从目的论的角度看影视字幕翻译

从目的论的角度看影视字幕翻译

Skopos Theory and Film Subtitle Translation

Abstract: Film is not only a typical form of art most people love to see and hear, but also one of the most influential media in the society. As an important part of the film, film subtitle is of informative expressive and aesthetic functions, but film subtitle translation is no easy task. Although quite a few translators have put forward different kinds of translating techniques in this field, we are still lacking a series of scientific and instructive translation theories and principles as guidance in translating practice. This thesis attempts to adopt skopos theory to analyze subtitle translation. The products of translation should be evaluated by the purpose or skopos achieved, not by the approaches employed. Therefore, skopos theory can be considered as a feasible and scientific guideline to the translation of subtitles.

Key words: film; subtitle translation; skopos theory

摘 要：电影是人们喜闻乐见的艺术形式，作为电影的重要组成部分，电影字幕具有传达信息，表现美感和吸引观众的功能。但是，电影字幕的翻译并非易事，虽然目前很多译者就电影字幕的翻译提出各种各样的翻译方法，但仍然缺少具有科学性和指导性的系统翻译理论。本文试图运用德国功能主义的“目的论”，分析研究电影的字幕翻译。一切以目的而不是以手段评价译文的优劣，力求各种关系的协调一致，因此目的论为影视翻译提供了科学、可行的指导意义。

关键词：电影；字幕翻译；目的论

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Skopos Theory and Film Subtitle Translation

Contents

Ⅰ. Introduction…………………………………………………………..1

Ⅱ. Purpose and Significance……………………………………………1

Ⅲ. Skopos Theory………………………………………………………..2

A. Three stages…………………………………………………………………….2

1. Katharina Reiss and the functional category of translation criticism……………………………………………………………………2

2. Hans J. Vermeer and skopos theory...........................................................2

3. Justa Holz---Manttari and the theory of translational action………... 3

B. Three rules……………………………………………………………………..3

1. The skopos rule…………………………………………………………….3

2. The coherence rule………………………………………………………...3

3. The fidelity rule…………………………………………………..4

Ⅳ. Previous Studies on English Film Translation……………………..4

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Skopos Theory and Film Subtitle Translation

A. New definition of translation………………………………………………..4

B. Previous studies on English film translation………………………………4

Ⅴ. Application of Skopos Theory to Film Subtitle Translation………5

A. Foreignization………………………………………………………………...6

B. Domestication…………………………………………………………………7

C. Compromise…………………………………………………………………..8

D. Omission………………………………………………………………………8

E. Transliteration………………………………………………………………...9

Ⅵ.Conclusion..........................................................................................10

Works Cited..............................................................................................11

Ⅰ. Introduction

With the rapid development of globalization, digitalization, and multimedia technology as well as the widening and deepening of crosscultural communication, there are more and more exchanges of audio-visual products between China and the outside world. Without good subtitle translation, there could be no successful

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exchanges of the products. Among all the theories employed in film translation, Skopos theory has provided a solid theoretical foundation for the faithful transference of subtitle in films. Skopos theory liberates translation from the chain of the source text and provides a new perspective to elucidate translational activities.

Ⅱ. Purpose and Significance

Appreciation of foreign films has become an essential part of modern life in China. It's an important channel to further understanding and communication between different cultures. In recent years, the audiovisual translation (AVT) has showed its mounting significance. Researches on AVT have been carried out more extensively and intensively in the West, thus common ground has been reached and conventions have been established in terms of translation strategies and quality control. In comparison, researches in this field are far from enough in China. At present, audiovisual products spring up in great amount at the market, but their qualities are at quite different levels due to the lack of theoretical instructions and normalization. The function of subtitle is to maximally convey, under the constraints of time and space, the information of the oral speeches to the audience and achieve conversion of cultures at the same time. Skopos theory holds that translation should center on translation purpose, the translation standards should be multi-faceted and the multi-lateral relationships between the original author, translation initiator, translator and target readers should all be taken into consideration in the translation process. Meanwhile, the function of cross-cultural communication should be stressed. Obviously, Skopos theory can provide feasible

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theoretical instruction for subtitling. The translation strategies under the supervision of Skopos theory go beyond the limit of any single translation criterion. Skopos theory broadens the horizon of film translation by putting translation into a scope of dynamic actions that integrate the multi-lateral relationships between the film producer, translator, target audience, translation brief, time, space and medium. The products of translation should be evaluated by the purpose or Skopos achieved, not by the approaches employed. Therefore, Skopos theory can be considered as a feasible and scientific guideline to the translation of subtitles.

