Translation Theory: A Historical-Thematic Account

the Leipzig school were the first to introduce the concept of ‘equivalence’. Abstract The main function of Translation Studies is to study issues of translation production and propose solutions for translation problems. Today, Translation Studies is an academic discipline that is gaining more recognition in the academic community. More than that many scholars of different backgrounds and fields of study like literature, history, anthropology, semiotics, and philosophy have been attracted by translation studies. This article is divided into three sections. The first section presents a brief history of Translation Studies. The second section discusses definitions and meanings of the word 'translation'. The third section analyses different theories of translation.

On the other hand, Mona Baker (2022: 4) argues that the voice of the translator has become a very important issue in modern translation studies like in the studies made by Hermans (2007).The objective of the translator according to this approach is to produce a translation that may function as an original.Therefore, the questions revolve around two main questions; the 'authority and the phenomenon of authentication'.
Moreover, House (2016:27-28) emphasizes that scholars in postmodernist, postcolonial, feminist and deconstructionist views have given translation studies new dimensions and new avenues for research.Many of these scholars have been working on cultural studies, literary theory, literary criticism and (comparative) literature.Their main objective is to reveal the ideological issues and power relations reflected in translation.They also discuss the non-visibility of the translator.This article contains four sections.The first section presents a brief history of Translation Studies.The second section discusses definitions and meanings of the term 'translation'.The third section analyzes different theories of translation.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE DISCIPLINE
According to Jeremy Munday (2008:p.7),translation as a subject was tackled first by Cicero and Horace (first century BCE) and St Jerome (fourth century CE).Their writings were of great importance and their influence on the translation studies was significant.For instance, St Jerome's translations of the Greek 'Septuagint' into Latin were of great influence on the later translations of the Scriptures.The translation of the Bible mainly during the sixteenth century and the translation of the Buddhist Sutras in the first century CE gave the path towards the discussion of the translation practice.
So, the interest in the act of translating is very old.Like the practice of language, translation is a human activity.In this respect, Lynne Long (2011:pp.64-69)emphasizes that translation resembles language in being prone to different external events and issues that may seem sometimes unpredictable and unmanageable.Therefore, there is always flexibility in dealing with the matter of translation.In fact, the main contribution of translation theory is manifested in reducing mistakes and in making progress.She argues that Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BC) and Quintus Horatius Flaccus (65-8 BC) were among the first writers who possessed a conception of translation.They were not only writers but also artists in terms of the translation practice.Thus, they are said to be the very earliest translation theorists.In this respect, Cicero's 'de Optimo Genere Oratorum' and Horace's 'de Arte Poetica' are regarded as the classics of translation theory.Indeed, Cicero (first century B.C.) explains that he used to translate as an orator and not as an interpreter to preserve the same ideas and the same form of the source text.The translation is but the reproduction of the same meaning and the rendering of the general style.Word-for-word translation is not appreciated.In fact, Cicero's translation is but a kind of interpretation.Cicero used to read texts and make his interpretation of them.This translation strategy was used also by the philosopher Ibn Rushd (Averroes)  who gave great importance to Aristotle's philosophy, which had been ignored for ages.In his translation from Greek to Arabic, he used two major techniques mainly commenting and interpreting.
According to Lynne Long, there were two kinds of conceptions of the translation theory.The first conception is represented by Cicero and Horace who inspired analysts in the translation of theoretical terms.This type of translation is based on the discussion of some particular procedures and strategies to adopt in the practice of translation.The second type is philosophical and it revolves around the nature and the effect of the translated general words by making recourse to speculation.
Yet, translation has always been regarded as a subsidiary of writing.Susan Bassnet (2007:p.13)emphasizes that translation has been viewed as a 'mechanical' process and not as a process that possesses a 'creative' nature.Scientific studies on translation products are often little in comparison to the articles based on value judgments.For instance, most of the studies carried out on the translations of works of some famous writers such as Homer, Rilke, Baudelaire or Shakespeare focused only on 'the result of the translation process' and not on 'the process itself'.But, what is new is in fact the study of translation from an academic perspective.Different theories of translation appeared and were foregrounded by linguistic cultural pragmatic or even philosophical backgrounds.
Jeremy Munday (2008:p.1)defines translation studies as the academic discipline that focuses on the study of the theory of translation.This discipline is characterized by being both multilingual and interdisciplinary.It is related to many fields among which linguistics, comparative literature, communication studies, philosophy, sociology and historiography.
Peter Newmark (1988:p.19)argues that the major concern of the translation theory is to find the right translation strategies.It establishes a set of rules for the translation of texts, the evaluation of the translated texts and solutions for the problems encountered in the process of translation.Translation theory proposes a vision of the relation between many important components and elements of the translation practice.There is in fact an important relation between thought and meaning, between meaning and language and between the general linguistic features of language and the cultural aspects of language.Translating means to consider these aspects.Translation theory is useful then for the translation process.

TRANSLATION: MEANINGS AND DEFINITIONS
Translation does not have one meaning or one definition.Nida and Taber (1969:p.12)for instance argue that translation is the reproduction of the meaning and the style of the source text.This procedure consists of looking first for the closest equivalent message.
Mary Snell-Horby (1988:p.81)points out that the concept of translation is a process that engenders many actors.The most important actors in this process are the translator and the reader.Being a convoluted means of communication, translation represents an interaction between the author of the source text, the translator as a reader of the source text and the author of the target text and of course the target text reader.The translator/reader starts by reading carefully and analyzing the different linguistic features of the source text.Then, he makes recourse to his personal experience and his knowledge in the translation of the text.Carbonnel (2006:p.48)links the concept of translation and communication.To translate means to communicate and to gain things among which of course the meaning or meanings of the source text.Yet, the communicative function of translation is related to other actors and to different levels.
According to Newmark (1988:p.5),translation is to reproduce the same content of the source text into the target language.It means that the act of translation is to render the meaning of the source language text into the target language text by taking into consideration the author's intended meaning.On the other hand, he emphasizes that translation is not as simple as people might think.At the same time, translation is not a very complicated activity because it implies only the transfer of the words from the SL (Source Language) to the TL (Target Language).Yet, translation can never be like the original text.
Mary Snell-Horby's (1988) conception of translation is shared by Larson (1984:p.3)who notes that translation is a process by which the translator has to maintain the meaning of the source text.The act of translation starts by tackling the semantic level and by giving big importance to the form of both the SL (Source Language) and the TL (Target Language).Meanings are to be encoded, recorded, maintained and re-expressed in the form of the source text.Thus, the form changes but the same meanings are to be reproduced and transferred in the process of translation.
On the other hand, Catford (1965: p.1) stresses that translation is an action executed on languages.It is an operation of replacing a text in one language by a text in another.Any theory of translation must make use of a theory of language.Translation for him is then "the replacement of textual material in one language (SL) by equivalent textual material in another language (TL)".
Therefore, he discusses the concept of translation on the basis of two key elements, which are textual material and equivalence.It means that the translator's mission is very challenging and full of difficulties.When one speaks about what is textual, the purpose is to replace the text of the source language with another text in the target language without taking into consideration of course the challenges of grammar, lexis and meaning.What is aimed at according to this theory is but equivalence.
Moreover, Hatim and Munday (2004: p.6) define translation as the operation of moving a written text from the source language (SL) to the target language (TL).Translation is the transfer of the source text by the means of another language.
Anthony Pym (1992:pp.16-23)confirms Hatim and Munday's (2004) view by saying that translation is the transfer of meaning.In fact, the word 'translation' is derived from 'translatus', which is the past participle of the Latin verb 'transferre' meaning 'to carry over or across'.Therefore, translation is not only a transfer of meaning but is also the act of moving something from one place and one time to another place and to another time.
He raises the question of what is to be transferred in the process of translation.He argues that the most important object of transfer is the text which includes many features like meaning, information, message and signification.For him, this transfer must take into consideration the coherence and cohesion of the new text or the target language text.So, translation is very important in the sense that it gives life to texts.This is what the Moroccan scholar Abdessalam Benabdelali (2006:pp.21-22)stresses.By giving life to texts, translation transfers the culture of the source language and brings it to the target language text.Translation becomes then an important contact between two cultures.It is indeed a means of intercultural communication.In the process of translation, the translator remains the main actor.Thus, he must acquire many qualities that may help him accomplish his mission.Therefore, the translator must be creative at the level of language in order to bring eternity to the original text.
