Emilia Szum
ROSEMARY ARROJO
Fidelity and the Gendered Translation
key words: deconstruction, feminist translation, fidelity, gender in translation studies, gendered
translation, translation ethics
1. Author information
Rosemary Arrojo is a professor of Comparative Literature at Binghamton University (The State
University of New York). Her academic interest has focused on the relationship between translation
studies and contemporary theories of literary criticism (deconstruction, psychoanalysis, gender studies,
postcolonial studies). She has been active in the field of translator training and Latin American
literature. Her contribution to translation studies is mostly recognized within the English-speaking and
Portuguese-speaking countries.
Some of Arrojo’s publications on similar subjects are:
Arrojo, R. 2005. “The gendering of translation in fiction”, in: J. Santaemilia (ed.), Gender, Sex
and Translation – The Manipulation of Identities, Manchester: St. Jerome.
Arrojo, R. 2013. “The Relevance of Theory in Translation Studies”, in: C. Millán and F. Bartrina,
(eds), The Routledge Handbook of Translation Studies, New York: Routledge.
Arrojo, R. 2013. “Thinking Translation beyond Deconstruction and Postcolonial Studies”. The
Translator, vol. 19, number 2.
2. Abstract
The main objective of Arrojo’s dissertation is to explore feminist thought on the translation fidelity
represented by some female translators who are aware of their ideological leanings. The author points
out that although some of the translators interfere in the original work, they still claim to respect the
traditional notion of translation ethics. As Derrida’s deconstruction theory applied in translation
studies excludes the achievability of the traditionally perceived fidelity, Arrojo attempts at answering
the question: What kind of ethics should be employed to gendered translation?
In the introduction, the author refers to contemporary theories present in TS discourse and points out
the emergence of a union between feminist movement, postmodern theories and translation studies.
In the overview of some prominent feminist voices in TS, Arrojo highlights feminist translators’
striving to challenge the traditional, patriarchal approach to translation. In the main body of her article,
Arrojo examines the translation strategies applied by some feminist translators, their own justification
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of these strategies, as well as their assessment by such TS scholars as B. Godard, L. von Flotow and
L. Chamberlain. The author deduces that in the ethical sense, the three base their theories on a double
standard. While gendered translation is faithful to the translator’s feminist ideology, it is validated
neither by Derrida’s deconstruction, nor by the authors’ approval of the translator’s interference into
the original sense of their works. Arrojo concludes that a reliable translation ethics is required
if translator’s authorial role is to be taken seriously.
3. Terminology
Source text term
authority
Definition
the right to possess and
Term in Polish
decyzyjność
determine meaning
double bind
situation in which a choice has
impas (sytuacja bez wyjścia)
to be made between equally
unsatisfactory alternatives
deconstruction
a theory that questions
dekonstrukcja
traditional assumptions about
the relationship between text
and meaning and asserts that
words can only refer to other
words
feminism
advocacy of women's social,
feminizm
political, and economic rights
with regard to equality of the
sexes
fidelity
the quality of intertextual
wierność
coherence between the
translation and the source text
gendered translation
translation which is influenced
feminist translation
by feminist ideology
production
translation as a work created
tłumaczenie w kontekście
gender
produkcja
anew
reproduction
translation as a version of the
reprodukcja
original
4. Methodology
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Arrojo introduces the notion of translation fidelity and presents it in relation to postmodern theories
in literature and translation. The author contrasts the traditional approach to the faithfulness
in translation with the modern one represented by feminist TS scholars. While examining feminist
voices in TS, Arrojo relies mostly on secondary research. The article contains a synthesis of Barbara
Godard’s, Luise von Flotow’s and Lori Chamberlain’s thoughts on gendered translation. In her
analysis of translation choices Arrojo employs contrastive analysis method and synchronic method.
5. Links with other publications on the subject
Chamberlain, L. 2000. “Gender and the Metaphorics of Translation”, in: Lawrence Venuti (ed.),
Translation Studies Reader. London, New York: Routledge. 341 – 392.
Flotow, L. von 1997. Translation and Gender: Translating in the “Era of Feminism”. Manchester: St
Jerome Publishing.
Godard, B. 1984. “Translating and Sexual Difference”. Resources for Feminist Research 13: 3/1984.
13 – 16.
Simon, S. 1996. Gender in Translation. Cultural identity and the Politics of Transmission. London:
Routledge.
6. Critical commentary
In my opinion this dissertation successfully explores some of the important feminist thoughts on
translation fidelity and examines the application of these thoughts in translation practice. The author
skilfully analyses and undermines the argumentation of feminist translators who manipulate the sense
of the translated works in concord with their own ideology but with violation of translation ethics. I
agree with Arrojo’s statement that since a translation cannot be absolutely faithful to the original, its
author should be honest about what is unfaithful.
7. Quotation to remember the text by
Like the feminist writers they translate, feminist translators have given themselves “permission
to make [their] work visible, discuss the creative process [they are] engaged in, collude with and
challenge the writers [they] translate”. (Arrojo 1994: 155)
It seems that what Jacques Derrida’s deconstruction has relentlessly showed is that no meaning can
ever be stable nor “original,” no meaning can ever be free from the perspective and the context
in which it is produced and, therefore, no meaning can ever be “reproduced” or “recovered” but is,
instead, always already created, or recreated, anew. (Arrojo 1994: 158)
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Thus, being “unfaithful” to the “original” cannot be merely a “right”, or a “duty”; it is every
translator’s and every reader’s
inevitable fate, it is precisely that which cannot be avoided.
(Arrojo 1994: 158)
8. Reference
Arrojo, R. 1994. “Fidelity and the Gendered Translation”. Traduction, Terminologie, Redaction VII:
2/1994. 147 – 163.
Accessed at: https://www.erudit.org/revue/ttr/1994/v7/n2/037184ar.pdf
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Michał Kalisz
EDWARD BALCERZAN (1937 - )
“Poetics of literary translation” (1998)
Key words:
poetics, translation, series, original, remake, influence, dependence. Translational act,
adaptation, modulation
1. Author information
Edward Balcerzan is one of Poland’s most notable literary critics and translators. He
earned his master’s degree in Polish philology in 1961 at Adam Mickiewicz University in
Poznan. In 1968, he received his PhD, the habilitation four years after that. In 1985, he
became an Associate Professor and a Full Professor in 1990 – in the same year he
became the head of the Literary Theory Institute at Adam Mickiewicz University in
Poznan.
