Foreign wordsin E.Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea:semantics,functions, frequency
Introduction
Thepaper is devoted to Ernest Hemingway’s story The Old Man and the Sea. Itdiscusses vital problems of the characters as well as foreign words in thenovella.
Itconsists of the introduction, 3 chapters, the conclusion, and the list ofliterature used.
Thefirst chapter is devoted to Ernest Hemingway and his last life-time publicationThe Old Man and the Sea which brought him the Nobel Prize. The second chapterfocuses on borrowings in English and the historical process of their enteringthe language. Chapter 3 touches the foreign words in the novella The Old Manand the Sea and their division into semantic groups.
Thelist of works used in the preparation of this paper consists of 16 entries.Theoretical sources constitute 1, reference sources – 6, the researched text –114 pages.
1.Earnest Hemingway and his novella «The old man and the sea»
ErnestMiller Hemingway was an American novelist, short-story writer and journalist. Manyof his stories reflect his rich life experiences as a war correspondent,outdoor sportsman, and bullfight enthusiast. His writing style is simple yetvivid, and his characters embody the idea of «grace under pressure.» His worksare regarded as classics in the canon of American literature as essayist JoanDidion, Poet Derek Walcott, Poet Russell Banks say. [16]. Some have even beenmade into motion pictures.
Hemingwaywas born in the quiet town of Oak Park, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, on July21, 1899. His father was a physician, and Ernest was the second of six childrenborn to Dr. and Mrs. Clarence E. Hemingway. His mother, a devout, religiouswoman with considerable music talent, hoped that her son would develop aninterest in music. Instead, Ernest acquired his father’s enthusiasm for gunsand for fishing trips in the north woods of Michigan.
Earnestwas educated at Oak Park High School. After graduating in 1917, he became areporter for the Kansas City Star, but he left his job within a few months toserve as a volunteer ambulance driver in Italy during World War I. He latertransferred to the Italian infantry and was severely wounded.
Afterthe war he served as a correspondent for the Toronto Star and then settled inParis. While there, he was encouraged in creative work by the Americanexpatriate writers Ezra Pound and Gertrude Stein. After 1927 Hemingway spentlong periods of time in Key West, Florida, and in Spain and Africa. During theSpanish Civil War (1936–1939), he returned to Spain as a newspapercorrespondent. In World War II (1939–1945) he again was a correspondent andlater was a reporter for the United States First Army. Although he was not asoldier, he participated in several battles. After the war Hemingway settlednear Havana, Cuba, and in 1958 he moved to Ketchum, Idaho.
Hemingwaydrew heavily on his experiences as an avid fisherman, hunter, and bullfightenthusiast in his writing. His adventurous life brought him close to deathseveral times: in the Spanish Civil War when shells burst inside his hotelroom; in World War II when he was struck by a taxi during a blackout, and in1954 when his airplane crashed in Africa. He led a turbulent social life andwas married four times [16].
TheOld Man and the Sea led to numerous accolades for Hemingway, including the 1953Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. He also earned the Award of Merit Medal for theNovel from the American Academy of Letters that same year. Most prestigiously,the Nobel Prize in Literature came in 1954, «for his mastery of the art ofnarrative, most recently demonstrated in The Old Man and the Sea, and for theinfluence that he has exerted on contemporary style.» He received the PulitzerPrize in 1953 for The Old Man and the Sea and the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954. In 1961, at age 61, he committed suicide, as his father did before him [10].
WhileHemingway was living in Cuba, beginning in 1940 with his third wife MarthaGellhorn, one of his favorite pastimes was to sail and fish in his boat, namedThe Pilar. General biographical consensus holds that the model for Santiago inThe Old Man and the Sea was, at least in part, the Cuban fisherman GregorioFuentes [8]. Hemingway hired him to look after his boat. During Hemingway'sCuban years a strong friendship formed between Hemingway and Fuentes. Foralmost thirty years, Fuentes served as the captain of The Pilar. Fuentes diedin 2002 when he was 104 years old. Prior to his death, he donated Hemingway'sPilar to the Cuban government. He never read The Old Man and the Sea.
Agreat deal has been written about Ernest Hemingway’s distinctive style asJournalist Jim Wolf, Journalist Steve Paul, Writer James Nigel, Novelist AnnieProulx say [7]. From almost the beginning of his writing career in the 1920’s,he has been the subject of lavish praise and sometimes savage criticism. CriticHarry Levin pointed out the weakness of syntax and diction in Hemingway’swriting, but was quick to praise his ability to convey action [9].
