Introduction :

An overview of Taha Hussein's life, style and writings:

  In his book, To Taha Hussein in His Seventieth Birthday: Studies Dedicated by His Friends and Students, Abd El-Rahman Badawy (1962) mentions that Taha Hussein was born on 14^th of November, 1889 in Izbet El-kilo near Maghagh's village in Minya. Hussein contracted opthalmia in 1895 and was [administered Shasham which is an oil traditionally believed to cure eye diseases]. Consequently, Hussein got blind. Then, he memorized the Qur'an [at the Qur'an teaching school in his village]. Later in 1902, he left his village to Cairo where he studied at Al-Azhar. In 1908, when the Egyptian University was established, Taha Hussein joined it and enjoyed attending the classes of Islamic and ancient civilizations as well as the literatures of geography and history at the university. In 1914, he obtained a doctorate degree for a dissertation entitled "The Memory of Abi El-Alaa Al-Ma'arri" and it was the first doctorate to be granted by an Egyptian University. The university then sent Hussein in November of the same year on an education mission to France. In 1917, Hussein managed to obtain the license degree in Arts from Sorbonne. In the same year, he married a French lady named Suzanne Bresseau. In 1918-1919, he managed to finish his doctoral dissertation about Ibn Khaldoun at the Sorbonne University.

             As for Taha Hussein's style, Jonathan Ngaté (1990) affirms that Hussein admired Voltaire and his style bears resemblance to that of Voltaire's. Taha Hussein, as Enani mentions in his introduction to the translation of The Fulfilled Promise (2016), adopts ''repetition as a technical tool … sometimes as the musical repetition with variation, or even as in poetry where we have incremental repetition'' (pp.23,24).

 

تحدث البدراوي زهران  (1982) عن التكرار كأحد سمات أسلوب طه حسين قائلا :

 

تجد الأذن سرعة استجابة للنغمة العامة في الأسلوب ، فاختيار كلمات بعينها ورصفها  بطريقة بعينها أعطي هذا الأثر الصوتي الذي أسهم فيه التنويع والبعد عن الاتجاه التقليدي.

قد يحقق غرضه هذا عن طريق التكرار البعيد عن الرتابة ، معتمدا علي التنويع بين الكلمات والملاءمة بين التعبيرات  وأغراضها . وقد يحقق غرضه عن طريق اختيار كلمات مترادفة متتابعة بطريقة متنوعة تستجيب لها الأذن .وقد يحقق غرضه السالف عن طريق المخالفة بين الجمل باستعمال الكلمات المتضادة والجمل المتقابلة فيحمل الأذن علي الاستجابة ، للأثر الدلالي المتلائم مع التعبير ( ص 25-26) .

 

Hussein's repetition is described by El-Badrawy Zahran (1982);

 

El-Badrawy mentions that  repetition  is not monotonous as it depends on the diversification of words and the appropriateness of the expressions to their purpose. Repetition takes the form of lexical, phrase and sentence repetition. He points out that Hussein's lexis is characterized by using consecutive synonymous and antonymous words that would appeal to the ear. Hussein’s syntax uses long, balanced and antithetical statements. He also uses alliteration (25-26; my translation).

 

Taha Hussein's writings are classified by Jones Marsden and Hamdy Sakkut (1982) , into books of literature, criticism, history, education, literary works such as novels, short stories and poetry, translated works as well as articles, studies and reflections. In addition to that there are also collaborative writings either school or non-school books as well as books he edited, reviewed and supervised. What concerns us in this paper are The Days and The Fulfilled Promise which are categorized under books of literature. Hussein released The Days in three parts, the first part in 1929, the second in 1940 and the third in Beirut in 1972 under the title "The Memoirs of Taha Hussein". In 1949, he published  The Fulfilled Promise.

 

Background about the two novels subject to the comparison and their translations:

     

     يقول دكتور درويش (2017 ) في المقدمة النقدية لقصة الأيام للصف الثالث الثانوي إن الجزء الثالث من الأيام – رحلة إلي  فرنسا يصور المشكلات التعليمية والعملية المختلفة التي يواجهها الطلاب المصريون  الذين يتلقون تعليما تقليديا عندما يدرسون بطريقة حديثة في الجامعات الغربية ثم يسلط الضوء علي عشق طه حسين للتعليم الحديث .     

 

             In his critical introduction to The Days studied by third year secondary school students, doctor Darwish (2017) states that The third volume of  The Days-A Passage To France  highlights the various educational and practical problems encountered by Egyptian students who are taught traditionally when they acquire modern education at Western universities and then unfolds Taha Hussein's adoption of this modern education (my translation).

 This volume was translated by Kenneth Cragg in (1976) who was a British orientalist and scholar. He mentions in the  introduction to his translation that it was published by E.J. Brill with the help of a grant from Pembroke College, Cambridge in addition to a supporting grant from the University of Sussex, England. Cragg also states that this volume links two cultures, one is that of the Arab World of Egypt and the other is that of the Mediterranean World of the West and he calls this '' An Occidental Direction'' (pp.7,10).The focus on the idea of the Occident as opposed to the Orient could be considered as one of the reasons behind translating this volume. It is not separable from the Western ideology of choosing for translation the Arabic literary texts that comply with their stereotypical representation of  Arabs and Arab culture (Faiq, 2004). As for Trevor Le Gassick's (1980) review of Cragg's translation, he lamented the fact that it abounds in mistranslations due to "misunderstanding of meaning and vocalization" (p.55).

