Preliminary Study on Tactics of Translating Film’s Subtitles

Preliminary Study on tactics of Translating Films Subtitles Abstract This essay firstly gives a brief introduction of the status quo of subtitling practice.By elaborating the characteristics and functions of subtitling variation, analyzing the cadence and space constraints by using concrete examples exerted from Forrest Gump, Waterloo Bridges, Friends, Rain Man, Shrek, Youve Got Mail, Liar Liar, Mind of Beauty, Schidles List, superbia and Prejudice, Ameri git Beauty, Out of Africa, aft(prenominal) the Sunset for illustration, the author empowers forward six workable strategies for subtitling edition, namely, the avoidance of mistakes on common sense, the application of condensation, out-of-pocket direction of heathenish factors, the adoption of conversational oral communication with natural and fluent vestige,the strainment of unanimity between speed and visual pictures, skinny consideration of consideration. Finally, the importance of improving explanation skills a nd work ethic of provide translating programs is high lightened with the hope for improveing the provide translators practice in an efficient stylus. Key course subtitling characteristics constraints strategies legend translators Preliminary Study on Tactics of Translating Films Subtitles Out pull choke offThesis Statement adaptation of delineations legends, which plays a genuinely important role in cross-cultural communication, is noteworthy of referable attention in baseball club to convey the accurate signifi basisce of the original films to its audience. ?. Introduction The Status Quo, Characteristics, and Functions of Subtitling variation ?. deuce narrowing Factors of Subtitling definition A. Time Constraint in Subtitling Translation B. Space Constraint in Subtitling Translation ?. Tactics Drew From the Analysis of Some Movies A. The Avoidance of Mistakes on special K Sense B. The action of abridgment C. Due Attention of cultural Factors D. The acceptation of Colloquial Words with Natural and Fluent Speed E. The per take a crapance of Harmony between Speed and Visual Pictures F. Good Consideration of scene ?. ConclusionPreliminary Study on Tactics of Translating Films Subtitles ?. Introduction A. The Status Quo of Subtitling Translation With the widening opening-up and deepening re souration as well(p) as the increasing contact with otherwise countries, English original films be convey much and more ha minual in our entertainment industry. When Americans ar crazy with The Lord of the Rings, laughing with Shrek, arguing about Fahrenheit 9/11, and holding their breath at appreciating Spider-man, Chinese people too want to earn a encyclopaedic under al-Qaidaing of them. However, not all Chinese people could understand English, so they have to turn to legends to befool a sense of satisfaction.Therefore, subtitling description, which plays a genuinely important role in cross-cultural communication, is noteworthy of due attent ion in order to convey the accurate heart of the original films to its audience. B. Characteristics of Subtitling Translation Subtitles atomic number 18 the forges that printed at the bottom of the inning part of the screen in the form of target language, following the fathom of ejaculate language. Nedegaard-Larsen, Birgit once put subtitling translation as a type of special language conversion the decoctd indite translation of the original oral speech. 1 Shuttleworth and Cowie besides put it in this managementsubtitling translation was a service which provides co-occurrent instruction to the verbal activities happened in films and television programs. Gottieb once concluded the features of subtitling translation into louver aspects 1) written 2) addible 3) instantaneous 4) simultaneous 5) mul snipdia. 3 And someoneally speaking, there are at least three apparent features 1. Proper condensation of original context When a film is going, its viewers take up to have he ed of the subtitles while sense of hearing the original sound and appreciating the animated pictures. So subtitling translation not only ineluctably accuracy, only when also has to attach equal importance to the density of words in each line and the actors speaking speed, of which the complexity can be adjusted in accordance with the viewer acceptance. Therefore, proper condensation becomes the key point of subtitling translation.Lets take a laconic conversation in Friends as an example, Rachel said Chandler, I gotta tell you, I love your moms books I love her books I cannot get on a plane without one. The original subtitle translation goes ilk this , , , Although we can sense the literary beauty in it, we also can condense it into a better express way like , 2. Conversion from written speech to colloquial form Usually, the subtitles only stay on the screen for only a very little while. To make original that the viewer can grasp the main idea easily, the style of the r epeatd version should avoid unreadibility. So the restrict of oralization and readability outshine other factors.The translation of subtitles should to most extent choose oral and easy-understanding words and phrases, avoiding wasted words, repetitive expressions much foreignized set phrases and idioms as well as foreign allusions that Chinese people cannot understand. The strong belief should not be tedious and lengthy, but be simple and easy-understanding, also the translation should avoid parenthesis, gerunds and clauses. 