Toexplain Hemingway’s style in a few paragraphs in such a manner as to satisfy thosewho have read his articles and books is almost impossible. It is a simplestyle, straightforward, modest and somewhat plain. Hemingway does not give wayto lengthy geographical and psychological description. His style has been saidto lack substance because he avoids direct statements and descriptions ofemotion [3]. He developed a forceful prose style characterized by simplesentences and few adverbs or adjectives. He wrote concise, vivid dialogue andexact description of places and things. He relates a story in the form ofstraight journalism, but because he is a master of transmitting emotion withoutembellishing it, the story is even more enjoyable [10].
WhenThe Old Man and the Sea was published in 1952, it was a popular success. Thenovella first appeared as part of the September 1, 1952 edition of Lifemagazine. 5.3 million copies of that issue were sold within two days. The storywon the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1953. A year later, Hemingway was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. The Old Man and the Sea is generally consideredby many to be his crowning achievement as The Nobel Prize Committee andJournalist Susan F. Beegel say [7]. It was the last major work of fiction to beproduced by Hemingway and published in his lifetime. The work was especially praisedfor its depiction of a new dimension to the typical Hemingway hero, less machoandmorerespectful of life. In Santiago, Hemingway had finally achieved a character whocould face the human condition and survive without cynically dismissing it ordying while attempting to better it. In Santiago’s relationship with the worldand those around him, Hemingway had discovered a way to proclaim the power oflove in a wider and deeper way than in his previous works [2].
Itis a heroic tale of man’s strength pitted against forces he cannot control. Itis a tale about an old Cuban fisherman and his three-day battle with a giant marlin.The fisherman Santiago goes out and fights nature in the form of terribleforces and dangerous creatures, among them, a marlin, sharks and hunger.
Hestarts the story in a small skiff and moves out in a journey to capture a fishafter a long losing streak of eighty-four days. Unfortunately his friend, ayoung boy called
Manolin,was not allowed by his parents to fish with Santiago anymore. Santiago is viewedas an outcast in his village. Yet the boy feels an irresistible amount ofrespect and loyalty for the old fisherman. Even Santiago doesn’t think of theboy as a child but as an equal. Age is not a factor in their relationship.Manolin does not even act as a young boy. He is mature and sensitive toSantiago’s feelings.
Manolinis present only in the beginning and at the end of The Old Man and the Sea, buthis presence is important because Manolin’s devotion to Santiago highlightsSantiago’s value as a person and as a fisherman. Manolin demonstrates his lovefor Santiago openly. He makes sure that the old man has food, blankets, and canrest without being bothered. Despite Hemingway’s insistence that his characterswere a real old man and a real boy, Manolin’s purity and dedication elevate himto the level of a symbolic character. Manolin’s actions are not tainted by theconfusion, ambivalence, or willfulness that typify adolescence. Instead, he isa companion who feels nothing but love and devotion. He even offers to goagainst his parents’ wishes and accompany Santiago on his fishing trips. In thestory we can see Manolin’s loyalty to Santiago: even when his parents forbidhim he wants to help his friend.
Hemingwayhints at the boy’s resentment for his father, whose wishes Manolin obeys byabandoning the old man after forty days without catching a fish. This facthelps to establish the boy as a real human being, as a person with conflictingloyalties who faces difficult decisions. By the end of the book, however, theboy abandons his duty to his father, swearing that he will sail with the oldman regardless of the consequences. He stands, in the novella’s final pages, asa symbol of uncompromising love and fidelity. As the old man’s apprentice, healso represents life that will ensure death. His dedication to learning fromthe old man ensures that Santiago will live on.
Inthe novel, Santiago is a master craftsman. He depends on himself only. Whilethe other fishermen use motorboats, Santiago uses his skiff. While the othermen have many workers and helpers to hold several lines, Santiago has threelines all operated by his own hand. He is an expert. He goes much farther outthan the other fishermen and casts bait in much deeper water because he knowsthe waters and the movements of the fish. Although he is taking a greater riskby going out deeper, he has a better chance of catching the bigger fish.
Anotherthing that makes Santiago a master craftsman is his experience. He has been afisherman all his life. Therefore he has had much time to master this art.Though many fishermen might doubt him, he is great. He has skill and he appliesit in order to succeed. He uses his hands and he uses his instincts to masterthe art of being a fisherman. Santiago uses himself, his physical and mentalstrength to catch the fish, and by doing these things, his difficult taskbecomes easier. He is a master craftsman not only through his skill, but alsothrough his determination [4].
