Scarica Riassunto introducing translation studies e più Sintesi del corso in PDF di Lingua Inglese solo su Docsity! Chapter 1 The concept of translation Translations studies is the recently established academic discipline related to the study of the theory and the phenomena of translation. The English term “translation”, derives either from old French “translation” or more directly from the latin “translatio” (which means transporting) coming from the participle of the verb transferre (to carry over). The process of translation between two different written languages involves the changing of an original verbal language (the source language) into a written text (the target text) in a different verbal language (the target language). In the Middle Ages: - Translatio imperii, the transferring of the Roman empire (Latin for “transfer of rule”) - Translation studii, transfer of knowledge or learning from one geographical place, and time, to another. Translation: the conduit metaphor Text 1 (source text (language)) -> text 2 (target text(language)) Definitions of translation Definition 1 1. Translation includes “all utterances which are presented or regarded as such within the target culture, on no matter what grounds” (Toury 1995: 32) > Translation is what is regarded as translation in given cultures: the different cultures would have different conceptualizations in different ways in looking at translation (would consider translation in different way) 2. Translation in the replacement of an original text with another text (House 2009)> translation is not described as any transference of language A into language B, but the focus is in replacing an original with another one. Translation as replacement Text 2 (target text) à text 1 (source text) Translation is regarded as replacement of text 2 (target text) into text 1 (source text). Definition 2 - Translation is the process of replacing an original text, known as the source text, with a substitute one, known as the target text > source text is the text that is translated and target text is the translation itself. - Focus on the text à we are concerned with particular communicative uses of language, and not with linguistic forms as such > we are not looking at translation in term of linguistic form but as communicative event or communicative uses of language. - In translating, it is a text as a whole that is replaced and not its constituent parts: we do not exchange one separate word or sentence for another > it’s very important when approatching translation in very practical point of wiew to consider the fact that is the text as an whole and not as constituent parts. - Translation deals with the relationships between text as actual uses of language > so when we deal with translation, we are concerned with actual uses of language rather than language in an abstract form. The proces of translation The process of translation between two different written languages involves the changing of an original written text (the source text or ST) in the original verbal language (the source language or SL) into a written text (the target text or TT) in a different verbal language (the target language or TL) Therefore we have: Source text (ST) in source language (SL) and Target text (TT) in target language (TL) This type of translation is called interlingual translation, and it is one of the three categories of translation described by Roman Jakobson. These categories are: - Intralingual translation, an interpretation of verbal signs by means of other signs of the same language. It occurs when we produce a summary or when we rewrite a text in the same language (e.g. the message of a text in Old English is reworked into a text in Modern English) - Interlingual translation, (or translation proper) is an interpretation of verbal signs by means of verbal signs of another language - Intersemiotic translation, an interpretation of verbal signs through signs of non-verbal sign system. It occurs when a written text is translated into a different mode, such as music, film or painting. (e.g. from visual to verbal as in audio description, of form verbal to visual, as in film adaptation of novels) Early history of the discipline From the late eighteen century to the 1960s the most used method to learn a new language was the grammar-translation method. It consisted in the study of grammar rules and structures of a foreign language through translations. This method was then replaced by the communicative approach in the 1960s and 70s which focused more on the spoken language. Running parallel to this approach was the comparative literature, where literature is studied and compared translationally and transculturally, necessitating the reading of some works in translation. Another area in which translation became the subject of research was contrastive linguistics which is the study of two languages in contrast in order to identify the general and specific differences between them. Translation, localization, transcreation Localization (as different meanings) - localization is the process of adapting a product, generally a web page, a mobile app, to suit a particular “locale” (i. e. a specific country or region, from latin locus place - localization is whatever can be consider as a part of larger process of product translation and cultural adaptation (for specific countries, regions or groups) to account for differences in distinct markets. - the versions going into specific target languages may have to add many features considered specific to the target culture. - Different cultural habits and wievs are encapsulated in language - This conventionalization of meaning through language within a particular culture is of crucial importance in translation. Interaction of verbal and non verbal components in adverts - Close relationship between the verbal and non-verbal components of adverts cannot be ignored when it comes to translation. - Verbal elements include the brand name, payoff, slogan, body copy, etc. - Non-verbal comprise the audio, or visual, parts - These work togheter to get the message across, and combined they make up the creative concept behind the advert What is translated is not only the verbal component written text or the audio text but also the images. So the relationship between the verbal and non verbl components in animal to modal text, in commercials in particular, can not be ignored when it comes to translation Conclusions Within the transcreation industry there is a tendency to classifying trancreation as being something more than translation. It must be noted that both target-orientation and the idea of same or equivalent effect, a much valued factor in transcreation, are already part of the theoretical framing of translation It is true, however, that phenomena such as localization and trancreation “contribute to raising awareness of the complexity of processes and encourage rethinking the more traditional views” of translation Conclusions 2 1. The concept of “translation proper” has changed through the centuries; 2. In recent times the new development within multimedia have resulted in new text types and as a consequence they have resulted as a revision of traditional concepts of translation. The word translation “remains synonymous with transcoding word for word”. However, as texts become ever more multimodal, “the concepts of translation and the translator’s world are generally considered archaic”. (Gambier and Gottlieb 2001:x) Conclusions 3 1. Translation and text production are becoming almost indistinguishable (localization, transcreation) 2. The case of transcreation (i.e. translation in the context of marketing and advertising) seems to confirm the idea that intercultural communication requires far more than language mediation. 