3. creation compatible with multimedia For ordinary written workings, information can be conveyed only through the form of characters, while for subtitles, it can convey the message altogether with visual information (movie pictures) and sound information (original sound, medical specialty and other stage sounds). Therefore, when the subtitles fail to convey the exact meaning, its viewers can get information from extra-linguistic message.Lets take Shrek fo r example, Shreks anger can be aimn by contorted face Princess Fionas irritation and kindness can be sh own through her gentle smile the subtle effect can be sensed through its beautiful or soft or exciting music. all told of these important extra-linguistic messages can be expressed by mere written characters, and these messages can aid subtitles to bring its functions into full play. C. Functions of Subtitling Translation When mentioning the functions of subtitling translation, usually I would like to conclude them into the following points 1) Subtitling translation can facilitate its viewers to maximise their understanding to the original films.Because many Chinese viewers cannot understand English, they need some facilitating tools to help them to turn over and appreciate them. After trying many methods, researchers find that subtitle is a very effective way to achieve this. It can convey the maximum message to the audience. 2) Subtitling translation serves as an aid to vis ual pictures and sound effect. Subtitle is a type of special conversion between translation and consecutive interpretation. Because in simultaneous interpretation and translation, readers and listeners receive the message in a constant way, while in consecutive interpretation, a time difference exists in the process, which is like the subtitle translations function in movies.And for subtitle, it must work with pictures and sounds when conveying its information, and in this process, viewers need to scan one line and then another(prenominal) to grasp the main idea, also a time difference happens, but this difference is much shorter than that in consecutive interpretation. 3) Subtitling translation can help its movie viewers to appreciate the original impact brought by the genuine effect. Viewers need just have a glimpse of the subtitles appearing at the bottom part of the screen while listening the original sound. 4) Good subtitling translation can be a wide way for people to learn English. When people listen to English, they can see the Chinese.In the process, they may not only improve their English listening proficiency, but also enhance their English translation skills. ?. Limiting Factors of Subtitling Translation A. Time Constraint in Subtitling Translation Time constraint marrow that the picture causa and sound effect should be mutually accordant. Although film subtitle is not so strict as film dubbing, it should also convey the exact meaning by using the similar amount of time as it is used in source language. Furthermore, subtitle should stay on the screen long large for viewers to scan. Usually, the time is not less than two seconds and not more than seven seconds (except for song lyrics).If translators slew the time constraint in subtitling translation, some troubles might be caused for viewers to gain a center understanding. So specifically, sometimes translators need to use condensation and colloquial words to achieve the time harmony with oth er factors, such as the background music, characters facial expressions and so forth. B. Space Constraint in Subtitling Translation Space constraint means that the words and punctuations of subtitle appeared on the screen at one time should not be too many. fit in to Gottliebs study, the words appeared in each line of the subtitle are not more than thirty-five, and at most, two lines can be on at the resembling time.Therefore, if the subtitles in original movies are very long, the translators should adopt the condensation of words in order to cave in the viewers the proper and complete meaning within a limited space on the screen. For these part, the minute the expatiation will be unfolded in the following strategies. ?. Workable Strategies Dealing With the Above Constraints A. The Avoidance of Mistakes on Common Sense instance1 Is there a Mr. Gump, Mrs. Gump? He is on vocation. (Chosen from Forrest Gump) The second strong belief is Forrest Gumps mothers euphemistic respons e to the schools principals question. In this clock time, on vocation back breaker not mean Forrest Gumps father was unfeignedly having a vocation or holiday, but means Forrest Gumps father was dead.So when translating this phrase, translators should do a careful consideration, avoiding mistranslation in order to convey the exact meaning to its appreciators. Therefore, I personally think this fourth dimension can be translated into instead of . recitation 2 Myra benignant of you to come and see me. Roy Not at all. (Chosen from Waterloo Bridge) This concise dialogue shows that the two major characters are very excited at adopting each other, while the subtitles in aversion are , which patently are very confusing. However, in another version, the translation is , . I think the latter translation is much better. precedent 3 Myra What the time is it? Kitty Its er almost eleven. Chosen from Waterloo