class3. Time
Mit Textfunktion ist der Gebrauch des Textes in einem bestimmten Situationskontext gemeint (HOUSEHouse 1997:36). Um diesen zu bestimmen, muss das „textuelle Profil“ erstellt werden, welches aus einer systemischen linguistisch-pragmatischen Analyse der Sprachfunktionen des Textes in seinem Situationskontext resultiert.
Nach diesen Kategorien werden Ausgangs- und Übersetzungstext beschrieben, sodass der Grad der Übereinstimmung feststellbar wird. Die Funktion eines Textes kann dann als Summe von dessen Sprachmaterial im Sinn der genannten Dimensionen aufgefasst werden, und die Übersetzungskritik stellt den Übereinstimmungsgrad in den Korrelationen mit dem AS-Textprofil fest. Um die deskriptive Kraft des Modells aufzuzeigen, wird jeder Aspekt in der Analyse mit Symbolen wie [+/–human], [+/–abstract] usw. dargestellt. Auch Stilebenen und soziale Sprecherrollen werden berücksichtigt, denn all dies spiegelt sich auf der Textebene.
Zu einem Text aus der Handelskorrespondenz, nämlich dem Rundschreiben eines Firmenvorstands an die Aktionäre, was eine „covert translation“ bedingt, wird das Modell durchgespielt, wobei die Sätze durchnummeriert sind. Aus Platzgründen kann dies hier nicht vollständig wiedergegeben werden (HOUSEHouse 1997:49ff), doch soll ein kleiner Einblick die Vorgehensweise aufzeigen:
Analysis of ST and Statement of Function
Dimensions of language user:
(1) Geographical origin: non-marked, Standard American English
(2) Social Class: non-marked, Educated Middle Class
(3) Time: non-marked, contemporary American English
Dimensions of langue use:
(1) Medium: simple: written to be read, as realized by the following linguistic means:
syntactic means:
a. absence of elliptical clauses, contractions, contact parentheses and comment parentheses, and many kinds of spoken language signals such as well, you see, you know, etc.
b. placing of expanded subordinate clauses of purpose before the main clause: this is a focussing device typical of the written mode (…),
c. presence of expanded postnominal modification resulting in the separation of the head of the subject noun phrase and the corresponding finite verb (…).
lexical means:
a. absence of qualifying modal adverbials, interjections, and other subjectivity markers typical of the spoken mode.
textual means:
a. The text is predominantly emic. There are a few pronominal references to the addresser and the addressees (…),
b. lack of relations resulting in a lack of redundancy,
c. frequent use of passivization as a typically „written“ means of complex syntactic linkages for text-constitutive purposes (…).
(2) Participation: complex: monologue with addressees being directly addressed and given instructions. (..)
syntactic means:
a. presence of second person personal and possessive pronouns for direct address (…),
b. presence of requests put to the addressees through the use of the verb required in the passive, modal auxiliaries of obligation, and the mandative subjunctive new in a that-clause;
c. absence of interrogative sentences. (…)
(3) Social Role Relationship:
Asymmetrical role relation: addresser has de facto economic authority over the addressees.
Position role of addresser: president of an international financing company, of which the addressees are shareholders. (…)
syntactic means:
a. use of second person singular personal pronouns you and passive pronoun your in a specific way, i.e., for addressing corporate members not „persons“ as such (…),
b. use of the fist person plural personal pronoun we to refer to the addresser or the company or the Board of Directors (…),
c. frequency of impersonal constructions using impersonal it and existential there as well as passives: the use of these devices is indicative of a desire on the part of the addresser to be cautious and „hedgy“ and to avoid specifying a causer or *agent. (…),
d. preponderance of [-human] subject noun phrases adding to the impersonal character of the text,
e. use of subjunctive in a that-clause (…). This is marked choice in English.
textual means:
a. deliberate attempt to underplay the role of I.O.S. (the company) through putting I.O.S. in non-focussed position in prepositional phrases,
b. deliberate overall organization of the text such that the addressees are first being presented with the change as a fait accompli and its many positive sides, and that they are only later being given the reason for the change.
(4) Social Attitude
Consistent with the impersonal, distant relationship as outlined above, (…) it is a formal one:
syntactic means:
a. frequency of complex noun phrases showing both multiple personification, post modification, and continuous modification which add to the text’s abstractness and impersonality. (…),
b. deletion of conjunction if plus subject-auxiliary inversion (…),
c. completeness of clauses, absence of contractions (…),
d. frequency of impersonal constructions using it, there, and passives; preponderance of [-human] subject noun phrases, use of subjunctive in a that-clause (…).
lexical means:
a. presence of words and phrases marked [+formal] due to their restricted use in impersonal situations: declared, payable on and after, expedite yours (…),
b. absence of interjections, qualifying modal adverbials and other subjectivity markers.
textual means:
a. frequent use of passivization as a means of complex syntactic linkage specifically for preserving theme-rheme sequence,
(5) Province
Commercial financial circular letter issued by the president of an international financing company to the company’s shareholders. In this letter, the shareholders are being informed about changes in the set-up of the company. (…)
lexical means:
a. use of precise technical terminology, i.e. special commercio-financial lexical items and collocations, e.g. pro-rata, dividend, holding company …
b. presence of phrases which precisely define the information given or explicitly state conceivable alternatives: on and after December 20, to all shareholders of record …
c. absence of foregrounding words …
textual means:
presence of strong textual cohesion due to the employment of several mechanisms of theme-dynamics and clausal linkage:
theme-dynamics: