This study considers the main research gaps that are important for future studies regarding the improvement of the quality of interlingual live subtitling. To identify these gaps, this thesis...Show moreThis study considers the main research gaps that are important for future studies regarding the improvement of the quality of interlingual live subtitling. To identify these gaps, this thesis provides a literature review of the available research on this topic, as well as an updated outline of the current situation of interlingual live subtitling in the Netherlands.Show less
The Dutch television programme Langs de Oevers van de Yangtze (“Alongside the Yangtze Shores”; 2016) was a great success in the Netherlands with a million viewers weekly and a nomination for two...Show moreThe Dutch television programme Langs de Oevers van de Yangtze (“Alongside the Yangtze Shores”; 2016) was a great success in the Netherlands with a million viewers weekly and a nomination for two Dutch television awards (Lips, 2018). The programme concerns Chinese modern lifestyle and it is spoken in both Dutch and Chinese, the latter being subtitled in Dutch. Since this programme has a focus on Chinese culture, it is relevant for the audience to have a full grasp of the meaning of the Extralinguistic Cultural References (ECRs). Preliminary academic research has shown a gap in the study of both written and subtitled translation of ECRs from Chinese into a Germanic language. The aim of this research is therefore to investigate which translation strategies were used for the translation of cultural references in the subtitles of Langs de Oevers van de Yangtze. All the ECRs in the program have been categorized based on the taxonomy of ECRs provided by Nedergaard-Larsen (1993) and the translation strategy for each ECR has been determined according to Pedersen’s taxonomy for ECRs in subtitles (2011). The results showed that for the categories geography, society and culture, most of the used translation strategies are source-oriented, whereas for the history category both source-oriented strategies and target-oriented strategies are used the same number of times. For the categories society and culture the most used strategy is direct translation. Direct translation is also the most used strategy in the category history along with the translation strategy generalization. For the category geography, the most used translation strategy is retention. In addition, the results showed that the subtitler also uses the Dutch commentary as a strategy in translating ECRs.Show less
The main topic of this thesis is yakuwarigo in translation. Yakuwarigo, the Japanese word for role language, is a type of language use often used in works of fiction which evokes the image of a...Show moreThe main topic of this thesis is yakuwarigo in translation. Yakuwarigo, the Japanese word for role language, is a type of language use often used in works of fiction which evokes the image of a certain type of character, such as an old man or a young girl, by using certain first-person pronouns, copula and sentence-ending particles (Kinsui 2013). Translating yakuwarigo can be extremely challenging because the Japanese language has many opportunities for variation where English does not. For that reason, yakuwarigo is often standardised in the target text, even though this negatively impacts the uniqueness of the characters (Terada, 2015). While there is quite a bit of literature available on yakuwarigo, hardly any research has been done on the topic of yakuwarigo in translation. In this thesis, the feasibility of translating yakuwarigo from Japanese to English using a foreignising translation strategy is examined. The research question is: “To what extent is it possible to translate yakuwarigo from Japanese to English with a foreignising translation strategy?”. The answer to this question is formed by two parts: a theoretical framework and a case study. In the theoretical framework, a number of different topics are discussed, such as translation strategies, equivalence, and stereotyping. In the case study, six characters of a manga (Japanese cartoon) are analysed in the original version as well as in a fan translation. Additionally, a new translation of is proposed based on the acquired information. It was found that despite the fact that it is impossible to translate yakuwarigo to English perfectly, it is possible to translate characters in such a way that their language reflects their main personality traits. This is done by adapting the font, punctuation and lexical choices, among others, to the character’s personality as a way of compensating for the original yakuwarigo.Show less
This thesis describes the development of Yiddish theatre which evolved in Eastern Europe and later moved to the United States of America as large groups of Eastern European Jews began to move to...Show moreThis thesis describes the development of Yiddish theatre which evolved in Eastern Europe and later moved to the United States of America as large groups of Eastern European Jews began to move to the United States in the 1880s and 1890s. American-Jewish authors and playwrights used the high status of Western canonical writers – mainly Shakespeare – in order to introduce their immigrant audiences to the new culture of their homeland. One of these playwrights was Joseph Bovshover, who published a translation of The Merchant of Venice in 1899. In it, he replaced many of the references to the classical mythology or to the Christian religion with Jewish concepts, in order to familiarise the readers with the play. He also applied a translation strategy of transference of references to Venetian culture in to create a sense of authenticity. In his translation he wrote a preface in which he described his appreciation of Shakespeare’s work and especially of Shylock as a tragic hero. This change of depiction was typical of Jewish adaptations of The Merchant of Venice, in which Shylock was consistently depicted as a tragic hero rather than a villain. Bovshover attempted to find a balance between presenting the audience with an authentic Shakespeare translation while at the same time allowing the audience to relate itself to the characters in the play. He did this by transferring the references to Venetian culture literally into Yiddish, while adapting most of the references to Christianity to the Jewish context from which the audience came.Show less
