1 1. Hypothesis 1

University of Oslo, Department of Literature, Area Studies and European Languages
SPRIK seminar, 10 November 2005
A CORPUS-BASED VIEW ON INFORMATION PACKAGING ACROSS LANGUAGES
Christelle Cosme
Centre for English Corpus Linguistics (http://cecl.fltr.ucl.ac.be)
Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium
<[email protected]>
1. Hypothesis 1: Clause Linking
Coordination
Subordination
Dutch
English
French
2. Hypothesis 2: Informational Density
Sentential
Nominal
English
French
Dutch
3. Clause Linking [Hypothesis 1]: distribution of sentence types
200
178
180
153
160
140
139
122
120
English
98
100
French
83
Dutch
80
60
29 25 32
40
20
0
Simple
Complex
Compound
1
University of Oslo, Department of Literature, Area Studies and European Languages
SPRIK seminar, 10 November 2005
4. Clause Linking [Hypothesis 1]: frequency and distribution of subclauses
S0
S1
ENGLISH
82
88
FRENCH
102
85
DUTCH
132
106
S2
S3
S4
S5
S6
S7
S8
S9
S10
S11
Total subclauses
61
41
21
5
1
1
0
0
0
0
455
60
29
11
6
5
1
0
0
0
1
414
46
12
3
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
251
5. Clause Linking [Hypothesis 1]: formal-functional analysis of clause types
ENGLISH
159
FRENCH
180
DUTCH
103
finite
94
88
80
non-finite
65
89
22
verbless
No of nominal clauses
0
146
3
96
1
70
No of adnominal clauses
finite
84
43
55
non-finite
No of adverbial clauses
62
132
53
111
15
54
finite
60
39
37
non-finite
69
69
15
verbless
3
3
2
ENGLISH
FRENCH
DUTCH
Coord of full clauses
26
19
24
VP-conjunctions
Total
24
50
9
27
17
41
6. Clause Linking [Hypothesis 1]: coordination
7. Shifts in clause linking: examples
(1)
M. Laruelle returned to the
table where he poured himself
and drank a glass of Tehuacan
mineral water.
(2)
Joy Williams laughed. It was a laugh he was to hear
often.
Joy Williams laissa fuser un rire sec qu'il devait
entendre souvent par la suite.
(3)
Il riait doucement en me frottant la nuque.
He laughed softly and rubbed the back of my neck.
(4)
She said, 'This is my daughter Sara,' pronouncing
the name so that the first syllable rhymed with 'car'.
'Dit,' zei ze, 'is mijn dochter Sara.' Ze sprak de naam
zo uit dat de eerste lettergreep rijmde op 'kar'.
M. Laruelle revint à la table où
il se versa un verre d'eau
minérale de Tehuacan qu'il but.
M. Laruelle ging terug naar de tafel en
schonk zich een glas Tehuacanmineraalwater in dat hij opdronk.
2
University of Oslo, Department of Literature, Area Studies and European Languages
SPRIK seminar, 10 November 2005
(5)
C'était une grande fille rousse, mi-créature, mimondaine, qui faisait de la figuration dans les
studios et les bars des Champs-Elysées.
She was a tall red-haired girl, sensual and worldly,
gentle, rather simple, and unpretentious; one might
have come across her any day in the studios and
bars of the Champs-Élysées.
(6)
In the course of years several ships had stranded and
they now helped to prop up the bank, […].
Plusieurs navires, qui s'étaient échoués au cours des
années, contribuaient maintenant à étayer la rive,
[…].
(7)
Dans quelques heures, il faudrait quitter Florence et
la sécurité relative qu'elle lui avait donnée pour
reprendre le chemin du palais blanc où la chanson
légère des fontaines n'avait pas assez de puissance
pour chasser des fantômes maléfiques.
In a few hours' time, she must leave Florence and the
comparative safety it had offered her and continue
her journey to the white palazzo whose gentle,
singing fountains had no power to exorcise its evil
ghosts.