Ⅲ. Skopos Theory

Skopos theory is an approach to translation proposed in the late 1970s and early 1980s by Reiss and Vermeer. It stresses the interactional, pragmatic aspects of translation, arguing that the shape of target text should above all be determined by the function or “skopos” that it is intended to fulfill in the target context.

Skopos theory sees translation as a form of human action. Therefore, like any other forms of human action, translation has a purpose. And translating should be taken as a purposeful activity. The word “skopos”, derived from Greek, means nothing but “aim” or “purpose”, then, is a technical term for the aim or purpose of a translation (Vermeer 227).

A. Three stages

The development of functionalism goes through three stages: Katharina Reiss

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and the functional category of translation criticism, Hans J. Vermeer and Skopostheorie, Justa Holz-Manttari and the theory of translational action.

1. Katharina Reiss and the functional category of translation criticism

She holds the view that the ideal translation is one “in which the aim in the target language is equivalence as regards the conceptual content, linguistic form and communicative function of a source language text”. She refers to this kind of translation as “integral communicative performance”(Nord 9).

2. Hans J. Vermeer and skopos theory

Reiss initiates the functionalist theory but is still restrained by the dominant criterion-equivalence. Her student Hans J. Vermeer shakes off the bondage of equivalence and focuses on the purpose. He provides a new access to translation studies from the perspective of Skopos based on the theory of action. He defines human action as intentional, purposeful behavior that takes place in a given situation and translation is a type of human action. Therefore, translation is purposeful. One of the most important factors determining the purpose of a translation is the addressee, who is the intended receiver or andience of the target text with their culture-specific world knowledge, their expectations and their communicative needs. Every translation should be directed at an intended addressee. Vermeer regards the source text as only an “offer of information” and considers translation to be a type of transfer where communicative verbal and non-verbal signs are transferred from one language into another. The status of the

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source is clearly much lower in Skopostheorie than in equivalence-based theories.

3. Justa Holz---Manttari and the theory of translational action

Justa Holz-Manttari is a radical functionalist and even avoids using the term “translation” in the strict sense which enables her to move away from the traditional concepts and connotations connected with the word. She proposes a new term “message transmitters” consisting of textual material combined with other media such as pictures, sounds and body movements. Translators are experts in producing appropriate message transmitters in intercultural communication. “Holz-Manttari places special emphasis on the actional aspects of the translation process, analyzing the roles of the participants (initiator, translator, user, message receiver) and the situational conditions (time, place, medium) in which their activities take place”(Nord 13).

B. Three rules

Skopos theory is mainly constructed by three rules: Skopos rule, coherence rule and fidelity rule.

1. The skopos rule

Skopos rule, as the top-ranking rule for skopostheorie says that a translational action is determined by its Skopos which means “the end justifies the means” (Reiss 101). Vermeer explains the Skopos rule in the following way: “Each text is

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produced for a given purpose and should serve this purpose. The Skopos rule thus reads as follows: translate/interpret/speak/write in a way that enables your text/translation to function in the situation in which it is used and with the people who want to use it and precisely in the way they want it to function ”(Nord 29).

The rule is intended to solve the eternal dilemmas of free vs. faithful translation dynamic vs. formal equivalence, good interpreters vs. slavish translator, and soon. It means that the skopos of a particular translation task may require a “free” or a “faithful” translation, or anything between these two extremes, depending on the purpose for which the translation is needed.

2. The coherence rule

The coherence rule coming from intratextual coherence means that any translation should be understood by the receiver and it should make sense in the communicative situation and culture in which it is received. What a translator can do, and should do, is to produce a text that is at least likely to be meaningful to target-culture receivers.

3. The fidelity rule

Originating from inter-textual coherence, it suggests that the target language text or the translated text should be faithful to the corresponding source language text. Inter-textual coherence should exist between source and target text, while the form it takes depends both on the translator's interpretation of the source text and

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on the translation Skopos. It may be a maximally faithful imitation of the source text or a complete deviation. Fidelity rule is considered subordinate to both coherence rule and the Skopos rule.

Ⅳ. Film Translation

Film translation is a relatively new genre in the field of translation studies although it dates back to the twentieth century. It is essential to give a brief but clear introduction to film translation first.

