Among all the possible reasons whyThere are difficulties for translators from Russian; you can also indicate an abundance of phraseological turns in our lexicon. These common phrases are so common that we don’t even think about their structure or relevance. But if a foreigner needs to choose the phraseological turn in Russian for the phrases “to control oneself, calm down”, he will cope completely - this is the rare case when Russian, English, French and German versions are almost identical in meaning and verbal construction. At the same time in the world there are a huge number of idioms and idioms that do not fit into linear logic. In addition, all of these languages are in one common logical structure, representatives of other language groups will be much more difficult.
Phraseology in Russian
All phraseological units can be divided intogroups by alleged sources of appearance. For example, the phrase may be associative, reborn from the usual comparison. “Time flows away like water through fingers,” is a comparison, however, if you say, “Minutes flow through fingers,” this is already a phraseological unit associated with the original expression. If you try to interpret literally, it turns out that someone knows how to skip through intangible minutes through your fingers, and there is not even any analogy with water. That is why even a brilliant technical knowledge of the language does not help to catch the mechanism of the appearance of idiomatic expressions.
In the example above, instead of expressions“To seize oneself, calm down” a phraseological revolution is traditionally used alone - “pull yourself together” But any language as a linguistic system is not an unshakable block. It is a fluid matter, developing and growing as society evolves.
The use of idioms in everyday speech
Мы до такой степени привыкли к идиомам, что sometimes we don’t even think about where they came from. The substantial part refers to the so-called popular expressions - that is, to phrases from literature or mythology, which are widely used. For example, “was there a boy?” Is an ironic expression, using which the speaker expresses a mocking doubt that there is a cause for concern. The author is Maxim Gorky (the novel “The Life of Klim Samgin”). But the phrase "Augean stables" came from ancient Greek mythology: Tsar Augius was attributed with utterly dirty stables, which only Hercules could clean up, turning the river bed so that it would take away all the dirt. Used to briefly describe the degree of neglect of cases.
«Взять себя в руки» — означающий «овладевать calm down ”phraseological turn that occurs even in the speech of young children. They use it unconsciously, but most often in a completely correct sense of meaning. The natural method of learning the native language, when the child focuses on the vocabulary of parents and people around them, allows you to master even more complex idioms without being noticed.
"Mastering Yourself": Semantic Expression
Virtually any phraseologism can be disassembled bymeaning and figure out the mechanism of its occurrence. Linguistic laws, according to which any language is formed, allow an analysis of any neoplasm. “To control oneself, calm down” - a phraseological turnaround appears precisely because of the meaning of the initial phrase.
What does it mean to take possession of?It is to take power over anything. In this case, take power over yourself. Other forms of this phrase sound like this: “He is very good at himself,” which means that he controls his own emotions. Calm and the ability to curb impulses - this is self-control.
Logical conclusion
If the words "take possession of yourself, calm down"replacing the idiom on the basis of the above semantic analysis, then you can easily find a suitable phrase. Someone has so much power over himself that he easily controls gusts and emotions. If he holds, then it can be assumed that he does it literally - with his hands. Advice to take yourself in hands means not only volitional calm, it is often a call to connect control over current events, literally - to seize them.
It turns out that this idiom is interpretednot only how to “master yourself, calm down”. The idiom "keep yourself in the hands" also means "not to give up slack, not to dismiss, not to allow external negative impact to break through the psycho-emotional protection."
Additional phraseology
Over time, similar idioms appeared from the phrase “pull myself together”, which can strengthen or soften the expression for greater figurativeness of speech. Examples:
- take yourself by the collar (scruff, ear);
- pick up a handful;
- squeeze yourself into a fist.
Thus, the phraseologism “pull yourself together” extends to the notions of “mastering oneself, calm down”, but additional idioms introduce specifics and emotional coloring.
Psycho-emotional coloring of synonymous expressions
If you imagine the idiom "pull yourself together" as the original one, then the phrase "squeeze yourself into a fist" means more enhanced action. That is, you just can't hold it with your hands;
"Take yourself by the collar" or other places - this isalso “to control oneself, calm down” - in this case, the idiom implies a more battle with laziness and the habit of postponing for later important things. It turns out that a person deals with him, if not too severely a stern parent with a lazy schoolboy, he takes him by the collar and makes him perform important tasks.
But “gathering the ass in a handful” is an ironic synonym for the idiom “pull yourself together”, more bold and obscene expressions are often used with the same meaning.
Appropriate use of phraseologism "pull yourself together"
If the expression "master yourself, calm down"replace phraseological turnover, may change the emotional coloring of the context. If, in oral speech, the interlocutor receives a hint in the form of intonation and facial expressions, then in written speech the expression is interpreted depending on the mood and current events in the addressee's life. To avoid misunderstandings, it is better to avoid idioms that can be mistaken for annoyance, a patronizing tone, or the depreciation of other people's problems.
In business communication with foreigners, even not badknowing the Russian language, it will be good to use literary expressions without complex national features, which include idiomatic expressions that are difficult to literally translate. This is business etiquette. And if the phraseologism is identical in the main European languages for the phrases “to control oneself, calm down”, representatives of other linguistic groups may find themselves in a difficult situation.
The complexity of the translation of phraseology
Many translators can share stories abouthow difficult it is to explain specific idioms to a foreigner. The already complex Russian language begins to seem incomprehensible when a guest of the country discovers that he “oversalt the borsch” and “has gone too far with the salt” - this is practically the same thing. With the expressions “master yourself, calm down” everything is somewhat simpler, and you can make a little effort on yourself, pull yourself together and do without difficult to translate expressions.
Однако для специалистов, которые занимаются translation of works of art, everything is much more complicated. This is a higher degree of language proficiency, which involves the study of idiomatic expressions. Translation into Russian also has its own difficulties, since each culture has its own phraseological units. For example, if they say about a girl “she sat on a tall horse”, then this corresponds to our idiom “she lifted her nose”.