(8)
To the right of the cottages a stream flowed beneath
a low stone bridge, crossed the meadow and lost
itself in the sea.
Sur la droite, un ruisseau, qu'enjambait un pont de
pierre, traversait ce champ pour se perdre dans la
mer.
(9)
Au soir tombant elle s'asseyait à côté de moi et me
montrait des images en me racontant des histoires.
As dusk began to fall she used to sit beside me and
show me pictures and tell me stories.
(10)
[…] but she only shook her head and muttered
about contamination.
[…] mais elle s'est contentée de secouer la tête en
marmonnant quelque chose à propos de la
contamination.
(11)
She was a healthy woman, and never thought of
death.
Douée d'une santé excellente, elle n'avait jamais
pensé à la mort et […].
(12)
-Je ne suis pas une rapporteuse, dit Patricia. Elle
me défia du regard.
'I'm not a tell-tale,' Patricia said, staring at me
defiantly.
(13)
« Asseyez-vous donc », dit-il, et il prit place en face
d'elle très sérieusement en resserrant sa robe de
chambre autour de lui.
'Do sit down,' he said, solemnly seating himself
opposite her and pu1ling his dressing-gown closer
about him.
(14)
Les veines s'étalaient dessus, commençaient à
grimper à l'assaut des doigts, s'entremêlaient en un
dessin désordonné.
The veins stood out on the back, campaigning up
towards the fingers, mingling in an irregular
pattern.
(15)
Winston, who was thirty-nine and had a varicose
ulcer above his right ankle, went slowly, resting
several times on the way.
Winston, qui avait trente-neuf ans et souffrait d'un
ulcère variqueux au-dessus de la cheville droite,
montait lentement. Il s'arrêta plusieurs fois en
chemin pour se reposer.
(16)
It was an enormous pyramidal structure of glittering
white concrete, soaring up, terrace after terrace,
three hundred metres into the air.
C'était une gigantesque construction pyramidale de
béton d'un blanc éclatant.
Elle étageait ses
terrasses jusqu'à trois cents mètres de hauteur.
(17)
Je l'aidai à récupérer ses affaires et, au milieu de
nos rires, j'appris qu'il s'appelait Cyril, qu'il était
étudiant en droit et passait ses vacances avec sa
mère, dans une villa voisine.
We had a good deal of fun rescuing his possessions,
during which he told me his name, that he was
studying law, and was spending his holidays with his
mother in a neighbouring villa.
(18)
Aujourd'hui, quelque chose se replie sur moi comme
une soie, énervante et douce, et me sépare des
autres.
To-day something envelops me like a silken web,
enervating and soft, which isolates me.
(19)
Je m'allongeai sur le sable, m'endormis à moitié et
la voix de Cyril me réveilla.
I was lying on the sand half asleep when I heard
Cyril's voice.
3
University of Oslo, Department of Literature, Area Studies and European Languages
SPRIK seminar, 10 November 2005
(20)
La boule mordorée, ombre et fumée en même temps,
sauta, vola de meuble en meuble jusqu'à la fenêtre
ouverte et se dissipa dans la brume du matin.
The coppery ball of fur, all shot through with smokedark undertones, bounded away from bed to chair to
table, and so out by the open window, where it
vanished in the morning mist.
(21)
Two mountain chains traverse the republic roughly
from north to south, forming between them a
number of valleys and plateaux.
Twee bergketens lopen zo ongeveer van noord naar
zuid door de republiek en vormen een aantal dalen en
plateaus.
(22)
The flat was seven flights up, and Winston, who was
thirty-nine and had a varicose ulcer above his right
ankle, went slowly, resting several times on the way.
De flat was op de zevendeverdieping en Winston, die
negen en dertig was en een spatader had boven zijn
rechter enkel, ging langzaam en rustte herhaaldelijk
onderweg.
(23)
The fat boy stood by him, breathing hard.
De dikkejongen kwam bij hem staan; hij hijgde
zwaar.
(24)
Ralph spoke to himself, sounding the bass strings of
delight.
