The present Master’s thesis seeks to develop a better understanding of the translation of idiolect in narrative dialogue. Idiolect found in three characters (two villains and one hero) from Roald...Show moreThe present Master’s thesis seeks to develop a better understanding of the translation of idiolect in narrative dialogue. Idiolect found in three characters (two villains and one hero) from Roald Dahl’s children’s novels Matilda and The Witches is analyzed by means of Juliane House’s model for translation quality assessment. Central to this discussion is the way in which the idiolects function regarding character portrayal, and how the Dutch translations affect this, if at all. The analyses demonstrate that idiolect is retained in all translations, although slight shifts have occurred in the translation process. These alterations mainly affect the humorous effect of the villains. The hero is less notably affected, because her idiolect is less explicitly present. Concluding, retaining idiolect in translation texts is salient for character portrayal.Show less
Research master thesis | Asian Studies (research) (MA)
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In this study, An Kuk-sŏn (also known as Chŏngang,1876-1926), a leading writer of the Greater Korean Empire period, is regarded as one prototype of Korean reformist intellectuals in the face of the...Show moreIn this study, An Kuk-sŏn (also known as Chŏngang,1876-1926), a leading writer of the Greater Korean Empire period, is regarded as one prototype of Korean reformist intellectuals in the face of the global expansion of imperialism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Based on An’s Chŏngch’i Wŏnnon (政治原論, Basic Principles of Politics, 1907), the first modern political science textbook in Korea, the study explores the adoption of modern Western political science, which some of these intellectuals regarded as a means of national survival. This study also revalorizes Chŏngch’i Wŏnnon and the act of translation, the most common way of learning the West yet has been undermined in the discourse of nationalist historiography, by applying the frameworks of translation studies.Show less
The Old English poem Wulf and Eadwacer is famous for its ambiguity, mystery, and difficulty of interpretation. According to Elaine Treharne, “it is one of the most challenging Old English poems to...Show moreThe Old English poem Wulf and Eadwacer is famous for its ambiguity, mystery, and difficulty of interpretation. According to Elaine Treharne, “it is one of the most challenging Old English poems to translate satisfactorily.” There are various ways to interpret and translate Wulf and Eadwacer, and many different translations have already been published. Throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, translators have tried their best to create translations of Wulf and Eadwacer that reflect their opinions, serve their purposes, and appeal to their particular audiences. John Adams believes Wulf and Eadwacer must be seen as a riddle, and has translated it as such, while others, like Treharne, consider the poem a woman’s song. The choices that translators make show how they interpret the poem, and the examination in this thesis will show what might have influenced the translators to create their particular translation, and how their choices and interpretations of Wulf and Eadwacer have influenced their translations.Show less
British literature was becoming increasingly popular in the Dutch book market around 1900. British books were imported and translated on a large scale. This dissertation presents a case study of...Show moreBritish literature was becoming increasingly popular in the Dutch book market around 1900. British books were imported and translated on a large scale. This dissertation presents a case study of the translation and publication of the novels by the British author Mary Augusta Ward in the Netherlands from 1888 to 1924. An analysis of primary evidence from the Bohn Archives of the Leiden University Library and the Vereeniging ter Bevordering van de Belangen des Boekhandels’ "Nieuwsblad voor den Boekhandel", offers new insights into Dutch translation rights procedures, the negotiations between the Dutch and the British publishers of Ward’s works, the communication between the Dutch publishers and the translators, the competition between English editions of Ward’s novels and the Dutch translations, and the publication of unofficial, competing, translations. In this dissertation, the Dutch publisher De Erven F. Bohn is shown to have paid Smith Elder & Co of London in order to be the first to obtain the Dutch rights to translate Ward’s novels, despite the fact that the Netherlands had not yet signed the Berne Convention. Furthermore, evidence is found suggesting that individual translators could have titles registered at the Translation Committee on their own behalf, in order to become the private owner of the Dutch translation rights. In addition, the archival sources show that there was a danger of competing Dutch translations being published in the Dutch periodicals of the time, and of the Dutch readers reading the novel in English if their patience was tried, throughout the translation and publication process of Ward’s novels.Show less