This thesis explores retranslation in subtitling by analysing and comparing subtitles used by or created for VHS and Netflix. To establish whether Dutch subtitling conventions have changed towards...Show moreThis thesis explores retranslation in subtitling by analysing and comparing subtitles used by or created for VHS and Netflix. To establish whether Dutch subtitling conventions have changed towards a more foreignised and source-oriented approach in the course of the last twenty-five years, extralinguistic cultural references (ECRs) in the films Forrest Gump and Dazed and Confused were analysed and labelled according to translation procedure. Examining two different translations of the same film showed how conventions have indeed changed. In more than one third of the cases, the retranslations appear to be more foreignising than the first translations with regard to their treatment of ECRs. What has caused this change has not been explored in this study, but, as other studies suggested, this may be caused by globalisation, technology, and a better knowledge of the English language and its cultures. One explanation for this, verified by the results, is the many omissions in the VHS versions, which left no room for the retention of ECRs. In contrast, retention is the most common translation procedure in the retranslations. More research into retranslation in subtitling needs to be done to establish whether Dutch subtitles have really become more foreignising.Show less
This thesis explores the characterization of Frank Underwood in the Netflix Original Series House of Cards, and more specifically how Frank’s characterization changes due to certain translation...Show moreThis thesis explores the characterization of Frank Underwood in the Netflix Original Series House of Cards, and more specifically how Frank’s characterization changes due to certain translation choices. James R. Keller (2015) argues that Frank resembles the ‘vice’ – a figure from the early modern stage that is also related to the well-known villain – and describes a number of traits. These traits are linked to Frank’s language use by using Culpeper’s stylistic framework of characterization cues (2001), resulting in a qualitative analysis of the Frank’s language use. Next, Vinay and Darbelnet’s procedures (1995) and Gambier’s subtitling procedures (2006) are used to analyze the way in which Frank’s character statements and metaphors have been translated. The analysis shows that fewer information than expected was omitted in the translation, despite the spatiotemporal constraints and technical limitations inherent in subtitling. Any changes seemed to result in a change in emphasis, but not in characterization interpretation. Other information sources, such as video and audio that complement the subtitles, also confirm the character traits.Show less
Trauma resists integration into the memory and is therefore difficult to communicate. In trauma literature, authors represent this difficulty to communicate trauma with the help of several...Show moreTrauma resists integration into the memory and is therefore difficult to communicate. In trauma literature, authors represent this difficulty to communicate trauma with the help of several stylistic devices, such as run-on sentences, unclear references, and deviant punctuation. These stylistic devices allow the readers to experience the trauma as if it was happening to them. Since the communication of trauma is already problematic in itself, the interlingual translation of trauma literature is even more challenging. Translation universals suggest that deviant stylistic choices in the source text (ST), i.e. the stylistic devices used to portray trauma in trauma literature, are often normalized in the target text (TT). In this thesis, I examined how interlingual translation affects trauma narratives and whether the stylistic choices associated with trauma are retained in translation. I answered these questions with the help of a case study on "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close." In order to examine the different stylistic devices used to portray trauma, and in order to find out what happens to them in translation, I conducted a comparative reading of the chapter “WHY I'M NOT WHERE YOU ARE 9/11/03” and its translation “WAAROM IK NIET BEN WAAR JIJ BENT 11-9-03.” I categorized my findings with the help of translation universals, during which I found evidence of a missing universal. Furthermore, I found that the translation choice with the biggest consequences is the splitting up of run-on sentences. By taking a closer look at some of the longest run-on sentences in the chapter and perhaps even the book, namely the run-on sentences consisting of more than a hundred words, I discovered that more than half of these sentences were split up. As a result, the intended effect of the run-on sentences on the reader is also not transferred, and therefore elements of trauma are lost in translation.Show less