Ralph praatte in zichzelf en bracht de bassnaar van
verrukking in trilling.
(25)
Her hair was exceptionally long, reaching almost to
her waist.
Het blonde haar was uitzonderlijk lang en viel in
zachte golven tot op haar middel.
(26)
We would like to get the turtles out of their pool and
play with them.
We zouden graag de schildpaden uit hun poel willen
halen om ermee te spelen. [OMC]
(27)
Basil ducked under the table, knowing she wouldn’t
be able to bend and reach him.
Basil dook onder de tafel, wetend dat ze niet kon
bukken om hem te pakken. [OMC]
(28)
I realized that I hadn’t thought to ask if I needed to
go over and get his breakfast in the morning.
Ik besefte dat ik vergeten had te vragen of ik de
volgende morgen moest komen om zijn ontbijt te
maken. [OMC]
(29)
Laruelle returned to the table where he poured
himself and drank a glass of Tehuacan mineral
water.
M. Laruelle ging terug naar de tafel en schonk zich
een glas Tehuacan-mineraalwater in dat hij opdronk.
(30)
Fibich telephoned the doctor, and was told what
arrangements would have to be made.
Fibich belde de dokter, die hem inlichtte over
regelingen die hij zou moeten treffen. [OMC]
(31)
He collects cigarette cards with pictures of airplanes
on them, and knows the names of all the planes.
Hij verzamelt sigaretteplaatjes met vliegtuigen erop,
die hij allemaal bij de naam kent. [OMC]
(32)
But there was very little swell in the sheltered
estuary, and a moment later, with an explosion of
spray like the smoke from a bomb, the hull plunged
into the water.
Maar in de beschutte riviermonding was weinig
deining, zodat de romp een ogenblik later door het
water sneed en aan weerszijden fonteinen van water
deed opspatten.
(33)
The world outside started to appear unreal, like a
film projected onto the windows; and the interior of
the aircraft seemed like the whole universe.
De wereld buiten het toestel leek onwezenlijk, alsof
er een film achter de raampjes werd vertoond,
terwijl het interieur van de Clipper een universum
op zichzelf scheen.
4
University of Oslo, Department of Literature, Area Studies and European Languages
SPRIK seminar, 10 November 2005
8. Parataxis ⇔ Hypotaxis in English-French and French-English translations
50
45
40
46
39
35
28
30
28
English => French
25
French => English
20
15
10
5
0
PAR => HYP
HYP => PAR
9. Parataxis ⇔ Hypotaxis in English-Dutch translations
English => Dutch
60
50
50
40
30
English => Dutch
23
20
10
0
PAR => HYP
HYP => PAR
10. Informational Density [Hyothesis 2]: frequency and distribution of clauses
C1
C2
C3
C4
C5
C6
C7
C8
C9
C10
C11
C12
C13
C14
Total clauses
ENGLISH
61
92
67
50
18
8
3
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
813
FRENCH
88
85
66
32
16
6
4
2
0
0
0
0
0
1
758
DUTCH
114
102
54
20
8
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
612
5
University of Oslo, Department of Literature, Area Studies and European Languages
SPRIK seminar, 10 November 2005
11. Revised Hypothesis 2: Informational Density
Sentential
Nominal
English
French
Dutch
12. Shifts in informational density: examples
(34)
Mon père avait quarante ans, il était veuf depuis
quinze; c'était un homme jeune, plein de vitalité, de
possibilités, et, à ma sortie de pension, deux ans
plus tôt, je n'avais pas pu ne pas comprendre qu'il
vécût avec une femme.
My father was forty, and had been a widower for
fifteen years. He was young for his age, full of
vitality and possibilities, and when I left school two
years before, I soon noticed that he lived with a
woman.
(35)
Maigret sortait de son bureau, toujours sans veston,
le col ouvert, et se dirigeait d'un air affairé vers le
bureau du chef.
Maigret emerged from his office, still in his
shirt-sleeves and with his collar unbuttoned, and
made for the Director's office; he looked
preoccupied.