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Michał Kalisz
Main publications:
1968 - S tyl i poetyka twórczości dwujęzycznej Brunona Jasieńskiego. Z zagadnień teorii przekładu
1971 - Oprócz głosu. Szkice krytycznoliterackie
1972 - Przez znaki. Granice autonomii sztuki poetyckiej. Na materiale polskiej poezji współczesnej
1977 - (editor) Pisarze polscy o sztuce przekładu, 1440–1974: Antologia (Polish Writers on the Art of
Translation, 1440–1 974: an Anthology)
1982 - Kręgi wtajemniczenia. Czytelnik, badacz, tłumacz, pisarz
1982 - Poezja polska w latach 1939–1 965. Część 1. Strategie l iryczne
1984 - Włodzimierz Majakowski (monografia)
1988 - Poezja polska w latach 1939–1965. Część 2. Ideologie artystyczne
1989 - L iryka Juliana Przybosia
1990 - Przygody człowieka książkowego. (Ogólne i szczególne)
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Michał Kalisz
2. Abstract
In his article, Balcerzan argues that the a rt o f translation is really an a rt per se,
enumerating how many various types of literary translation have been introduced through
the centuries, and how many possibilities to translate a text is given to a translator that
rephrases it in a given language. The term he uses here – Tra n sla tio n poetics – is
somehow the status quo which he follows in this work, an exposé to which he remains
faithful until the last page. We are presented, for example, with theoretical concepts of
translation, types of translatory transformations (theoretical, , linguistic and literary),
methods used in translation (literal, simplitory precise, adequate and free), types of
translated work, (hiperbolisation, polemic translation etc.) the table of Vinay and
Darbelnet and terms like modulation.
3. Terminology
Source text form/English form
Heteronim/Heteronym
Definition
One or more imaginary character(s)
created by a writer to write in different styles
M i ę d zyj ę zy k/ In t e r l i ngu a
When there is no heteronym, reference to the system of
relations between two laguagaes
Redukcja/ Reduction
The act of shortening the text for the sake of translation
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Michał Kalisz
Inwersja/Inversion
Change of the word order
Substytucja/Substitution
Change of elements
Amplifikacja/Amplification
Adding new elements
4. Methodology
Balcerzan uses a vast array of examples from the world literature to present the main
problematics of literary translation and various obstacles a translator will meet when
translating a literary text. His aim is rather to present that to teach or give solutions – the
context of the work is mainly informative and leaves many questions open for
further discussion.
5. Links with other publications on the subject.
J. Z i o m e k: Staff i Kochanowski. Proba zastosowania teorii informacji w
badaniach nad przekładem. Poznań 1965, p. 24-28.
G. M o u n i n: Les problemes theoretiques de
L a traduction. Paris 1963.
W. R o s s e l s: B мастерской
переводчика. W: Тетради переводчика. Moskwa 1966, p. 12-15.
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Michał Kalisz
6. Critical commentary
Balcerzan’s article is surely a very important work that systematizes the regulations and
unwritten rules in the world of literary translation. M any people think that translating
literature (like literature itself) is hard to grasp, or perhaps even illogical. Here, the author
gives us a clear reasoning and a very rationalistic approach to what he himself calls an
art. Although the article itself may be dated (the latest version with all the appendixes
bears the date of 1997, but the first version of the article could appear as early as 1968), it
does not seem outdated but one bit and the approaches presented here are not only still
useful, but even essential to succeed in translating literature. One may argue that the
abundance of literary examples from multiple languages makes it hard to understand for
some people, but I would definitely defend the author here, who showed us his
impressive versatility. I am certain that the text will remain a canonical reading for all
translators for years to come.
7. Quotation to remember the text by:
(...) poznanie przekładu artystycznego wymaga narzędzi specjalnych, które powinny
być przedmiotem zainteresowania odrębnej dyscypliny: poetyki tłumaczenia
(Ibidem, p.2)
(...) getting to know the artistic translation requires special tools, which should be an
object of interest of a separate discipline: the poetics of translation
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Justyna Kudyk
Agata Wicher
IAN MASON AND WEN REN
“Power in Face-to-face Interpreting Events” (2012)
Key words:
face-to-face interpreting events, institutional power, interactional power, positioning and gaze
interpreting, power relations, sociology of interpreting, the interpreter's role
1. Authors information
Ian Mason is the Professor Emeritus at the Department of Languages and Intercultural Studies
of the Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, United Kingdom. In his research he focuses
mainly on pragmatics and socio-cultural aspects of translation, such as the role of the
interpreter and non-verbal features of the communication process. He is also the co-author of
Discourse and the Translator (1990), a work about linguistic studies of translation and
Translator as Communicator (1997) which mainly consists of case studies.
Wen Ren is the vice dean of the College of Foreign Languages and Cultures, Sichuan
University in China. She has been teaching interpreting, interpreting studies and English
public speaking. Wen Ren is a team leader of the English/Chinese interpreting course at
Sichuan University, which is one of the best two units of this kind in China. She is the author
of The Liaison Interpreter's Subjectivity Consciousness (2010) and wrote over 30 papers on
interpreting, translation, cultural studies, and English public speaking.
2. Abstract
The articles discusses the social aspect of face-to-face interpreting, focusing on the influence
of power relations on the process. After describing a few cases from history where the
translation produced in a given situation was biased by power relations, the authors focus on
the contemporary context. They point out that traditionally objectivity and detachment have
been reiterated in interpreters’ codes of conduct. However, in reality translators often tend to
participate in the communication process as one of the parties, which means they have a
certain power in the interaction; Michel Focault’s concept of power as a network of relations
is evoked. The authors draw a distinction between institutional power and interactional power
which may be expressed in various ways, as illustrated by the cited fragments of dialogues
from court trials. Apart from the verbal content of the translation, body language of the
interpreter is mentioned as another means of expression of his/her power. The article aims to
draw attention to the discrepancy between the prescribed conduct expected of interpreters and
their actual accountability which has been described by researchers. Thus, it deconstructs the
traditional notion of the “invisibility” of the interpreters, implying that they have a power
stemming from their linguistic expertise rather than institutional authority.
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Justyna Kudyk
Agata Wicher
3. Terminology
SOURCE TEXT TERM
MEANING
entextualization
using a text in a different
setting; removing it from its detekstualizacja
context
“non-person”
somebody who is considered
insignificant in a social “nieosoba”
interaction
co-interlocutor
an interpreter who contributes
their own utterances to the współrozmówca
interaction
empowerment
the action of supporting the upoważnienie,
disadvantaged party by the
upodmiotowienie
interpreter
neutral stance
the principle of impartiality
and objectivity of the neutralne stanowisko
interpreter
interactional power
micro-power
POLISH TERM
connected with the notion of
community and
identity,
interpreter is equipped with a
special interactional power, kontrola interakcji
which allows him/her to exert
a certain influence on the
interaction
the mechanism used by
interpreter to influence power mikrokontrola
relations in the interaction
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Justyna Kudyk
Agata Wicher
empowerment
positioning
supporting
individuals,
enabling them to become
more
powerful
in
the przydawanie władzy
interaction
offering individuals certain
positions in the interaction, pozycjonowanie
the positions can be accepted
or rejected
4. Methodology
The authors use authentic transcripts of the pre-trial hearings. Basing on these examples, they
analyse the interpreter's interactional power (his/her role as a co-interlocutor, empowerment
figure, and neutral stance). Their research is contrasted with the traditional understanding of
the interpreter's role as a neutral figure in face-to-face interpreting process.
5. Links with other publications on the subject
Angelelli, C. V. 2004. Revisiting the interpreter's role: a study of conference, court, and
medical interpreters in Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Amsterdam/Philadelphia:
John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Berk-Selingson, S. 2002. The Bilingual Courtroom: Court Interpreters in the Judical
Process.Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Dam, H. V. and K. K. Zethsen. 2014. “Translators in international organizations: A special
breed of high-status professionals? Danish EU translators as a case in point.” In The
Sociological Turn in Translation and Interpreting Studies, ed. by Claudia V. Angelelli, 93113. Amsterdam/Philadephia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Inghilleri, Moira. 2006. “Mediating Zones of Uncertainty: Interpreter Agency, the Interpreting
Habitus and Political Asylum Adjudication.” The Translator 11 (1): 69-85.