            The Fulfilled Promise, as Maher Shafik states in an article entitled Taha Hussein Addresses The English Through The Fulfilled Promise published in Al-Shark Al-Awsat newspaper, is considered one of Taha Hussein's Islamic writings which include " Ala Hamish Assira'', '' AL-Sheikhan'', '' AL-Fitna al-Kubra'', '' Mir'at al-Islam'' and others. He notes that The Fulfilled Promise, is not a novel, but a representation of a historical period in a narrative style taking the form of drama. It portrays the internal conflict of the individual between old beliefs and the new religion and the dialogues between non-believers and believers. The story also highlights historical events such as the attempt of the Abyssinian King Abraha to demolish Al-Kabba and the abortion of his endeavour. Shafik believes that Taha Hussein presents all these events as a literary figure, a historical  researcher and a prominent rhetorician (Shafik,2016).

As for the translation of The Fulfilled Promise, it was done by Enani, Professor of English Literature at Cairo University and published in 2016 by the General Egyptian Book Organization. According to (Said, 2010), Enani states in Al-Akhbar, in an article entitled, Egypt Has The World's Best Translators, that this translation is part of the 1000 Book Project's translation of contemporary Arabic literature into English. The project came to a halt in 2004 and then was resumed in 2014. It began with the translations of literary works of Salah Abd El-Sabbour, Ahmed Shawki, Edward Al-Kharrat, Mahfouz Abd Al-Raman and Taha Hussein. Enani adds that he has begun translating Taha Hussein's works with The Fulfilled Promise. The aim is to acquaint the West  with the true spirit of Islam. He opines that Taha Hussein's Islamic works and their translations portray Islam through historical events so that this would help foreigners understand Islam well (Karem, 2016). In his review of the translation of  The Fulfilled Promise, Shafik states that Enani's translation is a perfect one, faithful to the original. He  points out that Enani supplements his translation with an introduction that  gives an  account of the novel's author and theme. The corpus of the present paper chooses some examples from the two translations that highlight how both translators representing two diametrically opposed ideologies and cultures approach translations of the formal elements: lexis and syntax, stylistic devices : imagery and sound and cultural elements as will be explained in detail in the analysis.    

 

Theoretical framework :       

The theory and concepts used in the comparison between the two translations subject of this paper are discussed in this section. The first concept, rewriting, is tackled by Bassnett and Lefevere (1990). They state that as translation is "a rewriting of an original text". According to them, "all rewritings, whatever their intention, reflect a certain ideology and a poetics and as such manipulate literature to function in a given society in a given way" (p.xi). The factors controlling rewriting could be ideological (complying with or contesting the "dominant ideology") or poetological (complying with or contesting the "dominant/preferred poetics").  Lefevere (1992), states that during rewriting, translators’ attitudes towards the universe of discourse are informed by the position of the "original text", the "self-image of the culture" into which the text is translated, the kinds of texts and "the diction" regarded acceptable in that culture, "the audience", and the "cultural scripts" that the audience accepts (p.87).

 

The second concept is poetics which is divided by Lefevere (1992) into two components. "One is an inventory of literary devices, genres, motifs, prototypical characters and situations, and symbols; the other a concept of what the role of literature is, or should be, in the social system as a whole" (p.26). The third concept is ideology  that is defined by Bassnett and Lefevere (1998) "the conceptual grid that consists of opinions and attitudes deemed acceptable in a certain society at a certain time, and through which readers and translators approach text” (p.48). According to Munday (2001), Lefevere thinks that the most important consideration is the ideological one, which denotes the translator's ideology, or the ideology dictated by the patronage. The poetological consideration means the dominant poetics in the T.L. culture. Ideology and poetics govern the translation strategy and the solution to specific problems.

 

The fourth concept is the universe of discourse, it is defined by Lefevere (1990), as "the whole complex of concepts, ideologies, persons, and objects belonging to a particular culture as acceptable to the author of the original, and that other universe of discourse which is acceptable and familiar to the translator and his or her audience"(p.35). In most cases, translators have to achieve a balance between the universe of discourse favoured by the author and the one agreeable to the translator and his/her audience. The fifth and sixth concepts are domestication and foreignization which are introduced by Venuti (1995), to refer to two strategies in translation. These strategies are related to the selection of the text to translate and the translation technique. On the one hand, domestication  is defined as  ''an ethnocentric reduction of the foreign text to [Anglo-American] target-language values''. This involves ''translating in a transparent, fluent, invisible style in order to minimize the foreignness of the T.T.''. Foreignization, on the other hand, is defined as ''an ethnodeviant pressure on target language cultural values to register the linguistic and cultural differences of the foreign text, sending the reader abroad''. (p.20) 

The theory used in the analysis of the two novels under study is Toury's Norms theory. Norms are defined by Toury (1995) as "the translation of general values or ideas shared by a community - as to what is right or wrong, adequate or inadequate - into performance instructions appropriate for and applicable to particular situations"(p.55). According to Munday (2001), "norms are defined as socio-cultural constraints specific to a culture, society and history'' (p.112) and ''affect the entire process of translation, including source-text selection'' as illustrated by (Hermans, 2004, p.76).

