Semantic structure and typology of idioms with the main component “head” and their translation into English in “Tvrđava, (Fortress)” by Meša Selimović

Abstract

Idioms (idiomatic expressions) represent a certain challenge to literary translators due to
their associative meanings and usually culture-based origins. These expressions can be analysed
separately, however, it is necessary to study them in the light of the overall literary translation.
The paper will deal with the contrastive semantic analysis and translation of idioms with
the main nominal component “head” and their English translation equivalents in the literary
piece “Tvrđava” (“Fortress”) by Meša Selimović. The main level of analyses is the semantic
structure of original idioms along with their meanings given in idiomatic dictionaries.
Furthermore, the analyses will focus on semantic modifications within idioms made by the
author himself for stylistic purposes as well as semantic modifications made in translations.
Finally, the paper will analyse idiomatic typologies and methods of translation of idioms as
well as shed light