(36)
He tip-toed down the sandy side of the pool, and sat
there up to his neck in water smiling proudly at
Ralph.
Hij liep op zijn tenen langs de zandkant van de
inham, en ging daar met een trotse glimlach naar
Ralph tot zijn nek toe in het water zitten.
(37)
Luther had disembarked there a week ago. The dock
was a specially designed raft with twin piers.
C'est là que Luther avait débarqué la semaine
précédente, sur le quai flottant spécialement
aménagé à cet effet.
13. Non-clausal unit ⇔ clausal unit in the three translation directions
140
130
123
117
120
100
80
80
Clausal => Nonclausal
70
60
47
Non-clausal =>
clausal
40
20
0
EN => FR
FR => EN
EN => DU
References
Baker M. (1993) Corpus Linguistics and Translation Studies. Implications and Applications. In Baker M., G. Francis & E.
Tognini-Bonelli (eds) Text and Technology. In Honour of John Sinclair. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: Benjamins. 233-250.
Blum-Kulka S. (1986) Shifts of Cohesion and Coherence in Translation. In House J. & S. Blum-Kulka (eds)
Interlingual and Intercultural Communication. Discourse and Cognition in Translation and Second Language
Acquisition Studies. Tübingen: Narr. 17-35.
Chuquet H. & M. Paillard (1987) Approche linguistique des problèmes de traduction anglais >< français. Paris:
Gap/Ophrys.
Cosme C. (2003) A Corpus-based Contrastive Study of Clause Combining in English, French and Dutch. Paper given
at the BAAHE Conference (Belgian Association of Anglicists in Higher Education), Ghent University, 22
November 2003.
6
University of Oslo, Department of Literature, Area Studies and European Languages
SPRIK seminar, 10 November 2005
Cosme C. (2004a) Towards a corpus-based cross-linguistic study of clause combining. Methodological framework and
preliminary results. Belgian Journal of English Language and Literatures (BELL), New Series 2: 199-224.
Cosme C. (2004b) A corpus-based cross-linguistic study of clause linking. Paper given at the BAAL Conference
(British Association for Applied Linguistics), King’s College London, 9-11 September 2004.
Cosme C. (forthcoming) Clause combining across languages. A corpus-based study of English-French translation
shifts. To appear in: Languages in Contrast.
Doherty M. (1996a) Passive perspectives: different preferences in English and German – a result of parametrized
processing. Doherty M. (1996) Information Structure: A Key Concept for Translation Theory. Special issue of
Linguistics 34(3): 591-644.
Doherty M. (1996b) Information Structure: A Key Concept for Translation Theory. Special issue of Linguistics 34 (3):
441-457.
Fabricius-Hansen C. (1996) Informational density: a problem for translation and translation theory. In Doherty M.
(1996) Information Structure: A Key Concept for Translation Theory. Special issue of Linguistics 34 (3): 521-565.
Fabricius-Hansen C. (1999) Information packaging and translation: Aspects of translational sentence splitting
(German – English/Norwegian). In Doherty M. (ed.) Sprachspezifische Aspekte der Informationsverteilung. [Studia
Grammatica 47]. Berlin: Akademie Verlag. 175-214.
Gilquin G. (2000/2001) The Integrated Contrastive Model: Spicing up your data. Languages in Contrast 3(1): 95-123.
Granger S. (1996) From CA to CIA and back: An integrated approach to computerized bilingual and learner corpora.
In Aijmer K., B. Altenberg & M. Johansson (eds) Languages in Contrast. Papers from a Symposium on Text-based
Cross-linguistic Studies. Lund 4-5 March 1994. [Lund Studies in English 88]. Lund: Lund University Press. 37-51.
Granger S. (2003) The corpus approach: a common way forward for Contrastive Linguistics and Translation Studies.
In Granger S., J. Lerot & S. Petch-Tyson (eds) Corpus-based Approaches to Contrastive Linguistics and
Translation Studies. Amsterdam/Atlanta: Rodopi. 17-30.
