretical background. The study then identifies the simile expressions in Yılanı Öldürseler written by Yashar Kemal (2016) and analyzes the French translations of these simile expressions in accordance with the eco-translatology approach. Yashar Kemal is a Turkish author who has attached great importance to ecology and skillfully reflects his attitude in almost all of his works.
In the process of collecting data, the study found 42 simile expressions in Yılanı Öldürseler. Before analyzing these expressions and their translations, they were classified as follows:
a) Translations that are both formed with the basic simile structure and compatible with the principles of eco-translatology. This group has 19 examples.
b) Translations that are formed with the basic simile structure but are not compatible with the principles of eco-translatology. This group has four examples.
c) Translations that are not formed with the basic simile structure but are compatible with the principles of eco-translatology. This group has 17 examples.
ç) Translations that used no simile expression at all. This group has two examples.
Apart from this classification, the analysis takes into consideration the following four principles Hu and Tao (2016, pp. 127–128) proposed in the context of the ecotranslatology approach:
1) The principle of balance and harmony,
2) The principle of multiple eco-integration,
3) The principle of symbiosis and diversity,
4) The principle of translator responsibility.
As a result, the study has found the translations for five of the 42 simile expressions in the source text to be incompatible with the principles of eco-translatology, whereas the translations of the other 37 simile expressions are compatible with these principles. Taken together, these results suggest the simile expressions in the source text to have mostly been translated into French in accordance with the principles of eco-translatology.
This study has addressed the eco-translatology approach in the context of literary translation. In today’s world where ecological issues are becoming more and more important in many fields, not only producing new studies in the field of eco-translation or eco-translatology but also conducting new research by interacting with other disciplines will both contribute to the field of translation studies as well as provide researchers with a different perspective. In this respect, two aims of this study have been to inspire new studies in this field and to raise awareness on this issue.
