Drama Translation

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• Drama Translation

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What is Drama?

• Drama is a composition in prose or verse, adapted
  to be acted upon a stage, in which a story is
  related by means of dialogue and action, and is
  represented with accompanying gesture, costume,
  and scenery, as in real life a play.
• ---Oxford English Dictionary (2nd
  Edition,1989)

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• ??????????,?????????????????,??????????,????????
  ???????????????????,??????,???????????????????????
  ,??????????????????????????? ,???drama
  ,???????????????????????????????,?????????????????
  ???????????
• 
  
• 
  ???????

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• (1)??????? ????????????
• (2)????? ???????
• (3)??????????? ?????????
• (4)????????????????
• ???? (1)??????????
• (2)?????????
• (3)?????????

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What is Drama Translation?

• Drama translation is the translation of the
  dramatic text from one language and culture into
  another and as the transposition of the original,
  translated or adapted text onto the stage.
• 
  ---Ortrun Zubert-Skerrit
  
• Towards a
  Typology of Literary Translation
• 
  Drama Translation Science

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• Gostand gives a more detailed definition in
  Verbal and Non-verbal Communication Drama as
  translation believes the aspects and processes of
  the broad term drama translation are
• ? one language to another (difficulties of
  idiom, slang, tone, style, irony, word-play or
  puns)
• ? one culture to another (customs, assumptions,
  attitudes)
• ? one age/period to another (as above)
• ? one dramatic style to another (e.g. realistic
  or naturalistic to expressionistic or
  surrealistic)

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• ? one genre to another (tragedy or comedy or
  farce)
• ? one medium to another (stage play to radio, TV
  or film)
• ? straight play-script to musical/rock,
  opera/dance drama
• ? printed page to stage
• ? emotion/concept to happening
• ? verbal to non-verbal presentation
• ? one action group to another
• ? one audience to another (drama for schools or
  the deaf)

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Characteristics of Drama Translation

• 1. For audience rather than
  for readers
• Drama comprises chiefly of dialogues
  between characters and its final purpose is stage
  presentation (with closet drama as the only
  exception), so, it is mostly written for audience
  rather
• than readers.
• .

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• 2. No annotations allowed
• The audio-visual quality of a drama
  determines that the audience at a performance has
  no access to footnotes or explanations. That is
  why the translated drama should also contain no
  annotations as it has to be understood directly
  and immediately

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• 3. Common language
• Usually language in dramas is derived from
  daily life, so it is very common. In the process
  of drama translation, translators should make the
  lines easier for the actors to perform on the
  stage, also, they should stand in the position
  of audience and make the language easier to
  understand.

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Language Features of Drama and its Implications
for Drama Translation

• 1. Colloquialism
• Compared with other literary forms, drama
  makes more use of colloquial rhythm, vocabulary
  and sentence structures. Also, sayings and
  proverbs are often seen in a drama because they
  are popular among the public.
• All literature is made up of words, but
  dramas are made up of spoken words.
  (???????????,?????????????)
• 
  --- Boulton (??????)

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To Achieve Colloquialism

• ? incomplete sentences
• Incomplete and simple sentences help to
  establish the playwrights colloquial style. If
  the translator wants to keep this style, he must
  make the characters speak simple language in his
  translation.
• Example
• ??? ??,????????,???????,???????
  ??,??????,???
• 
  ????

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• Wu Xiangzi Deserters, right? Trying to hide
  in Beijing, with a few silver dollars in your
  pocket, right? When the money runs out, become
  bandits, right?
• 
  ???
• Wu Xiangziz Youre deserters. Right? Youve
  scrapped a few silver dollars, and you want to
  hole up in Beijing. Right? If youve got money,
  you hole up if you havent, you turn to
  banditry. Right?
• 
  ---Howard-Gibbon

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• ? Simple sentence structure
• Example
• ?????,??????!????????????? ??,????????,??????
  ?!
• ???????????!??????
• 
  ????

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• Chang Yes, you have a good memory. In 1898 I
  made the remark here, the
• Great Qing Empire is about done for! For
  that I was arrested by you two, and imprisoned
  for more than a year!
• Song Enzi Your memorys not bad either. Doing
  all right these days?
• 
  ???
• Fourth Elder ChangIt is. Your eyesights fine. I
  was arrested by you gentlemen here in 1898, and
  spent more than a year for saying that the Great
  Qing Empire is about done for.
• Song Enzi You have a remarkable memory. Life
  treating you well these days?
• 
  
  ---Howard-Gibbon
• 
  

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• 2. Conciseness
• Compared with novels, the development of
  plots are much faster and the language is much
  more concise in dramatic texts. This is mainly
  because drama performance is under great pressure
  of time.
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  ????,????????????,?????????,??????????????,??????,
  ?????????
• 
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To Achieve Conciseness

• ? Omission
• To make the audience understand better and
  easier, a frequently used measure is omission of
  complicated meanings which are considered
  unimportant and less important for immediate
  audience understanding.

