| dc.description.abstract | This work deals with borrowing Igbo elements in the translated version of the book, Half of a Yellow Sun, written by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and translated by Mona de Pracontal. The novel tells a story about the Nigerian civil war, also known as the Biafran War, through the experiences of Olanna, Odenigbo, Kainene, and Ugwu, who are the main characters and ethnically Igbo. The conflict that led to the war was a result of economic, ethnic, religious, and cultural tensions among the various people in Nigeria. As someone from the Eastern part of Nigeria who are called “Igbos”, and someone whose grandparents lived through the war, the personal effect of the war on me fueled my choice of the book. Although the book was originally written in English, the writer went beyond to accommodate further stylistic Igbo linguistic usages in her writing.
This research is guided by some important questions. What are the cultural elements borrowed from Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie? How are the Igbo words borrowed in the French version translated by Mona de Pracontal as L’autre moitié du soleil? What is the role of the translator as a mediating cultural vector? The method used in this work is analytic as we have mostly analyzed how Mona de Pracontal is able to translate the book from English to French, paying attention to the translation of the Igbo elements and how it is not only borrowed from the English version but how it is translated and retains its cultural and linguistic value.
Mona de Pracontal tried to keep this unique style of the author through the technique of borrowing which appeared both in the original text and the translated text. This is also evident in the author's style as she writes in English and borrows a lot of Igbo words. So, the borrowing of these elements from the Igbo language into French in the corpus allows the showcasing and promotion of Igbo culture and tradition in literature. On the positive side, the borrowing of these Igbo elements adds literary values in the French version and allows French-speaking readers to better understand the characters and their way of life.
According to our study, we found that the use of borrowing techniques in literature has been a common practice for centuries. The importance of borrowing techniques lies in the ability to evoke emotions, convey messages, and create a deeper understanding of cultural context. | |