Pöllabauer, Sonja. 2004. “Interpreting in Asylum Hearings: Issues of Role, Responsibility,
and Power.” Interpreting 6 (2): 143-180.
Ren, Wen. 2010. The Liaison Interpreter’s Subjectivity Consciousness. Beijing: Foreign
Language Teaching and Research Press.
Roland, R. A. 1999. Interpreters as Diplomats: A Diplomatic History of the Role of
Interpreters in World Politics. Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press.
Wadensjö, Cecilia. 1998. Interpreting as Interaction. London and New York: Longman.
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Justyna Kudyk
Agata Wicher
6. Critical commentary
Mason and Ren pose the compelling question: Is a professional interpreter truly neutral and
invisible in face-to-face interpreting events? They familiarise a reader with the traditional
view on interpreter's role by using interesting historical evidence and quoting numerous
translation and interpreting organisations. In my opinion, they provide relevant distinction
between institutional power and interactional power. The authors have chosen examples
which expose the myth of interpreter neutrality. They explain the examples thoroughly and
offer some conclusions. Interestingly, the research also focuses on non-verbal behaviour of
interpreters and it emphasises the importance of gaze behaviour and facial expression in faceto-face interpreting events.
The article provides an interesting insight into the social aspect of interpreting. As it implies
that interpreters have a certain power in their professional interactions, it may serve as
argument for improving the social esteem of translators, as well as raise their own awareness
of the responsibility which rests on them.
To sum up, the study carried by Mason and Ren suggests that interpreter very often exerts
power on the interaction, often changing its outcome.
7. Quotations to remember the text by
“Institutional power refers to the power that government, authorities, corporations, or
organizations possess. For instance, in a medical setting, the doctor is more powerful than the
patient; in a legal setting, the judge and attorney are more powerful than the suspect or
witness, as the former are institutionally empowered to initiate, lead, control, and terminate
the communication process. However, in an interpreter-assisted case, the interpreter is also
equipped with a special interactional power, or power within the exchange, as a result of his
or her bilingual expertise” (Mason and Ren 2014)
“Because of their unique access to the resources of the two languages and cultures at work
and depending on processes of identification and negotiation, interpreters are capable of
empowering or assisting comparatively weaker parties to exercise their responsibility to make
decisions for themselves.” (Mason and Ren 2014)
“Institutionally, participants start from very different positions. But the inherent inequalities
among them are, without doubt, subject to a constant process of negotiation and therefore, of
recontextualization.” (Mason and Ren 2014)
“Although interpreters often lack institutional power, they may be equipped with power
within the exchange as a result of their bilingual and bicultural expertise.” (Mason and Ren
2014)
8. References
Mason, I. And Ren W. 2014. “Power in face-to-face interpreting events” In: The Sociological
Turn in Translation and Interpreting Studies, ed. Claudia V. Angelelli, 115-133.
Amsterdam/Philadephia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
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Justyna Kudyk
Agata Wicher
https://www.oxforddictionaries.com/ (retrieved 28th November 2016)
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Agnieszka Głowacka
ELEONORA FOIS (1983-)
"Audiovisual Translation: Translation and Practice" (2012)
Key words:
adaptation, cinema, context, culture, dubbing, subtitles, translation
1. Author information
Eleonora Fois used to be a student at the University of Caligiari in Italy. She specialised in
Philology at the Literature and Linguistics Department and finished her academic career with
a PhD in Literary and Philosophical Studies. She is known for the translation of Annabel
Pitcher's My sister lives on the Mantelpiece into Italian. Fois also worked in the final stages of
the translation and adaptation of the dubbed South Park series.
2. Abstract
"Audiovisual Translation: Translation and Practice" is an article written by an Italian scholar,
Eleonora Fois. The work concerns various aspects of movie translation such as the loss of the
original meaning. Fois provides extended descriptions of particular changes and explains what
gets achieved through the process of adaptation.
The article entails two parts. The first one is purely theoretical, where Fois focuses on
individual problems each translator has to face with, while translating a movie. It is also
where such terms as: voice-over, narration, commentary, audiovisual description and
subtitling are introduced.
The second part of the article is a more practical one, as it investigates the process of the
translation of the animated American series, "South Park". It is where Fois gives examples of
certain sections which are highly difficult to translate, due to cultural differences. These are
such elements as habits, particular type of humour, beliefs, general knowledge of a given
culture, dialect, etc. ''South Park'' is a perfect example of how different linguistic elements
remain untranslatable. Finally, Fois draws attention to the importance of the translator
himself, as it is he/she who has to take crucial decisions as to whether add certain words or to
eliminate them.
Terminology:
English version
Meaning
Polish version
Adaptation
A cultural element which
Adaptacja
replaces the original text with
the one that is better suited to
the culture of the target
language.
Translation
Changing the Source Text in
Tłumaczenie
the Source Language into the
Target Text in the Target
language.
Voice-over
A production technique
Lektor
where a voice-that is not part
of the narrative (nondiegetic)-is used.
Domestication
A strategy of making a text
Udomowienie
closely conform to the
culture of the language being
translated to, which may
involve the loss of
information from the source
text.
Calque
The creation or usage of a
Kalka
neologism in the Target
Language by adopting the
structure of the Source
Language.
Cultural diversity
The quality of diverse or
Różnorodność kulturalna
different cultures.
Prototext
The text towards which the
Prototekst
reference is made.
Metatext
The reference itself.
Metatekst
4. Methodology
The article by Eleonora Fois comprises of two parts. The first one is a theoretical introduction
into the subject matter, where the author explains the main problems with the movie
translation. The second part is more practical and it is where Fois concentrates on all kinds of
problems a translator has to face with, while making the translation of the ''South Park'' series.
The article’s construction lets Fois introduce the subject matter step by step, which makes the
article more understandable and detailed at the same time. The essay thrives in different types
of examples concerning the problems with translation or even the untranslatability. Through
the analysis of one of the episodes from the ''South Park'' series, Fois provides a thesis that the
translator's work is of high importance and difficulty. As the whole series is rooted in the
American culture, Fois draws a conclusion that certain behaviors, allusions and humour may
not be easily understood by other nations, even after the detailed process of translation. Such
a statement is made after a precise analysis of the translation of the ''South Park'' series into
Italian.
5. Links with other publications on the subject
Translation and Film: Slang, Dialects, Accents and Multiple Languages- Allison M.
Rittmayer
(http://digitalcommons.bucknell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1042&context=chr)
A Study of the Translation of English and Chinese Film Titles From the Perspective of
Culture and the Beauty of Language- TAN Xiaoqing
(http://www.cscanada.net/index.php/sll/article/view/6733/7194)
6. Critical commentary
The Eleonora Fois' article focuses on the process of translating movies and on the difficulties
each translator has to face with. Through the insight into the Italian translation of the ''South
Park'' series, Fois provides readers with various examples on how the source text is adapted to
a particular audience, and on how a translator has to overcome the difficulties which stem
from certain limitations. Among others, the author mentions the impossibility to use the
process of domestication, because of the presence of dubbing. That is why the original version
usually has to be maintained and it is what makes it difficult for the target audience to fully
understand a movie.