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• Example
• Linda Theres a little attachment on the end of
  it. I knew right away. And sure enough, on the
  bottom of the water heater theres a new little
  nipple on the gas pipe.
• 
  ---Death of A Salesman
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• 
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• 
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• ? Addition
• Sometimes, when translating omitted
  sentences, we provides additional useful
  information to facilitate understanding of the
  audience.
• Example
• Biff Ill see Oliver tomorrow. Hap, if we could
  work that out
• Linda Maybe things are beginning to---
• 
  ---Death of A Salesman
• ?????????????,???????????
• ???????????
• 
  ???
• 
  

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• 3. Personalization
• For the characters in a drama, words are the
  signs of their personalities. The only way for
  the playwright to create people with distinctive
  characteristics is to write personalized lines
  for them.
• ????????????,???????????????????????????????
  ,??????????????,???,????
• 
  ??

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To Achieve Personalization

• People with different identities in different
  classes will use dissimilar languages. Drama
  dialogues agree with the identities of the
  characters. The dialogues of characters are
  closely associated with other factors, such as
  age, social status, and education. In drama
  translation, translator should fully consider
  these factors.

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• Example
• ???? ??,?????,????!?,?????!(????)????,???????
  ???,?????,?????????!
• 
  ????
• Tang the Oracle Jr Oh, shit! Its you,
  Pock-mark Jr! Come, let me give you the
  once-over! (Looking him over, front and back) You
  little bastard! In that western gear, from behind
  you look more foreign than a foreigner.
• 
  ---???

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• 4. Playability
• Playability of dramatic language means
  gesture orientation. The nature is of
  significance to stage performance. It is
  gesture-contained dramatic language that makes
  the words on pages alive, make the performance
  stereoscopic, make thoughts leap, , make the
  movements profound.
• ????????????????,?????????????????????????
  ?????,????????????????,????????????????,?????????
  ????????

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To Achieve Playability

• the charm of theatre mainly comes from
  actions, and this kind of language can push
  forward the development of the plot as well as
  reveal the inner activity of the characters.
  Since playability in drama language is
  indispensable to the totality of meaning, they
  should never be ignored in drama translation.

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• Example
• ?????,?????????,?????????
• 
  ????
• Kang Liu but Master Liu, please, how could I
  ever face my daughter again if I sold her to be
  the wife of a eunuch?
• 
  ---???
• Sixth-born Kang how could I face my daughter if
  I sold her to be a eunuchs wife?
• 
  ---Howard-Gibbon

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• 5. Musicality
• In drama, acoustic elements account much.
  Drama is a kind of comprehensive art that is
  endowed with aesthetic function, and the
  aesthetic values of drama partially lie in the
  musical effects of its language.
• ?????????????,??????,??????????????,?????????
  ???????????????????,??????????????????,???????
  ?,????,?????
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TO Achieve Musicality

• In drama translation, the reproduction of
  acoustic beauty is a big challenge to the
  translator, who is expected to create the beauty
  of sound so as to be appropriate for
  pronunciation and pleasant to the ear. The
  language of drama is characterized by rhyme,
  rhythm, stress, intonation, pitch, loudness,
  speed of delivery, all element that can create
  acoustic beauty.

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Example

• ???
• (?)???,????,?????????
• ???,???,????????
• ???,???,???????
• ???,???,?????????
• ????
• Silly Yang
• Im Silly Yang, and from shop to shop,
• I make my rounds till here I stop.
• This great teahouse, Yutai by name,
• A booing business, fortune and fame.
• Trade is brisk, lots of tea sold,
• Everyone welcome, young and old.
• Some sing or hum, others sit and chat.
• Each in his gown, each in his hat.
• 
  
• 
  ---???