Deleuze and Guattari (2000:p.486)emphasize that translation is not a very simple activity.It is very complex and very challenging.Therefore, the act of translating requires many steps to undertake.Translation is a process based mainly on subjugating and over-coding strategies which give the path towards another writing of the same text.Therefore, translation is not a secondary act.
Like many scholars, Peter New Mark (1988:p.6) emphasizes the role the translator plays in the quality of the translated product.A good translator is the person who keeps on making corrections and making choices at the level of words and expressions.The translator's activity is based on four levels: knowledge of the topic, a good command of the target language and the source language, a sense of creativity that is enhanced by intuition and inspiration and finally the capability of making the right decisions whenever ambiguities and confusion occur.
On the other hand, Khatibi (1997: p.23) points out that the writer is a translator.He must translate everything he sees and perceives.One writes because he needs something.He is in need of new values.In order to do so, he must acquire many forces among which the force of describing and analyzing a crisis.Furthermore, Azeddine Kettani Idrissi (2009: p.38) highlights that Khatibi was invited once to give a presentation in a conference on translation between vocation and professionalism.In his speech, Khatibi proposed many qualities that a good translator must possess.For him, the role of the translator is to find solutions for the problematic interpretations and respect the strength of each language.The translator must have a good knowledge of both the source language and the target language.Moreover, the translator must be a good reader of the source language and a good writer in the target language.Finally, Khatibi insists on the fact that the translator must be aware of the cultural context of both the source language and the target language.
Contrary to other scholars, Derrida (1972: p.31) replaces the word translation with the concept of 'transformation'.Translating is to transform a language into another and a text into another.Translation cannot be possible without undertaking transformation processes.It is a transformation of both writing and reading.Therefore, the translation must not be a replica of the original text.Translation is the strategy of generating differences and involving the other in the self.Translation opens the text and opens the language to the outside.It is because of this transformation that many books gained more importance than before.

DIFFERENT THEORIES OF TRANSLATION
It is very necessary to stress that translation was regarded as an ancillary and as a secondary activity before it became an academic discipline gaining more importance and great interest from scholars in different fields of study.
It is important to say first that translation was studied mainly from a linguistic perspective.In this sense, Catford (1965:pp.20-27)was one of the first scholars to deal with translation in terms of its linguistic nature.He argues that the theory of translation focuses on the relation between languages and that translation is but a branch of 'Comparative Linguistics'.Translation is possible as far as equivalences between languages exist.Translation is a process that starts from the source language and ends at the target language after taking into consideration the 'spatial', 'temporal' and 'social' relationships existing between languages.He links translation and equivalence.His theory is based mainly on the works of Firth and Halliday.
In terms of equivalence, he distinguishes between what he calls 'textual equivalence' and 'formal correspondence'.A textual equivalent is the Target Language text or just a part of text which is regarded as the equivalent for the Source Language text or the equivalent of a part of this text.On the other hand, a 'formal correspondent' refers to any category belonging to the target language like unit, class, structure, element of structure and which does the same function as the same category does in the source language.
In his theory of translation, Catford (1965:p.73)speaks also about shifts which he defines as the "departures from formal correspondence in the process of going from the SL to the TL".Munday (2008:pp.60-61)stresses that these translation shifts are of two types: 'level shifts', where the SL item at one linguistic level (e.g.grammar) has a TL equivalent at a different level (e.g.lexis).For example: aspect in Russian translated by a lexical verb in English: e.g.igrat (to play) and singrat' (playing) or cases where the French conditional corresponds to a lexical item in English: e.g."trois tourists auraient été tués [three tourists would have been killed]; "three tourists have been reported killed".Concerning the 'Category shifts', they are divided into four types: -Structure-shifts, which involve a grammatical change between the structure of the ST and that of the TT; -Class-shifts, when a SL item is translated with a TL item of a different grammatical class, i.e. a verb may be translated with a noun; ex: "a medical student" is translated in French as "un étudiant en médicine, the English adjective medical is translated by the adverbial qualifying phrase en medicine; -Unit-shifts, are about changes in rank; -Intra-system shifts, occur when "SL and TL possess systems which approximately correspond formally as to their constitution, but when translation involves selection of a noncorresponding term in the TL system" (Catford: 1965, p. 80).For example: the subject pronoun+ verb + direct object structures of 'I like Jazz' and 'J'aime le Jazz' in English and French are translated by an indirect object pronoun+verb+ subject noun structure in Spanish (me gusta el jazz) and in Italian (mi piace il jazz).