3. Cultural expertise is of the highest importance Chapter 2 Word-for-word or sense-for-sense . The recurring theme during the pre-linguistic period of translation is a debate between word-for-word (LITERAL TRANSLATION) and sense-for-sense (FREE TRANSLATION) translation. The distinction goes back to Cicero and St. Jerome. The politician Marcus Tullius Cicero introduced his own translation from the greek speeches of some attic orators. He claimed that he didn’t translate these speeches as an interpreter, but as an orator. The interpreter is the literal word-for-word translator, while the orator tried to produce a speech that moved the listeners. St. Jerome rejected the word-for-word approach because by following so closely the form of the ST, it produced an absurd translation that hides the sense of the original text. The sense-for-sense translation, on the other hand, allowed the ST to be translated. Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 BC- 43 BC) In his work De optimo genere oratorum (46 BC) he outlines his approach to translation as avoiding the then normal practice of “word-for-word” translation, which replaced each individual word of the ST with its closest grammatical equivalent in the TL. De optimo genere interpretandi Literal (word-for-word) vs free (sense-for-sense) translation Sutra translation provided a fertile ground for the practice and discussion of different translation approaches. First translations were word-for-word but they were incomprehensible because of the contorted TL-syntaxt. Literal or Free? So de debate revolve around approaching literal translation or free translation. - The literal translation (or direct translation- 1950s Vinay and Darbelnet): a type of translation that adheres closely to the surface structures of the ST message, both in terms of semantics and syntax. Versus - Free translation (or oblique translation – 1950s Vinay and Darbelnet): a type of translation that attempts to translate the meaning of the word within its context and within target language requirements. The literal-free divide The concept of literalness that emerges from these examples is one of exaggeratedly close adherence on the part of the translator of the lexical and syntactic properties of the ST The literal-free divide is not so much a pair of fixed opposites as a cline: literal ß-------------------------------------------------------------à free Diferent parts of a text may be positioned at different points on the cline. Other variables are text type, audience, purpose as well as the general translation strategy of the translator. TRANSLATIONESE A pejorative general term for the language of translation. It is often used to indicate a stilted form of the TL from calquing ST lexical or syntactic patterning. Translationese is related to translation universals since the characteristics mentioned above may be due to common translation phenomena such as interference, explicitation and domestication. Translatese-> refer to a lifeless form of the TL that homogenizes the different ST authors. Translatorese-> a term used by Newmark to mean the automatic choice of the most common “dictionary” translation of a word where, in context, a less frequent alternative would be more appropriate. - Semantic structure analysis-> identifying different meanings of a word according to their characteristics (human vs. non-human, good vs. bad, etc.) What is the use of semantic structure analysis? Techniques of semantic structure analysis are proposed by Nida as a means of 1. Clarifying ambiguities 2. Elucidating obscure passages 3. Identifying cultural differences Formal and dynamic equivalence The old term such as literal, free and faithful translation are discarded by Nida in favor of two basic orientations or types of equivalence: - Formal equivalence, is focused on the message of the ST, which produces a TT which follows the content and the linguistics structures as closely as possible - Dynamic equivalence, the message of the ST is transferred in such a way that the effect on the receptor is as similar as possible to the effect of the ST reader, aiming at complete naturalness of expression. This requires the translator to adjust the text to the target culture. Literal translation Formal equivalence vs literal translation While literal translations tend to preserve formal features almost by default (i.e. with little or no regard for context, meaning or what is implied by a given utterance), a “formal” translations is almost always contextually motivated. Formal features are preserved only if they carry contextual values that become part of overall text meaning (e.g. deliberate ambiguity in the ST) Why dynamic equivalence? For a wide variety of text and given a diverse range of readers and purposes of translation, there is often a need for some ST explication and adjustment. If the translator’s judgement a form of words that is not sufficiently transparent in the TT is likely to pose a threat to comprehensibility and therefore result in unintended and unmotivated opaqueness, intervention of the part of the translator becomes inevitable. Degrees of dynamic equivalence We opt for varying degrees of dynamic equivalence when form is not significantly involved in conveying a particular meaning, and when a formal rendering is therefore unnecessary (e.g. in cases where there is no contextual justification for preserving ST opaqueness, ambiguity, etc.) Equivalent effect or response For Nida the success of the translation depends above all on achieving equivalent effect or response. It is one of the “four basic requirements of a translation”: - Making sense - Conveying the spirit and manner of the original - Having a natural and easy form of expression - Producing a similar response Nida’s concept of “formal” and “dynamic” equivalence, place the receiver in the center of the equation. Adjustment Adjustment is the gradual move away from form-by-form renderings and towards more dynamic kinds of equivalence; it is an important translation technique. Adjustment is proposed by Nida, in the search for dynamic equivalence, as an overall translation technique which may take several forms. In dealing with texts that are likely to produce a dense translation, for instance, we may opt for adjustment strategies, building in redundancy, explicating or even repeating information when appropriate. FE (formal equivalence)<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ADJUSTMENT >>>>>>>>>>>>> DE (dynamic equivalence) FORM BOUND MEANING CONTEXT BOUND Equivalence and equivalent effect ….. example …… We can notice that the translation will change according to: - the interpretation of the translator - the degree