Grossman: 'V gorode Berdicheve: babies' clothing

[Polina Morozova]

In this context the meaning of "игрушечный" is "tiny/not real"
Here is the article from online version of "Новый словарь русского языка. Толково-словообразовательный."
Автор Т. Ф. Ефремова. 
Печатное издание М.: Русский язык, 2000
(it is marked as figurative, and as used in spoken language):

ИГРУШЕЧНЫЙ прил.Соотносящийся по знач. с сущ.: игрушка (1), связанный с ним. // Предназначенный для их изготовления, продажи и т.п. игрушек.
Свойственный игрушке (1), характерный для нее.
Предназначенный для игр детей или с детьми.
перен. разг. Маленький. // Ненастоящий
Here is the article about "примерять" from the same dictionary:

ПРИМЕРЯТЬ несов. перех.Надевать,
прикладывать или накладывать что-л. с целью выяснения соответствия
нужной мере. // перен. разг. Сопоставлять, соразмерять что-л. с чем-л.
Прибавлять, отмеривая.
Women often would lay baby clothes their breast to show them to each other and to see how small they are. 
Grossman uses in this sentence adjectives with opposite meaning "большие", "толстые" vs. "маленькие", "игрушечные" to produce an effect of visualisation of the description.


**** 
Polina Morozova-Diab, Ph.D.
10451 Dolecetto drive 
Rancho Cordova, CA 95670 
USA 
Tel./Fax: +1 (916) 364 3425 
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--- Sarah Hurst <sarahhurst at ALASKA.NET> schrieb am Do, 9.7.2009:

Von: Sarah Hurst <sarahhurst at ALASKA.NET>
Betreff: Re: [SEELANGS] Grossman: 'V gorode Berdicheve: babies' clothing
An: SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu
Datum: Donnerstag, 9. Juli 2009, 0:43

My perception of this is that игрушечные refers to "teeny-weeny" or
"itty-bitty" and that they weren't "measuring" but "trying on" the
teeny-weeny baby clothes. 

Sarah Hurst

-----Original Message-----
From: SEELANGS: Slavic & East European Languages and Literatures list
[mailto:SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu] On Behalf Of Robert Chandler
Sent: Wednesday, July 08, 2009 12:37 PM
To: SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu
Subject: [SEELANGS] Grossman: 'V gorode Berdicheve: babies' clothing

Dear all,

This story is set in Berdichev during the Russian-Polish war.  A tall,
strong, determined female commissar has become pregnant and has finally had
to accept that she can't carry on as usual.  She has been billeted on a
Jewish family.  The wife is trying to teach her a bit about what being a
mother will be like.

Вернувшийся  вечером  с  работы  Магазаник  ошеломленно остановился  в
дверях:  за столом  сидела его  жена Бэйла  и рядом с ней большая  женщина в
просторном  платье, в туфлях-шлепанцах  на босу ногy,  с головой, повязанной
пестрой  косынкой.  Они  негромко смеялись,  переговариваясь  между собой, и
примеряли, подымая большие толстые руки, маленькие, игрушечные распашонки

My dictionary translates 'raspashonka' as 'a short baby's undershirt without
buttons'.  But why is it also 'igrushechnaya'?  Is that simply a way of
saying it is very small?  The French translator evidently thinks it means
something like an item of clothing for a doll, but I don't think that makes
much sense.

More generally, I am a bit puzzled as to why they are measuring clothes for
a baby that has yet to be born.

All the best,

Robert

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