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Culture-loaded Words in Drama Translation

• 1. Words concerning religion
• Religion is an indispensable constituent of
  human society and human civilization. It is
  accepted that the Buddhism and Taoism have a
  profound influence on Chinese culture. In
  contrast, in the English-speaking countries,
  Christianity is the dominant religion, its impact
  upon the English culture has found its way into
  the language.
• 
  

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Example 1

• ????????,?????????????????!???!
• ??????,???????,?????!???!
• 
  ????
• 
  
• Qin Zhongyi Well, I wouldnt say that. What
  little influence I may wield wont go far in your
  presence. Ha! Ha! Ha!
• Eunuch Pang Well said! Lets both try our best.
  And see what happens. Ha! Ha! Ha!
• 
  
  ---???
• QIN ZHONGYI Not so, not so. What little prestige
  I have pales in your presence. (laughs heartily)
• EUNUCH PANGNicely said. Like the eight immortals
  crossing the sea, we each have our own strength,
  eh? (laughs heartily)
• 
  ---
  Howard-Gibbon

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Example 2

• ?????,????!???,???????????????????!???????
• 
  ????
• Wang Shufen Youre quite right, Master Li, but
  these days you can thank your lucky stars if you
  have a job at all. We all have to be a bit
  patient.
• 
  ---???
• WANG SHUFEN I agree, Third Elder, but in these
  hectic times we should be thankful to have a job
  at all. Weve all got to practice a little
  forbearance.
• 
  --- Howard-Gibbon

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• 2. Idioms
• Both English and Chinese are very rich in
  idiomatic expressions closely related to their
  own culture and convey different cultural
  features and message. When translating idioms,
  the translator is entitled to make certain
  cultural adaptations to make the monolingual
  reader understand the translated message with
  ease.

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Example

• ???,?!?????????!
• ??????,???????????,???????!????!
• 
  ---????
• Kang Liu I, well, Ill have to take it over with
  my daughter.
• Pock-Mark Liu Im telling you, you wont find
  another chance like this. If you lose it, dont
  blame me! Youd better get a move on.
• 
  ---???
• SIXTH-BORN KANG Iah!... Ive got to take it
  over with my daughter.
• POCKFACE LIU Im telling you, this is your only
  chance. If you miss it, dont blame me. Hurry up.
• 
  ---Howard-Gibbon

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• 3. Words about material life
• Food, as one subcategory of material culture,
  is essential to the survival of human beings.
  Chinese people and western people live quite a
  different life, words related to food may have
  quite different connotations. So correct
  understanding of the original meaning is of vital
  importance. The translator must completely
  comprehend the original in terms of the
  designative meaning as well as the associative
  meaning.

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Example

• ?????,?????
• ????!???????,????????,????!
• 
  ---????
• Ding Bao Old manager, you look pretty fit!
• Wang Lifa Yes. If there were some noodles with
  fried bean sauce around, I could pack away three
  huge bowls. Only there arent any.
• 
  ---???
• DING BAO Old proprietor, youre in good health?
• WANG LIFA Mmmh. If I sat down with some noodles
  with meat sauce, I could still tuck away three
  big bowls or so. Too bad there arent any.
• 
  ---Howard-Gibbon

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• 4. Words with special historical background
• Language is always changing with the
  development of human society. So there exist
  numerous unique expressions about the things or
  phenomena solely appearing in special historical
• period. Western audience who have no idea
  about Chinese history may be completely confused
  by these words. Therefore, when translating these
  words, acceptance on the part of the western
  receptors should be put into primary position.

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Example

• ????????????
• ?????????,???,????!
• 
  ---????
• Song Another big deal?
• Pock-Mark Liu Not so big. If all goes well, I
  may get about twenty taels of silver.
• 
  ---???
• SECOND ELDER SONG I expect youre making a bit
  on this deal!
• POCKFACE LIU Not all that much. But if it goes
  through Ill make a silver ingot.
• 
  ---Howard-Gibbon

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• ????(skopos theory)??????????(skopos
  rule)?????(coherence rule )?????(fidelity rule)?
• ????????????????????,????????????????
• ???????????????????,???????????????,?????????
• ??????????????????????,???????????????

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• ?????,???????????????????????(Susan
  Bassnett)???????????????????(Still Trapped in
  the LabyrinthFurther Reflections on Translation
  and Theatre)???,????????????
• 1.??????????????,??????????
• 2.????????,???????????????
• 3.????????,????????????????
• 4.????????,???????????????
• 5.????????,??????????????
• ????????

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• ?
• 6.??????????????????
• 7.?????????,???????????????,????(tone)???(infl
  exion)???(pitch)???(register)?, ????????
• ??????????????????.??????????????????????????
  ???????,????????????????????????????????????????
  ?.

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• ????????????????????????,??????????????????????
  ??,?????????????
• ???????????????????????????,?????????????????????
  ???????????????,?????,???????????????????

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• ?????(Susan Bassnett)??????????????(the
  principle of performability)?????????????????????
  ???????????????????,??????,?????????
• ???,??????????????,?????????????????