Implicit signs in character names in children’s literature and their (in)transmissibility in translation

Abstract

Character names in children’s literature can be seen as quite innocent at first glance. However, they can affect readers’ interpretation of a text based on their connotations. A semiotic analysis of the meanings of character names and the implicit signs they may comprise may provide a deeper understanding of the text. Accordingly, how these names are translated into a target language is equally important. A semiotic analysis of a text may have a significant effect on one’s interpretation. It is essential to take into account any probable meaning transformations, especially if the text is to be translated. In this study, character names in Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, their connection to the character traits representing the seven deadly sins, and their Turkish translations are analyzed. Due to lingual constraints, implicit meanings of the names in the source text are not transferable. For this reason, while the ideal readers of the source text can understand the implications of the names, some of the readers of the target text are unable to do so, which results in insufficient meaning. Even so, readers may understand the character traits that can be attributed to the seven deadly sins based on descriptions in the text. The analysis follows some of the operations of analysis compiled by Sündüz Öztürk Kasar (Kasar, 2009, pp. 166-172) for translation-oriented semiotic analysis purposes from the studies of Paris School of Semiotics. Moreover, Jan Van Coillie’s classification of ten strategies concerning the translation of character names in children’s literature (Coillie, 2014, pp. 125-129) is also used in this study to specify the translator’s decisions and their consequences. In these ways, this study examines the importance of the translation of names for readers’ perception and reception of the text.