Thou Shalt Not Repeat. Not.

1. Thou Shalt Not Repeat. Not. Marija Zlatnar Moe University of Ljubljana

2. Slovene style rules Economy means to say the essence of something with only a few words. We must leave out everything that is not necessary. Our expression is economic when ... we do not repeat the same words. (Pavlin Povodnik 1996) Original and lively style means that a text conforms with certain aesthetic norms. One should therefore try to use different syntactic structures ... One should avoid cliches, repetition of one and the same word ... Instead of cliches one should use more original expressions. One can avoid repetition by using synonyms ... (Cuderman et al. 2002)

3. How to annoy readers • redundancy: Unnecessary repetition can annoy readers, take up space, annoy readers, waste time, cause confusion, annoy readers, hinder readability and annoy readers. • (http://home.comcast.net/~garbl/stylemanual/c.htm#concise) • redundancy: Unnecessary repetition can annoy readers, take up space, pester readers, waste time, cause confusion, distress readers, hinder readability and fuss readers.

4. English style rules Planned redundancies can create a powerful rhytmic effect. The dull drone of unplanned repetition, however, can bore a reader and prevent the delivery of your message. Unplanned repetition, called redundancy, says the same thing more than once. (Troyka 1993, 348) [...] All these writers value repetition as a simple and useful means of unifying their writing and holding their readers' attention. They are not afraid of it. Inexperienced writers, however, often are. (Hairstone 1981, 89)

5. Non-literary translation

6. Literary translation — students I had a lot of trouble with the dialogue between Campbell and Eichmann. In the original, the verb said is often used, which is OK in English, whereas in Slovene we try to avoid repeating the same verb over and over. Therefore I tried to come up with as many different verbs of utterance as possible. In the text, the word bedroom is often used. I translated it either as bedroom or room. I chose one or the other depending on the text, so that the word wouldn’t be repeated too often. Even though the author strictly uses the term bedroom in the original, I decided to be more “diverse”.

7. Literary translation — pro (1)

8. If thou hast any sound or use of voice, Speak to me. If there be any good thing to be done That may to thee do ease, and grace to me, Speak to me; If thou art privy to thy country's fate, Which, happily, foreknowing may avoid, O speak; Or if thou hast uphoarded in thy life Extorted treasure in the womb of earth, For which they say your spirits oft walk in death, Speak of it, stay and speak. Prikazen! Če imaš glas in znaš kaj reči, govori z mano! Če je treba kaj dobrega storiti, kar tebi v mir bo, meni v dušni prid, povej! Če veš, da kakšna stvar grozi državi in z vednostjo lahko jo odvrnemo, na dan z besedo! Ali če si v življenju si nagrabil zakladov in jih skril v naročje zemlje, kar vam menda ne da miru po smrti, povej mi, duh! Govori! Stoj! Literary translation — pro (2)

9. But you must know your father lost a father, That fatherlost, lost his - and the survivor bound In filial obligation for some term To do obsequious sorrow. a tudi očeizgubil je očeta, vedi, in ded očeta… Prav, potomec določen čas je dolžen skazovati svojo bolest - Literary translation — pro (3)

10. Thank you for your attention. This presentation is available at: http://www2.arnes.si/~surmzlat