The intralingual subtitling of <i>The Wire</i>

Abstract

This article examines the effects of the omissions made in the intralingual subtitling of the cult TV series The Wire, building on previous research. By extracting the English subtitles from the DVD box set and comparing them to the audio dialogue, I ascertain which features are omitted from the subtitles. A qualitative analysis reveals that the omission of features that contribute to interpersonal meaning has a cumulative effect on the representation of characters and their relationships. Furthermore, the subtitles frequently omit spatial information, which is shown to be key in constructing the nuanced hierarchical structure of the institutions and their players. The qualitative findings are supported by a quantitative analysis of the correlations between the cuts and their effects. It is argued that because interpersonal relations and social structures are so intrinsic to The Wire's message, the ideational meaning of the subtitled text suffers. The results are pertinent to the ongoing debate on the merits of verbatim versus edited subtitles, and point to the need for stylistic considerations to be implemented into subtitling practice.