Translingualism in the works of Marian Vayreda
Abstract
Introduction. This article analyzes the work of Marian Vayreda (1853–1903), a classic of Catalan literature. His primary works were written in Catalan. He consciously integrated elements of Spanish (words, phrases, sentences, and text fragments) into his Catalan texts. The purpose of this study is to identify the functions of this linguistic choice. The research material consists of three major works by the writer: “Memories of the Last Carlist War”, “New Blood”, and “The Dagger Strike”. In examining these texts, we employed quantitative, contextual, and definitional analysis, as well as semantic-stylistic methods and the method of cultural-historical interpretation of linguistic facts. Results. It was shown that Vayreda’s reliance on translingual practices was not accidental, but rather reflected the author’s complex cultural and political identity. The writer, who advocated conservative Catalan nationalism, used Spanish to describe political realities he considered alien to Catalonia and its culture. Furthermore, Spanish is used to portray the speech patterns of some characters; all characters who use Spanish in direct speech are negative. There were identified certain lexemes termed “pseudo-xenonyms”. These units are not xenonyms for Catalonia, as they belong to the common Spanish cultural heritage, but the author labels them as elements of a different culture. Conclusion. This article represents the first attempt in both Russian and international linguistics to interpret M. Vayreda as a translingual author.