Author(s): Shafia Akhter
Abstract: Metaphors are taken to be the most fundamental form of figurative language, carrying the assumption that terms literally connected with one object can be transferred to another object. A writer or speaker uses metaphor more often than not intending to introduce a new object/ concept, offering a more precise meaning, or simply presenting a more poetic effect to his text/speech. The main focus of this study is the translation of metaphors in Kazi Nazrul Islam’s poems and the study set out to determine how this particular figure of speech is transferred from source language (SL) text to target language (TL) text. The framework of the study was Newmark’s (1988) seven suggested strategies for translating metaphors. The study concluded that out of the seven strategies proposed by Newmark for translating metaphors, the most frequently used strategy was ‘reproducing the same image in the target language’ and the least used strategy was ‘ replacing the image in the source language with standard target language image’. Hopefully, this study will be a consideration for future translators to translate metaphorical expressions in any literary text.
Keywords: Kazi Nazrul Islam, metaphor, translation strategy, figurative language