The term 'translatability' puts into question the possibility of translating a particular text.Catford (1965: p.94) argues that the untranslatability of a text is a consequence of linguistic and cultural factors .Benabdelali (2015:p.14)argues that translation is possible even if it may face some difficulties that may make it impossible.The text is eternal because it is translatable [traduisible] and untranslatable [intraduisible] at the same time.Walter Benjamin (1992:pp.72-73)points out that translatability is an important feature of some works.By its translatability, the original text is 'closely connected with the translation'.This natural connection is a 'vital connection'.
Nevertheless, Catford's (1965) theory of translation could not tackle the narrow link between language and culture.So, dealing with translation from a purely linguistic perspective remains insufficient.The cultural issues are very important in translation.Another element, which seems missing in Catford's (1965) theory is that of context.In other words, the same language is used in different situations and of course, it presupposes different meanings.This suggests a sort of pragmatic analysis that focuses on dealing with language in the context it is used in.
In fact, Jeremy Munday (2001:p.62)criticizes Catford's theory (1965) because it gives importance to the communicative role of the source language item and because the examples Catford gives are just imagined or invented and not taken from real translations.Catford (1965) ignores the whole text or even the whole sentence.In fact, context is an important element in the translation process and in the understanding of meanings of the source text.Therefore, a careful reading of the whole text is highly needed.
As previously mentioned, Peter Newmark (1988:p.19)makes a very important link between theory and practice.For him, the fact of knowing the problems and the mistakes leads to a very good translation.He proposes a procedure for the translation of texts.Thus, he emphasizes that the act of translating requires first the choice of a procedure to adopt from the translator.Translating is based on the following four levels: -The first level is the level of the source language text and language; -The second level concerns the understanding of the objects and events of the source language text; -The third level is the cohesive level which focuses on the grammatical aspects, on the ideas and on the different presuppositions of the source language text; -The fourth level focuses on naturalness of the writer's language.
The translator has to preserve this naturalness and this fluidity when he is translating.It is also necessary to point out that Newmark (1988:pp.9-12)gives a big importance to the practice of translation.His theory can be regarded as a set of guidelines addressed to both translators and students.In fact, the translation theory is to identify translation problems, specify the elements that help in solving the problems and finally propose the adequate translation procedures and strategies.In fact, translation theory emerges from the difficulties and problems of the translation practice and from all elements existing inside and outside the text.He emphasizes that reading the original text is the primary activity that a translator must undertake in order to understand and analyze issues from a translator's perspective.Reading is divided into two types.The first one is a general reading, which implies reading anything that helps in the understanding of the text genre.The second type is the close reading, which is based mainly on the explanation of words and on the search for their meanings and their connotations.He stresses also that the intention of the translator must be identical to that of the writer's.In fact, this is too vague because it cannot be applied to all types of texts.May be it does fit for a general text but for a literary one for instance, the task becomes very difficult because this kind of texts is open to many readings and of course to many interpretations.
In this respect, Benabdelali (2006:p.37)affirms that one text may engender many contradictory texts.Any text may contain words and expressions belonging to different languages.Therefore, any text is but a translation of another inner text.Consequently, this particular text may contain many meanings and not one and unique meaning.Newmark (1988:pp.39-41)mentions many methods used in translation among which 'word for word translation', which is to translate word for word without taking into consideration the context.'Faithful translation' aims at reproducing the exact meanings of the original text.'Semantic translation' gives more importance to the aesthetic dimensions of the ST.'Adaptation' method or strategy is used mainly in plays where the plot is preserved but the text is rewritten and the SL culture converted to the TL culture.The 'Free translation' method is a sort of paraphrase.Like Catford (1965), he stresses the importance of studying translation in terms of its being a form of equivalence.The goal of the translator is to get a degree of equivalence between the source text and the target text.