The analysis practical part:

This part concerns itself with comparing the translations of the two novels as regards the formal and cultural elements as well as stylistic devices. As for the formal elements, they are analyzed under the categories of lexis and syntax. The purpose of this analysis is to show how translation choices are intended to reflect the ideology and sociocultural background of each translator which govern these choices. They also highlight how these two factors lead the translator either to choose strategies that maintain the literary style of Taha Hussein and the culture specifity of Arabic or not.

 

1. Formal elements :
2. Lexis :

In The Third Part of the Days, translation of lexis as illustrated by the following shows that Cragg fails to understand the meaning and cultural implication of the Arabic expressions.

Example 1 :

حتي خيل إلي الفتي أنه قد أصبح حافظا أو قريبا من حافظ .

(Hussein, 1976, p.4 )   

… , that it made me feel I had become a reciter with a vengeance – or nearly so!

                                            ( Cragg, 1997,p.269)

Cragg miscomprehends the underlined proper name of the great poet Hafiz. He does not understand that حافظ  is a proper name in addition to being a common noun. This is called a referential mistake caused by unawareness of terms, "proper name".

Example 2 :

حتي لقي الفتي ذات يوم في الجامعة فتي كان قد ظفر بالشهادة الثانوية تعَلَّمَ في مدرسة الفرير , فكان متقنا للفرنسية . 

(Hussein, 1976,p.46 )

Then one day I came upon a youth in the University who had succeeded in the secondary certificate and taught in the Frères' school, who was proficient in French. 

                                                         ( Cragg,1997, p.292)

The translator could not understand the vocalization of the underlined Arabic word تعَلَّمَ  so he produces a wrong translation. The intended meaning is that the young man has studied and not taught at the Frères' school. So, this is considered a referential mistake resulting from misinterpreting   the source text meaning.

Example 3 :

فينهره الشيخ بهذه الكلمات : ما شاء الله كان وما لم يشأ لم يكن !

(Hussein, 1976, p.35)

… but the Shaikh reproved me, adding : "What God wills is what is and what God does not will, does not happen … ."

( Cragg , 1997, p.281)  

Cragg uses calque in translating the meaning of the underlined phrase. The calqued expression conveys the meaning but there is still loss of the religious implication especially in this context where Hussein is talking with his Shaikh about whether man is destined or has free will.

Example  4 :

إحداهما لغة الدرس وهي اللغة الفرنسية التي كان الفتي قد أخذ منها بحظ  يسير , ... .

(Hussein, 1976, p.80 )

… _-one the language of instruction namely French, which by good luck I already had, … .

                                                             ( Cragg, 1997,p.323) 

The translator employs literal translation in translating the underlined expression. He could not understand the meaning of the Arabic expression  which means that Taha Hussein has little knowledge of  French.

 

 

Unlike Cragg, Enani's translation of  lexis in The Fulfilled Promise as shown by the following  examples reveals how he manages to understand the meaning and the cultural  implication of the Arabic lexis and thus producing a precise translation reflective of the source text.

Example 1 :

قال الحارث : بعدا لك من فتي يؤثر الغربة علي قرب الدار , ومضر علي قحطان , وقريشا علي عنس .

(Hussein,1995,p.5 )

Al-Hareth was furious. "Shame on you" he said.

"How could you prefer life in an alien land to life in your native country?  Do you prefer the tribe of  Mudar to that of Qahtan, or the tribe of Quraysh to that of 'Ans?

(Enani, 2016,p.27 )

Enani uses transliteration in translating the names of the underlined proper nouns as "Mudar", "Qahtan", "Quraysh" and "'Ans" to maintain the Arabic cultural references. He also uses translation by addition by adding the word "tribe" as a domesticating technique to inform the target reader that they refer to tribes. This reflects Enani's ideology which is making the source culture accessible to the target reader without ignoring the cultural specificity of the source text.

Example 2 :

ويعلم محمد وأصحابه أن كلمة هبل ما زالت عالية , وأن عز قريش لا يرام .

Hussein, 1995, p. 136) )

… and so teach Muhammad and his followers that the word of  Hubal ( a god with an effigy in al-Ka'ba ) still reigned, and that the power of Quraysh was unapproachable.

(Enani,2016,p.204 )

The translator uses  transliteration followed by explanation as he wants to maintain the culture specificity of the word "Hubal" and to illustrate to the target reader that it refers to a god.

Example 3 :

وأن قريشا لن تخرج لتحمي العير فحسب , ... .

(Hussein,1995, p.136)

Quraysh would not be out, he thought, only to protect the merchandise-laden camels, … .

 

(Enani, 2016,p. 203)

Enani employs translation by paraphrase to explain to the target reader the meaning of this underlined culture-specific word. This highlights his ideology of acquainting the target reader with the Arabic culture.

 

Example 4 :

فرأي الناس أنطاعا من أدم يسع كل نطع منها رجلا وقد ملئت ماء , ... . 

