The Sitcom Revisited: The Translation of Humor in a Polysemiotic Text

Ano: 1999 | Volume: 1 | Número: 4

Autores: Daniela M. Ioppi Chile

Palavras-chave: Translation, Humor, Polysemiotic Text

Resumo Inglês:

If there is something that is unsolved - among many other things - in Translation Studies, that is the question of humor. Many studies in other areas, such as psychology, sociology and linguistics have tried to explain the sources of humor and to describe its features. The question regarding translation is the extent to which humor (in its various aspects) can be transferred1 from one language to another -and how. As an attempt to answer this question, many authors have analyzed the translation of comic texts, in written or audiovisual form, such as in films, and some of their analysis ended up being prescriptive. The aim of the present paper is not to present a definite answer or solution to the question, but to discuss several aspects considered relevant in the assessment of humor translation in the specific situation of subtitling, including sources of humor, creativity and technical constrains. To illustrate the reflections a case study is conducted on a recent episode of the American sitcom “Just Shoot Me”, with a view to observe how the translator/subtitler deals with the problems risen by the specific situation in question.