Summarising all the above mentioned, in the process of creating this Qualification Research Paper, a study was carried out to analyse the problems of audiovisual translation and possible strategies for solving them. 160 original units from English audiovisual texts and 320 examples of their translation via subtitles and dubbing were selected and studied. The semantic categories of each unit and the strategy used in each example were determined. Patterns of the most frequent use of strategies in certain cases were observed, and statistics based on the obtained results were also calculated.
As a result of this research, the following conclusions can be drawn:
1. The main feature of audiovisual translation is its multimodality. Audiovisual translation contains verbal, non-verbal, visual and audio elements that are complementary and cannot be separated from each other.
2. Audiovisual translation has many types, including subtitling, dubbing, voiceover, simultaneous translation, free commentary (adaptation) and audio description, with the first two being the most popular in audiovisual translation from English to Russian.
3. The main problems of subtitling are limited space and time and appearing simultaneously with the original soundtrack. The main problems of dubbing are limited time and the need to synchronise characters' articulation and movement with the translation. In general, in audiovisual translation it is very important to take into account the speech style of the characters and other modes as well as the connection between visual and auditory information.
4. The translation problems in audiovisual translation can be divided into culture-bound and non culture-bound. They can be divided into the following semantic categories: Geography, History, Society and Culture. The strategies to solve culture-bound problems can be categorised as Transfer/loan exotism, Transfer/loan imitation, Direct translation, Explication, Paraphrase, Situational adaptation, Cultural adaptation, Omission and Complex.
5. Most of the analysed units belong to the semantic category Society (74 occurrences), followed by History (32 occurrences), Culture (32 occurrences) and Geography (22 occurrences).
6. The most common strategies in the analysed examples were Direct translation (108 occurrences), Transfer/loan imitation (82 occurrences) and Transfer/loan exotism (73 occurrences). They are followed by Complex (15 occurrences), Explication (14 occurrences), Situational adaptation (12 occurrences), Paraphrase (6 occurrences), Cultural adaptation (6 occurrences) and Omission (4 occurrences).
7. The vast majority of culture-bound problem units belonging to the semantic category History were translated using the strategy Transfer/loan exotism (50% of occurrences) and Transfer/loan imitation (39% of occurrences). Units belonging to semantic categories Culture, Society and Geography were translated using various strategies, and no dominating strategies were identified.
8. Percentage of strategies concurrence in subtitling and dubbing in the analysed examples was 83.13% of cases (133 occurrences), while in 16.88% of cases (27 occurrences) the strategies were different.
9. In the two audiovisual texts analysed, no significant asymmetry was found in semantic categories, used translation strategies or strategies concurrence in subtitling and dubbing translations.
10. Culture-bound and audiovisual translation related problems may intersect and this can influence the chosen translation strategy.
11. The limitations of space and time in subtitling and dubbing may result in the use of the Omission strategy. The requirement to synchronise the character’s articulation with the dubbing translation and for the subtitles to appear simultaneously with the original audio may result in the use of the Transfer/loan exotism strategy. Interaction of visual and auditory information in an audiovisual text may contribute to the use of the Omission or Complex strategy. However, other strategies may also be used in each of the cases mentioned above and no clear pattern was found, which indicates the need for further research of this issue.
Проблемы и стратегии аудиовизуального перевода при субтитровании и дубляже (на примере некоторых британских сериалов)/ Problems and strategies of audiovisual translation in subtitling and dubbing (based of British TV series)
|
INTRODUCTION 4
CHAPTER 1. THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS OF AUDIOVISUAL TRANSLATION 7
1.1. Audiovisual translation and audiovisual text: problems and features 7
1.2. Types of audiovisual translation 12
1.3. Features and problems of subtitling 14
1.4. Features and problems of dubbing 19
1.5. Translation strategies in audiovisual translation 25
1.6. Chapter 1: Conclusions 31
CHAPTER 2. COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF STRATEGIES USED IN AUDIOVISUAL TRANSLATION BASED ON THE MATERIAL OF THE CROWN (2016, NETFLIX) AND VICTORIA (2016, ITV) SERIES 35
2.1. Practical work methodology 35
2.2. Analysis of strategies in audiovisual translation 37
2.3. Intersection of culture-bound and audiovisual translation related problems: possible translation strategies 63
2.4. Strategy usage statistics 72
2.5. Chapter 2: Conclusions 74
CONCLUSIONS 77
REFERENCES 80
RESEARCH MATERIALS 83
APPENDIX 84
CHAPTER 1. THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS OF AUDIOVISUAL TRANSLATION 7
1.1. Audiovisual translation and audiovisual text: problems and features 7
1.2. Types of audiovisual translation 12
1.3. Features and problems of subtitling 14
1.4. Features and problems of dubbing 19
1.5. Translation strategies in audiovisual translation 25
1.6. Chapter 1: Conclusions 31
CHAPTER 2. COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF STRATEGIES USED IN AUDIOVISUAL TRANSLATION BASED ON THE MATERIAL OF THE CROWN (2016, NETFLIX) AND VICTORIA (2016, ITV) SERIES 35
2.1. Practical work methodology 35
2.2. Analysis of strategies in audiovisual translation 37
2.3. Intersection of culture-bound and audiovisual translation related problems: possible translation strategies 63
2.4. Strategy usage statistics 72
2.5. Chapter 2: Conclusions 74
CONCLUSIONS 77
REFERENCES 80
RESEARCH MATERIALS 83
APPENDIX 84
Audiovisual translation today is an extremely popular branch of translation, both in Russia and throughout the world. This is primarily due to the wide distribution and enormous popularity of audiovisual sources such as television, films, TV series, video lectures, computer games, YouTube videos, etc.