Guillemin-Flescher J. (1981) Syntaxe comparée du français et de l'anglais. Paris: Gap /Ophrys.
Hannay M. (1997) Sentencing in Dutch and English. In Aarts J., I. de Mönnink & H. Wekker (eds) Studies in English
Language and Teaching. Amsterdam: Rodopi. 231-256.
Hannay M. & J. Mackenzie (1996) Effective writing in English: a resource guide. Groningen: Martinus Nijhoff.
Hasselgård H. (1997) Sentence openings in English and Norwegian. In Ljung M. (ed.) Corpus-based studies in
English: papers from the seventeenth international conference on English language research on computerized
corpora, ICAME 17, Stockholm, May 15-19, 1996. Amsterdam/Atlanta: Rodopi. 3-20.
Hasselgård H., S. Johansson, B. Behrens & C. Fabricius-Hansen (2002) Information Structure in a Cross-Linguistic
Perspective. Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi.
Hervey S. & J. Higgins (1992) Thinking Translation. A Course in Translation Method: French-English. London:
Routledge.
Johansson S. (1998) On the role of corpora in cross-linguistic research. In Johansson S. & S. Oksefjell (eds) Corpora
and Cross-linguistic Research. Amsterdam/Atlanta: Rodopi. 3-24.
Johansson S. (2003) Contrastive linguistics and corpora. In Granger S., J. Lerot & S. Petch-Tyson (eds) Corpus-based
Approaches to Contrastive Linguistics and Translation Studies. Amsterdam/Atlanta: Rodopi. 31-44.
Johansson S. & H. Hasselgård (1999) Corpora and cross-linguistic research in the Nordic countries. In Granger S., L.
Beheydt & J.-P. Colson (eds) Contrastive Linguistics and Translation, a special issue of Le Langage et l'Homme
34(1). Leuven: Peeters. 145-162.
Johansson S. & P. Lysvåg (1986) Understanding English grammar. Vol. 1. Oslo: Norwegian University Press
(Universitetsforlaget AS).
Lehmann C. (1988) Towards a typology of clause linkage. In Haiman J. & S.A. Thompson (eds) Clause combining in
Grammar and Discourse. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: Benjamins. 181-225.
Mauranen A. (1999) Will ‘translationese’ ruin a contrastive study? Languages in Contrast 2(2): 161-185.
Mauranen A. (2004) Corpora, universals and interference. In Mauranen A. & P. Kujamäki (eds), 65-82.
Mauranen A. & P. Kujamäki (2004) Translation Universals. Do they exist? Amsterdam/Philadelphia: Benjamins.
Moder C.L. & A. Martinovic-Zic (2004) Discourse Across Languages and Cultures. Amsterdam/Philadelphia:
Benjamins.
Newmark P. (1981) Approaches to Translation. Oxford: Pergamon Press.
Olohan M. (2004) Introducing Corpora in Translation Studies. London/New York: Routledge.
Øverås L. (1998) In search of the Third Code. An Investigation of Norms in Literary Translation. META 43: 571-588.
Papai V. (2004) Explicitation: A universal of translated text? In Mauranen A. & P. Kujamäki (eds) Translation
Universals. Do they exist? Amsterdam/Philadelphia: Benjamins. 143-164.
Solfjeld K. (1996) Sententiality and translation strategies German Norwegian. In Doherty M. (1996) Information
Structure: A Key Concept for Translation Theory. Special issue of Linguistics 34(3): 567-590.
Teubert W. (1996) Comparable or parallel corpora? International Journal of Lexicography 9(3): 238-264.
Van Hoof H. (1989) Traduire l'anglais: théorie et pratique. Paris: Duculot.
Vinay J.-P. & J. Darbelnet (1995) Comparative Stylistics of French and English. A methodology for translation.
Amsterdam/Philadelphia: Benjamins, translated by J.C. Sager and M.-J. Hamel.
Vreck F. (2000) Entraînement à la version anglaise. Paris: Ophrys/Ploton.
7