Althoughhe has gone 84 days without catching a fish, he does not give up: «Tomorrow isgoing to be a good day with this current,» Santiago said. (9)*
Santiago'sage does not mean anything to him. He believes that he can do anything hewants. He is very strong physically and mentally. He does not believe that heis getting old and it's time for him to relax as many old people believe.Santiago goes out to fish every day as he used to do when he was a young man.
Heexposes himself to dangers by going out much farther and casting bait in deeperwaters. He goes out on his 85th day with hope that he will catch a fish. Thisis what keeps him going. He knows that he still has the ability and strength tobe a good fisherman. He never gives up: «How do you feel, fish? I feel good andmy left hand is better and I have food for a night and a day. Pull the boat,fish.» (65)
Allthrough the book Santiago dreams of the same thing, his pleasant dreams of thelions. The first time is the night before he departs on his three-day fishingexpedition, the second occurs when he sleeps on the boat for a few hours in themiddle of his struggle with the marlin, and the third takes place at the veryend of the book.
Infact, the sober promise of the triumph and regeneration with which the novellacloses is supported by the final image of the lions. Because Santiagoassociates the lions with his youth, the dream suggests the circular nature oflife. Additionally, because
Santiagoimagines the lions, fierce predators, playing, his dream suggests harmonybetween the opposing forces of nature – life and death, love and hate,destruction and regeneration.
WhenSantiago finally catches the marlin, he is proud of himself. He looks forwardto showing the boy and the other fishermen that he is still strong. But hecouldn’t imagine what was going to happen. Unable to tie the line fast to theboat for fear the fish would snap a taut line, the old man bears the strain ofthe line with his shoulders, back, and hands, ready to give slack should themarlin make a run. The fish pulls the boat all through the day, through thenight, through another day, and through another night. It swims steadilynorthwest until at last it tires and swims east with the current. The entiretime, Santiago endures constant pain from the fishing line. Whenever the fishlunges, leaps, or makes a dash for freedom, the cord cuts him badly. His wholebody aches, he’s tired and hungry, but he doesn’t let go of the line. Thisshows his determination to win the battle and the fish. Although wounded andweary, the old man feels a deep empathy and admiration for the marlin, hisbrother in suffering, strength, and resolve.
Magnificentand glorious, the marlin symbolizes the ideal opponent. In a world in whicheverything kills everything else in some way, Santiago feels genuinely lucky tofind himself matched against a creature that brings out the best in him: hisstrength and courage, his love and respect.
WhileSantiago struggles with the fish he also prays. He prays to God to give himstrength to defeat the mighty fish: «Now that I have him coming so beautifully,God help me endure. I’ll say a hundred Our Fathers and a hundred Hail Marys.But I cannot say them now.» (78)
Butfaith is not the only thing that drives his perseverance. Santiago also drawsupon his past victories for strength. After he hooked the Marlin he frequentlyrecalled his battle with a native in what he called the hand game.
Itwas not just an arm wrestling victory for him it was a reminder of his youth: «Andat daylight when the bettors were asking that it be called a draw and thereferee was shaking his head, he had unleashed his effort and forced the handof the negro down and down until it rested on the wood.»
Hisrecollections of this event usually preceeded a frequent dream of his in whichhe saw many lions on a peaceful shore. These lions represented him when he wasyoung and strong and could overcome any challenge. These thoughts helped himstay strong.
Duringthe difficult hours in the skiff, Santiago started talking to the Fish. Hedeeply respects fish in general and this aspect of his relationship to the fishis clearly shown throughout the book: «Fish,» he said softly, aloud, «I’ll staywith you until I am dead.» (45)
Thereare many instances where Santiago displays his respect for fish. Hitting thefish on the head and kicking the fish is a sign of respect. Another example ofSantiago's respect is when he describes the fish. He says that he has neverseen a greater or more beautiful thing. Santiago describes the fish withadjectives that imply the greatest respect for the fish: «Fish,» he said, «Ilove you and respect you very much. But I will kill you dead before this dayends.» (47)
Also,he calls the fish «brother» which means he has so much respect that heconsiders him a brother and family. Santiago doesn't look down on the fish asbeing inferior, he looks at the fish as an equal.
