从《生活大爆炸》看美剧字幕翻译的文化转向(2)
Subtitling is one branch of audiovisual translation, and it is the process of providing synchronized captions for film and television dialogues. Li Yunxing（2001:38-40） analyzed the characteristics of subtitling from the perspectives of constrains of time and space, informative function and culture, generalizing them as “deduction, simplicity and straightness”. Shang Lijun(2008) pointed out that subtitling covered large imformation in limited time, we should make audience know not only the
previous events, but also the uptodate meaning in very short time.
1.2 The Previous Study of Cultural Turn in Translation
Culture is the value created by human beings, different cultures possess different ethnic, geographical characteristics. The exchange of cultures can not be separated from the translation, because language is the most important barrier of culture, so culture and its history about communication are the origin of translation. Traditonal translation theory confined to the linguistic field, in the 20th century French linguist Henri Meschonnic introduced the concept of cultural awareness in translation based on the close relationship between language and culture. He hold the idea that culture and language should be researched from the same historic perspective. From a cultural perspective to survey the translation researches, and paying more attention to the important role of culture in translation, that’s what we call “cultural turn ” in translation studies.
In the past years, most scholars at home were doing research on audiovisual trsnslation mainly from the linguistic perspective. Since the term “cultural turn ”was introduced into China, more and more experts show a great interest in the study of this field. “Cultural turn”, first put forward by the translation scholar Susan Bassnett to explore a new angle of translation on cultural level, and it means that the process of translation is a shift between different cultures. To some extent, translation activities are a pattern of cross-culture communication. To get a better understanding of literature works or TV programs, the realization of conversion between different cultures is very important.
Cultural turn studies first sprouted in the 1950s in western countries, and then in the 1980s, the term of cultural turn theory was put forward. Among the scholars in this field, Susan Bassbett and Andre Lefevere have made great contributions to cultural
translation studies. Their co-edited book Translation,History and Culture presented a great breakthrough in the study. Other western scholars such as Christiane Nord, Theo Hermans also put forward many pioneering ideas in the study.
At home, since 1990s domestic scholars began to notice the study of cultural turn in translation. They learnt referential theories from abroad and gradually established their own ideas. They noted that there are two tendencies in the translation studies: one is that translation theory is branded with communication, the other is that more attention is paid to cultural transference than to language transference. Other scholars such as Xiao Junming(2004) and Zhang yiying (2009)also emphasized the importance of the application of cultural turn in translation.
The study of “cultural turn” promoted the establishment of cultural concept in translation, and helped us recognize the cultural essence in translation better. Then we can understand the translation activities from a broad cross-cultural horizon, and we can explain the essence of translation activities and define the function of translation. We should recognize that translation is not simply a rendering process from text to text, so our study must jump out of the narrow vision focusing on text contrast. We can cognize translation activities from historical, social, cultural and various aspects so as to explain the phenomenon of translation.
Generally speaking, the study of cultural turn in translation still be an emerging one at home, especially in the field of audiovisual translation. Subtitling is increasingly influenced by cyberculture, and differences and convergence in culture are demonstrated vividly.
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