Bridge) Kittys rejoinder is very simple, but the subtitle is , and I think this trivial mistranslation is caused by translators carelessness, which seems to be a little bit irresponsible. Example 4 Joey I gotta tell you. Youre the best in the business. Girl Get out. (Chosen from Friends) The translation of Get out in the subtitle is , which is really absurd. Suppose we put it in this way, that means when the girl heard Joeys praise to her, she did not say thanks to show her politeness, contrarily she asked Joey to leave, which is not proper in that context. Also, this scene happened on the platform, where there was no door, how a person could get out.So I think Get out should be translated into quite an than . Example 5 Im ready to pop. (Chosen from Liar Liar) The subtitle of this actors lines in a version is , which is really weird and makes the audience puzzled. In fact, this sentence is the persons response to the waiter, and it is a kind of euphemistic refusal. So it should be translated into or . So to conclude, Chinese is a parataxis language while English is a hypo-taxis language, so the rooting solution of mistranslation is that the subtitle translators should have a good command of English and Chinese. B. The Application of CondensationBecause of the space constraint, sometimes subtitles should be condensed and translators may eliminate some parts which can be easily sensed through the movies context. But this elimination should be proper and mark. Example 1 Momma always says theres an awful lot you could tell about a person by their shoes. (Chosen from Forrest Gump) Subtitle , , . Personally speaking, this Chinese translation seems a little bit long, and we might have a try to condense it into , . I think , is better than , , . Also the modified translation could achieve the beautiful effect which is similar to a movies name Scent of Women ( ).Example 2 I turn on my computer, I wait impatiently as it connects, I go on line and my breath catches in my chest until I hear the three littl e words Youve got mail I hear nothing, not even a sound on the streets of New York, just the beat of my own heart. I have mail From you (Chosen from Youve Got Mail) Subtitle , , , , , , , , In this translation, two places applied condensation. 1) Youve got mail. If we translate this sentence according to its real meaning of each word, then the translation could be , but apparently, compared with the first translation , the second one is inferior, because in the original speech, there is a clue three little words. So eliminating ? and translating it into is quite splendid. 2) I have mail From you Translating it into is much better than translating it into , following the original order of each word. Furthermore, the original translation can give a vivid description of the major feminine characters eager and excitement. Example 3 Shrek Its on my to do list now, come on Fiona But this isnt right. Youre meant to charge in, sword drop, banner flying, thats what a ll other knights did. (Chosen from Shrek)Subtitle , , , , ,. Suppose we modified the former part into , or , , it would be concise and natural to Chinese viewers. then we might adjust the latter parts order into , , . Put them together and we get the translation , , , . I think the modified translation would express its meaning in a concise way. And also it can keep the original animated sense. Therefore, in order to employ the tactic of condensation freely, the subtitle translators should comprehend the English and Chinese completely.English is a kind of hypo- taxis language while Chinese is a parataxis one. So when translating English into Chinese, translators should command such unnecessary parts as some conjunctions. C. Due Attention of Cultural Factors In the source language, unavoidably there are many culture-loaded words containing special cultural meaning which cannot be easily sensed by its readers. These culture-loaded words, coming from religious books, historical stories or literature works and so forth, which are not familiar to its target language readers, sometimes may cause cultural clash and cultural vacuum. Considering the space constraint, adding notes is not feasible.So at this time, subtitle translators should adopt liberal translation on the basis of comprehending the cultural factors. Example1 Dont you take the Lords name in baseless with me, you understand? (Chosen from Ghost) This sentence is the conjurator Oda Maes dissatisfactory response to Sams words. And in vain in this sentence was translated into . But this idiom, if we put it into Chinese, means , in this context. This meaning can be dated back to Bible, in which there is a sentence goes Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy paragon in vain. ( ). Therefore, the translation there should be modified into , Example2 Shall we say swords, gentlemen? Pistols at dawn? (Chosen from Mind of Beauty) This sentence was said by a person who was drink ing with his friends and Nash, when a beautiful blond came in, then they began to talk about who had advantage to talk with this girl first. If this sentence is literally translated, it should be , and this sentence is definitely nonsensical and will confuse its audience. Actually, this line contains the cultural content that in the middle century in occidental countries, the upper-class nobles usually gain their lovers by fighting, in which the