PRAGMATIC RECONSTRUCTION OF AUTHORIAL RESTRAINT IN ENGLISH-UZBEK LITERARY TRANSLATION

Abstract

This article examines the reconstruction of authorial restraint in English-Uzbek literary translation. The study focuses on three closely related stylistic markers: syntactic economy, repetition, and silence. These features are often regarded as formal elements of literary style; however, in narrative discourse they may also convey emotional suppression, social distance, psychological pressure, moral uncertainty, and cultural norms of self-control. The article argues that literal reproduction is not always sufficient for preserving authorial restraint in Uzbek translation. Instead, translators need to identify the pragmatic function of each marker and recreate its effect through functionally appropriate target-language means. The research employs a qualitative cognitive-pragmatic approach based on illustrative English literary micro-contexts and their Uzbek translation variants. The findings show that excessive explicitation, stylistic smoothing, and emotional intensification can weaken the authorial voice. Syntactic brevity should be retained where it represents restraint; repetition should be preserved where it creates duration or psychological pressure; and silence should not be replaced by explanatory commentary. The article proposes a functional model of pragmatic reconstruction that may be applied in English-Uzbek literary translation and translator training.