(Hussein 1995, p.118)

… ,the congregation saw trough-shaped skins filled with water, each big enough to hold the body of an average man, more like huge tubs. 

(Enani 2016, p.176)

The translator adopts translation by paraphrase to explain to the target reader the meaning of the underlined  culture-specific word " أنطاع".

1. Syntax:

 

 

             It will be analyzed from the point of view of  inversion. Cragg (1988) mostly adopts the inversion of the syntactic structures in his famous translation of the Qur'an entitled  Readings in the Qur'an: Selected and Translated by Kenneth Cragg. By the same token, he usually adopts the inversion of the syntactic structures in his translation of  The Third Part of the Days. Inversion could best be illustrated in terms of Mona Baker's (1992) theme and rheme notions. The first concept, the theme is what the clause is about. It has two functions: (a) it acts as a point of orientation by connecting back to previous stretches of discourse and thereby maintaining a coherent point of view, and (b) it acts as a point of departure by connecting forward and contributing to the development of later stretches. This is what the clause is about. At clause level, a speaker announces the topic of his or her message by thematizing it, that is, by putting it in initial position. The second concept is called the rheme. The rheme is what the speaker wants to transfer about the theme. It is the aim of discourse. In addition to that, it is the leading element in the structure of the clause as a message because it consists of the information that the speaker wants to say to the hearer. According to Baker, the acceptability, rather than grammaticality, of any of the constructions in a certain context depends on how  they conform  to their "surrounding textual environment". In addition to that, grammaticality does not necessarily entail acceptability or coherence. According to Wang (2014), the overall choice of  Themes / Rhemes  can reflect an author's intention, the methods of organization and development of the text and the author's rhetorical purpose. The analysis of  the translations show how each translator either keeps or inverts theme and rheme positions:

 

Cragg opts for changing the positions of  theme and rheme, thus affecting Taha Hussein's point of view in the source text as shown in the analysis of the examples from The Third Part of the Days :

 

Example 1 :

لم  يكد  صاحبنا  يتصل  بالجامعة  حتي  رثت  الأسباب  بينه  و بين الأزهر  ,  فأصبح  لا  يمنحه من الوقت إلا أقصره , ولا يعطيه  من الجهد إلا أيسره .

(Hussein, 1976, p.9 )

My  relations  with  the  Azhar  began  to  get  very  ragged almost  as soon  as  I  joined the University. I  found myself giving only a minimum of time and the scantiest of effort to my duties there.

                               

(Cragg, 1997, p.251)

 

Hussein focuses on "joining the University" as a theme not "the deteriorating relations with the Azhar" which is the rheme. Contrary to that, the translator foregrounds "the relations with the Azhar" and backgrounds "joining the University". As a result, the translator affects the unity of the text as well as the intended meaning by foregrounding "the deteriorating relations with the Azhar" which is related in meaning to the sentence that follows it. Cragg's translation does not convey how joining the University is one of the reasons behind Hussein's leaving Al-Azhar which is a main theme in this chapter.

 

Example 2 :

وظل الفتي واجما  لا يري الحروف ولا يرسمها . ولم يسأله الأستاذ أن ينطق بها , ... .

                                                                 (Hussein,1976,p.44)

Unable either to see or write the letters, I remained completely silent. The teacher did not ask me to pronounce anything, … .

                                                  ( Cragg, 1997,p.290)

The writer foregrounds the feeling of the young man as a theme not his inability to see and write the letters which is the rheme, whereas Cragg backgrounds the feeling of the young man and foregrounds his inability to see or write the letters. As a result, the translator affects the organization of the text. The inability to see or write the letters which he foregrounds is complementing the meaning of the sentence that follows as the said sentence refers back to "the letters". The translation does not stress the annoyance of the protagonist due to his inability to see or write the letters. The annoyance is even sensed by the teacher and leads him to give Hussein private lessons.

 

 

Example 3 :

وهو لم يعد إلي مصر  إلا  بعد  أن وضعت  الحرب  أوزارها , وامتاز المنتصر من المنهزم , ... .

                                                   (Hussein, 1976, p.157 )

The War  had  finally terminated  by the time I was again in Egypt. Victor and vanquished were now identified … .

                                                   ( Cragg,1997, p.398)

 

Hussein foregrounds the return to Egypt as a theme and backgrounds the termination of war as a rheme. Contrary to that, Cragg foregrounds the termination of war and backgrounds the return to Egypt. So, he changes the organization of the text by foregrounding the termination of war which is related in meaning to the sentence that follows it. The translation interrupts Hussein's narration of the repercussions of World War which is a keyword in the novel.

 

   Example 1 : 

وأن قريشا تستطيع  أن تعود إلي مكة  فتنعم  فيها  بالسلم  والعافية . ولكن قريشا  أبت  أن  تعود  كما خرجت  وزين  لها  الشيطان  بلسان  أبي  جهل أن تمضي حتي  تأتي  بدرا فتنزل  بها  منتصرة  مظهرة للعرب أنها ما زالت قريشا صاحبة العز والمجد والسؤدد .

(Hussein, 1995,p.136 )

Quraysh could now demobilize and return to Mecca to enjoy peace and prosperity. But Quraysh was reluctant to retreat, tracing their steps back to Mecca, as Satan, speaking with the tongue of Abu Jahl, tempted them to proceed to the Oasis of Badr, there to flaunt their arms. They planned to show all Arabs that Quraysh was still as powerful, glorious and dominant as ever.

