My English Resources

Listed below, there are mostly academic texts on different topics writen by me :

1. Argumentative essay (abstract)
2. An excerpt from the introduction to B.A. thesis titled ''Translation Problems in Requiem for a Dream by Hubert Selby Jr. Instances of Incomprehensibility of the Target Text.
3. Argumentative essay (abstract)

1. Dystopian visions on the example of Brave New World and Brave New World Revisited: a self-fulfilling prophecy or a far-fetched possibility?

British writer Aldous Huxley's book, Brave New World is a depiction of a utopia wherein the means of production are in state ownership. His subsequent work, Brave New World Revisited, continues to present a reality in which people become devoid of human feelings, being controlled and devoured by the power of technology. Both novels provide a scathing criticism of the values inert in the myth of social salvation through rapid developments in psycho-chemistry, biological engineering etc. However, an in-depth study of Huxley's theory shows some incongruity with respect to present reality. The goal of this study was to provide some insights into Huxley's arguments and to challenge his vision of the future. The interpretation of the results is not unequivocal. However, it indicates that Huxley's assumptions were predominantly far-fetched and his vision was rather moving into the realms of fantasy. His theory definitely provides important implications for the future, yet does not remain the ultimate source of reference. [...]

2. 

INTRODUCTION

“While content and language form a certain unity in the original,

like a fruit and its skin, the language of the translation

envelops its content like a royal robe with ample folds.

For it signifies a more exalted language than its own

and thus remains unsuited to its content,

overpowering and alien. “

Walter Benjamin, “The Task of the Translator”, Translation Studies Reader

In my thesis I would like to confine my attention to studying Requiem for a Dream by Hubert Selby Jr. and its Polish version Requiem dla snu translated by Elżbieta Gałązka-Salamon. The aim of the thesis is to explore the language of the original and its rendition into Polish with a special focus on translation problems which may present a serious challenge for a translator. Thus, the translator's decisions and their implications for the comprehensibility of the target text will also be explored to indicate the potential instances of incomprehensibility of the target text from the perspective of an average Polish reader.

The first part of the thesis is devoted to two large groups of translation problems in Requiem for a Dream: linguistic problems and translating culture-bound items. The former group embraces such aspects as e.g. punctuation, including the question of preserving the original punctuation in the target text, especially the use of slashes, commas and italics. The possibility of interlinear translation will be explored. Other issues that fall into the category of linguistic problems are neologisms and other non-existent items constituting examples of the creative use of language. Both problematic aspects of the source text and the potentially incomprehensible items (from the perspective of an average Polish reader) in the target text will be studied in detail. The latter large group includes culture-bound items, that is borrowings from the Yiddish-based slang, food names and others.

In the second part I would like to devote my attention to the phenomenon of the clash of cultures between the source and the target text and to the problem of intelligibility of translation. Firstly, the historical and cultural background of the novel will be explored. Secondly, the concept of the strategy of translating cultures with regard to Requiem dla snu will be considered. An attempt at defining the implications of the transfer into Polish in terms of a potential compromise will be made. Finally, I would like to address the issue of the implications of the translator's choices for the intelligibility of the target text. Thus, the instances of the incomprehensibility of the target text will be explored, which is one of the aims of the thesis. The main focus is not on studying the items which are considered 'difficult to translate' or virtually 'untranslatable' and, thus, they are viewed as 'problematic' elements. The principal aim of the thesis is to take the translator's decisions under scrutiny and to assess them in terms of the general comprehensibility from the perspective of an average target reader. In conclusion, an attempt at defining the prevailing strategy of translating will be made. [...]

3. Approaches to the classification of a work of art: is it defined by sociocultural categories or by inherent characteristics of an object? [abstract]

The definition and evaluation of art has become especially problematic since the early 20th century. Modern art theories do not provide obvious answers to these issues, as each approach is based on a different set of criteria for assessing the quality of a work of art. Nor are the classificatory disputes possible to settle, for  many scholars deem it unreasonable to attempt to define art at all. The goal of this study was to provide some insights into the classification of an artwork based on sociocultural categories and to challenge the traditional approach to a work of art as an absolute value in itself. Representational, expressive, and formal properties are not sufficient conditions for determining the artistic value of an object as numerous culture-bound factors account for a given perception of a work of art. The study discusses various aspects of the artwork assessment, with a special consideration of such elusive concepts as: perception of beauty and aesthetics,  subjective opinion of an audience, the role of external conditions in determining the inherent value of an object and the phenomenon of unintentionally created masterpiece. The results provide general support for the claim that a generally acknowledged artwork cannot exist detached from the implications of its sociocultural context.