tools are swords or pistols. We can see obviously this sentence is wisecrack.To make Chinese viewers understand and avoid additional explanation, subtitle translators had better eliminate the meanings of swords and pistols and translate it into , , . There is quite appropriate, for it can not only express these gentlemens meaning, but also keep the original meaning of gaining lovers through swords and pistols. In addition, this translation showcases the theory of functional equivalence proposed by Neda. Example 3 Shrek What shou ld we do with him? Donkey Take the sword and neuter him right here. Give him the bobber Barker treatment (Chosen from Shrek) Subtitle , Bob Barker treatment has something to do with the cultural background.In a notable American entertainment program The Price is Right ( ? ), the host Bob Barker always says serve up control the population, have your pets sprayed or neutered( , ) at the end of the program. Spray is used to describe the womanish one, and neuter the male one. We can see the translation of this dialogue has expressed its cultural content fully. D. Adoption of Colloquial Words Subtitling translation of films is quite different from literature translation. Because when appreciating literature works, readers can adjust their translation speed according to their liking, capability of understanding as well as the works degree of complexity.When readers fiddle uncommon-used words or particular interesting chapters, they could slow down or read them repetitively when they meet easy or tedious parts, they also could choose to speed up or just omit them. However, when people see movies, they are in the position of being passive, for they are the information receivers. In the process of appreciating a movie, time for digesting subtitles is short, and each scene is closely related, so the translation of subtitles is not allowed to have light points. To achieve this, subtitle translators should adopt colloquial expressions. Example 1 My house is in the hills above Trujillo. A very simple place pink stones that warm in the sun kitchen arden that smells of herbs in the day jasmine in the evening. Through the gate is giant popular. Figs, apples, pears. The soil, Marcus, blackblack like my wifes hair. Grapes on the southeast slopes, olives on the north. Wild ponies play near my house, they tease my son. He wants to be one of them. (Chosen from Scrapper) Subtitles TRUJILLO , , , , , , There are three pronouns at the end of this passage they, he and them. The literal translation of the last sentence is , .Although this sentence is right, the translating accent is very English, and it is not quite acceptable by Chinese people. So the translator changed it into , which sounds natural, colloquial and easy-understanding. E. The Achievement of Harmony between Sounds and Visual Pictures Film is kind of comprehensive art combine with listening and watching. Visual pictures and sounds are mutual complemented to each other. So to achieve the harmony between them is quite essential. Example 1 Lester So, Janie. How was school? Janie Its ok Lester Just okay? (dissatisfied) Janie No, Dad. It was spectacular (impatient) (Chosen from American Beauty)There spectacular is a relatively longer word, and the Chinese translation is or , but or is a little bit short. When the subtitle has completed displayed to the viewers, the actor could probably not stop moving her lips. So to achieve the agreement, the translation had bette r be . In addition, also could express Janies impatient feeling. Example 2 Ah, there it is. (Chosen from Mind of Beauty) When Nash was playing checks with his rival, several students were watching, and in the end, one of them said that sentence. If we translate it literally, the translation should be which is very vague. And in he movie, we can see, following this sentence, Nash smiled. So this sentence contains the hidden meaning that Nash would win the competition. So, if we translate it into ? , , then it will be more accordant with the picture ( Nashs smile). F. Good Consideration of Context Each exciting moment in film is established through dialogues, and their meanings should be coherent, so the context of film stands in an important position. Subtitle translators should know the actors purpose very well through the context. yet thus could the translated subtitles be understood by the viewers. Example 1 Go to the mattress. (Chosen from Youve Got Mail)This sentence i s originated from the actors line in movie The Godfather, and it means that it is the time for fighting, because this scene happened in the context that the sinister gang up would sleep together temporarily on several beds before fighting in the next day. Therefore, the translation of this should be . But if the subtitle translators don not know its origination, they are likely to put it into the way of , which is really ridiculous and probably cause misunderstanding to its viewers about the two major characters relationship. Example 2 Karen And you? How is it with the fighting? Denys Were taking a beating. Its likely to last for a while. (Chosen from Out of Africa) A translation version for this dialogue is , .In this version, the translation for taking a beating is not proper, though from the literal meaning, it is accordant with the later part Its likely to last for a while. However, if we do a careful analysis, we will find Denys practice is not acceptable to Kare ns question. Because Karen asked Denys how the fighting was going on, and she needs a description, while Denys just answered Karen there was a beating. In our daily life, we don not answer others questions in this way. In fact, taking a beating is an English idiom, and it means difficult to surpass, so why dont we translate it in this way , . I think it will be much better.There are many such kind of examples. Now let me compare a words meaning in different context. 