Equivalence is also a prominent element in Roman Jacobson's (1959) theory of translation.Roman Jakobson (1959:p.114)considers equivalence from a semiotic perspective.The task of the translator in this sense is to recode the ST message and then reproduce it into an equivalent TT message.Therefore, he proposes the following three types of translation: -The first type is the 'intralingual translation' or rewording, which is an interpretation of the verbal signs utilizing other signs belonging to the same language; -The second type is the 'Interlingual translation' or 'translation proper', which focuses on interpreting the verbal signs by making recourse to other verbal signs belonging to another language; -The third type is the 'Intersemiotic translation or 'transmutation', which is based on the interpretation of the verbal signs of the nonverbal sign systems.So, he foregrounds his theory on Saussure's conceptions of the arbitrariness of the signifier (name) for the signified (object or concept) and the way to get an equivalence between two different languages.
In fact, he sheds light on the importance of equivalence because it is a serious problem for language and at the same time it represents the central interest of linguistics.The task of the translator is to interpret the signs of the source language text and find their equivalents in the target language.So, the comparison of two languages necessitates the study of their interlingual communication and their 'mutual translatability'.Thus, bilingual dictionaries are very useful in tackling the issue of equivalence.
The American Eugene Nida (1964) is one of the major figures in translation studies.Equivalence is a central key in his theory.In this regard, Munday (2008:p.p.38-39) emphasizes that Eugene Nida's (1964) theory of translation was built on his translation of the Bible.His major books are 'Toward a Science of Translating' (1964) and the co-authored 'The Theory and Practice of Translation' (Nida and Taber 1969).He tries to render translation more scientific by making recourse to recent works in linguistics.Thus, he borrowed terms and concepts from semantics, pragmatics and the theory of generative-transformational grammar mainly by relying upon Noam Chomsky's work on syntactic structure.So, he makes reference to Chomsky's theory of Universal Grammar in the analysis of the underlying structures of the ST for the objective of reconstructing them in the TT.As his theory of translation is also built on the fields of pragmatics and semantics, he proposes many techniques in the analysis of the text among which: 1-Hierarchical structuring: This aims at making a difference between a set of words in terms of their level.For example: 'the superordinate animal and its hyponyms goat, dog, cow, etc.
2-The componential analysis: identifies the features of words that are connected.For example: the 'plotting of relationship terms (grand-mother, mother, cousin, etc.) in terms of their 'values of sex' (male, female), generation (the same, one, two...) and linearity (direct ancestor/descendant or not) (Nida: 1964,84-85).
3-The semantic structure analysis: enables the translator to make a separation between the different meanings of spirits (demons, angels, gods, ethos, etc.) in terms of their features (human vs. non-human, good vs. bad, etc.) (Nida 1964:107).
Moreover, Nida (1964:p.159)distinguishes between two types of equivalence: -Formal equivalence: gives attention mainly to the form and content of the message.The concern of the translator is to preserve the same elements of the source language.So, accuracy and correctness are highly requested.
-Dynamic equivalence: its objective is to reach a complete naturalness of expression and reproduce the SL text in a way that can match the culture of the TL receivers.
In this regard, Munday (2008:pp.42-43)emphasizes that a successful translation according to Nida (1964) is determined by its ability to achieve equivalence, which is therefore one of the four key elements in a successful translation.The four elements are then making sense, reproducing the spirit of the source text, conveying an easy style and giving the same response.
However, concepts such as fidelity and faithfulness are no longer given importance in Translation Studies.Christina Schäffner and Susan Bassnett (2010:p.12)point out that the focus in translation is now on social, cultural, and ideological issues.Besides, big importance is also given to the relationship between translation behaviour and sociocultural factors.
Translation practice devotes now interest to the effects more than to the internal structures.Many sociological studies mainly Bourdieu's have been used in the study of translation as a discipline.So, studies on translation begin now to concentrate on some sociological issues like institutional practices, power relations and the roles of the real agents in the processes of translation.All these elements are useful tools in the analysis of translation in the mass media and the political institutions like the governments, the political parties and the embassies.
