An Analysis of Subtitle Translation of Emily in Pairs Based on Skopos Theory

Abstract

As foreign television shows and films are gradually becoming part of Chinese people’s lives, subtitle translation is indispensable for people who want to watch foreign TV shows. The American TV series "Emily in Paris" sparked an upsurge in the pursuit of drama in 2020, and the subtitle translation in this drama is worth studying. This article takes Emily in Paris as an example and it conducts a study on the better ways of subtitle translation based on Skopos Theory. This article first introduces the characteristics of subtitle translation, and then from the perspective of skopos theory, it expounds the three principles of skopos theory. After that, the case analysis method is used to analyze the subtitle translation of the play under the guidance of the three principles of skopos theory. In addition, this article also compares the functions of two major translation strategies "domestication" and "foreignization" in subtitle translation and the different effects they produce.