(Enani, 2016, pp.203,204)

 

Example 2 : فهذا عمرو بن هشام يسأله فجأة : ما أخرك اليوم عنا يا ياسر ؟ (Hussein, 1995, p.27 ) Unexpectedly, 'Amr Ibn Hisham asked him, "Why did you arrive so late today, Yasser?"   (Enani, 2016,p.55) Hussein foregrounds the clause "Amr Ibn Hisham asked him" as a theme and backgrounds the adverb "Unexpectedly" as a rheme. Enani changes the positions of  the theme and rheme  by foregrounding the adverb. The translation reflects how suddenly 'Amr Ibn Hashim talks to Yasser and breaks the silence that prevails in the place. It is meaningful and idiomatic.

     As for the cultural elements, they are referred to by Lefevere (1992) as the universe of  discourse which he defines, as "objects, concepts, customs belonging to the world that was familiar to the writer of the original''(p.41). The universe of discourse, in the two novels, is represented by culture specific items which are categorized as "conventional and loaded proper nouns". Aixelá (1996) mentions that conventional proper nouns are meaningless in themselves  and are usually "repeated, transcribed or transliterated in primary genres" except if they have a fixed translation. He adds that they include "toponyms, historical fictional and non-fictional names like saints and kings, etc.". Loaded proper nouns are defined by Aixelá as the names that are "expressive" and have "historical or cultural implications" (pp.59-60).

 

2. Cultural Elements:

 

1. Conventional proper nouns:

 

     Following are examples of conventional proper nouns from A passage to France which Cragg mistransliterates due to misspelling or mispronunciation or mistranslates  due to misunderstanding their meaning:

 

Example 1 :

 

كان  الأستاذ  أغنالسيو  جويدي  شيخا  كبيرا  نحيف الصوت ضئيله جدا لا يبلغ عنه أقرب الطلاب إليه مجلسا , ...  . 

(Hussein, 1976,p.8  )

Professor  A.Tuwaidi, a great scholar, was a slim man with a very feeble voice.

                                           ( Cragg,1997,p.250)

Cragg mistransliterates the name of the professor. So, there is a loss in terms of  meaning and culture. The name of the professor is important because Hussein admires him and his subject. This is significant since the novel is an autobiography and one of its main themes is Hussein's infatuation with the university and its professors.

 

Example 2:

 

وكذلك وجد بين هؤلاء الفتية من كان يذهب مذهب جميل وكثير وكان الحرمان المطلق محتوما عليه ؛ ... .    

) Hussein, 1976, p.17 (

One of us young literati followed the school of Jamil and Kaththar and came under an absolute veto.

( Cragg, 1997, p.260)

The translator mistakenly transliterates the name of the pre-Islamic poet. So, there is a loss in terms of meaning and culture. The name is crucial because Hussein in this chapter depicts how he and his friends adopt different schools of poetry either the pre-Islamic, Islamic or Abbasid school.

 

Example 3:

 

والآخر في كلية الآداب  بجامعة القاهرة عندما شارك تلميذه في امتحان السيدة سهير القلماوي لدرجة الماجستير،... .

) Hussein, 1976, p.55 (

The other time was in the College of Arts of Cairo University when I, as his student, took part in the examination of Miss Subair al-Qalamawi for the M.A. degree.

( Cragg, 1997, p.299)

Cragg wrongly transliterates the name of a prominent Egyptian scholar and writer. Thus, there is a loss in terms of meaning and culture.

 

 

1. Loaded proper nouns

 

 

 

     Examples of loaded proper nouns which Cragg translated using different techniques:

 

Example 1:

 

درس التوحيد بعد أن تصلي الفجر , ودرس الفقه بعد أن تشرق الشمس , ودرس في النحو بعد أن يرتفع الضحي , ... .

(Hussein,1976,p.3  )

After the dawn prayer came the study of  Tauhid, the doctrine of the divine unity; then  fiqh, or  jurisprudence, after sunrise ; then the study of grammar during the forenoon, …  .

(Cragg, 1997, p.245  )

Cragg opts for transliteration followed by explanation in translating the names of subjects. Thus he conveys the meaning and the cultural specificity of the words to the foreign reader by combining both universes of discourse. This example shows how Hussein gets bored with the traditional subjects of al-Azhar.

Example 2 :

وكان – رحمه الله – قد شرح  كتاب  (( الكافي في العروض ))  حين كان طالبا  في الأزهر .

(Hussein,1976,p.38  )

When he had been a student at the Azhar he had written a commentary on Al-Kafi fi-l- 'Arud, or "Manual of Prosody."

                                          ( Cragg, 1997, p.284)

The translator opts for transliteration followed by explanation to translate the literary book. So, he maintains the meaning and the cultural implication. Since Hussein is a prominent man of letters and is influenced by poetry especially that of Abu Nuwas, he mentions the name of this book which concerns meters of Arabic poetry and the word poem in the next example.

Example 3:

ولكنه رجح  لغير سبب أن خصمه إنما هو ذلك الطالب الأسود الذي كان ينافسه في دروس النحو ,... .