to which the translator feels that the message requires adaptation in order to be understood by the TT reader We can also notice that all the translations seek dynamic equivalence in the sense of creating a response in the audience similar to that of the original text. Case study (translating legal documents) Translating legal documents There is little room for adjustments or interpretation in some legal documents, where the translation technique may be one of formal equivalence. Formal equivalence is the strategy adopted in translating legal documents. Comparison 1 In law, all versions of the treaty stand as equally valid. As a legal document, they have a high degree of formal equivalence. Comparison 2 The goal of equivalent effect is also crucial in a legal text such as this, in order to function correctly, each text must stand for the same idea in each language and produce the same response. Otherwise, varied interpretations would give rise to legal confusion and potential loopholes. Equivalent effect or response “The relationship between receptor and message should be substantially the same as that which existed between the original receptors and the message” (Nida 1964:159) Peter Newmark rejects the idea that full equivalent effect can ever be fully achieved in translation. He claims that the gap between source and target language will always remain the most important problem. So, he suggests narrowing this gap witht he introduction of two types of translation: 1. Communicative translation: which attempts to produce on the readers an effect so close as to obtained on the readers of the original text 2. Semantic translation: which attempts to reproduce the same semantic and syntactic structures and the same contextual meaning of the original Newmark believed that literal translation was the best approach. In case of a conflict between semantic and communicative translation, the latter one is to be preferred. Formal and dynamic equivalence and the priciple of equivalent effect Nida’s model proved to be influential especially in German. Werner Koller studied the concept of equivalence with its linked term correspondence. Correspondence is a concept from contrastive linguists that describes the resemblance and difference between words and structures in their linguistic forms. Equivalence refers to the translational relationship between a ST unit and a TT unit and corresponds to Saussure’s concept of parole (PAROLE= specific individual utterances). For Koller, equivalence needs to be arranged hierarchically. He identifies five types of equivalence: 1. Denotative equivalence, related to extralinguistic content of a text 2. Connotative equivalence, related to lexical choices, stylistic equivalence 3. Text-normative equivalence, related to text types: different types of text behave differently 4. Pragmatic equivalence, focused on the receiver of a text message, receiver-oriented 5. Formal equivalence, related to the form and aesthetic of a text, individual stylistic features, also called expressive equivalence Levels of equivalence Formal equivalence when we fully respect spelling and phonological features; Referential equivalence (when we change a word but we refer to the same “thing” e.g. sexy-attractive); Studying translation product and process Understanding translation Juri Lotman The phenomenon of Culture (1878), where he proposed a more sophisticated understanding of translation. Lotman distinguishes between two models of translation: 1. Translation between equivalent codes, translation can only occur to artificial languages (e.g. morse code) The special problem facing a translator when an unusual collocation in the source text needs to be translated by an equally unusual collocation in the target language. Differences between language and cultures make such a coincidence of innovation and accuracy of translation unlikely in many cases. The more comprehensive and sensitive the translator’s appreciation of collocation in both languages, the better the result are likely to be. Linguee Linguee is not a corpus in the conventional sense, but an ‘aid to translators’ that searches data taken from bilingual websites for a given word or phrase and provides the user with a selection of example sentences in the form of a bilingual concordance. The output is similar to that of a conventional parallel corpus in appearance. Bilingual and multilingual corpora Parallel and comparable: - Parallel corpora (or translation corpora) contain source texts in language A and their target text into one or more languages. Source texts aligned segment-by-segment to their translations - Comparable corpora contain texts in two or more languages. a. They are linguistically independent texts, produced in their respective cultures, selected on the basis of their similarity in terms of medium, genre, communicative function, content, sender and intended audience. b. They are texts belonging to the same textual genre and arising from a similar communicative situation (the texts are of the same kind and cover the same content) (e.g. corpus of articles about football from English and Italian newspapers) Machine translation Machine translation (MT) is automated translation. It is the process by which computer software is used to translate a text from one natural language (such as English) to another (such as Italian). Machine translation output generally requires substantial editing effort to be fit for publishing; its quality depends on factors such as language pair, domain and genre, and similarity of the text to be translated and the material for which the machine has been optimized. Chapter 4 Studying translation product and process Vinay and Darbelnet’s Model Vinay and Darbelnet made a comparative stylistic analysis between French and English, noting differences between the languages and finding out “strategies” and “procedures” of translation. A STRATEGY is an overall orientation of the translator; while a PROCEDURE is a specific technique used by the translator in a specific point of text. - Carried out a comparative stylistic analysis between Enlish and French - Noted differences between the languages and translation shifts (shift -> a change in position or direction (change, alteration), it. Cambiamento, variazione) - Identified different traslation strategies and procedures Translation strategies and procedures Translation Strategies Strategy, is an overall orientation of the translator (e.g. towards “free” or “literal” translation, towards the TT or ST) Translation Procedures Procedure, is a specific technique or method used by the translator at a certain point in a text (e.g. the borrowing of a word from the SL, the addition of an explanation or a footnote in the TT) Vinay and Darbelnet identified TWO general strategies and SEVEN procedures; the two strategies are: 1. Direct orientation, occurs when two languages show close correspondence in terms of lexis and structure; it uses borrowing, calque and literal translation 1. Oblique translation, applies when restructuring is involved; it uses transposition, modulation, equivalence and adaptation Direct and oblique translation, these categories operate at different levels of language: - The lexicon - The syntactic structures - The message These strategies comprise seven procedures. The “direct translation” covers three of them: - Borrowing, the SL is transferred directly into the TL (sushi, kebab, computer) - Calque, the SL expression or structure is literally translated (fine settimana < weekend) - Literal translation, is the word-for-word rendering In case literal translation is not accepted, it must be used the oblique translation which has 4 procedures: - Transposition, change in the word class without changing the meaning (e.g. verb to a noun, adjective to verb - Modulation, change in the semantics or point of view of the SL (e.g. It is not difficult> è facile) - Equivalence, same situation by different stylistic or structural means (Like a bull in a china shop> Come un elefante in un negozio di cristalli) - Adaptation, changing a cultural reference that does not exist in the TC (Mr Potato Hand> ET) Transposition A change of one part of speech for another (e.g. noun for verb) without changing the sense. a. obligatory: French dès son lever (upon her rising) in a past context would be translated by as soon as she got up b. optional: in the reverse direction, the English as soon as she got up could be translated into French literally as dès qu’elle s’est levée or as verb-to-noun transposition in dès son lever (upon her rising) “probably the most common structural change undertaken by translators” (Vinay and Darbelnet 1995: 94) Verb-noun: they have pioneered- they have been the first Adverb- verb: he will soon be back- he will hurry to be back Modulation A variation of the form of the message, obtained by a change in the point of view -obligatory: e.g. the time when translates as le moment où (lit. “the moment where”); I like coffee, mi piace il caffè -optional, though linked to preferred structures of the two languages Equivalence (equivalence or idiomatic translation) Vinay and Darbelnet use this term to refer to cases where languages describe the same situation by different stylistic or structural means Equivalence is particularly useful in translating idioms and proverbs: the sense, though not the image, of come un elefante in un negozio di porcellane can be rendered as like a bull in a china shop Adaptation It involves changing the culture reference when a situation in the source culture does not exist in the target culture (“the extreme limit of translation”). A way to bridge the gap resulting the target culture does not have or know a certain situation or institution or concept appearing in the ST. The translator tries to reproduce an analogous situation in the TL by resorting to something that – although not really present in the ST- can produce the same effect in the target culture. (game of cricket (Eng) > Tour de France (Fr.) Supplementary translation procedures There are also other techniques exemplified by Vinay and Dalbernet such as: - Amplification, when the TL uses more words for a syntactic expansion - False friend, a structurally similar friend in SL and TL which deceives the user into thinking that the meaning is the same Tolerance of interference Toury considers tolerance of interference to depend on sociocultural factors and the prestige of the different literary systems. There would be greater tolerance hen translating from a prestigious language or culture, especially if the target language or culture is considered to be more “minor”. Universals of translation Toury’s Universals The term universals is used to refer to features that are considered to characterize translated language and texts in whatever language pair: - Lexical and syntactic simplification - Explicitation - Normalization to TL patterns Descriptive of Translation Studies (DTS) Descriptive TS -> Aim to describe the phenomena of translating and translation(s) as they manifest themselves in the world of our experience. Research takes as its object of study actual translations, the object of study will therefore be a text that members of the target culture consider to be a translation. Description, explanation and prediction Descriptive, the description of the phenomena of translating and translation(s): - Product-oriented - Process-oriented - Function-oriented Theoretical, establishing laws of translational behaviour: - Establishing regularities of behaviour allows for the forumlation of laws - Laws provide a source of explanation and of prediction of phenomena Target orientation The cultural constraints governing translation operate primary in the target system -> translation as “facts of target cultures”. Toury’s research approach is target-oriented in that he considers that translations are “facts of the culture which hosts thems” (Toury 1995, 24) Translations as facts of the target culture Translations are initiated by the hosting or target culture, hence the forces haping them are to be found in TC (Target Culture). Translation presupposes a relation with a Source Text/Source Culture and translators have bi-cultural knowledge. However, in the production of translations, choices are importantly regulated by Target Culture situation and norms. What is a translation? A particular cultural group may not consider certain cultural products to be translations (for example, they may be considered “adaptations”), whereas very similar products may be considered translations at another time or by a different cultural group. Norms in translation Toury’s lasting contribution to translation research is his development of the concept of translational norms. Toury considers translation to be an activity governed by norms. Norms are described as the translation of general values or ideas shared by a community, as to what is right or wrong, adequate or inadequate, into performance instructions appropriate for and applicable to particular situations. (Toru 2012: 63) According to Toury norms are pervasive in translation practice: - Norms are notions of approved behaviour which have prescriptive force within a community - Trends of translation behaviour Social norms Toru defines social norms as values shared by a group with regard to approved behaviour: - Norms govern behaviour and result in regularity of behaviour - Norms are different in various cultures and at different historical times - Norms are sociocultural constraints specific to a culture, society and time Initial norm The initial norm governs the overall approach. Translators can subject themselves: a. To the norms realizd in the ST -> the TT will be adequate b. To the norms of the target culture or language -> the TT will be acceptable Adequate vs Acceptable translation A translation of a scientific text from Italian to English may reproduce the complex sentence structure and argumentation patterns of the ST to give an “adequate” translation (ST orientation) Alternatively, it may rewrite the text to conform to the clarity of argumentation and standard SVO and passive structures of English scientific discourse, an “acceptable” translation (TT orientation). Operational norms Operational norms are those that govern the actual practice of translation. These norms direct the decisions made during the translating process: e.g. - Omissions/additions - Textual segmentation (the distribution of linguistic