Santiagocared for each fish he caught and treated them with the utmost care. Herespected the fish and always showed his respect by thanking him. Inconclusion, Santiago and his relationship with fish in general was made up ofcaring, respect, and the idea of fish being equal: «I wish I could feed thefish, he thought. He is my brother.» (51)
BecauseSantiago is pitted against the creatures of the sea, some readers choose toview the tale as a chronicle of man’s battle against the natural world, but thenovella is, more accurately, the story of man’s place within nature. BothSantiago and the marlin display qualities of pride, honor, and bravery, andboth are subject to the same eternal law: they must kill or be killed.
AsSantiago reflects when he watches the weary warbler fly toward shore, where itwill inevitably meet the hawk, the world is filled with predators, and noliving thing can escape the inevitable struggle that will lead to its death.
InHemingway’s portrait of the world, death is inevitable, but the best men andanimals will nonetheless refuse to give in to its power. Accordingly, man andfish will struggle to the death, just as hungry sharks will lay waste to an oldman’s trophy catch.
Thenovel suggests that it is possible to transcend this natural law. In fact, thevery inevitability of destruction creates the terms that allow a worthy man orbeast to transcend it. It is precisely through the effort to battle theinevitable that a man can prove himself. Indeed, a man can prove thisdetermination over and over through the worthiness of the opponents he choosesto face [1]. Santiago finds the marlin worthy of a fight, just as he once foundthe great negro of Cienfuegos worthy. His admiration for these opponents bringslove and respect into an equation with death, as their destruction becomes apoint of honor and bravery that confirms Santiago’s heroic qualities.
Inthe story he manages to catch a flying fish and a dolphin which he eats raw.This way he tries to keep up his strength, the strength that the marlin stealsfrom him little by little. He struggles in order to remain undefeated. He hasfought these battles hundreds of times before, he suffered, but he won. Still,this battle is different. He fights in a way he had never fought before and hesuffers. He wishes the boy to be by his side, to help him with the difficulttask.
Thecontemporary fishermen go out to fish with nets, which is a commerciallyprofitable practice. It, however, requires little skill. It is nothing morethan a chore. After 84 days without catch, Santiago sustains himself on whatlittle food a bartender sends him out of pity. Yet he still waits for his bigfish. It is more important to him than hunger. And the big fish finallyarrives.
Santiagoignored hunger to prove his fishing prowess, but he is not entitled to keep hiscatch. His amazing fortune is balanced against his material loss. While beingable to come out on top in his struggle against the fish and against the painand frailness of his own body, this is to be his only reward. His fortunes turnwhen he refocuses from passion for catching the fish to greed for profitingfrom it. The sea does not reward greed.
Onthe third day the fish tires, and Santiago, sleep-deprived, aching, and nearlydelirious, manages to pull the marlin in close enough to kill it with a harpoonthrust. Dead beside the skiff, the marlin is the largest Santiago has everseen. He lashes it to his boat, raises the small mast, and sets sail for home.While Santiago is excited by the price that the marlin will bring at market, heis more concerned that the people who will eat the fish are unworthy of itsgreatness.
Onhis way home sharks attack the fish. As the sharks tear apart the marlin bit bybit, it is as they are tearing apart his dignity bit by bit. Through all thissuffering, he fights the sharks, for he alone has to endure the sufferings tofulfill his destiny. This is his mentality, he knows what he must do and so hedoes it. He never lets down his guard and he fights with consistent strength.That is why Santiago could not stand to look at the grisly remains of themarlin. Everything he worked for, everything he gambled his life for,everything he endured pain for was going down to deep depths in the sea in themouths of the sharks he so furiously killed. Although the sailing became mucheasier without the marlin attached to the skiff. There was nothing left of themarlin but its skeleton.
Santiago’spride also motivates his desire to transcend the destructive forces of nature.Throughout the novel, no matter how baleful his circumstances become, the oldman exhibits unflagging determination to catch the marlin and bring it toshore. When the first shark arrives, Santiago’s resolve is mentioned twice inthe space of just a few paragraphs. First we are told that the old man was fullof resolution but he had little hope. Then, a few sentences later, the narratorsays: He hit the shark without hope but with resolution. (91)
Theold man meets every challenge with the same unwavering determination: he iswilling to die for bringing in the marlin, and he is willing to die fightingthe feeding sharks. It is this conscious decision to act, to fight, to nevergive up that enables Santiago to avoid defeat. Although he returns to Havanawithout the trophy of his long battle, he returns with the knowledge that hehas acquitted himself proudly and manfully. Hemingway seems to suggest thatvictory is not a prerequisite for honor. Instead, glory depends upon one havingthe pride to see a struggle through to its end, regardless of the outcome. Evenif the old man had returned with the marlin intact, his moment of glory, likethe marlin’s meat, would have been short-lived. The glory and honor Santiagoaccrues comes not from his battle itself but from his pride and determinationto fight.