(Hussein, 1976,p.18  )      

Though he had no grounds for doing so, he suspected that the perpetrator was the negro student who had been his rival in the grammar studies and who thoroughly hated him.

( Cragg, 1997, p.261)   

Cragg uses the word negro, which has derogatory connotation, to translate the colour. It reveals that being a European, Cragg is biased against the black coloured people but in the Arabic text, "الأسود" means the dark skinned student. This is an instance of cultural transplantation.  According to Oxford Living Dictionaries, Negro is no longer used as well as becomes outdated and offensive in British and U.S English. So, there is loss in terms of connotation and tone. The use of "Negro" portrays Hussein as an arrogant and racist person who looks down on the coloured people.

 

In The Fulfilled Promise, examples of conventional proper nouns such as names of places and a name of a god together with their translations are as follows: 

 

1. Conventional proper nouns:

Example 1:

 

وبلغا دار أبي حذيفة فأنفقا فيها سائر النهار وشطرا من الليل يخوضان في أحاديث الدين والدنيا وفي أحاديث تهامة ونجد والحجاز .

(Hussein, 1995,p.13 )

These dealt with both mundane and religious topics, especially current affairs of  the regions of Tihamah, Najd and al-Hijaz .

(Enani,2016,p.37 )

Enani uses transliteration together with explanation by adding the word "regions" in translating the source text's places. As a consequence, he manages to transfer the meaning and the cultural specificity to the target reader who is unaware that these words refer to regions.

 

Example 2: ولكن أبرهة  لم يدخل مكة  ولم يمسس بيتها بسوء  , ... . (Hussein,1995,p.49 ) But  Abraha never entered Mecca; he never wreaked havoc, as he had intended , on its sanctuary [Ka'ba] .                                                             (Enani,2016,p.87 ) Enani  employs  transliteration and translation by addition to convey  the meaning of the place by explaining to the target reader that the "sanctuary" refers to Ka'ba.   Example 3: ويعلم محمد وأصحابه أن كلمة هبل ما زالت عالية , وأن عز قريش لا يرام . (Hussein,1995,p.136 ) … and so teach Muhammed and his followers that the word of  Hubal [a god with an effigy in al-Ka'ba] still reigned , … . (Enani,2016,p.204 ) The translator  uses transliteration  followed  by explanation to unfold the meaning and cultural specificity of the name of a god to the target reader.   In The Fulfilled Promise , examples of loaded proper nouns such as a type of cloth, a type of plant and a type of currency are as follows:   B.     Loaded proper nouns:   Example 1: ثم يرد إليه شئ من حياة , فينظر فإذا كفنه  قد أحضر , وإذا هو من قباطي , فيبكي  ... . (Hussein, 1995, pp.150,151 ) … ,then, reviving, saw that his shroud had been prepared. Finding it was made of  Coptic linen [fine white linen imported from Egypt] he wept, … .                                                      (Enani, 2016, pp. 227-229 ) Enani adopts translation by paraphrase together with translation by addition to translate the meaning of a fine type of cloth from which the shroud of Khababb is made as opposed to the bad shroud of Hamzah, uncle of the Prophet, though Khabbab has lived in poverty.   Example 2:   فيبكي ويقول : لكن حمزة عم النبي صلي الله عليه وسلم كفن في بردة ,... , حتي جعل عليه إذخر . (Hussein, 1995, p.150) "But Hamzah, uncle of the Prophet, had a robe for a shroud. … and he had to be shrouded in sweet-smelling weeds. (Enani,2016,p.228) The translator employs translation by paraphrase to translate a type of plant that has to surround the shroud of  Hamzah, uncle of the Prophet because the shroud does not cover him totally. This sheds light on the fact that Islam does not differentiate between the poor and the elite as regards choosing the shroud.  Example 3: وإن في ناحية بيتي في تابوتي لأربعين ألف واف , ... .  ,…  (Hussein, 1995, pp.150,151 ) While today I have a coffer in my house containing forty thousand wafis [a wafi is a dirham plus four pence].   (Enani, 2016,p.228 ) Enani uses transliteration followed by explanation to translate a type of currency. The use of this currency in this sentence shows that Coptic Linen is a very expensive kind of cloth.

With respect to stylistic devices, they are discussed under the subdivisions of sound and imagery. The first element is sound  which, according to El-Badrawy Zahran (1982), stems from adopting rhymed prose, or rhyme in the form of (assonance, consonance and alliteration). It  emerges also from using consecutive synonymous and antonymous words, antithetical sentences and parallel structures as well as employing non-monotonous repetition such as [repetition of words, phrases, clauses and sentences] (pp. 25-28). Ibn Fares (1963) mentions that repetition is a distinctive feature of Arabic and one of the norms of the Arabs. Repetition  is also one of  the features of Arabic language poetics since it is a literary device adopted in Arabic poetry.