material) - Translational renderings (actual verbal formulation) Importance of the concept of norms 1.Provided an escape from the tradition of prescriptive approaches (norms are to be studied rather than prescribed) 2.Offered a way of explaining why translations have the form they do 3.A source text is not considered to have one “correct” translation 4.Translations are to be studied in their cultural context Levels of translation The 7 main translation procedures operate on 3 levels: lexicon, syntactic structures and the message. Two further terms are introduced which look above word level: word order and thematic structure and connectors (cohesive links, deixis, discourse markers and punctuation marks). Another important parameter described by Vinay and Darbelnet is the difference between the 2 languages systems (Spanish agua fria cannot be translated into water cold buti t becomes cold water). Option refers to non-obligatory changes that may be due to the translator’s own style and preferences, or to a change in emphasis. Finally the authors give 5 analytical steps for the translators to follow in moving from ST to TT: identify the units of translation (combination of lexicological unit and a unit of thought that are the smallest segment of the utterance whose signs are linked in such a way they should not be translated individually), examine the SL text evaluating the content of the units, reconstruct the metalinguistic context of the message, evaluate the stylistic effects and produce and revise the TT. Catford and translation shifts In the book “Linguistic Theory of Translation” Catford, concerning translation, makes an important distinction between formal correspondence and textual equivalence, which was later to be developed by Koller. Translation shifts are the small linguistic changes that occur between ST and TT. Formal corespondence A formal correspondent is any TL category (unit, class, element of structure, etc.) which can be said to occupy the same place in the economy of the TL as the given SL category occupy in the SL. e.g. belongings > effetti personali Chapter 5 Functional theories of translation Key concepts - Functional theories from Germany in the 1970s-1980s mark a move away from linguistic typologies towards a consideration of culture. - German scholars developed a functionalist and communicative approach to the analysis of translation - Reiss stressed equivalence at text level, linking language functions to text types and translation strategy - Snell-Hornby proposed an “integrated approach” to text type in translation German functionalism, innovation a) Drawing attention to non-literary texts b) Emphasis on communication theory c) Situating any translational action in its socio-cultural context Functionalism argue that the translation processi is guided by extra-linguistic factors, more specifically by the function of the translation and translators make translation decisions on the basis of the extra- linguistic factors surrounding the target text. Extra-linguistic factors and text Texts are embedded in situations or contexts that consist of non-linguistic elements, which determine linguistic form and are reflected in the text. These non-linguistic elements are often referred to as situational features or extra-linguistic factors, among them are: the function, audience, medium, motive, time and place. Function The purpose the text is trying to achieve; examples of textual functions: - To convince someone to buy a product - To inform audiences about the time and venue for an event - To give instruction in the use of a computer programme - To teach someone how to administer medication - To express an opinion regarding a controvrsial political topic - To express feelings of sadness at the loss of a loved one Audience Audience refers to the readers/viewers/users to whom the text is addressed, including the characteristics of those readers/viewers/users: age, educational background, socioeconomic background, religion, sex, their anticipated sociocultural knowledge, etc. For example, a text can be for: - An uneducated audience - For expert researches in medicine - For children in the UK - For children in Italy, etc. Medium Medium has to do with the physical shape of the text - whether it is an oral, written or mixed-media text (a combination of writen, oral, visual, etc.), - whether it has medium-related restrictions (size of pages, computer screens, character limit, etc.). Some examples of texts with special medium characteristics are: - A script to be used in a play - A text for a PowerPoint presentations that is to be read and heard - The subtitles for a film Motive Motive is the reason for the production of a text; this is sightly different from the purpose, which refers to what the author(s) wants to achieve. Examples of motive: - A change in insurance coverage dates required by law can be the motive for a letter sent to the insured - The correction of a mistake in a previous time-place announcement, such as a flyer or email. Time Time refers to the intended time of reception for a text. For example, a weekend sale at a national furniture store, a newspaper advertisement, the time of reception could be the week before the sale. Place Place refers to the intended place of reception of the text. For example a newspaper advertisement for a weekend sale at a national furniture store, the place of reception could be all of the cities in the United States in which the furniture manufacturer has stores. è For example CT scan text Situational features Function: providing instructions on how to care for a child after a medical procedure, a CT scan Audience: the parents/guardians of the child Motive: the reason for which the text was created is that the child has gone through a procedure that reuires some at.home care, and therefore the child’s caretakers need to know what to do and who to call in the case of emergency Time: the text is to be received immediately after the procedure Place: the medicl facility where the procedure took place Medium: a written medium, because the text is provided to the audience as a small handout Functional theories The textual dimension Communication is achieved at the text level, rather than the word or sentence, and this is the level at which equivalence must be sought. Sometimes equivalence is just not possible or not even desirable, for example when the TT is meant to fulfil a function that is different from that of the ST (e.g. when a novel is adapted for the screen). Deliberate lack of equivalence: e.g. when the text is meant to address a different type of readership from that of the source text (e.g. the translation of novels such as David Copperfield as children’s books). Three functions of language (Karl Buhler): - Representation, focus on he referential object - Expression, focus on the sender - Appeal, focus on the addressee of the message Text Type and Genre (Reiss’s taxonomy) A functional model of genre and text type which describes three types of text: - Informative - Expressive - Operative Each of these text types requires a different type of translation method; the translation of the predominant function of the ST should be the determining factor guiding the