1) Schidle Well, Im a German. All right, youve done it. A good ships company, you think? stark Modestly successful (Chosen from Schindles List) There good company can be translated it into , but ? can be divided into many aspects. According to Schidles reply and his individuality as a businessman, it is not hard to sense his purpose that he wanted to know whether this company was profitable or not. So I think the translation had better be ? , , . 2) Stern You stand in the line or there, but there is no go od. Chosen from Schindles List) no good in Chinese means , but according to the situation then Jews wanted to find a job in Schidles factory, but without blue cards, they cannot get any job there, so Stern said to one of the Jews that sentence. Considering all these, I think we can change into another expression like , . 3) Goeth You want to say where you are. Youve got things going on the side, things are good, you dont want anybody telling you what to do I can understand all that, didnt I? (Chosen from Schindles List) This scene happened in this context Goeth was a bad guy who always kills people.He thought Schindle wanted to build a small face pack by employing Jews, so he thought Schindle would turn to him for help. Then he said the sentence above. According to the movies content, we know thing means establishing a small camp there, so good means profitable. Then the subtitle could be translated as , , , , 4) Darcy But that was what she liked. People flatter her so m uch she enjoys an occasional change. Lizzy Im afraid I gave her a good change this afternoon. (Chosen from Pride and Prejudice) According to the movies content, we know that Darcys aunt is a person who likes others flattery.Lizzys reply is an irony. I once saw a kind of translation in a version was , in which the translation of good is liberal. This translation did not keep the original speaking tone of the speaker, and could not show Lizzys smartness and character. So I suggest this translation be changed into . All in all, subtitling translation should be connected with the films different context. Then only do so, can it convey the genuine meaning to its viewers. ?. Conclusion In consideration of the time and space constraints as well as the analysis of those examples, I have concluded the subtitling translation tactics into six aspects.Right now, I also would like to provide a piece of advice to the subtitle translatorsto be a subtitle translator with intelligence and work ethic. For intelligence, subtitle translators may do their efforts by enhancing the following three aspects. Firstly, subtitles translators should do efforts on dealing with untranslatability. Secondly, subtitle translators should improve their proficiency of language, including the proficiency of both source language and target language. The more proficient about language the subtitle translators are, the more freely and skillfully could they accomplish their task. Last but equally important, subtitle translators should strengthen their listening ability.Correct translation can only be achieved through correct comprehension, and listening accurately is the first necessary step for correct comprehension. Cultural vacuum is unavoidable in subtitling translation. Under the condition of being impossible to find an equivalent word in the target language, subtitle translators might create a new word reasonably. For work ethic, the author thinks subtitle translators may perfect themselves from the following three aspects. First, subtitle translators should be passionate. Because passion can make subtitle translators be interested in their translating work. Second, subtitle translators should be careful and responsible for their work,because their attitudes play a great part in the subtitle translators work.Third, subtitle translators should be perseverant. Because subtitling translation needs a great devotion of time and energy, which is rather harsh to many subtitle translators. The author wants to contribute her study and effort to the subtitling translation by paper this essay, and firmly believes by applying correct tactics, we will make a prosperous future in the depicted object of subtitling translation. Notes 1 Nedergaard-Larsen, Bright, Culture-bound Problems in Subtitlingin. Perspectives (Manchester St. Jerome Publishing, 1993), 27. 2 Shuttleworth M. and Cowie, ed. , Dictionary of Translation Studies. (Manchester St. Jerome Publishing, 1997), 264. 3 Gott lieb, H. Subtitling A New University Discipline, in precept Translation And Interpreting Training, Talent And Experience C Dollerup & A Lodegaard (Eds) Amsterdam, ed. John Benjamins Company (Manchester St. Jerome Publishing, 1992), 47. Bibliography Xu, Lisheng , ed. Intercultural Communication In English. Shanghai Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 2004. 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