Equivalence of English – Vietnamese translation for subtitles of some documentary films

Equivalence of English – Vietnamese translation for subtitles of some documentary films Lê Thị Nhung University of Languages and International Studies M.A Thesis: English Linguistics;

Equivalence of English – Vietnamese translation

for subtitles of some documentary films

Lê Thị Nhung

University of Languages and International Studies M.A Thesis: English Linguistics; Code: 60 22 15

Supervisor : Prof.Dr Lê Hùng Tiến Year of graduation: 2011

Abstract The study investigates the equivalence for terminology in subtitles translation

of the documentary series “Swamp loggers” broadcasted on Discovery Channel The Introduction gives a rationale for the study and sets up the aims, scope, structure and methods of the study Chapter I constitutes the study’s theoretical background It presents the issues relevant to the paper’s topic: Translation, translation of drama and film, terminology in translation, translation equivalence and non-equivalence and some strategies Chapter II presents the translation of the selected series with the introduction

to the series, the problems of non-equivalence and explains how these problems are

solved by translators’ using the strategies suggested in Chapter I

Keywords Dịch thuật; Phim tài liệu; Tiếng Anh

Content

PART I- INTRODUCTION

1 Rationale

Translation is recently considered a language skill – the fifth macro skill Besides translation

of television programs and motion pictures, especially subtitling, in which the text appears on the screen along with dialogue of the film is more and more popular It is hoped that this research will make a small but critical contribution to the development of new theoretical foundation of subtitling in Vietnam

2 Aims of the study

This study will seek to answer the research question: "How equivalence in translation between English and Vietnamese is achieved through the Vietnamese subtitling of the documentary series

“Swamp loggers” shown on Discovery Channel in association with Vietnamese Cable

Television?"

3 Scope and method of the study

The study focuses mainly on equivalence for terminology achieved in the subtitles of the documentary series “Swam loggers”

The evaluation of equivalence will be based on the approach suggested by Baker (1992) using

a list of the two texts: the source text and the translated version

4 Organization of the study

The study consists of three parts:

Part I is the Introduction which describes the reasons for the choice of the topic, the aims, the scope, method and organization of the study

Part II is the Development with Chapter I providing the literature review of translation, terminology and equivalence; Chapter II giving the synopsis as well as subtitling of the selected series; the problems of non-equivalence and subtitlers’ strategies to deal with those problems Part III is the Conclusion and suggestion for further study

PART II-DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW

1 Film and subtitle translation

1.1 Definition of translation

Translation is a variedly defined concept that has caused vigorous debate along its development history Finding the closet equivalence while maintaining “style” and “meaning” as authentic as possible determines the authenticity of the translation in grammar, culture, comprehension, and message content To have a deeper investigation into equivalence, film subtitles translation will be discussed in this research paper

1.2 Translation of dramas/films

Translators of drama have discomfort in having dramatic text, with emphasis on verbs, rather than that of more descriptive and explanatory Therefore a translation of a drama must be concise – it must not be an over-translation

1.3 Subtitle translation

Subtitles, according to Baker, M (Ed.) (1998) are “transcriptions of film or TV dialogue, presented simultaneously on the screen.” She also highlights the “authenticity” gained in subtitles, which includes the real voice quality and intonation of the actors A more detailed view of subtitling in Vietnam can be seen in Appendix I – Subtitling instruction by Qnet Entertainment

1.4 Subtitle Quality

According to James (2001), subtitles quality is to meet clients’ expectation “Clients” here are the producer,the author/scripts writer expects his or her intention to be reflected accurately and authentically” in the translated subtitles (James 2001:152) Accuracy, clearness, credibility and consistency with the action on the screen are what to expect in subtitles Moreover, subtitles are evaluated by the quality of translation and quality of typo accuracy

2 Terminology and translation of terminology

2.1 Definition and features

The distinction between words and terms are not fixed Each term constantly interacts and intersects with general words because they consist of the same linguistic forms