Due to the research, which was carried out by Fois, it may be concluded that the translator's
role is of high importance. In the end it is him who has to find a way to pass a message that is
deeply rooted in a different culture. However, it is not only the sole research that makes Fois'
article so special. It is also the use of a variety of examples, as well as the fact that she does
not only focus on the ''South Park'' series, but also looks into high literature. Fois gives an
example of a short story - Pygmalion by G.B. Shaw, where there appears a problem of
translating the dialect and provides the readers with information on how it was dealt with.
The Eleonora Fois' work is worth admiration, as in just one short article she manages to
discuss various ways of translating movies which involve such elements as dialects and
cultural allusions. She provides the readers with extended theoretical explanations and
a variety of examples taken from several sources.
7. Quotations:
"Cinematographic translation truly deserves the title of total translation, and it can be
considered the highest grade of translation."
"What matters, in these cases, is not to rethink the story, but the way it is told: from choices
made to respect the specific code imposed by the new means (there might be the need to cut
some acts of a musical in a cinematographic transposition), to innovative ways of presenting
it, exploiting the potential of the media involved."
"A translator may subject him-herself to the original text and the norms it has realized, or to
the norms active in the target culture or in that section of it which would host the end product.
[…] Whereas adherence to source norms determines a translation’s adequacy as compared to
the source text, subscript to norms originating in the target culture determines acceptability."
8. References
Fois, Eleonora, “Audiovisual Translation: Theory and Practice”, Between, II.4 (2012),
http://www.Between-journal.it/
GOMOLA ALEKSANDER (1963-)
“English Evaluative Concepts in a Contemporary Devotional Christian Text. A Comparative
Study of Dzienniczek by Faustyna Kowalska and its English Translation” (2016)
Key words:
Cognitive Linguistics, Translation Studies, Conceptualization, Sister Maria Faustyna
Kowalska, Mystical Christian Literature.
1. Author information
Dr Aleksander Gomola is an assistant professor at UNESCO chair for translation
and intercultural communication, member of the American Academy of Religion
and the Religious Language Associates’ Commision as part of Polish Language
Council of Polish Academy of Sciences. He has written a number of articles on
translations, cognitive linguistics (with a particular insight into religious language)
as well as British culture and history.
2. Abstract
In “English Evaluative Concepts...”, Gomola discusses the phenomenon of Mystical
Christian Literature on the example of “Dzienniczek”/”Diary” of sister Maria Faustyna
Kowalska and its English translation. Author’s objectives are to demonstrate the role of an
individual in creating and propagating specific evaluative religious concepts and to examine
how the dynamics of translation affect the transfer of such concepts from one language to
another. However, the article focuses mainly on the correspondence between particular
phrases and metaphors in the original and translated texts in order to outline the translationinduced changes in the meaning and tone of both texts. After a couple of preliminary remarks,
the author outlines the circumstances under which the discussed text was written and
translated, then proceeds to describe the concepts, exemplified in both texts. Subtle shifts in
the evaluative dimensions of certain concepts transferred from one language to another, as the
author puts it, pertain i.a. to the understanding of Moral Accounting and the concept of Poland
as a chosen nation. “Dzienniczek” is often juxtaposed in the article with traditional christian
writings in order to point out its characteristic features as well as to show how the
discrepancies between the source text and the canon were reduced in the target text. It is also
a concluding statement, that English translation of “Dzienniczek” was unintentionally
‘stylistically ameliorated’. Other linguistic features influenced by the translation include
diminutives, semantics and morphology.
3. Terminology
Source text term
Divine Mercy
Moral Accounting
Conceptual Metaphor
Definition
the ultimate act of God’s
forgiveness offered to
those who trust him.
morality seen as
accounting, with people as
God’s debtors.
in cognitive
linguistics, conceptual
metaphor, also known as
Term in Polish
Łaska Boża
Boska Ekonomia
Metafora pojęciowa
cognitive metaphor, refers
to the understanding of one
idea or conceptual domain,
in terms of another.
4. Methodology
- Comparative analysis of “Dzienniczek” by Faustyna Kowalska and its
English translation
- The author insists on interpreting “Dzienniczek” at its face value, not to
focus on its truth value in order to avoid reductionism and precipitate
epistemological conclusions.
- Insight on subjective approach to translation process is emphasised, as it is
one of the main principles of cognitive linguistics.
5. Links with other publications on the subject
“Dzienniczek” has not been subject to cross-linguistic or cross-cultural study
before. Comparative analysis of a source text and its translation is a fairly
common practice in cognitive linguistics, though. Bibliograpical references
include works both on linguistics and religion.
6. Critical commentary
Author’s methodology is based on a combination of comparative analysis,
typical for translation studies, and frequent references to connotations and
subjective approach to translation, both of which are characteristic for research
in cognitive linguistics. Sketches of sociohistorical context, presented in
different aspects, are scattered across the text, however, they include
information necessary to understand the full complexity of the works
discussed. Author often invokes the Christian written tradition as well as Polish
history in order to explain particular questions, which would otherwise remain
at least enigmatic to readers not familiar with the fields mentioned above. This
move emphasises the article’s focus on linguistics.
7. Quotation to remember the text by
“The popularity of Diary among English-speaking readers indicates that fundamental
evaluative religious concepts such as a vision of God as both just and merciful, or concepts
related to emotions, are shared by both Polish and English native speakers as members of the
same Western culture.”
“(Another) important difference between dusza and soul is the fact that it is a feminine
noun, while ‘soul’ in English is referred to using the neuter pronoun. As a result, dusza is
conceptualized as a feminine entity, and whenever Dzienniczek describes the intimate
relationship between the soul and Jesus, this mystical union is grounded in a more basic
conceptualization of a female–male relationship, often used figuratively in Christian
mysticism. This conceptualization is less visible in Diary where ‘soul’ is on many occasions
replaced with ‘it’, which obscures the female–male relationship between the soul and God.”
8. Full bibliographical reference of the article.
-Kowalska, F. (1981). Dzienniczek. Miłosierdzie Boże w duszy mojej.
Zgromadzenie Sióstr Matki Bożej Miłosierdzia.
http://www.faustyna.pl/zmbm/dzienniczeksw-siostry-faustyny/#.
Accessed 20 Aug 2015.
-Kowalska, F. (2005). Diary. Divine mercy in my soul. Stockbridge: Marian
Press.
-Barcelona, A. (2003). The metaphorical and metonymic understanding of the
Trinitarian dogma. International Journal of English Studies, 3, 1–27.
-Biały, P. (2013). On the priority of connotative over denotative meanings in
Polish diminutives. Studies in Polish Linguistics, 8(1), 1–14.
-Bloom, P. (2006). Word learning and theory of mind. In W. E. Mann (Ed.),
Augustine’s confessions (Critical essays on the classics series) (pp. 17–30).
Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield.
-Blumczyński, P. (2010). Some remarks on linguistic aspects of religion.
Anglica Wratislaviensia, 48, 87–95.