translation. Audio-medical texts, such as films and visual and spoken advertisements which supplement the other three functions with visual images, music, etc. (commonly called “multimodal texts”) Translation methods and text type The transmission of the predominant function of the ST is the determining factor by which the TT is judged -> specific translation methods according to text type Informative: - Plain prose method - The TT should be content-focused and transmit the ST’ full referential content - Plain prose + explication when required Expressive: - Identifying method (the translator adopts the standpoint of the ST author - The TT should be form-focused and transmit the ST’s aesthetic form - Accuracy of information - The ST style is a priority Operative: However there isn’t so rigid division between different type of language. Justa Holz Manttari proposes a translation action model that takes up concepts from communicative theory and action theory. Her aim was to provide a model and produce guidelines that can be applied to a wide range of professional translation situations. It construes the process of translating as message transmitter compounds that involve intercultural transfer. Translation is a communicative process involving a series of players à notion of translatorial action. It is a human interaction involving intercultural transfer which is purpose-driven and outcome-oriented. Roles and players with own goals: - The initiator, the company or individual who need the translation - The commissioner, the individual or agency who contacts the translator - The ST producer, the individuals within the company who writes the ST, and who are not involved in the TT production - The TT producer, the translator and the translation agency of department - The TT user, the person who uses the TT - The TT receiver, the final recipient of the TT Translation action focuses on producing a TT that is functionally communicative for the receiver, the translator is the expert in translation action and his role is to make sure that the intercultural transfer takes place in the translatorial text operation and the ST is analyzed by the construction and function profile. Relevant features relate to the two concepts of content (is divided into factual information and overall communicative strategy) and form (divided into terminology and cohesive elements). Holz Manttari also describes the professional profile of the translator, and his concepts of translation action is considered relevant for all types of translation and the theory is held to provide guidelines for every decision to be taken by the translator. Veemer is the inventor of the Skopos that is a greek word for aim or purpose introduced by him the 1970s as a technical term for the purpose of a translation and of the action of translating. The major book of skopos is a book in which Veemer cooperated with Katharina Reiss, and in which translation is based in ST, the action has to be negotiated and performed and has a purpose and a result. A TT called the translatum by Veemer must be fit for purpose that is it must be functionally adequate. A title of this book suggests the aim of the writers for a general translation theory, the first part sets out a detailed explanation of Veemers’ skopos theory, the second part, special theories. There are rules of the theory: 1. A translatum is determinated by skopos 2. A TT is an offer of information in a target culture and TL concerning an offer of information in a source culture and SL (the translator is a key player in a process of intercultural communication and production of translatum) 3. A TT does not initiate an offer of information a clearly way 4. A TT must be coherent (the hierarchical order of the rules means that intertextual coherence between ST and TT is of less importance that intratextual coherence within TT 5. A TT must be coherent with the ST The five rules above stand in hierarchical order, with the skopos rule predominating The last two rules concern the success of the action and information transfer is to be judged on its functional adequacy: the coherent rule, linked to internal textual coherence. The coherence rule states that the TT must be interpretable as coherent with the TT receiver’s situation, the TT must be translated in a way in which it makes sense for the TT receivers, the fidelity rule states that there must be coherence between the translator makes of his information and the information that is encoded for the TT receivers. The translator has to ensure that the TT follows its purpose, then make sure the TT is itself coherent and only later see that the TT demonstrated coherence with the ST. Skopos Theory - Skopos, aim or purpose (of TT) - Skopostheorie, a theory of purposeful action. The intended receiver of the target text is one of the key factors determining the aim of a translation. Translating defined as “to produce a text in a target setting for a target purpose and target addresses in target circumstances” and the TT (translatum) must be fit for purpose. Dethroning of the ST (Vermeer) -> the ST loses its status The skopos is stipulated by the client, commissioner or initiator, it determines the translation method and strategy to be employed in order to provide a functionally adequate text in the target culture. The same text may be translated in different ways according to the purpose of the TT. Alterations are acceptable insofar as they serve to make the TT suitable for its intended use. Alterations and translation brief ST and TT can have different functions: Different TTs may results from the same ST if each is meant for a different receiver or for a different use. Functional adequacy TT judged on functional adequacy: - Intra-textual coherence, the TT must be translated in such a way that it makes sense for the TT receivers - Inter-textual fidelity, there must be coherence between the TT and the ST - Loyalty to ST author’s intentions (Nord) Skopos needs to be explicitly stated in the brief/commission and if the TT fulfils the skopos outlined by the commission, it is functionally and communicatively adequate Cristina Nord, another functionalist, stresses that while functionality is the most important criterion for a translation this doesn’t allow the translator absolute license. There needs to be a relationship between ST and TT and the nature of this relationship is determined by the purpose of skopos. This functionality plus loyalty principle. Loyalty is an interpersonal category referring to a social relationship between people. An important knowledge of skopos theory is that it allows the possibility that the same text can be translated in many ways depending on the purpose of the TT, according to Veemer in fact the skopos states is that one must translate in accordance with some principles respecting the target text. Skopos needs to be stated in the commission (described as comprising a goal and the conditions under which that goal should be achieved) or brief. The nature of the TT is determinate by its skopos or commission and adequacy come to describe equivalence (functional constancy between ST and TT) as the measure of the translatorial action. Nord’s Translation- Oriented Text Analysis Christiane