Swear words are present in all languages and cultures. Studies show that swear words are culturally specific, based on tabooization or demonization of language and events in certain cultures. In...Show moreSwear words are present in all languages and cultures. Studies show that swear words are culturally specific, based on tabooization or demonization of language and events in certain cultures. In the United States, slavery has been demonized, and certain swear words were used to obtain power over other people, namely slaves. This thesis aims to explore the offensiveness of the swear words used in movies about slavery in the United States and the Netherlands. The offensiveness of these swear words was rated using a survey in English for Americans and a Dutch translation of this survey for people from the Netherlands and Flanders. The results show that adjectives and the use of the singular or plural form can influence the offensiveness of swear words. However, context has the most significant influence. In the translation of swear words in the movies Django Unchained and 12 Years a Slave, the choice has often been made to translate the swear words consistently. The offensiveness rating shows that this might not always be the closest equivalent in terms of connotation.Show less
The aim of this thesis was to test the hypothesis that teaching secondary students English by means of the audiovisual translation mode subtitling will increase students’ vocabulary on a...Show moreThe aim of this thesis was to test the hypothesis that teaching secondary students English by means of the audiovisual translation mode subtitling will increase students’ vocabulary on a predetermined topic. Little research on watching subtitled television programmes for English language acquisition has yet been conducted in the Netherlands and no research has been conducted in which the focus was on one specific topic of vocabulary. To test the hypothesis, a six-week study was held among secondary school students who watched an English-spoken programme either with or without English subtitles. The vocabulary used in this programme was similar to the vocabulary used in the course books at the school. One group of participants served as the control group and watched the programme without any subtitles, while another group of participants served as the experimental group and watched the programme with intralingual subtitles (subtitles in the same language as the soundtrack). The results of this six-week study show that watching an English-spoken programme with English subtitles is an effective approach to learning new vocabulary on a specific topic.Show less
In my thesis I analyzed the Dutch subtitles of the puns and wordplay in Duck Soup and several examples from other Marx Brothers movies. I used two different criteria to examine the Dutch subtitles....Show moreIn my thesis I analyzed the Dutch subtitles of the puns and wordplay in Duck Soup and several examples from other Marx Brothers movies. I used two different criteria to examine the Dutch subtitles. The first was: does the subtitler manage to come up with a translation that remains true to the absurdism of the Marx Brothers’ humor, to the characters, and to the time in which the movies were made? The second was based on Dimitris Asimakoulas’s ‘ideal translation’: a translation that remains faithful to all aspects of the General Theory of Verbal Humor. What my analysis has shown, on the basis of the two above-mentioned criteria, is that the subtitler frequently managed to come up with a translation that retained the absurdism of the humor and remained faithful to the time in which the movies were made, but that the subtitles do not remain faithful to the individual characterizations. Furthermore, in this thesis I also argued that a successful translation does not have to remain faithful to all elements of the General Theory of Verbal Humor. My thesis question “What makes for the ‘best’ translation of the puns and wordplay in the Marx Brothers movies, considering they rely heavily on puns and wordplay” can thus be answered as follows: a successful translation does not have to be a literal translation of the puns and wordplay or remain faithful to the aspects of the General Theory of Verbal Humor, but it should remain faithful to the characteristic absurdism of the Marx Brothers’ humor, to the time in which the movies were made, and to the personality of the characters.Show less
This thesis explores whether ecological considerations are capable of influencing translation choices and thus form a valid area of special attention for translators in their translation practice....Show moreThis thesis explores whether ecological considerations are capable of influencing translation choices and thus form a valid area of special attention for translators in their translation practice. The existing scholarly literature that has investigated the relationship between translation and ecology has either defined ecology rather narrowly (Hu; Scott) or conceived of a translation ecology that remains theoretical and passive, in spite of the urgency and the severity of the ecological predicament that peoplekind finds itself in (Cronin). A practical and ethical approach to language ecology by Stibbe provides concrete methods to judge the ecological stance of texts by and identify linguistic features in texts which cluster to form ecological ‘stories’. The study identified occurrences of these linguistic features in the ecologically beneficial text Sightlines by Kathleen Jamie and explored ways in which they could be translated into Dutch, making use of Vinay and Darbelnet’s translation procedures to analyse the translation shifts. The analysis showed that ecological considerations may conflict with other features of the text that the translator may want to preserve in the translation, such as style, internal cohesion and grammatical correctness. Giving precedence to ecological considerations may thus produce a different target text than when leaving these considerations out of the translation process. The implication is that there is a way of doing ecotranslation and that preserving the ecologically beneficial world view of a source text is a valid purpose in translation.Show less
