Immediate constituent analysis and translation

Identifying autonomous units

ICA as a tool for translation• ICA helps translators recognise ‘autonomous

units’• An autonomous units is any stretch of language

that can be translated as a single unit in the TT. Taylor gives the example of the following clause, which can be broken up into three distinct auntonomous units:

• The meeting/ broke up/ at three.• Noun phrase (determiner+ noun); verb phrase

(verb+particle); prepositional phrase.• La riunione/ si è sciolta/ alle tre.

What are phrases?

• Phrases are a string of words that forms a syntactic unit – typically these contain more than one unit. Some grammarians refer to phrases as groups.

• It’s raining cats and dogs. (verb phrase +adverb phrase)

• Phrases are named after the most important word in a group, i.e. the word that defines the type of phrase, referred to as the ‘head’ of the phrase or the ‘head word’.

Main phrases

• All of the major classes of words (and one minor one- prepositions) form word classes:

• Noun phrases (including pronoun phrases)• Verb phrases• Adjectival phrases• Adverbial phrases• Prepositional phrases

Noun phrases• Noun phrases are structured as follows• Minimal form = noun (head noun deciding verb agreement)• Pre-modification (all words in NP appearing before Head Noun

(determiner+ adjectives) and a noun with an adjectival function (categorizer)

• Postmodification ( everything in NP coming after head noun (prepositional phrases, including ‘that’ and ‘of’ phrases; non-finite clauses.

**Noun phrases are constructed round the head noun and the structure is varied and complex, which means it can be difficult to establish exactly where a noun phrase begins and ends. One way to identify the noun phrase is to try replacing it with a pronoun. If the result is grammatically correct, then you have identified it.

TU1 /T1

• Look at T1 to identify and analyse following noun phrases:

• departure date• tour operators• package holiday companies• the same story that booking a holiday early…• planes to fill

Verb phrases• Verb phrase• This is a phrase with a lexical verb (not a primary one) as its

head word. • These can be finite (I play tennis) or non-finite (playing

tennis). • Meanings are created by the various patterns of:• tense; • aspect (perfective, i.e. complete, or continuous); • mood (indicative, imperative, interrogative, subjunctive);• voice. (active, passive). • A special class of verb phrase is the phrasal verb

TI/ verb phrases

• Define the following verb phrases:• trot out• means• leave• are often forced• to discount

Adjective phrases• Phrase with adjective as head. • Simplest form of Adjective phrase: single adjective in:• attributive position – last year we had a significant increase in profits;• predicative position – contemporary mobile phones are not easy to use for writing

emails.• or postpositive position - the managing director didn't say anything controversial

at the meeting.• In an Adjective phrase the head can be pre-modified by an adverb really exciting

(intensifier) • In an Adjective phrase the adjective can be post-modified by:• a preposition phrase (e.g., preposition + NP) I'm getting bored with my present

job;• a to-infinitive clause: the government is keen to avoid further conflict...;• a that-clause: It's not at all certain that United will win the premiership;• An ‘ ing ‘ clause introduced by a preposition: Are you interested in playing for us

next week

T1 define the Adjective phrases

• same• cheaper• unsold• near

Adverb phrase

• A phrase with adverb as head. Often consists of a single adverb. Sometimes the head is pre-modified by an intensifying adverb: very kindly, too late, etc.

• Adverbs of manner, place, time, and duration normally go to the end of the clause. If there is more than one adverb phrase in a clause the order is:

• Manner + place + time/duration• I've been sleeping very well lately• they live near now• they work here temporarily

Adverbs of frequency and probability

• Adverbs of frequency normally precede a lexical verb, • we always listen to the radio on Sunday morning• • but follow the primary verb be or the first auxiliary of a VP:• • I've always hated that song.• • Some adverbs of frequency can go at the beginning or the end of a

clause: sometimes, usually, frequently, often, occasionally.• • Adverb phrases of probability • certainly, definitely, obviously, probably, go before a lexical verb,

but follow the primary verb to be or the first auxiliary in the VP.

TI Consider the following adverb phrases

• Every year• early• often

Prepositional phraseConsists of a preposition and a noun phrase (including a pronoun phrase) known as the object of the preposition. They give information about:

• place: in the office;• direction: up the stairs;• distance: for miles• time: on Tuesday• duration: for two days;• manner, with difficulty, on foot• cause: because of the snow• purpose: for the hell of it;• concession: despite the difficulties.

Prepositional phrases function as post-modifiers in NPs and APs, as in his cautious approach to the euro, the lady with blonde hair.

• Lexical verbs are followed by PPs with particular prepositions. These are known as prepositional verbs.

• Identify PPs in T1

Multi-word verbs

• A particular problem in translation from English is the extensive use of multi-word verbs, otherwise known as phrasal verbs, which take the form of two-word or three-word units that express a single meaning. They are formed by a verb plus a particle (adverb or preposition).

• Consider T1 are there any example of multi-word verbs?