-Borkowski, I. (2001). Skąpana w oceanie miłosierdzia – Metaforyka wodna
jako sposób wyrażania doświadczenia mistycznego w Dzienniczku Siostry
Faustyny Kowalskiej. In E. Przybył (Ed.), Ostatnie Przed Wielkim Milczeniem
(pp. 47–59). Kraków: Nomos.
-Burke, P. (2005). Lost (and found) in translation: A cultural history of
translators and translating in early modern Europe. Wassenaar: NIAS.
-DesCamp, M. T., & Sweetser, E. (2005). Metaphors for God: Why and how
do our choices matter for humans? The application of contemporary cognitive
linguistic research to the debate on God and metaphor. Pastoral Psychology,
53(3), 207–238.
-Egan, H. D. (1996). An anthology of Christian mysticism. Collegeville:
Liturgical Press.
-Gavrilyuk, P. (2014). The spiritual senses: Perceiving God in Western
Christianity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
-Geertz, C. (1973). The interpretation of cultures: Selected essays. New York:
Basic Books.
-Górny, G., & Rosikoń, J. (2014). Trust. In Saint Faustina’s footsteps. San
Francisco: St. Ignatius Press.
-Hengel, M. (2004). Septuagint as Christian scripture. Its prehistory and the
problem of its canon. London: T&T Clark.
-Jäkel, O. (2003). How can mortal man understand the road he travels?
Prospects and problems of the cognitive approach to religious metaphor.
In K. Feyaerts (Ed.), The Bible through metaphor and translation: A cognitive
semantic perspective (pp. 55–86). Berlin: Peter Lang.
-Janda, L. (2010). Cognitive linguistics in the year 2010. International Journal
of Cognitive Linguistics, 1(1), 1–30.
-Kołakowski, L. (1982). Religion: If there is no God. New Haven: Yale
University Press.
-Kövecses, Z. (2000). Metaphor and emotion: Language, culture, and body in
human feeling. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
-Kövecses, Z. (2002). Metaphor: A practical introduction. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
-Kövecses, Z. (2008). The biblical story retold. Symbols in action. A cognitive
linguistic perspective. In M. Zic Fuchs & M. Brdar (Eds.), Converging and
diverging tendencies in cognitive linguistics (pp. 48–60). Amsterdam: John
Benjamins.
-Lakoff, G. (1996). Moral politics. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
-Langacker, R. W. (1985). Observations and speculations on subjectivity. In
J. Haiman (Ed.), Iconicity in syntax: Proceedings of a symposium on iconicity
in syntax, Stanford, June 24–26, 1983 (pp. 109–151). Amsterdam: John
Benjamins.
-Llywelyn, D. (2010). Toward a Catholic theology of nationality. Lanham:
Lexington Books.
-Matthews, G. B. (2006). Augustine on the teacher within. In W. E. Mann
(Ed.), Augustine’s confessions (Critical essays on the classics series) (pp. 31–
44). Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield.
-Nord, C. (2005). Text analysis in translation: Theory, methodology, and
didactic application of a model for translation-oriented text analysis.
Amsterdam: Editions Rodopi.
-Pelikan, J. (1975). The Christian tradition: A history of the development of
doctrine. Vol. 1: The emergence of the Catholic tradition (100–600). Chicago:
The University of Chicago Press.
-Schneider, K. P. (2003). Diminutives in English. Tübingen: Max Niemeyer.
-Sicherl, E. (2012). Slovene nominal diminutives and their English equivalents:
A comparison. ELOPE: English Language Overseas Perspectives and
Enquiries, 9, 53–63.
-Sweetser, E. (1991). From etymology to pragmatics: Metaphorical and
cultural aspects of semantic structure. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
-Sweetser, E. (2005). An eye for an eye versus turning the other cheek: Moral
accounting in the Gospel of Matthew. https://www.sblsite.org/assets/pdfs/Sweetser_Eye.pdf. Accessed 20 Aug 2015.
-Tabakowska, E. (2002). Bariery kulturowe są zbudowane z gramatyki’. In
-R. Lewicki (Ed.), Przekład – Język –Kultura (pp. 25–34). Lublin: Uniwersytet
Marii Curie-Skłodowskiej.
-Tidemann, P. A. (2009). Reggae reveals church involvement in slavery.
Currents in Theology and Mission, 36(2), 104–108.
-Wierzbicka, A. (1997). Understanding cultures through their key words,
English Russian, Polish, German and Japanese. Oxford: Oxford University
Press.
-Zwierzyńska, A. (1993). Czy pojęcie ojczyzny w języku angielskim jeszcze
istnieje?’. In J. Bartmiński (Ed.), Pojęcie ojczyzny we współczesnych językach
europejskich (pp. 275–286). Lublin: Instytut Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej.
Karolina Gajowiec
Isabelle Collombat
“General Knowledge: A Basic Translation Problem Solving Tool” (2006)
Key words:
general knowledge, translation
intelligence, problem solving
didactics,
cognitive
processes
in
translation,
1. Author information
Isabelle Collombat is a graduate in French literature, linguistics and translation
studies. She obtained her professorship at Université Laval, Quebec City, Canada.
Since 2016, she has been collaborating with Sorbonne Nouvelle University, Paris,
France. Her translation experience covers various fields, including technical
translation, international relations and literature. Her research interests include
retranslation, pseudo-translation, the translation of metaphor, sociology of translation,
translation didactics.
2. Abstract
The main objective of the article is to draw attention to the importance of general
knowledge in translator’s problem solving. According to Collombat, universities tend
to promote overspecialization. It has been emphasized that both cognitive
complements and translator apprentices’ ability to activate their extralinguistic
knowledge are undervalued in translation didactics, while language skills are favored
in curricula. The author describes what kind of general knowledge could be of use for
translators and provides examples of putting those facts into practice at the university.
Collombat presents a man interacting with the physical world and society. Both levels
of general knowledge are said to influence translator’s decision making. The author
refers also to Cattell’s dual theory of intelligence and identifies general knowledge
with crystalized intelligence, as it is education- and culture-based. Logical skills are
described as innate abilities typical for fluid intelligence. In that context, crystalized
intelligence seems to be of greater importance to translators, since translation is
a semantic process. It is crystalized intelligence only that can be improved by
education.
The author of the article states that it is impossible to translate a text without
perceiving it on the basis of previously acquired knowledge. The absence of cognitive
complements is problematic when translating, but one can fail to activate them as well.
That is connected with students’ obsession with the linguistic form, their lack of selfconfidence or language proficiency. Collombat criticizes students’ focus on form and
less attention being paid to rendering meaning. For the researcher it is crucial to teach
the translator apprentices’ to be vigilant, to make them aware of their general
knowledge (even if it seems to be trivial to them) and to promote general knowledge
acquisition by reviewing factual information acquired while translating different texts.
She approves students preparing translation commentaries as well.
1
Karolina Gajowiec
3. Terminology
Source text term
Meaning
Term in Polish
cognitive complements
Verbal, situational and
cognitive contexts and
extralinguistic world or
encyclopedic knowledge.
crystalized intelligence
It is a key term in
Raymond Cattell’s dual
theory of intelligence.