De Militaire Willemsorde, a Dutch play by Rosier Faassen, can be found in the Special Collections of the Leiden University Library. It exists in several different versions, in print as well as a...Show moreDe Militaire Willemsorde, a Dutch play by Rosier Faassen, can be found in the Special Collections of the Leiden University Library. It exists in several different versions, in print as well as a manuscript in beautiful nineteenth century script, dating from 1873 until presumably 1885. This historical drama about a family torn apart by a young soldier going to war had never since been edited. After all these years, a new edition was made so that yet again this humorous play with experiences recognizable to many generations can be performed and studied anew. Furthermore, a biographical element also appears in the edition whereby parts of Faassen’s auto-biography, which also has not been edited since the late nineteenth century, was used. To provide access to the text for a broader audience, the text was translated from Dutch to English. Much of the same considerations being used to edit the text were also used to prepare the translation. Hunter’s Editing Early Modern Texts as well as Mathijsen’s Naar de Letter was used in the editing process, as a framework and point of guidance. The edition takes the form of what Mathijsen calls a ‘study-edition’ , and contains a historical, critical edition of the text, as well as a justification of the choice of copy text, extensive commentary on the text, including historical and biographical information as well as a stylistic analysis of the text (based on Leech and Short). The translation is preceded by a theoretical framework on the process and strategies that were used in the translation of this drama from the nineteenth century. The overall procedure for the translation of the text is centered around the notions of domestication versus foreignization (Venuti) as well as notions of historicization and modernization, and performability (Bassnett and Lefevere). Vinay and Darbelnet’s translation procedures were discussed and used in the annotated translation, to describe the procedures used for the variety of translation problems that arose during the process. Lefevere’s work on translation as rewriting is especially relevant here, as he also remarks that “the same basic process of rewriting is at work in translation, historiography, anthologization, criticism, and editing” (9). In Lefevere’s words lies the suggestion that a natural relationship exists between translation studies and the world of the editor and philologist, which in reality seems to be a struggled one. Translation is often underrated by philologists, with their translated texts being used for instrumental purposes. A discussion about the mutual importance of translation and philology, and the recognition awarded in their respective fields was necessary here. The question: “How can the fields of philology and translation be reconciled in the edition and translation of De Militaire Willemsorde?” is answered in the final chapter.Show less
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, the novel which Lewis Carroll initially wrote for Alice Liddell, was published in 1865 and became one of the most iconic children’s books of all time. It has been...Show moreAlice’s Adventures in Wonderland, the novel which Lewis Carroll initially wrote for Alice Liddell, was published in 1865 and became one of the most iconic children’s books of all time. It has been translated and retranslated many times into many languages, including Dutch. This thesis will explore the differences and similarities of the translation of puns in two translations of AiW into Dutch, namely the first complete one by Kossmann & Reedijk (1947) and a recent one by Matsier (2016). Puns are described by Low (59) as a kind of wordplay that exploits the ambiguity of a specific language, usually with humorous intent. Although retranslations of puns in AiW in other languages have been discussed, there has not been a case study on Dutch retranslations of AiW. This thesis aims to assess what translation methods the translators used to deal with the difficulties of translating puns and what differences and similarities there are between the two translations. The discussion will also focus on whether the translations meet Weaver’s criteria for maintaining the dual nature of AiW and Low’s criteria for retaining the same type of humor in translation. The puns in the ST have been identified using Nash’s (1985) categorization of puns and the translator’s used methods have been identified using Delebastita’s (1997) typology of translation methods for puns. The types of puns in the ST and their TT counterparts have been analyzed, and the translation methods have been determined. After presenting both an overview of the methods and types of puns used in both translations, the analysis concludes with an in-depth analysis of several puns. The types of puns in the ST and TTs have been compared to see whether they have stayed true to the distribution of types of puns in the ST. The hypotheses are that both translators will have tried to translate each pun into a pun or other humoristic element in Dutch, that the older translation follows the ST more closely, and that the more recent translation is more adapted to be read by children.Show less