The following examples from the two translations show how each translator manages to translate  the sources of sound emerging from lexical and phrase repetition:

 

3. Stylistic Devices :

 

1. Sound ( lexical and phrase repetition):

 

Following are examples from  The Third Part of The Days that reveal Cragg's non-observance of sound:

 

Example 1 : وكان صاحبنا موزعا بين مذهبين من مذاهب الكتابة في ذلك الوقت . أحدهما مذهب الاعتدال والقصد , ذلك الذي كان الأستاذ لطفي السيد يدعوه إليه  و يزينه  في  قلبه . والآخر مذهب الغلو والإسراف , ... . (Hussein, 1976, p.10) So it came about that I oscillated, as it were, between two literary attitudes at that point - the one the school of moderation and liberation, for which Professor Lutfi al-Sayyid pleaded and which he himself sincerely graced, the other the school of unrestrained exaggeration,… .                                                         ( Cragg, 1997, p.252) Cragg uses the strategy of  translation by substitution in translating the repetitive word. He conveys the meaning but does not maintain the sound. This sentence is significant as Hussein reveals how he learned criticism and was influenced by two schools of criticism and repeated the word "مذهب" to give an account of each school.   Example 2 : وانصرف الفتي عن سعد فلم يره إلا بعد عام , بل بعد أكثر من عام ...   قال له وسمع منه , ولكنه لم يقل شيئا ذا بال ولم يسمع منه شيئا ذا بال . (Hussein, 1976, p.142 ) I departed and I did not see Sa'd again for a whole year, indeed more than a year … We exchanged a few remarks but nothing worthy of attention. (Cragg,  1997, p. 383) The translator adopts the strategy of  communicative translation in translating the first phrase and translation by omission in translating the second phrase. The meaning is preserved yet there is loss in terms of  the sound and as a consequence of the style.   Contrary to that, the examples of The Fulfilled Promise have shown Enani's interest in maintaining sources of sound:   Example 1 : قال ياسر دهشا :  الآخرة ! ما الآخرة  ؟                  ( Hussein, 1995, p.30)              "The afterlife?" Yasser repeated in astonishment,    What afterlife?" ( Enani, 2016,p.59) Enani adopts the strategy of  faithful translation for translating the repetitive word. Therefore, he maintains both the meaning and the sound. Example 2 : وقد علمت منذ آخر الصبا وأول الشباب أن لي في قريتك هذه أربا أي أرب , ... . قال عبد الله بن جدعان : لك في قريتنا هذه أرب أي أرب ! (Hussein, 1995, pp. 44,45 ) At that time I also learnt that I have an essential need to fulfil in this city of yours ;… You say you have in our city an essential need to fulfil?" Ibn Jod'aan asked ." What is it ?"   ( Enani, 2016, pp. 79,80) The translator  opts for the strategy of  faithful  translation in translating  the repetitive phrase. Thus he keeps both the meaning and the sound.

 

1. Imagery:

 

It is the second element of the stylistic devices which Abdallah Ibrahim (2018) states that Taha Hussein in The Days portrays abstract images based on what he hears from the surrounding people. To avoid the description of things he does not see or perceive, he recourses to the use of third person.

As for the translation of imagery in The Third Part of the Days, Cragg uses various strategies to render it. He usually does not succeed in preserving the meaning and the image as shown in the following analysis of the examples taken from the translation:

 

Example 1 :

ولم  يكن  الفتي  يضيق  بالفقر , ولا بقصر  يده عما  كان  يريد , فقد كان ذلك شيئا مألوفا بالقياس إلي طلاب العلم في الأزهر الشريف .

(Hussein,1976, p.3  )

It was not the poverty that oppressed me, nor my inability to do as I pleased. Those were familiar enough in the lot of students seeking knowledge in the noble Azhar.      

( Cragg, 1997, p.245)

Cragg rewrites the meaning of the underlined clause due to his misunderstanding. The intended meaning is a metonymy for "the young man's inability to satisfy his needs". Therefore, he does not manage to convey either the meaning or the image.

Example 2 :

وقال للفتي  ذات يوم حين أخذ في بعض ذلك : (( لا , لا , لا . دعنا نأكل العيش .. !)) ,  

فتركه الفتي يأكل العيش  ... .

(Hussein, 1976, p.9)

One day, when I had been saying things along that line, he burst out : "No! No! Don't take the bread out of our mouths!" So I left him with his bread … .  

                                                           (Cragg,1997, p.251)

The translator employs literal translation to convey the metonymy in the source text which implies seeking livelihood. Consequently, the meaning conveyed is ambiguous.

 

 

As for the translation of  imagery in The  Fulfilled  Promise, Enani adopts different strategies to translate it. He often manages to preserve the meaning and the image as illustrated by the following analysis of the examples taken from the translation::

 

Example 1 :

فأطرق الفتي قليلا , وغشيت وجهه سحابة  رقيقة  عمراء ,... .

(Hussein, 1995, p.14  )

Yasser hung his head a while, and a thin, bashful cloud crept over his face.

( Enani, 2016 , p.39)

Enani adopts faithful translation in translating the underlined metonymy implying shyness. As a consequence, he keeps both the meaning and the image.

 

Example 2 :

... , وأشرق وجهك حتي كأنه الشمس  , ... .

(( Hussein, 1995, p.24

… , your face radiant as the sun, … .

(Enani, 2016, p.52)

The translator employs  faithful translation in translating the simile which likens the face to the bright sun. As a result, he conveys both the meaning and the image.

