Function Words as Markers of Translationese: A Corpus-based Approach to Mental Translation in Second Language Writing

Abstract

Driven by the linguistic values of closed-class words, this article seeks to provide a multifaceted account of function words as markers of translationese, thereby aiming to reconceptualize the universal trait of translational manifestations found in non-translated L2 writing. To that end, using comparable monolingual English corpora from two different disciplines, this study implemented a two-fold analysis to compare a conventional analytical model (i.e., “all-token variable” of function words) with a modified approach (i.e., “subset variables” of function words). The “all-token” method has been one of the most unstable measures in the studies of translation universals (TU) and still lacks a coherent understanding of how specific function words should be attested in their predictive roles in translationese. As contrasted with conventional TU assumptions, it was evidenced that the “all-token” function words outperformed only in a single domain, a result that distanced from the universal traits of translationese. Instead, as one of the subset variables, auxiliary verbs demonstrated a higher predictive and universal power as a newly attested translationese marker. Thus, this article argues that the notion of translationese should be reframed as “universal” translationese and “domain-specific” translationese, respectively. The rationale lies in that the predictive roles of subset function words have been overshadowed by the inconsistent analytical method implemented in translation studies to date.