It consists of acquired
abilities such as verbal
comprehension, numerical
skills, and inductive
reasoning. It is based on
acculturation, including
those factors learned in
formal schools and in
society.
inteligencja
skrystalizowana
encyclopedic competence
It is a term coined by
Umberto Eco. It refers to
extralinguistic knowledge
acquired by a person and
his/her cognitive context.
kompetencja
encyklopedyczna
fluid intelligence
It is a key term in
Raymond Cattell’s dual
theory of intelligence. It is
thought to be innate and
relates to how well an
individual perceives
complex relations, uses
short-term memory, forms
concepts, and engages in
abstract reasoning.
inteligencja płynna
zapasy poznawcze
2
Karolina Gajowiec
general world knowledge
Such knowledge and
skills that are essential
for everybody to be able
to live as a human being
and citizen.
ogólna wiedza o świecie
methodical doubt
A method developed by
René Descartes. It is a
systematic process of
withholding assent
regarding the truth or
falsehood of all one's
beliefs until they have been
demonstrated or rationally
proven to be true or false.
metodyczne wątpienie
4. Methodology
Collombat starts with an attempt to define general knowledge. Then, she emphasizes
its relevance in translation by providing examples of translation errors that stem from
obsessive reliance on the linguistic form instead of referring to extralinguistic
assumptions. After that, the author lists proposals how to integrate general knowledge
acquisition into translation teaching programs.
5. Links with other publications on the subject
Fraser, J. 1996. “Professional versus Student Behaviour”. In: Dollerup, C. Appel, V.
Teaching Translation and Interpreting 3: New Horizons. Philadelphia: John
Benjamins Publishing Company. 243-250.
Wills,
W. 1996. Knowledge and Skills in Translator
Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Behavior,
6. Critical commentary
Collombat’s article considers an aspect of translating that is not often noticed by
translator apprentices, namely the importance of global knowledge acquisition.
Unfortunately, from students’ point of view it is common to focus on the language
instead of perceiving translation broader, as culturally embedded. Such an approach
can lead to word-for-word translation and losing or changing the meaning of the
source text.
Apart from that, the text sheds light on supposed reasons for the lack of cognitive
complements. It is an interesting question why in some cases translators lose access to
3
Karolina Gajowiec
their general knowledge. It can be inferred that partially separate mechanisms are
responsible for linguistic form and semantic processing. One can also try to explain
that phenomenon referring to the concept of attention switching, attention overload or
heuristics.
7. Quotations to remember the text by
“Thus it appears that there are two levels of general knowledge: one that is closely
linked to physical perceptions and everyday life, and one that relates to social life.”
“Many specialists of translation didactics have noted that a translator never takes on
a translation with a mind empty of all knowledge.”
8. Full bibliographical reference of the article
Collombat, I. 2006. “General Knowledge: a Basic Translation Problem Solving
Tool.” Translations Studies in the New Millenium 4: 2006. 59-66.
4
KEITH HARVEY
”Translating camp talk: Gay identities and cultural transfer”
Keywords: camp talk, queer studies, discourse community, gay literature, cultural identity,
identity and language, contact theory, culture theory, politeness theory, language appropriation
1. Author Information
Keith Harvey’s is a translation and queer study theorist. His current work focuses on stylistic
analysis of camp speech in English and French and on translation of gay fiction between those
languages. He also studies transformation of sexual identities in cross-cultural context.
Previously, he held posts in Applied Linguistics at the University of East Anglia and in French
at Heriot-Watt University. Currently, he is a lecturer in the Centre for Translation and
Intercultural Studies at University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology. Harvey
is one of the few translation studies scholars who have done research on translation issues
arising from gay identity and camp style in homosexual discourse. He has done and published
research on translation studies, literary stylistics, lexicography and language acquisition. He
has also co-edited (with Celia Shalom) of Language and Desire: Encoding Sex, Romance and
Intimacy (1997, Routledge).
2. Terminology
Source text term
Meaning
camp
an
Polish term
aesthetic
style
sensibility
that
something
as
and kamp
regards
appealing
because of its bad taste and
ironic value; often confused
with
kitsch;
also,
performance identity,
as
a
a
social practice; in political
context used by minorities to
appropriate and ridicule the
images
of
the
dominant
group
discourse community
group whose members share wspólnota dyskursywna
goals or purposes, and use
communication to achieve
them
sexual identity
the way in which one thinks tożsamość seksualna
of oneself in terms of to
whom one is romantically or
sexually attracted; referring
to an individual's conception
of themselves, rather than
sexual behavior (acts) and
sexual orientation (attraction
toward gender(s)
gender performativity
the theory stating that gender performatywność płciowa
is
socially
constructed
through an active process of
creation
of
norms
by
repetitive interaction with
others in a particular social
context
linguistics of contact
term defined by Mary Louise lingwistyka kontaktu
Pratt
opposed
mainstream
(1987),
to
tradition
as
the
of
linguistics of community;
theory of linguistics focusing
on
the
operation of language across
lines of social differentiation
and on the contact between
dominant
and
dominated
groups, and individuals of
different
and
multiple
identities,
perceiving
the
discourse communities as
heterogeneous and related to
each other
politeness theory
politeness seen as an attempt teoria uprzejmości
for the speaker to save their
own face or the face of whom
he or she is talking to and to
ensure affirmation in a social
interaction
text linguistics
branch of linguistics dealing lingwistyka tekstu
with texts as communication
systems, aiming to uncover
and describe text grammars
and analyze a text in broader
terms such as form and its a
communicative context.
3. Abstract
The main purpose of the text is the description of camp speech in English and French post-war
gay fiction and approaches to its translation. This is connected with the broader problem of
defining links between language and identity, specifically its place in the context of translation
studies. Harvey’s study is based on M.L. Pratt’s linguistics of contact theory and P. Brown and
S. Levinson’s politeness theory. He describes issue of different evaluation of camp on fictional
and wider, cultural levels (in the text: micro- and macro functional dimensions). Harvey argues
that recognition of macro functional aspects of the text depends on cultural and even
autobiographical issues of the translator. In the next part Harvey moves on to a description of
verbal camp and its main features including appropriation of language patterns, mix of formal
and informal register, parody and theatralisation of effeminacy, inversion of gender-specific
terms and intertextuality. He then proceeds to outline the most important accounts of camp in
cultural context, among them S. Sontag’s Notes on Camp (1964) and M. Booth’s Camp (1983).
He also notices the performative aspect of camp speech.
To illustrate the issues in translating camp speech he uses French translation of G. Vidal’s The
City and the Pillar (1948, French: Un garçon près de la rivière 1949) and English translation
of T. Duvert’s Paysage de fantaisie (1973, English: Strange Landscape 1976). In general,
Harvey links differences in camp visibility in the ST and TT to cultural issues. In the English
texts, he notices visible features of camp speech. In the case of French-English translation, he
points to translator’s strategies to intensify camp and links it with commercial aspects and the
active LGBT community in USA. On the other hand, downplaying camp features in French is,
according to him, connected with a general unwillingness to accept gay identity as political and
forming one’s personality.