Santiago,a noble hero, accepts his defeat. The fish was eaten and he has returned homewith its remains. He realizes that he went out too far and that he made amistake. He fought a tough battle and in the end, he was defeated. He evenadmits to himself that he has been beaten: He knew he was beaten now finallyand without remedy….
Althoughthrough most of the novel he has great strength in fighting the fish and he isdetermined to succeed, in the end he knows what had happened. Throughout hislife he had struggled and suffered and won but this was his final battle. Andthough he lost, he lost while fighting. He realized now that it is over forhim.
Heis over fighting and it doesn't matter anymore. He knew he was beaten nowfinally and without remedy. He knows also, that it is his fault. He realizeshis mistake and that he cannot change what had already happened. He went outtoo far and although this caught him the biggest fish, it also caused himfailure. He says it to himself, he was careless and he was responsible for hisown failure. He tried to do more than he was capable of doing. He couldn’tchange anything. He was defeated.
Afterhis voyage was completed Santiago was exhausted and weak. While carrying themast from his boat he stumbled three times under the weight of it resting uponhis shoulders. He also stopped five times to take a rest before he reachedhome. When he was back in his shack he fell asleep on his bed.
Thenext morning, a crowd of amazed fishermen gathers around the skeletal carcassof the fish, which is still lashed to the boat. Knowing nothing of the oldman’s struggle, tourists at a nearby cafй observe the remains of the giantmarlin and mistake it for a shark. Manolin, who has been worried sick over theold man’s absence, is moved to tears when he finds Santiago safe in his bed.The boy fetches the old man some coffee and the daily papers with the baseballscores, and watches him sleep. When the old man wakes, the two agree to fish aspartners once more. The old man returns to sleep and dreams his usual dream oflions at play on the beaches of Africa which were a symbol of his youth andstrength.
Santiagorealizes that he had completed his last challenge and that his time as afisherman was up. He passed on the sword from the great fish to Manolin for thecontinuation of the skills he had taught his apprentice.
Santiagoproves to be a noble hero in the eyes of Hemingway. He is a master craftsman inhis enduring strength, skill, and knowledge of fishing. He knows tricks andoccupies himself with improving his ability to fish. He struggles and suffersin order to stay undefeated. He beats all odds and fights all battles with thethought that he can and will win. And so he does. He goes far out and acts onwhat he thinks is right. He does not fear his actions nor does he regret them.He fights every battle as if it were his last and therefore comes out on top.Finally, he accepts defeat. This is the most honorable characteristic. Nomatter how hard he had fought, once it is over, he does not look back wishinghe could have acted differently. He accepts his mistakes and recognizes that hehad overstepped the boundary of man's finite and limited nature. His actionsand the consequences of them are easily noticed and should not be looked downupon. In the long run, Santiago answered his calling, fought his battles, andwhen he was finally defeated by his own pride, he recognized it and acceptedit. This makes Santiago a noble hero.
Theaction of the novella takes place in Cuba, and all the characters areSpanish-speaking.
Toconvey the atmosphere of Spanish speech (in the dialogues of Santiago, in hismonologues – both verbalized and interior) the author occasionally uses Spanishwords.
Accordingto the English language literary tradition, foreign words are printed initalics which immediately emphasizes them on the page.
Tofind out their functions in the text, their structure and frequency, we havecarried out our research of unassimilated borrowings (foreign words,barbarisms) in The Old Man and the Sea. To proceed, we will introduce a shortsurvey of the study of borrowings in the English language.
2.Borrowings in the English language and in the old man and the sea
Inits 15-century-long recorded history, the English language happened to come inlong and close contact with several other languages, mainly Latin, French, OldNorse (Scandinavian). The great influx of borrowings from these sources can beaccounted for by a number of historical causes. Due to the great influence ofthe Roman civilization Latin was for a long time used in England as thelanguage of learning and religion. Old Norse was the language of the conquerorswho were on the same level of social and cultural development. French was thelanguage of later conquerors who brought with them a lot of new notions of ahigher social system – developed feudalism, it was the language of upperclasses, of official documents and school instruction from the middle of the 11thcentury to the end of the 14th century [5].
