Abstract
An Empirical and Descriptive Study of the Translation Method for Dubbing and Subtitling is the title of a doctoral thesis submitted in November 2006. This research project developed a theoretical framework where the notion of translation method was defined in terms of a graphical and parametrical representation as a function of three parameters: constraints active in audiovisual translation, translation norms and translation techniques. The object of study consisted of several independent American films shown in Spain, in dubbed and subtitled versions, in the period between 2001 and 2004. Both the preliminary and the translation phases of the translation process were taken into account in the scope of work. Empirical data were gathered through interviews with the translators of the films for the preliminary phase of the translation process; the compilation of almost 500 micro textual samples of the two translated versions provided the empirical data for the translation phase itself. The results and conclusions of the study were obtained by using rigorous statistical tools, which showed the similarities and differences between the translation methods for both the dubbed and the subtitled versions.
Highlights
Our initial interest in this approach was mainly related to the empirical and pragmatic analysis methodology introduced by this School, i.e. a methodology based on data collection and its study, with the intention of deriving norms or recurring patterns in the translation process
To find out whether the specific translation constraints that influence translation for dubbing and translation for subtitling call for specific translation solutions, which materialize in an associated different translation method;
A constraint type list had to be generated in order to study and characterize the samples gathered during the project from this prespective
Summary
This piece of research was carried out with the idea of applying the Descriptive Translation Studiesapproach to the field of audiovisual translation. Our initial interest in this approach was mainly related to the empirical and pragmatic analysis methodology introduced by this School, i.e. a methodology based on data collection and its study, with the intention of deriving norms or recurring patterns in the translation process. We understand these norms from a descriptive standpoint as behavioural patterns rather than as a manifestation of a certain “social correctness”. The corpus was selected following some specific criteria, based on the underlying idea that films belonging to the (sub)genre of American independents should highlight the different translation methods for the two translated versions (the dubbed one and the subtitled one) more than randomly chosen productions. The different activities involved, i.e. film visualization, sample identification, data gathering and transfer to a database in the computer, could all be carried out in the same system, in a quick and integrated fashion
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