The main concern of Skopos theory lies in the purpose of translating a particular text rather than another one; that is to say, there is a dialectic link between the choice of a text and the method or approach to translating it.
Functionalist approaches to translation originate from the general theory of translation named 'Skopostheoerie', which was developed by the German scholar Hans Vermeer in the late 1970s and 1980s.
Skopos theory of translation deals with translation as being a means of communication and focuses mainly on the function of translation within a particular context.The word 'Skopos' is derived from Greek and it means purpose, aim or objective.Vermeer (1989:p.227)stresses that Skopos "is a technical term for the aim or purpose of a translation".For him the source and the target texts may have different purposes.Consequently, different translation strategies are to be adopted by the translator and they are governed by the skopos of translation.
In the beginning of the 1990s, the study of discourse became very important in translation studies.Discourse analysis can be defined as the study of written and spoken language in context.House's (1997: pp.43-45) model consists of making a systematic comparison of the textual 'profile' of the ST and the TT.She emphasizes that the 'textual means' include the following elements: -Theme-dynamics: thematic structure and cohesion; -Clausal linkage: additive, adversative etc.; -Iconic linkage: parallelism of structure.
Moreover, House (1997:p.66)posits two types of translation: overt translation and covert translation.An overt translation is a target text that does not imply to be an original text.Jeremy Munday (2008:p.93)argues that the function of the source text cannot be the same for the target text mainly because the contexts of the two texts are different.
For the covert translation, House (1997:p.69)explains that it is "a translation which enjoys the status of an original source text in the target culture".The source text and the target text are addressed directly to their readership and their audience.House gives the example of the 'tourist information booklet' and 'an article in the Unesco Courier'.The function of a covert translation is to "recreate, reproduce or represent in the translated text the function the original has in its linguacultural framework and discourse world" (House: 1997, p. 114 cited in Jeremy Munday 2008:p. 93).Therefore, equivalence strategy is highly demanded because the translator needs to modify the cultural elements in order to give the impression that the target text is an original.House (1997: p.114) calls this kind of translation strategy a 'cultural filter'.
On the other hand, Hatim and Mason (1997: pp.7-10) not only give importance to the textual function of translation but also to its ideational and interpersonal functions.Therefore, their analysis consists of depicting the changes in the transitivity structure during the translation process.Mona Baker (1992: p.217) gives importance to the analysis of discourse from the pragmatics perspective.She defines pragmatics as the study of language in use.It is concerned with the study of meaning as performed by the actors in a communicative situation.Many pragmatics concepts are to be tackled in this approach for instance 'coherence', 'presupposition' and ' implicature'.
Moreover, many translation studies researchers have been interested in postcolonialism.Generally speaking, the concept of postcolonial alludes to a period coming after the end of colonialism; or simply after independence.Postcolonialism is meant to study the impact of colonialism on both cultures and societies.Its main concern is to analyze how colonialism managed to take control of the 'Third World' cultures.Postcolonial theory is then the study of different political and cultural changes which enhance in turn an awareness of the social, psychological, and cultural inferiority due to the fact of being colonized, and the fight for autonomy at the ethnic, cultural, and political levels.Postcolonial theory is represented by scholars such as Edward Said, Homi Bhabha, Gayatri Spivak, Frantz Fanon, Albert Memmi and others.Jeremy Munday (2008: pp.131-132) emphasizes that Gayatri Spivak tackled ideological issues of translation in her seminal essay 'The politics of translation ' (1993/2004).
Spivak stresses that the 'politics of translation' gives more importance to the English language and the other 'hegemonic' languages of the ex-colonizers.Translation has played an important role in the colonization process and in circulating an ideologically triggered image of the colonized people.
Nowadays, the new technologies have led to the transformation of the field of translation.Jeremy Munday (2008:pp.184-185)argues that more developments have occurred in the field of audiovisual translation particularly subtitling.For instance, Gambier ( 2003) discusses terms such as 'audiovisual translation', 'screen translation' and 'multimedia translation'.He proposed the term 'transadaptation' instead of the usual terms as literal/free translation and translation/adaptation.He proposed also the following types of audiovisual translation: • Interlingual subtitling, they are used mainly for the cinema and video where the subtitles are 'open'.They are used also for the DVD where the subtitles are more 'closed'.