4. Methodology
Harvey uses literary analysis methods, both linguistic and culturally oriented. It allows him to
study language of gay fiction in social and political context. By using in his research methods
based on contact linguistic theory he examines gay fiction within prevailing “straight
discourse.” At the same time Harvey uses queer theory terms to connect verbal camp with the
problem of cultural identity. However, in the concluding remarks he points to yet unsolved
issues in translation studies methodology. In his view, analyzing verbal camp requires a
methodology that neither prioritizes ideological concerns nor focuses entirely on language. He
argues that the lack of such a methodology might make further analysis of the subject difficult.
5. Other publications on the subject
Harvey, K. 2000. ‘’Gay community, gay identity and the translated text’’ in: TTR: traduction,
terminologie, redaction, vol. 13, n° 1. Montréal: Canadian Association for Translation Studies.
Harvey, K. 2003. Intercultural Movements: American Gay in French Translation. New York:
Routledge
Von Flotow, L. 2001. Gender in Translation: The Issues Go On. University of Ottawa.
Keenaghan, E., 1998. Jack Spicer’s Pricks and Cocksuckers: translating homosexuality into
visibility. in: The Translator, 4(2), pp.273-294.
Crickmar, M. 2014. From Lubiewo to Lovetown: On Translating Camp in Michał
Witkowski’s Novel Into English in: Redefining Kitsch and Camp in Literature and Culture.
ed. Stępień, J. Cambridge Scholars Publishing
6. Critical commentary:
Harvey’s work presents some interesting insights, both on the subject of translating queer text
and, in broader context, of cultural and political issues in translator’s work. He provides
enough information on camp and its verbal aspect to make his text understandable even to
readers unacquainted with the subject. Author quotes different opinions and descriptions of
camp, which gives his article a considerable informational value. He also provides extensive
analysis of other scholars’ theories that he uses to describe verbal camp. As he states in the
concluding remarks, he considers the most useful the methodology that encompasses both
elements of cultural and linguistic analysis without focusing solely on one aspect, and he
manages to maintain this balance in his work
I have to point out the comparative obscurity of the style in the concluding remarks of the
article. While Harvey makes it more or less clear what his opinions about methodology of
translation studies are, his final statements at first seem too general to link them with the
main subject of his article. However, in comparison to the clarity of the whole text I consider
it a minor problem.
7. Quotations to remember the text by
“Camp (...) can be seen as a typical (indeed, perhaps the key) semiotic resource of gay men in
their critique of straight society and in their attempt to carve out a space for their difference.”
“What counts than is (...) the fact that these language features have come to stand for certain
gendered and subcultural differences. Camp talk enlists these stereotypical differences in
order to index a distinct sexual identity.”
8. References:
Harvey, K. "Translating camp talk: Gay identities and cultural transfer." in: Venuti,
Lawrence. The translation studies reader. New York: Routledge, 2012,
Munday, Jeremy. Introducing translation studies: Theories and applications. New York:
Routledge, 2016.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378216601000583 (retrieved 3rd Dec
2016)
Pi-Chun Chou
Li Pan
“Ideological positioning in news translation: A case study of evaluative
resources in reports on China” (2015)
Key words:
Critical discourse analysis, news translation, ideology positioning, evaluative
resources, reports on China
Author information:
Li Pan is currently a lecturer in Guangdong University of Foreign Studies,
Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China. She received a PhD in Translation Studies
from the University of Macao. Her research focuses on news translation, mass media
translation and critical discourse analysis.
She had several articles published in well-known journals, such as Target,
Perspectives, The Translator, and Journal of Universal Language.
She also wrote one of the chapters in a book on translation studies titled “Media
and Translation: An Interdisciplinary Approach”. The book was published in 2014 by
Bloomsbury Publishing.
Abstract
The article aims to discuss the ideological positioning through translation of
evaluative language in news articles, and the possible reasons behind this
phenomenon.
The article consists of eight parts. In the first, introductory part Pan explains her
objectives and provides information on previous research in this particular field. Parts
two, three and four elaborate on the relations between ideology and critical discourse
analysis, the definition of ideological positioning and eventually the model employed
in her analysis. The fifth part of the article analyzes several fragments of news reports,
with both source text and target text provided. The author retranslated the target text
back to source language (English) in order to explain the difference between the two.
Furthermore, the author distinguishes between the three types of observed deviations
between ST and TT: Deviation in identifying news actors, Deviation in presenting
news events and Deviation is dissimulating representations. In the last two parts of the
article, the author discusses several possible reasons of these deviations. In the sixth
part, the author presents the results of her interview with newspaper’s editors and the
answers provided by translators in the form of questionnaires. The translators were
asked what a “faithful translation” is. The author argues that the variety of viewpoints
represented in the sample may be one of the reasons why the deviations mentioned
above happened. In the seventh part, the author analyzes the aforementioned
phenomena using a sociological approach. She claims that although the translators
may have aimed to be faithful to the source text, they remain constricted by their
ideology as well as social and cultural values (the same goes for the writers of the
source texts). The eighth, concluding part summarizes the findings of the present
article.
Terminology:
English
Definition
Polish
discourse
Whole process of social interaction, in which
text is just a part (Fairclough 1989: 24)
dyskurs
evaluation
The process of judging something's quality,
importance, or value (Cambridge Dictionary
online 2016)
ewaluacja
evaluative
language
The specific lexical usage and grammatical
usage of a language during evaluating a
certain object
język
ewaluacyjny
evaluative
resource
a news resource that provides judgement and
evaluative information in its text
źródło
ewaluacyjne
ideological
positioning
the act of including a certain ideology in the
news text
pozycjonowanie
ideologiczne
Methodology
The author provides two case studies: first, a set of source and target texts on the
UN Human Rights Council’s Review on China; second, a set of texts describing the
event in which the then Chinese Premier was attacked with a shoe. The fragments
used for analysis are taken from various sources, including BBC, Reuters and The
Washington Post. The author also used the method of contrastive analysis. Namely,
she compared the source texts of news fragments with the target texts. Another
method used in the research was that of interviews and questionnaires. With the help
of these the author sought to find out how the interviewed translators and editors
interpret the ideal of a “faithful” translation.
Links with other publications on the subject
The relation between ideology and translation has often been discussed in
contemporary translation studies. Accordingly, there are several insightful
publications on this topic that are worthy of mention. One of these is “Translation and
Ideology: Encounters and Clashes” (2007), edited by Sonia Cunico and Jeremy
Munday. This book includes articles written by authors from around the world, who
provide numerous examples of the impact of ideology on translation process in a
variety of relevant contexts.
Critical commentary
This article is interesting in many dimensions. It is a well-written article with
clear structure, sensible arguments and appropriate research methods. The author
collected fragments of translated news that were related to two particular events in
Reference News (which is a newspaper with the largest circulation in China). Since
the source texts are all taken from mainstream media, the basis of the author’s
arguments appears fairly reliable. Her interesting analysis of the usage of evaluative
language during translation is eye-opening and unbiased.
However, the last part of the article, in which the author described the social
influence on news translation in China, contains several statements that may reflect
political views prevailing in the author’s country. For example, Pan explains the
decision of the Chinese translator who omitted the word “deadly” before “riot” in a
news report dealing with conflict in Tibet by pointing out the alleged “stress on
harmony”(Pan 2015: 231) that characterizes Chinese society and culture. In her
opinion, the word “deadly” carries “non-harmonious implications” that are generally
avoided by the Chinese. However, this statement is not supported with sufficient
evidence, and for this reason appears more as an excuse for the translator’s intention
of ideological positioning than a scholarly argument.
