Interpretation and Translation of Figures of Speech in the Holy Qur’an: Implications and Theory

Abstract

This study attempts to examine how rhetorical speech acts interface at the lexicosemantic and pragma-emotive levels in the Qur’an. It examines how these acts are interpreted and translated into English despite the fact that one speech act may convey two or more figures of speech i.e., irony, exaggeration, understatement, satire, etc. The selected data samples are methodologically classified and interpreted according to Allusional Pretence Theory by Nakamura, and Nida’s Theory of Equivalence. The data samples are qualitatively analysed. The findings show first that there is a vast body of multiple functions and dissociative thoughts resulting from rhetorical speech acts interface in the Qur’anic discourse. The findings show that translating interrelated rhetorical speech acts is a formidable challenging task due to fundamental differences in the syntactic, semantic, phonological and pragmatic aspects differentiating the Arabic linguistic system from its English counterpart. Componential Analysis Approach is found essential in solving the semantic ambiguities of the source language lexical items into the target language text.

Verses of Impossibility in the Holy Quran: A Grammatical and Rhetorical Analysis

“…In (36), (37), (38), ( 39), ( 40)& (41) several impossible acts are demanded by the disbelievers each of which in the form of a conditional sentence that begins with the conditional particle ‫لولا‬ /laula:/ (if not) + the condition + the apodosis (consequence). In (36), there are two embedded impossibilities: The first begins with the ‫أنا‬ ‫ولو‬ /wa + lau + ?anna/ (and if we) destroyed them with torture + the apodosis ‫ا‬ َ ‫ن‬ َّ ‫ب‬ َ ‫ر‬ ْ ‫ُوا‬ ‫َال‬ ‫َق‬ ‫ل‬ (they would have said oh Our Lord) and the second conditional sentence begins with the conditional particle ‫لولا‬ /laula:/ (if) + the condition in the subordinate clause…”

“…The unique linguistic characteristics of the Quranic discourse have been the focus of a plethora of research studies in the literature such as the miraculous nature of the Qura'n and its ability to defy imitability and hence translatability (El Mallah, 2022); appraisal of the use of metaphors in the Holy Qur'an (Msoke, & Msuya, 2023); a pragmatic study of irony in some selected Quranic verses (Al-Nasrawi & Dawood, 2022); the discourse of Qur'anic metaphors and comprehension of the Holy Qur'an (Atabik, 2021); the rhetoric of ironic discourse of the Qur'an (Abuisaac, Sapar & Wolf, 2020); pragmatic meaning of questions in verses about stories in the Holy Qur'an (Santosa, Nurkamto, Baidan & Sumarlam, 2017); the figurative language of metaphors in the Holy Quran (Mutammam, 2016); emotiveness and translational equivalence of irony and their interface with other figures of speech in the Quranic discourse (Abuisaac, Zaidan, Alshater & Bin Sapar, 2021); interpretation and translation of figures of speech in the Holy Qur'an (Rshaid, & Abuisaac, 2021); analysis of figurative language translation in the Quran (Alasbli, 2020); analysis of four English translations of Kināyah as a figure of speech in the Qur'an (Naseef, 2018); explicitation in the translation of Qurʾānic binomials (Al-Otaibi, 2023); examples of Arabic binomials in the Holy Quran (Al-Jarf, 2016); aesthetics of artistic expression in the Qur'an (Aram, 2016); rhetorical functions of topos in Qur'anic discourse (Saloomi, 2022); discourse analysis and the rhetorical function of deixis in the Holy Qur'an (Al Ali & El Sharif, 2016); a rhetorical study of selected verses in the Glorious Quran (Mayuuf, 2017); a pragmatic perspective of figurative language used in Surat Al-Baqarah (Cahyaningsih, Maryadi, & Ariatmi, 2014); itineraries in the translation history of the Quran (Al-Jarf, 2014) and others.…”