• Bilingual subtitling, subtitles are presented in two languages.
• Intralingual subtitling, hearing is a regulatory requirements.
• Dubbing, the 'SL voice track is replaced by a TL voice track.
• Voice-over, is used particularly for documentaries or interviews.
• Audio description, is an intralingual 'audio commentary' on the stage or film'.

TRANSLATION AS A PROCESS
The translator is always in front of linguistic, semantic, cultural and pragmatic problems whenever he wants to translate a text.He has to opt for the right translation strategies to solve these problems.His decisions and choices have to take into consideration many elements among which the genre of the text to translate, the message (s) of the ST, its salient linguistic features, the TT audience, etc. As-safi (2011: pp.47-52) argues that translation strategies can be divided into two categories: general and specific strategies.General strategies are useful for any text type whereas specific strategies are used for definite purposes, texts and target language readership.He cited many specific strategies mainly domestication, which is very used by literary translators, as compensation, addition, compromise and elaboration strategies.Hatim and Ian Mason (1997:p.96)point out that compensation is a procedure used to deal with the meaning of any text that cannot be reproduced directly in the target language.They stress that Hervey and Higgins (1992: pp.35-40) list the following four categories of compensation: -Compensation in kind, refers to the use of some linguistic devices to reproduce and preserve the same effect of the source text.
-Compensation in place, the effect is achieved in a different place from that of the source text.
-Compensation by merging, when the features of the source text are condensed in translation.
-Compensation by splitting is when the meanings of the source text are expanded in order to maintain the transfer of very noticeable effects.
Mona Baker (1992: p.26) proposes many strategies for the translation of texts among which literary ones.In this respect, she suggests strategies mainly at the word level such as paraphrase, translation by cultural substitution and translation by omission .These strategies are in fact among the important ones that professional translators make recourse to.
In fact, the preservation of the aesthetic value of literary works especially poetry remains the main difficulty that translators face.Literary translation is in fact very challenging.
Literary translation is the type of the translation that deals with any of the literary genres represented in poetry, drama and prose.In this respect, Johnson (1999: p.1 cited in Mourad EL KHATIBI 2015:p. 145) emphasizes that literature is "an apparently nebulous body of knowledge in oral or written form, an imitation of life, which reflects civilization and culture, and which covers every angle of human activities-culture, tradition, entertainment, information among others".It is necessary then to point out that literary translation is a very challenging activity mainly because creative writing is itself characterized by a very sophisticated, symbolic and figurative language.In this respect, Widdowson (1984, p. 151 cited in Mourad EL KHATIBI 2015:p. 146) notes that the effects of literature are achieved through language.
Therefore, a literary translator for Peter Newmark (1988:p.1 cited in Mourad EL KHATIBI 2015:p. 146) generally cares a lot for a good writing by taking into consideration the language, structures, and content.
The literary translator is a creative writer since he reproduces structures and signs by the means of adaptation strategy.That is to say, he attempts to make the source text and the target text as closer as possible.He cares not only for the literary quality of the text but also for its acceptability to the target reader, and this requires of course a strong knowledge of the cultural history of both the source and the target languages.
Talking about literary translation means discussing constraints in translating the aesthetic features of literary texts.In this respect, Landers (1999:p.4 cited in Mourad EL KHATIBI 2015:p. 146) argues that only literary translation can participate in the creative process.The literary translator has the task to reproduce the aesthetic features of the literary text into a very creative language.