Inthe study of borrowed elements in English the main emphasis is as a rule placedon the Middle English period. Borrowings of later periods became the object ofscholarly interest only in recent decades and research has shown that the flowof borrowings has been steady and uninterrupted. The greatest number of themhas come from French. They refer to various fields of social-political,scientific and cultural life.
Thenumber and character of borrowed words tell us of the relations between thepeoples, the level of their culture, etc. It is for this reason that borrowingshave often been called the milestones of history [5]. Thus if we go through thelists of borrowings in English and arrange them in groups according to theirmeaning we shall be able to obtain much valuable information with regard toEngland’s contacts with many nations. Some borrowings, however, cannot beexplained by the direct influence of certain historical conditions, they do notcome along with any new objects or ideas. Such were the words air, place, braveborrowed from French [5].
Itmust be pointed out that while general historical reasons for borrowing fromdifferent languages have been studied with a considerable degree ofthoroughness, the purely linguistic reasons for borrowing are still open toinvestigation [5].
Thenumber and character of borrowings do not only depend on the historical conditions,but also on the nature and length of the contacts. The closer the languages thedeeper and more versatile is the influence.
Borrowingsenter the language in two ways: through oral speech (by immediate contactbetween people) and through written speech (by indirect contact through booksetc.).
Thoughborrowed words undergo changes in the adopting language, they preserve some oftheir former peculiarities. In some cases the pronunciation of the word(strange sounds, sound combinations, position of stress etc.), its spelling andthe correlation between sounds and letters are an indication of the foreignorigin of the word. Such as the case of waltz (G.), psychology (Gr.), soufflй(Fr.)The initial position of the sounds [v], [dz], [z] or of theletters x, j, z is a sure sign that the word was borrowed.
Themorphological structure of the word and its grammatical forms may also bearwitness to the word being adopted from another language. Thus the suffixes inthe in the words neurosis (Gr.) and violoncello (It.) betray the foreign originof the words.
Thesecriteria are not always helpful. Some early borrowings have become sothoroughly assimilated that they are unrecognizable as adoptions without ahistorical analysis, e.g. chalk, mile (L.), ill, ugly (Scand.), enemy, car(Fr.).
Itmust also be taken into consideration that the closer the relation between thelanguages, the more difficult it is to distinguish borrowings.
Thevolume of borrowings in English left its imprint upon the language. The firsteffect of foreign influence is observed in the growth of the vocabulary. Due toits history the English language, more than any other modern language, hasabsorbed foreign elements in its vocabulary [5].
Ithas been mentioned that when borrowed words were identical in meaning withthose already functioning in English, the adopted word very often displaced thenative one. In most cases, however, the borrowings and synonymous native words bothremained in the language, becoming more or less differentiated in meaning andin use – for instance the sphere of application and meaning of feed andnourish, try and endeavour, meet and encounter. As a result the number ofsynonymic groups in English greatly increased. This brought about a rise in thepercentage of stylistic synonyms.
Assaid earlier, many borrowings have undergone changes and have adaptedthemselves to the peculiarities of the English language. All the changes thatborrowed elements undergo may be divided into two large groups.
Onthe one hand there are changes specific of borrowed words only. These changesaim at adapting words of foreign origin to the norms of the borrowing language.Thus the combinations [pn], [ps], [pt] in the words pneumatics, psychology ofGreek origin were simplified into [n], [s], [t], since the consonant combinations[pn], [ps], [pt], frequent at the end of English words (as in sleeps, stopped,etc.), were never used in the initial position.
Onthe other hand we observe changes that are characteristic of both borrowed andnative words. These changes are due to the development of the word according tothe laws of the given language.
Whenthe highly inflected Old English system of declension changed into the simplersystem of Middle English, early borrowings conformed with the general rule. Underthe influence of the so-called inflexional levelling borrowings like disc,(MnE. dish), strжt (MnE. street) that had a number of grammatical forms in OldEnglish: common case and possessive case singular and plural (street, streets).
Itis very important to discriminate between the two processes – the adaptation ofborrowed material to the norms of the language and the development of thesewords according to the laws of the language.
Sincethe process of assimilation of borrowings includes changes in sound-form,morphological structure, grammar characteristics, meaning and usage mostlinguists distinguish phonetic, grammatical and lexical assimilation ofborrowings.
Phoneticassimilation, comprising changes in sound-form and stress, is perhaps the mostconspicuous.
