Rendering English conventional metaphors of emotion in Ukrainian translations

Abstract

The primary objective of this paper is to compare the mappings of English conventional metaphors of emotion and their Ukrainian translations. Methodologically the study integrates cognitive linguistics postulates, specifically, those of conceptual metaphor theory, and cognitive translation perspectives that view translation activity as cognitive semiosis. The results of comparative analysis of the mappings of 500 conventional metaphors of emotion found in English fiction texts and their Ukrainian translations reveal that representatives of English and Ukrainian lingua-cultures share most of the metaphorical mappings. In both cultures metaphors built on CONTAINER image-schema are prevailing. At the same time Ukrainian translators tend to substitute EMOTIONS are EXTERIORS of CONTAINERS for EXPERIENCERS mappings with EMOTIONS are INTERIORS of CONTAINERS-EXPERIENCERS mappings: EXPERIENCER is seen as CONTAINER FILLED WITH EMOTION. INTERIORS of EMOTIONS-CONTAINERS are conceived as WATER, LIGHT, PAPER/CLOTH, while EMOTIONS-INTERIORS are conceptualised as WATER, LIGHT, FIRE, LIVING BEING, OBJECT, PLANT, or ENGRAVING. Another culturally specific trend involves substitution of CONTAINER with AGENT, specifically HUMAN BEING or UNCONTROLLABLE NATURAL FORCE influencing EXPERIENCER of EMOTION. In English CONTAINER conventional metaphors of EMOTION are verbalised by syntactic structural-semantic patterns (free word combinations) while in Ukrainian they are also rendered by morphological structural-semantic patterns (combinations of prefixes and stems of the words).