According to Jackson (2003:p.4 cited in Mourad EL KHATIBI 2015:p. 146), one of the central requirements of literary translation is to afford a firm interpretation about both meaning and effect.Hence, literary translators are usually much more involved in finding out a corresponding mood, tone, voice, and effect than in literal translation.James Dickins, Sándor Hervey and Ian Higgins (2017:pp.2-3)emphasize that the translation process can be divided into two kinds of acts.The first act is the understanding of the ST whereas the second one is the formulation of the ST.Understanding the messages of the ST involves all forms of knowledge, beliefs, inferences, expectations and suppositions of the translator.Thus, many types of translation can be made recourse to.For example, the translator may use an intersemiotic translation (Jakobson: 1971, pp.260-266) that is translation between two semiotic systems.A semiotic system is a system for communication.The translator may also use an interlingual translation.The main characteristic of interlingual translation is that the situation in which a message is delivered influences how it is expressed and how it is received.Venuti (1995:p.33)proposes two helpful strategies in solving some translation problems.The first strategy is 'Foreignization' .This strategy consists of breaking the linguistic and cultural issues of the source language and retaining some of the foreignness of the source text.The second strategy is called 'domestication'.It indicates the invisibility of the translator in the target text.This strategy according to him helps in abolishing the cultural differences between the source text and the target text.By the use of this strategy, the TT audience will be able to grasp the meanings of the source text.In fact, as Susan Bassnet ( 2002: p.9) puts it, Venuti (1995) insists on the creativity and the invisibility of the translator.Therefore, translation can never be definitive and it is prone to new interpretations and readings of the same text.Translation is then a dangerous act.Benabdelali (2006:p.22)points out that the translator is creative in another language.Therefore, his mission is not to reproduce the text and transfer the meaning but to bring eternity to texts through translation.The translations of a particular text construct its history.Therefore, it is due to the cultural, ideological and linguistic differences that the act of translation is necessary.Vinay and Drabelnet (1958:pp.31-39)argue that there are in general two main translation methods; direct or literal translation and oblique translation.These are the main translation strategies: -Borrowing: it is a direct technical process meaning to borrow a SL word or expression and use it in the TT so as to introduce the beauty of the SL into a translation.Some examples of French borrowings from other languages are 'alcohol', 'redingote', 'acajou', etc.
-Calque: it is another direct process and it means to borrow a word or expression from another language and translate literally each of its elements.It can be either a lexical calque that respects the syntactic of the TL or a structural calque that suggests a new composition into the language.
-Literal translation or word for word translation is the direct transfer of a SL text into an appropriate TL text at the grammatical and idiomatic levels.Example : ST: I left my spectacles on the table downstairs TT: J'ai laissé mes lunettes sur la table en bas.
These three direct methods do not require any particular stylistic procedures.They may sometimes provide other meanings or they may sometimes provide no meaning at all.In this case, it is better to use oblique translation methods.Transposition is a method that is meant to replace one word class with another without changing the meaning of the message.Example: ST: Dès son lever TT: As soon as he gets/ got up… -Modulation is "a variation of the form" of the message, which is a result of a different point of view.Example: ST: It is not difficult to show… TT: IL est facile de démontrer...There are two forms of modulation: the free or optional modulation and fixed or obligatory modulation.The use of fixed modulation requires a good knowledge of both the source language and the target language.Equivalence is a translation technique that consists of producing a text similar to the ST by using different stylistic and structural methods.This kind of method can be applied for instance to idioms, clichés and proverbs.Example: ST: IL pleut à seaux /des cordes TT: It is raining cats and dogs -The method called adaptation can be used when the kind of situation in the SL text is not known in the TL culture.It is more used by simultaneous interpreters.Translators create a new situation in order to be understood by the TL audience.Adaptation can mean in this case a 'situational equivalence'.Example: ST: Trois homes et un couffin.
TT: Three men and a baby.

CONCLUSION
Horace and Cicero were the first to discuss the subject of translation.Their contribution was so important that Cicero's 'de Optimo Genere Oratorum' and Horace's 'de Arte Poetica' are regarded as the classics of translation theory.
The major concern of translation theory as discussed in this article is to find solutions for translation difficulties.In fact, as Deleuze and Guattari (2000:p.486)point out translation is not a simple activity.Different theories tackled translation difficulties from linguistic, semiotic and cultural perspectives in order to get equivalence between the source text and the target text.Many translation strategies and techniques were proposed by these theories.
It has been also discussed in this article that PDA as a branch of CDA has benefited from Translation Studies in terms of analysis, interpretation and translation of political discourse.Schäffner (1997) for instance proposed many strategies to translate political discourse from a functional perspective.It has also been discussed that Translation Studies help a lot in explaining how lexical choices may allude to different ideological and socio-cultural values and that there is a strong interaction between political discourse and translation.