Due to their multimodal nature, audiovisual media allow its consumers to receive comprehensive and easy-to-understand information, helping to immerse its receivers in a foreign language culture through different channels of perception. The audience’s impression of a foreign audiovisual material and the correct perception of another culture and the behavioural and communicative characteristics of its carriers depend on the quality of the translation. The translation of an audiovisual text must not only comply with the norms of the receiving language, but also be understandable for the target audience and easily comprehensible.
This Qualification Research Paper presents a study of subtitling and dubbing as types of audiovisual translation, the specifics of creating Russian subtitles and dubbing translations for English original audiovisual material in the format of a historical series and the analysis of the translation strategies used in this process.
The relevance of this Qualification Research Paper lies in the fact that audiovisual translation, including the translation from English to Russian, has not been sufficiently studied in Russia from a scientific and linguistic point of view, while its research is necessary for the development of audiovisual media industry. The practical significance of this Qualification Research Paper lies in the analysis of strategies for audiovisual translation, which can be useful both for researchers in this field of translation studies and for practising audiovisual translators. A detailed analysis of translation strategies for subtitling and dubbing can help improve the quality of the final product, i.e. translation of English audiovisual text into Russian.
The object of the study is audiovisual translation and its most common types — subtitling and dubbing. The subject of the study is the translation of English audiovisual texts into Russian using subtitles and dubbing translation.
The materials for the study were modern British TV series translated into Russian via subtitling and dubbing. The material for the study was the first season of the British series The Crown (2016, Netflix) and the first season of the British series Victoria (2016, ITV) in English and its translation into Russian via subtitling and dubbing. The total duration of the material studied is about 32 hours.
This study aims to explore how translators solve problems encountered in audiovisual translation.
To achieve this goal, the following objectives were set:
1. Identify the main features and types of audiovisual translation as a special type of translation activity;
2. Study the theoretical foundations of audiovisual translation;
3. Explore the features of subtitling and dubbing as a type of audiovisual translation;
4. Identify the problems in audiovisual translation and the strategies used to solve them.
5. Consider the specifics of audiovisual material translated from English to Russian using subtitles and dubbing, including culture-bound problems, based on the material of the historical British series The Crown (2016, Netflix) and Victoria (2016, ITV);
The main research methods used in this Qualification Research Paper were methods of textual, comparative and translation analysis.
This Qualification Research Paper consists of two parts, theoretical and practical, as well as an introduction and a conclusion.
The introduction described the goals, objectives, materials, methods and relevance of this research.
In the first part, “Theoretical Foundations of Audiovisual Translation”, audiovisual translation is discussed from a theoretical standpoint. The problems and features of audiovisual text are studied, as well as the types of audiovisual translation. Particular attention is paid to the study of features and problems of subtitling and dubbing, as well as to the possible strategies in audiovisual translation, since they are key concepts of this Qualification Research Paper.
In the second part, “Comparative Analysis of Strategies Used in Audiovisual Translation Based on the Material of The Crown (2016, Netflix) and Victoria (2016, ITV) Series”, the practical work methodology is explained, an analysis of strategies in audiovisual translation based on the self-selected examples is conducted and the statistics of the translation strategies usage rates is shown.
Finally, at the end of this Qualification Research Paper, the conclusions are drawn.
Due to their multimodal nature, audiovisual media allow its consumers to receive comprehensive and easy-to-understand information, helping to immerse its receivers in a foreign language culture through different channels of perception. The audience’s impression of a foreign audiovisual material and the correct perception of another culture and the behavioural and communicative characteristics of its carriers depend on the quality of the translation. The translation of an audiovisual text must not only comply with the norms of the receiving language, but also be understandable for the target audience and easily comprehensible.
This Qualification Research Paper presents a study of subtitling and dubbing as types of audiovisual translation, the specifics of creating Russian subtitles and dubbing translations for English original audiovisual material in the format of a historical series and the analysis of the translation strategies used in this process.
The relevance of this Qualification Research Paper lies in the fact that audiovisual translation, including the translation from English to Russian, has not been sufficiently studied in Russia from a scientific and linguistic point of view, while its research is necessary for the development of audiovisual media industry. The practical significance of this Qualification Research Paper lies in the analysis of strategies for audiovisual translation, which can be useful both for researchers in this field of translation studies and for practising audiovisual translators. A detailed analysis of translation strategies for subtitling and dubbing can help improve the quality of the final product, i.e. translation of English audiovisual text into Russian.
The object of the study is audiovisual translation and its most common types — subtitling and dubbing. The subject of the study is the translation of English audiovisual texts into Russian using subtitles and dubbing translation.