A. New definition of translation

“I have defined translation as information offered in a language of culture which imitates information offered in language of culture so as to fulfill the desired function. That means that a translation is not the trans-coding of words or sentences from one language into another, but a complex action in which someone provides information about a text under new functional, cultural and linguistic conditions and in a new situation, whereby formal characteristics are imitated as far as possible.” (Snell-Hornby 46)

B. Previous studies on English film translation

In the west, the research on multimedia translation began from the beginning of 20th century and has enjoyed a rapid development especially in recent decades. Many research institutes have been established for multimedia research, such as

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the European Association for Studies in Screen Translation (ESIST), the European Institute for the Media (EIM), and the Independent Television Commission (ITC). From the studies on the types, features, strategies, assessment and training of multimedia translation, they have a relatively complete system and mechanism to operate and to follow. Subtitling as the one type of film translation had gained remarkable achievements.

In China, however, audio-visual translation in the media is a new genre. It has not been largely unexplored in the field of translation studies. We are still on the stage of summarizing strategies and experiences and seldom touch the point of mythology and theory. We could see that imported film and TV industry are booming while few people have conducted systematic research towards film translation. Up until now, we mostly focused on the strategy and method. Like Professor Qian Shaochang, Zhang Chunbai, Li Yunxing and Ma Zhengqi etc. They are all pioneers researchers in this field in China. Film translation is an interdisciplinary research. We need to find certain theory and norm in certain aspects, among which skopos theory is a good one.

Ⅴ. Application of Skopos Theory to Film Subtitle Translation

Film is both an artistic form and mental product, with which cultural, political, and ideological elements are conveyed. Nowadays, with the industrialization and commercialization of film industry, film has far exceeded the conventional artistic form. Therefore, films, especially film titles, should not be seen and translated as pure literature under the direction of traditional translation theories, which overly

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emphasize the linguistic forms and attach too much more importance to the source text than to the target cultural conditions and intended audience. It helps to free translators from the bondage of traditional theories by providing them a new way of thinking, and establishes a profound foundation, helping people to penetrate deeper into cultural and translational phenomena.

According to skopos theory, the prime principle determining any translation process is the purpose of the overall translational action. For this reason, it is necessary to define the skopos of film subtitle translation first. For Nord, there are mainly three kinds of purposes, namely, the general purpose aimed at by the translator in the translation process (perhaps ‘to earn a living’), the communicative purpose aimed at by the target text in the target situation (perhaps ‘to instruct the reader’) and the purpose aimed at by a particular translation strategy or procedure (Nord 27-8). As in the specific case of film subtitle translation, such three kinds of purposes could be understood in the following way: (a) general purpose: For translator, film subtitle translation can be regarded as a means of earning his living and a successful translated work may win him great fame. (b) communicative purpose: also the ultimate goal of film subtitle translation, which is to arouse the audience's interest and draw their attention. (c) purpose of using particular translation strategies: to achieve the three functions, namely, informative function, aesthetic function and commercial function, to instruct and entertain the audience.

If a translation fulfills the primary purpose of translation, it is regarded as a successful one, whatever translation strategies the translator takes. Translation

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methods can be various as they vary according to the different purposes the translator intended to achieve. Skopos theory accounts for the different methods in different translation situations. In this sense, skopos theory takes a more tolerant attitude to translation practice, especially those considered to be against the existing translation criteria but proved to be satisfactory and successful in outcome (Chen 9-12).

In the west, the roots of these two terms (domestication, foreignization) trace to the argument put forward by Schleiermacher, a renowned German philosopher and translator, he argued that “there are only two different methods of translation, either the translator leaves the author in peace, as much as possible, and moves the readers towards him; or he leaves the reader in peace, as much as possible, and moves the author towards him（Schulte&Biguenet 42）.

Based on skopos theory, this paper discusses five strategies applied to film subtitle translation.

A. Foreignization

The idea of “foreignizing a translation” was introduced by Venuti and he defines this process as “taking the reader over to the foreign culture, making him or her see the

(cultural and linguistic) differences” (Venuti 4). Foreignization is source language-culture oriented in that it tries to retain and transmit the peculiarities of

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source culture, take target language readers to the source culture and let them feel the dissimilarities between the two cultures. Foreignization means maintaining the foreign flavor, and tries to present the complete and full picture of the original so as to bring the audience to experience the foreignness, and the diversified culture around the world.

