The 'dark continent' : A translation study focusing on lexical gaps and style and tone in a text about the South African bush

Abstract: Abstract The aim of this study was twofold. On the one hand, the aim was to discuss how lexical gaps can be solved or dealt with when a text about wildlife and nature different from that of the target culture is translated. On the other hand, the aim was also to discuss how the style and tone of such a text can be preserved and transferred into the target text. The study was qualitative and based on a translation into Swedish of short chapters of the book Spirit of the Bush by Peter Borchert, describing the South African wildlife and nature. The intended target reader of the translation is anyone with an interest in nature, wildlife and animals, as well as anyone with an interest in the history and culture of South Africa. Despite the fact that the terminology used in both the source text and the target text may require some previous knowledge on behalf of the reader, both texts could, nevertheless, very well be appreciated by a complete “wildlife-novice”. In order to create a theoretical base and a framework for the analysis, relevant research made in translation theory and stylistics was presented and discussed. Regarding lexical gaps, all the different strategies, apart from omission, proved to be of great help when the source text was translated into Swedish. Several examples of metaphors were discussed, such as how the wilderness is described as a stage, the animals as actors, and the visitors as making a pilgrimage. The metaphors in combination with the similes and the personifications in the source text, such as bold clouds and confident rivulets, fire the readers’ imagination and create a very vivid and capturing text. This is also something that supports the claim made that Spirit of the Bush is more than an ordinary informative text.   Keywords: translation, lexical gaps, style, tone, stylistics, wildlife, bush.