The materials for the study were modern British TV series translated into Russian via subtitling and dubbing. The material for the study was the first season of the British series The Crown (2016, Netflix) and the first season of the British series Victoria (2016, ITV) in English and its translation into Russian via subtitling and dubbing. The total duration of the material studied is about 32 hours.
This study aims to explore how translators solve problems encountered in audiovisual translation.
To achieve this goal, the following objectives were set:
1. Identify the main features and types of audiovisual translation as a special type of translation activity;
2. Study the theoretical foundations of audiovisual translation;
3. Explore the features of subtitling and dubbing as a type of audiovisual translation;
4. Identify the problems in audiovisual translation and the strategies used to solve them.
5. Consider the specifics of audiovisual material translated from English to Russian using subtitles and dubbing, including culture-bound problems, based on the material of the historical British series The Crown (2016, Netflix) and Victoria (2016, ITV);
The main research methods used in this Qualification Research Paper were methods of textual, comparative and translation analysis.
This Qualification Research Paper consists of two parts, theoretical and practical, as well as an introduction and a conclusion.
The introduction described the goals, objectives, materials, methods and relevance of this research.
In the first part, “Theoretical Foundations of Audiovisual Translation”, audiovisual translation is discussed from a theoretical standpoint. The problems and features of audiovisual text are studied, as well as the types of audiovisual translation. Particular attention is paid to the study of features and problems of subtitling and dubbing, as well as to the possible strategies in audiovisual translation, since they are key concepts of this Qualification Research Paper.
In the second part, “Comparative Analysis of Strategies Used in Audiovisual Translation Based on the Material of The Crown (2016, Netflix) and Victoria (2016, ITV) Series”, the practical work methodology is explained, an analysis of strategies in audiovisual translation based on the self-selected examples is conducted and the statistics of the translation strategies usage rates is shown.
Finally, at the end of this Qualification Research Paper, the conclusions are drawn.
Summarising all the above mentioned, in the process of creating this Qualification Research Paper, a study was carried out to analyse the problems of audiovisual translation and possible strategies for solving them. 160 original units from English audiovisual texts and 320 examples of their translation via subtitles and dubbing were selected and studied. The semantic categories of each unit and the strategy used in each example were determined. Patterns of the most frequent use of strategies in certain cases were observed, and statistics based on the obtained results were also calculated.
As a result of this research, the following conclusions can be drawn:
1. The main feature of audiovisual translation is its multimodality. Audiovisual translation contains verbal, non-verbal, visual and audio elements that are complementary and cannot be separated from each other.
2. Audiovisual translation has many types, including subtitling, dubbing, voiceover, simultaneous translation, free commentary (adaptation) and audio description, with the first two being the most popular in audiovisual translation from English to Russian.
3. The main problems of subtitling are limited space and time and appearing simultaneously with the original soundtrack. The main problems of dubbing are limited time and the need to synchronise characters' articulation and movement with the translation. In general, in audiovisual translation it is very important to take into account the speech style of the characters and other modes as well as the connection between visual and auditory information.
4. The translation problems in audiovisual translation can be divided into culture-bound and non culture-bound. They can be divided into the following semantic categories: Geography, History, Society and Culture. The strategies to solve culture-bound problems can be categorised as Transfer/loan exotism, Transfer/loan imitation, Direct translation, Explication, Paraphrase, Situational adaptation, Cultural adaptation, Omission and Complex.
5. Most of the analysed units belong to the semantic category Society (74 occurrences), followed by History (32 occurrences), Culture (32 occurrences) and Geography (22 occurrences).
6. The most common strategies in the analysed examples were Direct translation (108 occurrences), Transfer/loan imitation (82 occurrences) and Transfer/loan exotism (73 occurrences). They are followed by Complex (15 occurrences), Explication (14 occurrences), Situational adaptation (12 occurrences), Paraphrase (6 occurrences), Cultural adaptation (6 occurrences) and Omission (4 occurrences).
7. The vast majority of culture-bound problem units belonging to the semantic category History were translated using the strategy Transfer/loan exotism (50% of occurrences) and Transfer/loan imitation (39% of occurrences). Units belonging to semantic categories Culture, Society and Geography were translated using various strategies, and no dominating strategies were identified.
8. Percentage of strategies concurrence in subtitling and dubbing in the analysed examples was 83.13% of cases (133 occurrences), while in 16.88% of cases (27 occurrences) the strategies were different.
9. In the two audiovisual texts analysed, no significant asymmetry was found in semantic categories, used translation strategies or strategies concurrence in subtitling and dubbing translations.
10. Culture-bound and audiovisual translation related problems may intersect and this can influence the chosen translation strategy.
11. The limitations of space and time in subtitling and dubbing may result in the use of the Omission strategy. The requirement to synchronise the character’s articulation with the dubbing translation and for the subtitles to appear simultaneously with the original audio may result in the use of the Transfer/loan exotism strategy. Interaction of visual and auditory information in an audiovisual text may contribute to the use of the Omission or Complex strategy. However, other strategies may also be used in each of the cases mentioned above and no clear pattern was found, which indicates the need for further research of this issue.