For example:

1)Reverend Mother always said that when the Lord closes one door somewhere else he opens a window.

院长嬷嬷总是说，上帝关上门的同时会在另一个地方开一扇窗。

2)You’re no gentleman, you’re not to talk of such thing.

你不是绅士，你怎么能这样说话！

3)老温：这是什么人做的什么事，活人让屁给憋死

Just like me to be practically killed by a fart.

4)梁伯母：就算不离婚，黄狗拉车这么拖下去

It’s like a tired dog dragging some broken cart.

Idioms, the valuable assets of a language, also called idiomatic phrases, are

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refined phrases or short sentences which are usually forceful, terse and vivid and the meaning of them are often implied in the images and figures of speech contained. Foreignization has the merits of preserving the national cultural flavor of the original language and transplanting fresh expressions into the target language. In the above examples, “Lord closes one door somewhere else he opens a window” “You’re no gentleman” “活人让屁给憋死” “黄狗拉车这么拖下去” are all translated literally.

However, if the foreignness is too well preserved to be understood by the audience, it will by no means promote the cultural exchanges. The audience would be puzzled and confused and annoyed, and gradually they would lose interest in this film. As for this circumstance, we may use domestication method.

B. Domestication

Domestication, on the contrary, is orientated towards target language and culture. It strives to reject the exoticism of source culture by replacing the local terms and expressions with those that are familiar to TL readers. For example:

1) Jessica’s the light of my life, the apple of my eye, the cream in my coffee.

杰西卡是我的生命之光，是我的掌上明珠，是我咖啡里的奶油。

2) I couldn’t go to sleep either without getting something “off my chest”, as the Americans say.

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我也是睡不着，就像美国人说的“心里有话不吐不快”。

3) And we was young and full of beans. I mean, if you was mad at’em, well, I mean, if they’d done you some wrong, I could see shooting’em.

我们那时年轻又气盛。如果你对他们很生气......因为一些坏事，我可以理解

打死他们。

4) No. I didn’t. Someone else did, and I wound up here.

是的，我没有。别人杀了人，我成了替罪羊。

In the above examples,“the apple of my eye”,“off my chest”“ full of beans” “wound up” are expressions of English characteristics which can not be translated literally, otherwise the Chinese can usually not understand well. Fortunately, there are some idioms with the similar meaning in Chinese such as “掌上明珠” “心里有话不吐不快” and “气盛” “替罪羊”.

C. Compromise

The differences between Chinese and the Western cultures unavoidably lead to the great disparity in language expressions. Foreignization and domestication cannot solve all the culture-specific problems. More often than not, translators have to take compromising attitude and measure, leave out the cultural image in the original, and preserve the core meaning of the original. This strategy also

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belongs to free translation. For example:

1)餐厅经理：朱师傅，您是不是打算“另起炉灶”呢

Master Chu, are you thinking of opening your own restaurant?

2)梁伯母：苦海无边，回头是岸

Life is a boundless sea, only returning to shore is happiness.

3)梁伯母：我跟你讲，“家家有本难念的经”

I tell you, every family has a book of unspeakable problems.

4)朱师傅：三十多年了，你这个狗嘴里吐不出象牙

How is it that for 30 years I have put up with this kind of talk from you.

5)老温：女大不中留啊

Girls eventually leave home.

6)老温：正好是“干烧甲鱼—鳖（憋）”

You are as repressed as turtle.

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In example 1, “另起炉灶”is translated as “opening your own restaurant”. There is no “炉灶”in the western culture. The translation use restaurant instead, preserving the core meaning of the original. The same are as the rest of the examples.

D. Omission

Generally speaking, one of the difference between subtitling and other forms of literary translation is the “none-note” characteristic of the former. In other forms of translation, adding note or extra explanation if equivalents are unavailable may illustrate some culture-specific language. However, under the constraints of time and space, it is almost impossible to do so. In this situation, subtitlers will have to choose the technique of omission. For example:

1)家珍：鸭性属寒，用洋葱来爆炒，正好可以平衡过来

Duck sautéed with garlic. A perfect balance.

2)食补药膳里讲究就是能、性、味三方面的平衡

It is ancient philosophy: food balanced with energy, flavor and nature.

3)玉娇龙：娘说鲁老太爷是朝内的大官，又是三代翰林

The Gous are a very powerful family.

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4)贝勒爷：江湖上也要有所联络，九门提督才坐的稳

Contacts in the Giang Hu underworld can ensure your position

5)高师娘：听说她是道上的人

She is one of those.