Jan Wolkers’ Turks Fruit (1969) was and remains a sensational novel, famous for its explicit sex scenes and use of crude language. March 2017 saw the publication of the first American English...Show moreJan Wolkers’ Turks Fruit (1969) was and remains a sensational novel, famous for its explicit sex scenes and use of crude language. March 2017 saw the publication of the first American English translation of the novel, titled Turkish Delight. So far, no scholar has analysed this new translation by Sam Garrett and even though many articles have been written about swearing in translation, e.g. Crisafulli (1997) and Santaemilia (2008 and 2013), little to no research has been done into the Dutch and English language pair. The main question that I have addressed in this thesis is this: “What was Sam Garrett’s translation strategy while translating Turks Fruit (1969) with regard to taboo language and swearing?” In answer to this question, taboo language in the ST and the TT has been analysed in this research using Pinker’s (2008) pragmatic categories of swear words and the translation procedures used in the TT, Turkish Delight, have been analysed using Vinay & Darbelnet’s (1958) theory on translation strategies. Greenall’s (2008) theory has been used to determine a difference in swearing constraint between the Dutch and American cultures. The analysis ascertains three main points. Firstly, Garrett stays fairly faithful to the ST; he has mostly used a direct translation strategy (66%) and never changes the type of swearing used in the ST. Secondly, the most striking exception to this direct translation strategy is that he has added taboo language and swear words to the TT that were not present in the ST. Thirdly, this irregularity can be explained by a difference in strength of the swearing constraint between the ST readership and the TT readership. Sam Garrett’s translation strategy with regard to taboo language and swearing in Turks Fruit (1969) seems to have been to create a translation with an equivalent attention-getting effect.Show less
This thesis consolidates the available literature on game localisation into a single, ideal localisation process and compares this ideal process to the localisation of the Massive Multiplayer...Show moreThis thesis consolidates the available literature on game localisation into a single, ideal localisation process and compares this ideal process to the localisation of the Massive Multiplayer Online (MMO) game Final Fantasy XIV. The main purpose is to identify and discuss any MMO specific localisation issues. Information on the localisation process of Final Fantasy XIV was gained through an interview with the localisation staff, as well as previously available online material. The results show that the localisation of Final Fantasy XIV even exceeds the ideal localisation on several points, and indicates several MMO specific localisation issues: fluctuating team size, the need for uniformity of visual assets in all language versions, short localisation cycles, and how to incorporate player feedback. Furthermore, the analysis shows that the localised versions of the game have influenced the original version in several ways.Show less
This thesis deals with legal translation in the area of intellectual property and specifically with the terminology of copyright rules. Book 9 of the Dutch Civil Code was intended to lay down rules...Show moreThis thesis deals with legal translation in the area of intellectual property and specifically with the terminology of copyright rules. Book 9 of the Dutch Civil Code was intended to lay down rules of intellectual property. However, due to the increased international nature of the legal area, this book has not been realised. This thesis researches to what extent copyright terminology is specific to legal systems and whether harmonisation of copyright rules has affected this system-specificity. By drawing on the principles of equivalence and translation strategies of De Groot (1993), De Groot & Van Laer (2006) and Cabré and Sager (1999) and Šarčević (1997) and taking the criteria for a terminology of NedTerm and the Conference of Translation Services of European States (COTSOES) into account, this thesis provides a comprehensive terminology for the area of copyright as an area within intellectual property rights.Show less
Politeness is an intrinsical part of human communication and has inspired a multitude of research, among which Brown and Levinson’s politeness theory. There have been multiple critiques with...Show morePoliteness is an intrinsical part of human communication and has inspired a multitude of research, among which Brown and Levinson’s politeness theory. There have been multiple critiques with regards to the universality of their theory in relation to non-Western cultures, inducing the question if politeness strategies are employed differently and thus translated differently across languages. This study examines how politeness strategies are translated from Korean to English and Dutch fansubs by employing Brown and Levinson’s politeness theory and Vinay and Darbelnet’s translation procedures.Show less