Quotation to remember the text by
“The text analysis reveals that contrary to the general expectation of objectivity
in news reporting, both the original news and its translations are not free from
deploying linguistic resources to make judgments and express attitudes implicitly in
representing news ‘realities’”.(Pan 2015:233)
Bibliography
Cambridge Dictionary online. 2016. In: 1st ed. [online] Available at:
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/evaluation [Accessed 27 Nov.
2016].
Fairclough, N. 1989. Language and Power. London: Routledge
Pan, L. 2015. “Ideological positioning in news translation: A case study of evaluative
resources in reports on China,” in Target 27.2: 215 ─ 237.
Katarzyna Szefer
MARIA JOSÉ VEIGA
“Linguistic Mechanisms of Humour Subtitling” (2009)
Key words:
Audiovisual Humour Translation Competence, Audiovisual Translation (AVT), General Theory
of Verbal Humour (GTVH), Humour,
1. Author information
Maria José Veiga is a scientific researcher at Languages, Literatures and Cultures Research
Centre of the University of Aveiro. She has been teaching in the area of Portuguese and English.
She is an author of many publications on TS: translation, text linguistics, linguistic expressions of
Portuguese and English, methodology of teaching languages. In her professional work she is
especially interested in understanding and acquisition of foreign languages, literature (English
and Portuguese) and media translation.
Main works:
Humour in Translation for subtitles. Avanca. Edições Cine-Clube de Avanca; Colecção
Comunicação em Debate, 2010
“Translation goes to the movies – a didactic approach”, in: New Insights into Audiovisual
Translation and Media Accessibility Media for All 2, 2010
“The Translation of Audiovisual Humour in Just a Few Words”, in: New Trends in Audiovisual
Translation – Topics in Translation, 2009
“Subtitling Reading Practices”, in: Translation Studies at the Interface of Disciplines,
Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company, 2006
1
Katarzyna Szefer
“Tradução para Legendagem — estudo de um caso” (Translation for subtitles – case study),
University of Aveiro, 2002
2. Abstract
Translating humour is one of the toughest challenges that a translator can face. It is especially
difficult for the translator dealing with text in a field of Cinema Studies. A subtitler has to take
into account the fact that verbal humour in movies is not only about language but also about
paralinguistic elements, easily noticeable by the audience.
Maria José Veiga is profoundly interested in the subject of Media Translation as Portugal, among
many other countries, is in a constant need of subtitles for audiovisual translation. In this article,
Veiga describes which specific translation competences should be considered when it comes to
humour subtitling. First, she defines what humour is and how it is studied by Audiovisual
Translation Studies. Then she explains how a General Theory of Verbal Humour could be applied
in the subtitle translation, with an excellent example of Portuguese subtitles for the American
movie Forrest Gump. The final part is dedicated to the competences that the translator must have
in order to correctly translate humour in a movie. According to her explanation, changing source
language into target language is not enough to convey humour in original message. She stresses
the importance of culture and its enormous impact on translation. It doesn’t suffice for
a translator to understand jokes and translate them literally into another language. The translator
has to have profound knowledge of cultures of both, source and target language, so that both
audiences equally and humorously perceive aspects of a message.
3. Terminology
Source text term
Meaning
Term in Polish
Prosodic elements
paralinguistic aspects such as Elementy prozodyczne
tone, pitch and rhythm, that in
humour translation serve a
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purpose of irony
Locutionary act
the
performance
of
an Akt lokucyjny
utterance, and hence of a
speech act
Perlocutionary effect
consequences of a speech act, Efekt perlokucyjny
such
as
persuading,
convincing, scaring, inspiring,
or otherwise affecting the
listener
Pragmatic equivalent
a word in the TL that has the Ekwiwalent pragmatyczny
same effect on readers as its
equivalent in the SL
Humorous
Principle
Complicity a
principle
by
which
a Zasada
Humorystycznego
translator should be able to Współudziału
recreate humour in the TL
4. Methodology
Maria José Veiga explains difficulty of subtitle translation by describing the main theory of the
subject: GTVH (General Theory of Verbal Humour) and a model of Audiovisual Humour
Translation Competence. She uses an example of Portuguese translation of Forrest Gump to
stress the importance of a subtitler in this kind of translation. She emphasizes the importance of
translator’s cultural knowledge of both, source and target language in the process of Audiovisual
Translation.
5. Links with other publications on the subject:
ASIMAKOULAS, D. 2001. Subtitling Humour and the Humour of Subtitling: A Theoretical
Approach to the Translation of Verbal Humour and Subtitling with Respect to the Greek
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Subtitled Versions of Airplane! and Naked Gun. University of Manchester: Centre for
Translation and Intercultural Studies – Department of Language and Linguistics. (MSc thesis).
ATTARDO, S. 2002. “Translating Humour: An Approach Based on the General Theory of
Verbal Humour (TGHV)” in: The Translator (Special Issue): Studies in Intercultural
Communication – Translating Humour. Jeroen Vandaele (guest ed.) Manchester: St.Jerome
Publishing, Vol. 8 (2).
ATTARDO, S. 1994. Linguistic Theories of Humor. Berlin, New York: Mouton de Gruyter.
ISBN 3-11-014255-4.
CHIARO, D. 1992 The Language of Jokes: analysing verbal play. London & New
York: Routledge.
UENTES, A. L. 2000. La recepción del humor audiovisual traducido: estudio
comparativo de fragmentos de las versiones doblada y subtitulada al español de la película Duck
Soup, de los Hermanos Marx . Universidad de Granada: Departamento de Filología Inglesa. (PhD
thesis - CD-Rom version).
Verba volant
6. Critical commentary –
This paper gives an insight into a branch of translation that, I think, tends to be overlooked –
subtitle translation. To make it even more challenging, the author talks about the subject in
relation to humour translation – probably the most demanding and difficult form of translation.
Veiga points out what characteristics should a good subtitler have, characteristics, that I have
never thought about. This paper can serve as practical information for any translator who would
like to explore Audiovisual Translation.
7. Quotations to remember the text by
“As it is widely recognized, the degree of intensity of verbal humour can be enhanced in
accordance with the amount of unanticipated and surprising elements an utterance can provide”
(Veiga 2009: 5).
“The creation of humour is neither teachable nor learnable. It depends on the individual’s
sensitivity to develop humour awareness, even though this does not mean that there is
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a straightforward interrelation between humour and the capacity for translating humour.
Undoubtedly, aiming at the full understanding of humour dynamics in film translation is a way of
helping professionals to do their jobs, nevertheless, it is not a synonym of being able to produce
or to (re)create humour in a TL”(Veiga 2009: 10).
“The translation of humorous exchanges, nonetheless, requires not only a passive ability –
understanding humour (cooperative behaviour) – but, as mediators, translators/subtitlers will be
expected to play an active role in both humour reception and production”(Veiga 2009: 10).
8. Reference:
Veiga, M. J., Linguistic Mechanisms of Humour Subtitling, Oral Presentation and Poster, 4th
Forum for Linguistic Sharing, October 8th-9th 2009, Nova University of Lisbon
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