2.2 Terminology in translation

Newmark (1988) considers new terminology as the central difficulty in technical translation While Baker (1998) places translation and terminology in two different linguistic and cognitive tables with differently focused areas of language study Baker (1998) argues that finding the terms

which has the same concept in two languages does not require translators’ minimal theory of terminology

3 Baker’s approach to equivalence

3.1 Equivalence and equivalence at word level

In the most general meaning, equivalence is the relationship between a source text (ST) and a target text (TT) that allows the TT to be considered as a translation of the ST

Baker uses notion of equivalence “for the sake of convenience – because most translators are used to it rather than because it has any theoretical status” (1992:5-6) She also points out the three following types of equivalence:

a) Grammatical equivalence

b) Textual equivalence

c) Pragmatic equivalence

Baker also acknowledges that equivalence at word level is the first element to be taken into consideration by translators

3.2 Problems of non-equivalence and strategy

Baker (1992) also points out 11 common problems of non-equivalence at word level:

- Culture-specific concepts

- The source-language concepts are not lexicalized in the target language

- The source-language word is semantically complex

- The source and target languages make different distinctions in meaning

- The target language lacks a super-ordinate

- The target language lacks a specific term (hyponym)

- Differences in physical or interpersonal perspective

- Differences in expressive meaning

- Differences in form

- Differences in frequency and purpose of using specific forms

- The use of loan words in the source text

She also figures out strategy by professional translators as:

a Translation by a more general word

b Translation by a more neutral/less expressive word

c Translation by cultural substitution

d Translation by a paraphrase

e Translation by omission

In short, all above translation theories will make a steady background for the study’s development for further investigation in the next parts

CHAPTER II: TRANSLATION AND SUBTITLING OF THE SELECTED SERIES

1 Synopsis of the series “Swam loggers”

“Swamp loggers” is a reality television show made by Discovery Channel The show tells a story about the working and social life of loggers in North Carolina swamps with hardship, dangers and joy and special experiences Logging itself is a tough job; logging in swamps, especially swamps with no bottom in North Carolina The main characters are Goodson’s All Terrain Logging Company, with the fourth generation logger and also the owner of the company,

Bobby Goodson, his son, Justin Goodson – the foreman and the united logging team: the loader Dave Muller and the veteran logger – Simitrio

2 Linguistic features in the relationship with subtitles translation

In the selected documentaries, it is possible to divide the language into two forms, which is narrating and speaking/talking Narrating voices often tell the story which is going on, while characters’ voices, on the other hands, are used to express the characters themselves

3 Problems of non-equivalence

- Different distinction in meaning

- Semantic complexion

- Target language lacks a specific term

- Word form difference

- Cultural specific term

4 Strategy to deal with non-equivalence

4.1 Different equivalence to a source word as a method of subtitles shortening

“Haul” is used in both noun and verb form and translated differently in different cases:

But we're glad we're back We got

plenty wood to haul…

Thật vui khi quay lại

Có nhiều gỗ cần kéo

Every hour that Simitrio isn't cutting

wood

Mỗi giờ Simitrio không xẻ gỗ

means the truckers will catch up to him

and have nothing left to haul

có nghĩa lái xe tải sẽ bắt kịp

và hết gỗ để chuyển đi

Trucker Wayne Sauers has just

returned from the pulp mill,

Lái xe Wayne Sauers vừa quay về từ nhà máy giấy

after his latest haul sau chuyến xe vừa đi

Together, they risk it all as they cut,

load,

Họ cùng nhau mạo hiểm khi xẻ, chất lên xe,

and haul over 100,000 tons of timber

each year

Harrison (2010)

chở hơn 100.000 tấn gỗ mỗi năm

Similarly, in another case, the word “tract” is differently translated in different context:

Good tract of wood Corbett, actually they

gave us a really good tract

Họ giao cho chúng tôi

khoảnh rừng Corbett rất tốt

It's actually not near as wet as a lot of the

tracts that we used to cut

Nó không gần đầm lầy như

nhiều nơi chúng tôi từng đốn The tract runs up against the Cape Fear

River,

Chỗ này chạy ngược

sông Cape Fear

and years ago, the Cape Fear would flood

every winter

Vài năm trước con sông gây ngập mỗi mùa đông,

…

I'm glad you got us on this good tract

Harrison (2010)

Thật vui vì anh đã giao

1 khoảnh tốt

As for the listed words with semantic complexity as “shovel logging”, “shovel road”, drag racing”, one way is not sutbtilers’ choice of solution

This weekend will mark her drag racing debut

And to give her a fighting chance at a win,

Cuối tuần này chị sẽ thi

và để có cơ hội chiến thắng, husband, Buddy, is making sure everything is

shipshape in her 355 small block, Chevy

pickup truck

Harrison (2010)

Buddy kiểm tra lại để đảm bảo chiếc Chevy mui trần tốt nhất

Along the line, “shovel logging” and “shovel road” will be discussed:

Shovel logging is different than conventional

logging

Đốn gỗ bằng máy

khác cách truyền thống

We actually use the trees Chúng tôi dùng cây gỗ

Simitrio will cut them, laying them in front of

him

Simitrio đốn và đặt chúng nằm phía trước,

And then he'll take the other trees in there and

overlap them It actually makes a grid

rồi lấy cây khác chồng lên tạo ra 1 mạng lưới,

And what that does, it keeps the tract dirt above

the mud instead of running through the mud

Harrison (2010)

giữ đất bên trên thay vì chảy qua bùn

“Shovel logging”, as explained before, is logging by gradually dragging and swinging

logs/trees to forest road, which cannot be fully and accurately expressed by “Đốn gỗ bằng máy” The suggested term can be “đốn gỗ đầm lầy” to ensure time and word restriction in this subtitles

Even though this tract is dryer than most, Dù khoảnh rừng này

khô hơn các nơi khác, Bobby's heavy equipment still needs

support in this swampy terrain

thiết bị hạng nặng của Bobby vẫn cần vật đỡ ở nơi lầy lội Simitrio began felling trees a week earlier, Simitrio bắt đầu đốn cây

1 tuần trước,

so that he and the shovel loader could

build the log road,

để anh và máy bốc xếp

có thể làm đường gỗ,

known as the shovel road, gọi là đường bốc xếp,

the first step in logging any new site

Harrison (2010)

bước đầu tiên để đốn gỗ

ở 1 địa điểm mới

In short, for one word in the source language, different equivalence with different expressive meaning is produced in the target language to fit with different situation in subtitling

4.2 Equivalence of logging machines and equipments

Shovel/shovel loader/shovel machine Máy xúc

It is not difficult to identify the linguistic structure of these terms, which is “V + er in

English” and “Máy + function” in Vietnamese However, the unsolved problems stay still where

there are different machines assigned to one task such as “cutter” and “feller buncher” above or

“clambunk skidder” and “Bogey skidder”

The situation seems to be much more relaxing for the subtilers to deal with general terminology:

Figure 1: Equivalence for General Terminology

4.3 Equivalence of logging activities and environment

Tract Khu gỗ/Khoảnh rừng Khu

Figure 2: Equivalence for logging activities and environment

Come to the wood names, a cultural substitution as suggested by Baker (1992) Risky as it

is, the substitution turns out to be fairly appropriate to subtitles translation

Figure 3: Equivalence for Wood Names

These equivalences are not necessarily true to every situation where such cultural concepts appear It is required that all the concepts are left untranslated Therefore, Vietnamese terms tend

to be used to fill in the gap, not to transfer the meaning

5 Concluding remarks

The study identifies three groups of equivalence with nine sub-groups achieved in Vietnamese subtitles of the series “Swamp loggers”, which are:

1 Equivalence of words with meaning complexity

a Unlexicalized concepts

b Semantically complexity

c Different distinction in meaning

d Lack of specific term/super-ordinate

e Different in form

2 Equivalence of words with technical complexity

a Equivalence of logging machines and equipment

b Equivalence of logging activities and environment

c Equivalence of wood names

To satisfactorily solve the above problems, which is establishing equivalence for these terminology, translators/subtitlers flexibly apply Baker (1992)’s strategies in each different situation

PART III: CONCLUSION

1 Addressed issues and some applications

It can be said that translators/subtitlers working on the series use various strategies, from the most common to the risky one, to deal with problems of non-equivalence as suggested by Baker (1992) Not all of the equivalence meets the translator/interpreter’s expectation, however, from subtilers’ point of view, the equivalence achieved in subtitles of “Swam loggers” is clear and credible, and gives the impression of being part of the action on the screen

However, shortcomings of the study are unavoidable, for which the author would like to appreciate readers’ tolerance

2 Suggestions for further study

The research author is fully aware that this study is far from being satisfisfactory and other issues should be taken into consideration so that it can possibly draw out an overall conclusion of equivalence in subtitles translation The following topics can be considered for further studies:

- Equivalence above word level in subtitles translation

- Types of terminology in finding equivalence for subtitles translation

References

1 Baker, M (1992) In other words: A course book in translation London: Routledge

2 Baker, M (Ed.) (1998) Routledge encylopedia of translation studies London

New York: Routledge

3 Catford J.C (1976) A linguistic Theory of Translation Oxford: OUP

4 Gambier, Y., & Cottlied, H (Eds.) (2001) (Multi) Media Translation: concepts, practices and

research Berlin: John Benjamin Publishing

5 Harrison, P (Producer) (2010) Swamp logger [Growing Pain] In 60 minutes California USA

: Pilgrim Films & Television

6 Harrison, P (Producer) (2010) Swamp logger [Money Pit] In 60 minutes California USA :

Pilgrim Films & Television

7 Harrison, P (Producer) (2010) Swamp logger [Return to the Swamp] In 60 minutes

California USA : Pilgrim Films & Television

8 Harrison, P (Producer) (2010) Swamp logger [Swamp Fever] In 60 minutes California USA

: Pilgrim Films & Television

9 Harrison, P (Producer) (2010) Swamp logger [The storm] In 60 minutes California USA :

Pilgrim Films & Television

10 Harrison, P (Producer) (2010) Swamp logger [Water Logged] In 60 minutes California

USA : Pilgrim Films & Television

11 James, H (2001) Quality control of subtitles: review or preview In Y Gambier & H Cottlied

(Eds.), (Multi) Media Translation: concepts, practices and research Berlin: John

Benjamin Publishing

12 Joseph, C S (2005) A study of Translation Strategies in Guillaume Oyono Mbia's Plays

University of South Africa, Pretoria

13 Kageura, K (2002) The dynamics of terminology: a descriptive theory of term formation and

terminological growth Amsterdam, Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company

14 Morgan, H (2001) Subtitling for Channel 4 Television In Y Gambier & H Cottlied (Eds.),

(Multi) Media Translation: concepts, practices and research Berlin: John Benjamin

Publishing

15 Newmark, P (1988) A textbook of translation New York: Prentice-Hall International

16 Newmark, P (1991) About translation Clevedon: Cromwell Press Ltd

17 Nida, E., & Taber, C (1974) The Theory and Practice of Translation Leiden: Koninklijke

18 Pearman, R., & Albritton, S (2010) The real meaning of the 16 personality types London:

Nicholas Brealey Publishing

19 Poel, M., & Ydewalle, G (2011) Incidental foreign language acquisition by children watching

subtitled television program In Y Gambier & H Cottlied (Eds.), Quality control of

subtitles: review or preview Berlin: John Benjamin Publishing

20 Ree, P (Producer) (2010) Modern Sniper [Army] In 60 minutes California, USA: Legion

Productions

21 Ton, T Q T (2001) A study on translation of idiomatic expressions in some TV dramas

College of Foreign Languages, Hanoi National University, Hanoi