Nord distinguishes two basic types of translation: - Documentary translation, a document of a source culture communication between the author and the ST recipient (Nord 2005:80). The translator provides a text in the target language which documents (and hence tries to reproduce in all its peculiarities) a text originally written in another language for receivers belonging to that linguistic community. The focus remains on the ST and the receivers are fully aware that they are reading a translation - Instrumental translation, it is intended to fulfill its communicative purpose without the recipient being conscious of reading or hearing a text which, in a different form, was used before in a different communicative situation. A much more autonomous text meant to cover the same functions as if the text had originally been written in the target language. The target reader may not know that the text has been translated. Chapter 8 Cultural and ideological turns Susan Bassnett and Andre Lefevere focused on the way in which culture impacts and constrains translation, because culture influence translation, so translation is not only a linguistic phenomenon but also cultural. So they move away from the translation as text to translation as culture and politics. This is what Snell-Hornby calls “the cultural turn”. Translation is perceived as a more complex and power-driven process of negotiation between two cultures influenced by their historical and social circumstances Bassnett and Lefevere developed the concept of the cultural turn and show the areas where cultural studies have influenced translation studies: translation as rewriting, translation and gender, translation and postcolonialism. Lefevere He worked with comparative literature and he was influenced by the manipulation school and the polysystem theory. He focuses on the concept of translation as rewriting. Lefevere focuses particularly on the examination of “very concrete factors” that systematically govern the reception, acceptance or rejection of translations. - “Issues such as power, ideology, insitution and manipulation” The people involved in such power positions are the ones Lefevere sees as “rewriting” texts (literature, film, philosophy, science, etc.) and governing its consumption by the public. The motivation of the rewriting can be: - Ideological, the translator conforms or rebels to the dominant ideology - Poetological, the translator conforms or rebels to the poetics According to Lefevere translation is the most obviously recognizable type of rewriting (rewriting is the processing of a text for a certain audience or its adaptation to a certain poetics or ideology) and it is the most influential because it can bring the original text out of its culture of origin. According to Lefevere the literary system, in which translation functions, is controlled by two main factors: 1. Professionals within the literary system, can be critics, reviewers, who decide on the poetics 2. Patronage, outside the literary system. They can be influential individuals, groups of people, institution which regulate the distribution of literature. They influence 3 elements: a. The ideological component, the choice of the subject and the representation b. The economic component, refers to the payment of writers and rewriters c. The status component, refers to the expectation of the patron A dominant poetics is composed by: - Literary devices, symbols, genres - The concept of the role of literature, the relation of literature to the social system in which it exist Rewriting and manipulation Translated texts are subject to manipulation due to ideological, political and cultural reasons: the translator’s conscious “ideology” or “ideological” elements of the translation environment. Manipulation in translation is mostly determined by the target culture, the initiator of the translation and/or the translator. The role of the translator, visibility and ethics Visibility Invisibility is a term Venuti uses “to describe the translator’s situation and activity in contemporary British and American cultures”. It is typically produced: - By the way translators themselves tend to translate “fluently” into English, to produce and idiomatic and “readable” TT, thus creating an “illusion of transparency”. - By the way the translated texts are typically read in the target culture A translated text… is judged acceptable… when it reads fluently, when the absence of any linguistic or stylistic peculiarities makes it seem transparent, giving… the appearance… that the translation is not in fact a translation, but the “original”. (Venuti 2008: 11) Translation and gender Sherry Simon sees a language of sexism in translation studies because the image of dominance, fidelity, faithfulness and betrayal. It is also possible to see a connection between the status of translation, which is considered inferior to original writing, and the role of women, who is repressed in literature and society. Simon talks about a translation project, where the translation is feminist and has to be faithful towards the writing project, because the writer and the translator are both important. Translation and gender Feminist translation theories As a textual practice, translation can play a key role in perpetuating or liberating language from sexism and gender stereotypes. - Eradicating sexist practices in language - Promoting non-discriminatory language in translation - Applying linguistic strategies for a non-sexist use of language in translations Fidelity as an implicit contract between the translation (as woman) and an original (as husband, father, author). - Language of sexism in discourse about translation - Images of dominance, fidelity, faithfulness and betrayal - Male-dominated metaphorics Parallel between the status of translation and the status of women: - Translation is often considered to be derivative and inferior to original writing - Women often repressed in society and literature. (Simon 1996) The metaphorics of translation è Gender metaphors in translation Lori Chamberlain refers to the kind of images used when speaking about translations. Common themes that have defined the language used to describe translation, which are deeply rooted in sexist or misogynistic ideas. - Gender metaphors used in translation -> a degrading view of translation in relation to an original work that corresponds to a view of the relationship of women to men that degrades women. Feminist translation Feminist translators set out to emphasize their identity and ideological position. Translation practice as political action -> manipulation “The feminist translator, affirming her critical difference, her delight in interminable rereading and re- writing, flaunts the signs of her manipulation of the text” Feminist translation strategies a) Supplementing, aims to compensate for the loss of some linguistic devices adopted by feminist writers b) Prefacing and footnoting, used by feminist translators to make clear their presence in the texts c) Hijacking, seeks to subvert anti-feminist contents on the original text or tries to display feminist elements which the original does not openly expresses. Manhandling -> to touch or hold someone roughly and with