Lucia Ráčková

Filozofická fakulta, Univerzita Mateja Bela v Banskej Bystrici

[email protected]

 

The presented article deals with the translation of verbs of perception from French into Slovak in the novel Passing Time by M. Butor. The focus, in particular, is on the numerous Slovak prefix equivalents of these French non-prefixed verbs. The main goal is the analysis of their meanings. We will observe how the prefix, in addition to changing the imperfect form into the perfect one, modifies the meaning of the basic verb of perception and thus fulfils its lexical-perfective function. We assume that most of the initial non-prefixed verbs in the French source language will be in the compound past tense - passé composé. The partial goal of the research is to find out which prefixes are the most productive in terms of verbal word formation by prefixing. We have found out that in the majority of cases, the prefix not only fulfils a grammatical function, but also has a lexical function that significantly modifies the meaning of the basic non-prefixed verb. For example, it enriches the verb with the meanings of the beginning of the action.

 

Key words: Michel Butor, Passing time, verbs of perception, prefix, perfective aspect

https://doi.org/10.24040/nfr.2022.14.2.85-96