In examples 1,“寒”，“食补药膳”，are both cultural-loaded words, used in Chinese traditional medicine. The meaning of“寒”is even difficult to define in Chinese, let alone in English.“爆”is a term in Chinese cuisine. There are many verbs such as “煎，炒，炸，爆，熘，煸，炮，氽，烹”and so on in Chinese language, referring to different cooking in the oil pot. Each of them shows the nuances in the quality of oil, the duration, the speed of cooking, the adding of condiments and water, etc. It is difficult to put these words into English accurately. “翰林”，“九门提督”are official titles in China’s Qing dynasty(1640s), and the translation of these title will make no sense to the Western audience. As for“道上”, a very abstract concept in Chinese folk culture, it is more untranslatable than “江湖”, which is translated into“Giang Hu underworld”in example 5, but this translation are farfetched and inappropriate because “underworld” has a derogatory connotation in English. Therefore, the best solution is to omit these cultural words in subtitle.

E. Transliteration

Some cultural terms and images have no equivalents in the target language;

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furthermore, it is very difficult to translate accurately their meanings through one or two words. In this cases, the pronunciation of these characters are directly transplanted into English. For example:

1)That’s exactly what the Nazis are looking for!

那就是纳粹正在找的东西！

2) Something else cold-coke, water, some disgusting sugary drink pretending to have something to do with fruits of the forest?

其他冷饮-可乐，水，或者那些恶心的仿制成水果混合物的含糖饮料？

3)雷蒙：这我懂，就像阴阳需要调和一样

This I understand.

Like balance yin and yang.

4)言语不通，又找不到麻将搭子

The language, no companion for mah-jongg.

In the above examples, “Nazis”, “coke”, “yin and yang” and “mah-jongg” are all cultural-loaded words. There are no equivalents in the target language. So, we choose transliteration.

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With the development of communication between China and foreign countries, some of the Chinese culture-specific terms have merged into English vocabulary and the same for the English culture-specific terms. In the above example, “阴”and“阳”are not translated into“negative”and“positive”or“feminine”and “masculine”, because these Chinese terms embody special cultural connotation, not referring to any concrete materials.

Ⅵ. Conclusion

Although film subtitling may be analyzed from other perspectives such as Relevance Theory or Reception Theory, considering the great distinction between text-type and text function of the source-text and target-text involved, I choose the Skopos Theory as the starting point to carry out the research of subtitling puts forward some translation principles and then justify the corresponding translation strategies. However, owing to the scant studies in this field, many necessary materials are unavailable. Thus the study in this thesis is still incomplete and needs to be further analyzed and explored.

Just as Vermeer said: “What the skopos states is that one must translate consciously and consistently, in accordance with some principle respecting the target text. The theory does not state what the principle is: this must be decided separately in each specific case” (Vermeer 182). So we should view translation as a purposeful activity. Skopos theory plays an important role in the process of film subtitle translation, but it is still a new approach to the study of translation. The skopos theory is limited and the research findings are not very fruitful. But the aim

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of the thesis is only to arouse the translators’ attention on the application of skopos theory to translation, and help to realize the industrialization and commercial value of film.

Works Cited

Chen, Sheng-jie. Linguistic Dimensions of Subtitling: Perspectives from Taiwan. Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 2004.

Nord, Christiane. Translating as a Purposeful Activity: Functionalist Approaches Explained. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education press, 2001.

Reiss, Kathatina. Translation Criticism: The Potentials & Limitations. Shanghai:

Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 2004.

Schulte, R&Biguenet. Introduction to Theories of Translation: An Anthology of Essays From Dryden to Derrida. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 1992.

Snell-Hornby, Mary. Translation Studies: An Integrated Approach (Revised Edition). Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 2002.

Vermeer, Hans. Skopos and Commission in Translation Action.

Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 1989.

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Venuti, Lawrence. The Scandals of Translation towards an Ethics of Difference. Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 1998.

Zhang, Chunbai. The Translating of Screenplays in the Mainland of China. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 2004.

陈小慰. 翻译功能理论的启示一对某些翻译方法的新思考[J].中国翻译，2000 (4): 9-12.

陈怡. 影视语料与当代英语口语解析[M]. 上海：上海交通大学，2009.

李寿春.100部经典英语电影精彩对白[M].苏州：苏州大学出版社，2007.

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