force, often when taking them somewhere Woman handling -> the feminist translator, affirm her critical difference, her delight in interminable re- reading and rewriting, flaunts the signs of her manipulation of the text. Woman handling the text in translation would involve the replacement of the modest, self-effacing translator. Hijacking Term used “to describe the process by which a feminist translator applies “correct measures” to the work in hand, appropriating the text to construct feminist meaning” (Von Flotow 1997, 82). The translator’s deliberate feminizing of the target text -> translation as a political activity. Chapter 9 The role of the translation Lawrence Venuti Venuti is an important translator who insists on the importance of the sociocultural context and the value of translation and for this reason he criticized Toury’s norms because they don’t deal with any value. They are value-free. However, Venuti states that these values are implicit in Toury’s norms. Venuti wrote “The Translator’s invisibility” where he tells his own experience as translator. Here he developed his important concept of the invisibility of the translator. Invisibility is a term he uses to describe the translator’s situation and activity in contemporary British and American culture. According to him this invisibility is produced by: - The way translators translate fluenty into English, to produce a fluent, idiomatic and readable TT, so they create an illusion of transparency - The way the translated texts are read in the target culture The invisible translator - The “invisible” translator is no longer the one who resorts to fluent strategies, but the one who refuses to take responsibility for his/her manipulations, who believes s/he in merely conveying the information of the source text”. Domestication It involves an ethnocentric reduction of the foreign text, so the foreignness of the TT is minimized. Foreignization Is also called minoritizing and it translation where the translation is visible, because he doesn’t use a Language near to the target culture but he remains near to the ST culture and many times use salso slangs. With the foreignization, the text doesn’t appear as an original text, buti t is clearly a translation and the translator is visible. It is a strategic cultural intervention which seeks to send the reader broad. It is similar to Schleiermacher translations where it’s the reader that moves toward the author. Domestication and foreignization are not opposite, but they are part of a continuum in translation. They depend on an ethical level the translator considers before doing the translation. Berman He precedes and influences Venuti. According to him, translation is an “epreuve”, a trial, because: - For the target culture is an experience of the trangeness of the foreign text and culture - The foreign text is unprooted from its original Language context According to Berman, the ethical aim of translation is to give the foreign as foreign, for this reason he refuses naturalization, and he influences Venuti’s strategy of foreignization. However, Berman thinks that during translation may occur some textual deformation. The examination of the form of deformation is called “negative analytic”. He identifies 12 deforming tendencies that are: 1. Rationalization, modification of syntactic structure 2. Clarification, explicitation of concepts 3. Expansion, adding some elements 4. Ennoblement, the translator wants to improve the original text rewriting it with a more elegant style 5. Qualitative impoverishment, replacement of words and expression with TT equivalents 6. Quantitative impoverishment, loss of lexical variation in translation 7. The destruction of rhythms, common in poetry, it is caracterized by the deformation of word 8. The destruction of underlying networks, words are not significant but they add underlying uniformity of text 9. The destruction of linguistic patternings 10. The destruction of vernacular networks, connected with local speech and language patterns that play an important role in establishing the setting of novel 11. The destruction of expression and idioms, to replace idiom or proverbs by its TL equivalent 12. The effacement of the superimposition of the language, the translation tend to erase traces of different terms of languages that co-exist in the ST. Chapter 11 New directions from the new media Shell-Hornby links film to literary translation in her integrated theory. Titford and Mayoral instead coined the term constrained translation focusing on the non-verbal elements that marked out audiovisual translation. Dirk Delabastita said that the film establishes a multi channel and multi code type of communication; these codes include what Delabastita describes as the verbal (dialectical features), the literary and theoretical plot, dialogue, the proxemic and kinetic, the cinematic (camera techniques). Delabastita avoids any simplistic verbal non verbal distinction by emphasizing that the visual channel sometimes conveys verbal signs and that the acoustic channel transmits some non verbal signs. He compares film translation to other forms of translation such as theatrical performance in order to determinate its character. The major difference in this case is that while drama is constituted on each occasion it is performed, film is recorded and is producible in material terms. The film is distributed and replayed by different audiences but it remains unaltered. These are important constraints that govern the translation in the film and these is the co-existence of the sound channel and the vision channel. He considers film translation as an extension of translation studies Luyken speaks about audiovisual language transfer. Gottlieb describes interlingual subtitling as a form of diagonal translation not only is the SL rendend as a TL but speech is rended by written text, in contrast to the more conventional horizontal transfer that occurs in interpreting and in interlingual translation. He considers subtitling as intrasemiotic because it operates within the confines of the film and TV media and stays within the code of verbal language. The subtitles has to be not to be so different from the original text. According to him the physical status is important of the medium is central because the TTs are modifications of originals which retain the non-verbal elements and this physical status provokes a paradoxical situation for the subtitler. The coexistence of ST and TT subtitles creates another tension, which is described by the concept of the vulnerable translation. Gambier discusses the competiting terms audiovisual translation, screen translation and multimedia translation. Diaz Cintas and Remael conclude with different kind of subtitling: - Interlingual subtitling, in various forms for the cinema and video where the subtitles are open meaning that they are an integral part of the version of film and DVD where the may be closed meaning that the viewer can select what see and not in which language - Bilingual subtitling, where subtitles are provides in two languages such as in Belgium - Intralingual subtitling - Dubbing, where the SL voice is replaced by a TL voice - Voice-over, used for documentary or interview