Soundsthat were alien to the English language were fitted into its scheme of sounds.Familiar sounds or sound combinations, the position of which was strange to theEnglish language, were replaced by other sounds or sound combinations to makethe words conform to the norms of the language. Substitution of native soundsfor foreign ones usually takes place in the very act of borrowing.
Inwords that were added to English from foreign sources, especially from Frenchor Latin, the accent was gradually transferred to the first syllable. Thuswords like honor, reason were accented on the same principle as the nativefather, mother.
Usuallyas soon as words from other languages were introduced into English they losttheir former grammatical categories and inflexions and acquired new grammaticalcategories and paradigms by analogy with other English words as in:
Com.sing. Sputnik
Poss.sing. Sputnik’s
Com.pl. Sputniks
Poss.pl. Sputniks’
Allborrowings that were composite in structure in their native language appearedin English as indivisible root-words, unless there were already words with the samemorphemes in it. Thus in the word saunter the French infinitive inflexion – eris retained (cp. OFr. s’auntrer). But they have changed their quality,preserved in all other grammatical forms of the word (cp. saunters, sauntered,sauntering), which means that it has become part of the stem in English.
Whena word is taken over into another language, its semantic structure as a ruleundergoes changes. In the process of its historical development a borrowingsometimes acquired new meanings that were not to be found in its formersemantic structure. As a rule, the development of new meanings takes place 50–100years after the word is borrowed.
Thesemantic structure of borrowings changes in other ways as well. Some meaningsbecome more general, others more specialized etc. For instance, the wordterrorist, that was taken over from French in the meaning of «Jacobin», widenedits meaning to «one who governs, or opposes a government, by violent means.»The word umbrella, borrowed in the meaning of a sunshade or parasol (from It.ombrella
Folk-etymologizationis a slow process. People first attempt to give the foreign borrowing itsforeign pronunciation, but gradually popular use evolves a new pronunciationand spelling.
Evena superficial examination of borrowed words in the English word-stock showsthat there are words among them that are easily recognized as foreign (such asdйcolletй, graffito, Zeitgeist, voile) and there are others that have become sofirmly rooted in the language, so thoroughly assimilated that it is sometimesextremely difficult to distinguish them from words of Anglo-Saxon origin (theseare words like pupil, master, city, river, etc).
Itis the first group that makes the focus of our attention in the followingchapter.
3.Foreign words in the old man and the sea
hemingway novella man sea
Unassimilatedborrowings differ from assimilated ones in their pronunciation, spelling, frequency,semantic structure and sphere of application. However, there is no distinctborderline between the two groups.
Sofar no linguist has been able to suggest more or less comprehensive criteriafor determining the degree of assimilation of borrowings. The latter depends inthe first place upon the time of borrowing: the earlier it takes place, themore thoroughly it tends to follow normal English habits of accentuation,pronunciation etc. It is but natural that the majority of early borrowings haveacquired full English citizenship and that most English speaking people areastonished on first hearing, that such everyday words as widow, chair, dish,box have not always belonged to their language.
Howevermere age is not the sole factor. Not only borrowings long in use, but alsoborrowed words of recent date may be completely made over to conform to Englishpatterns if they are widely and popularly employed. Words that are rarely usedin everyday speech, that are known to a small group of people retain theirforeign peculiarities. Thus many 19th century French borrowings havebeen completely assimilated (clinic, turbine, exploitation, diplomat), whereasthe words noblesse [no'bles], ennui [ã:nwi] (1667), éclat[eı'klб:] (1674) have not been assimilated even in point of pronunciation.
Anotherfactor determining the process of assimilation is the way in which theborrowing was adopted into the language. Words borrowed orally are assimilatedmore readily, they undergo greater changes, whereas with words adopted throughwriting the process of assimilation is longer and more laborious.
Apartfrom borrowings in the vocabulary of the English language there is aconsiderable layer of words called barbarisms [12]. These are words of foreignorigin, which have not been assimilated into the English language. They bearthe appearance of a foreign word and are felt as something alien to the nativetongue, retaining their «foreignness» [6].
Barbarismsare, like archaisms, considered to be on the outskirts of the literarylanguage. Most of them have corresponding English synonyms: e. g. chic(=stylish), bon mot (=a clever witty saying), en passant (= in passing), adinfinitum (= to infinity) and many other words and phrases.
Itis very important for purely stylistic purposes to distinguish betweenbarbarisms and foreign words proper. Barbarisms are words, which have alreadybecome facts of the English language. They are, as it were, part and parcel ofthe English word-stock, though they remain on the outskirts of the literaryvocabulary [13].