 

Conclusion and Findings:

To conclude, the comparison is held between the translations of A passage to France  by the British scholar Cragg and The Fulfilled Promise by the Egyptian translator Enani since the two translations reflect two diametrically opposed ideologies. The elements of comparison are the formal and cultural elements as well as stylistic devices. The formal elements are investigated in terms of lexis and syntax. The cultural elements are analyzed under conventional and loaded proper nouns. The stylistic devices are examined under the categories; sound and imagery. Following is a summing up of the comparison between the two translations.

 

Lexis is the first formal element which, in A passage to France, is discussed under the mistranslated words, literally-translated as well as culture-specific expressions. Cragg mistranslated words due to his misinterpretation of meaning and vocalization. He literally translated some expressions due to his inability to understand their meanings accurately. He uses calque to translate a culture-specific expression. The translation of  lexis using foreignizing techniques such as literal translation and calque as well as committing mistranslations reveal Cragg's inability to unfold the meaning due to his different sociocultural background and relative unfamiliarity with the Arabic language and culture. His translation reflects his ideology as a Westerner who disregards Arabic literature since he does not manage to check the difficult Arabic words and culture-specific expressions. In The Fulfilled Promise, lexis is classified as proper nouns as well as culture-specific words.  To translate proper nouns, Enani adopts transliteration that is either followed by explanation or translation by addition. Enani opts for translation by addition, translation by paraphrase as well as transliteration followed by explanation to translate culture-specific words and expressions. The said techniques, Enani employs, are domesticating ones that highlight his ideology to transfer the Arabic culture to the target reader in a manner he/she could identify with. They also shed light on Enani's socio-cultural background as an experienced Muslim translator.

 

As regards Syntax, it is the second formal element. In  A passage to France, Cragg often opts for the inversion of syntactic structures that is one of  the English norms but his inversion leads to changing Hussein's point of view and disrupting the unity of the text. Enani's inversion does not change Hussein's viewpoint or harm the unity of the text compared to Cragg's. In contrast to Cragg, Enani, in The Fulfilled  Promise, tries to strike a balance between maintaining and inverting the syntactic structures. In this manner, Enani manages to preserve Hussein's style and bring the text closer to the target reader.

 

Cultural elements in  A passage to France are represented in the use of culture-specific items that could be classified as conventional and loaded proper nouns. To translate the conventional and loaded proper nouns, Cragg sometimes mistranslates them due to misspelling or mispronunciation or uses foreignizing techniques such as transliteration without explanation. In The Fulfilled Promise, cultural elements are classified into conventional and proper nouns. To translate the conventional and loaded proper nouns, Enani opts for domesticating techniques such as transliteration together with translation by addition and translation by paraphrase. He uses domesticating techniques to explain to the target reader the meaning of culture-specific items in a way s/he could comprehend and at the same time to preserve the Arabic language and culture.

 

As for the stylistic devices, they are classified as sound and imagery. The first stylistic device is sound which is considered one of the striking features of Hussein's writing style that emerges from repetition. In A passage to France, sound emanates from lexical and phrase repetition. To translate the sources of sound, Cragg opts for domesticating techniques such as translation by substitution and communicative translation. Adopting these techniques, Cragg does not convey sound which is a notable feature of Hussein's style but he follows English language rules which do not consider repetition as a basic norm. Thus his translation is described as acceptable. In The Fulfilled Promise, sound comes out of lexical and phrase repetition. Enani adopts foreignizing techniques to translate the sources of sound such as faithful translation and maintenance. He opts mainly for faithful translation and maintenance in a bid to preserve sound which is a basic feature of  Hussein's style. His translation is described as adequate since he follows Arabic norms by keeping repetition and parallelism that are sources of sound in Hussein's writings.

 

Imagery is the second stylistic device that is investigated as Hussein's special use of imagery reflects the style of  blind writers who depend on non-visual senses to draw abstract images. In  A passage to France, imagery is represented by the use of image and metonymy. Cragg uses foreignizing technique such as literal translation. He manages to convey the meaning but does not always keep the imagery which is one of the remarkable features of Hussein's style. In The Fulfilled  Promise, imagery comes out of  the use of metonymy and image. Enani employs foreignizing technique such as faithful translation. He mainly opts for faithful translation to maintain the image. Accordingly, Enani is able to preserve both the meaning and the image and sheds light on one of the main features of  Hussein's style that is the non-visual imagery.

Based on the above mentioned, Cragg's Western ideology and lack of experience are apparent in his mistranslations due to his inability to fully grasp Hussein's language. His socio-cultural background directs him to adopt domesticating techniques in translating culture specific expressions. Cragg's ideology to present the text as a social document makes him disregard the outstanding features of Hussein's literary style such as sound and imagery as apparent from the translation strategies he has opted for. Being an experienced Arab translator, Enani is able to understand Hussein's language and produce an accurate translation. Due to his Arab socio-cultural background, Enani could explain the culture-specific words and expressions using both domesticating and foreignizing techniques. This complies with his ideology which is bringing the Arabic and Islamic culture closer to the foreign reader. His keenness to present the text as a piece of literature makes Enani keep Hussein's remarkable features of style, particularly sound and Imagery, as indicated by the translation strategies he adopts.

 

 

 

 

 

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