The Lexical Semantic See-Saw: The Degree of Equivalence

Abstract

The comparison of Russian and the English language automatically involves the theory of equivalence. In every translation process there must be lexical and phrasal equivalence that are acceptable to both the receptor and translator. While the paper argues that meaning components are shared between languages, it maintains that there are instances where a total mismatch cannot be noticed. The degree of equivalence in a particular translation process according to the paper is measured through the bar of equilibrium. The measurement of the bar is determined by the relationship between the source language text and the translated text. Two methods are employed, deductive method through quantitative method, while quantitative method is employed in the working mechanism of the bar. Eleven translation exercises were given to level 300 students of Russian, University of Ghana for one semester to measure the speed or time the students used in the translation of every text, to measure their vocabulary horizon, the level of difficulty in translation of texts. It is based on these exercises that the equilibrium principle was developed. These translation exercises were given to level 300 translation students as a case study and the degree of equivalence was measured by the speed of the students, the accuracy of the translation. The content of the text, the competence of the students (translator) determines the movement of the bar of equilibrium.

Keywords: Lexical, Semantic, Equivalence, Equilibrium, Bar, See-Saw, Language, Russian, English.