Foreignwords, though used for certain stylistic purposes, do not belong to the Englishvocabulary. They are not registered by English dictionaries, except in a kindof addenda which gives the meanings of the foreign words most frequently usedin literary English, while barbarisms are generally given in the body of thedictionary. In printed works foreign words and phrases are generally italicizedto indicate their alien nature. Barbarisms, on the contrary, are not madeconspicuous in the text unless they bear a special load of stylisticinformation. There are foreign words in the English vocabulary, which fulfill aterminological function [11].
Itis evident that barbarisms are a historical category. Many words and phraseswhich were once just foreign words used in literary English to express aconcept non-existent in English reality, have little by little entered theclass of words named barbarisms, many of which have gradually lost theirforeign peculiarities, become more or less naturalized and have merged with thenative English stock of words.
Foreignwords in imaginative prose are used to create the effect of authenticity of thedescribed locality, ethnic group, professional/social status of characters,i.e. foreign words fulfill the functions of characterization and emphasis.
Theaction of Hemingway’s story The Old Man and the Sea takes place in Cuba. Allthe characters in the book are Spanish-speaking, and Hemingway wants very muchto convey the authenticity of Spanish speech in the monologues and dialogues ofhis characters. To achieve the effect he uses Spanish words.
Theyare mainly used by the main hero Santiago, in his speech at sea when referringto the fish, the sharks, the dolphins, the weather, and to his state. He alsouses them on land when speaking with Manolin about baseball. So there areactually two topics which interest him, and, correspondingly, all Spanish wordscan be divided into two semantic groups: sea-oriented and sports-oriented. The firstare mostly Spanish names for fishes, fishing equipment, and weather conditions.The second group contains Spanish names of baseball teams, games, andbaseballers.
Thefirst group is much larger, it consists of 10 lexemes, used 23 times. Theirlist, translation and frequency are presented in the table.
Table1. The sea – oriented semantic groupN
Spanish Lexeme
English translation Fa
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Galanos
Bonito
Agua mala
Brisa
Dorado
Salao
Tiburon
Calambre
Cordel
Espuela de hueso
Shark
Mackerel (fish)
Jelly fish
Breeze
Dolphin
Unlucky fellow
A kind of shark
Cramp, spasm
Rope
Bone spur
7
3
2
2
2
2
2
1
1
1 Total 23
Thesecond group is twice smaller and contains only personal names, each of whichis used only once:
Table2. The sports – oriented semantic groupN
Spanish Lexeme
English translation Fa
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Bodega
Campeуn
Gran Ligas
Juego
Tigres
Wine shop (the place where the characters talked about baseball)
Champion
Big Leagues (the best baseball teams)
Game
Tigers (name of a baseball team in Detroit, USA)
1
1
1
1
1 Total 5
Themeaning of Spanish words is made clear to English readers by the context.
Conclusion
Hemingway’snovella The Old Man and The Sea (1953) became his last life-time publication.It was also instrumental in bringing him his Nobel Prize for literature in 1954and is considered his best literary achievement by quite a few critics. Thefirst chapter of the paper concentrates on the novella.
Tocreate the authentic atmosphere of the story, which takes place in Cuba and hasSpanish-speaking characters, the author inserts Spanish words into theirspeech. To understand the role of foreign words in the vocabulary of alanguage, a short survey of lexical borrowings is given in Chapter 2 of thepaper.
Thelist of Spanish words found in the text, their semantic characteristics,functions and frequency are discussed in Chapter 3.
Literature
1. Анастасьев Н. ТворчествоЭ. Хемингуэя: Книга для учащихся. – М.: «Просвещение», 1981. – 140 с.
2. Гиленсон Б.А. ЭрнестХемингуэй: Книга для учащихся. – М.: Просвещение, 1991. – 192 с.
3. Грибанов Б.Т. ЭрнестХемингуэй: герой и время. – М.: Худож. лит., 1980 – 255 с.
4. Лидский Ю.Я. ТворчествоЭ. Хемингуэя. Издание 2-е, переработанное, Киев, «Наукова Думка» 1978 – 420 с.
5. Лексикологияанглийскогоязыка: Учебник для ин-тов и фак. иностр. яз./Р. 3. Гинзбург, С.С. Хидекель,Г.Ю. Князева и А.А. Санкин. – 2-е изд., испр. и доп. – М.: Высш.школа, 1979. – 269 с.
6. Barbarisms in the English language: Stylistics – www.ranez.ru/article/id/114.