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Translating Racial Slurs: a Comparative Analysis of Gran Torino Assessing Transfer of OEnsive Language Between English and Italian

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Translating Racial Slurs: a Comparative Analysis of Gran Torino Assessing Transfer of OEnsive Language Between English and Italian Durham E-Theses Translating Racial Slurs: A Comparative Analysis of Gran Torino Assessing Transfer of Oensive Language between English and Italian. FILMER, DENISE,ANNE How to cite: FILMER, DENISE,ANNE (2011) Translating Racial Slurs: A Comparative Analysis of Gran Torino Assessing Transfer of Oensive Language between English and Italian., Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/3337/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 MA by Research Dissertation School of Modern Languages and Cultures Durham University 2011 Translating Racial Slurs A Comparative Analysis of Gran Torino Assessing Transfer of Offensive Language between English and Italian Candidate: Denise Filmer Supervisor: Dr Federico M. Federici Contents Abbreviations ................................................................................................................. 5 List of Tables .................................................................................................................. 7 List of Examples ............................................................................................................. 9 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 11 The research question ..................................................................................... 12 Structure and aims of this study ..................................................................... 14 Chapter 1 Racisms, taboo, and lingua-cultures ............................................................ 17 1.1 Chapter overview ..................................................................................... 17 1.2 Racism: back to the roots ......................................................................... 17 1.2.1 Race and racism vs. ethnic groups and ethnic intolerance ............. 18 1.3 Racial slurs and ethnic insults: racist labels or humorous irony? ............ 21 1.4 A working definition, lingua-culture ....................................................... 23 1.5 Linguistic taboos and lingua-culture ........................................................ 25 1.5.1 Defining linguistic taboos .............................................................. 25 1.6 Comparing racial slurs in English and Italian .......................................... 28 Closing remarks ............................................................................................. 30 Chapter 2 Methodology: a multidisciplinary approach ................................................ 31 2.1 Reflections on methodology .................................................................... 31 2.2 Selection of primary sources; the data for analysis .................................. 33 2.3 Methodological framework ...................................................................... 37 2.3.1 Socio-cognitive Discourse Analysis .............................................. 38 2.3.2 Critical Discourse Analysis in the Social Sciences ........................ 39 2.3.3 Discourse-historical approach ........................................................ 40 2.4 Bridging the gap between CDA and Translation Studies ........................ 41 2.5 Social context and language ..................................................................... 42 2.5.1 Systemic Functional Linguistics .................................................... 43 2.5.2 SFL in House’s Translation Quality Assessment .......................... 44 2.5.3 SFL in Baker’s pragmatic approach ............................................... 45 2.6 Politeness Theory ...................................................................................... 46 2.7 Social semiotics and Pragmatics in Context ............................................. 49 2.8 Reception and perception of racial slurs in Gran Torino: comparing target and source culture reactions ..................................................................................... 50 2.8.1 Epitextual data ................................................................................ 50 Closing remarks .............................................................................................. 53 Chapter 3 Theory meets practice: perspectives on target-oriented approaches ............ 55 3.1 Introduction ............................................................................................... 56 3.2 Within Descriptive Translation Studies .................................................... 56 3.2.1 DTS and the search for laws of translational behaviour ................. 58 3.2.2 Toury’s laws of translation and Pym’s re-interpretation ................ 59 3.3 The Translator’s habitus and social norms ............................................... 62 3.4 ‘Negative Analytic’ in Berman and Venuti’s concepts of ‘foreignizing and ‘domesticating’ ......................................................................................................... 65 3.5 AVT: adaptation or translation ................................................................. 68 3.5.1 Dubbing in Italy .............................................................................. 72 3.6 Racial slurs and offensive language’ in Italian film dubbing ................... 76 Chapter 4 Fictional slurs and real insults ...................................................................... 85 4.1 Analytical process ..................................................................................... 85 4.2 Why the film Gran Torino ........................................................................ 86 4.2.1 Introduction to the analyses: organisation of data .......................... 89 4.3 First sequence: Thao at Walt’s door (00:6:35,000-00:06:48,000) ............ 90 4.3.2 Comparative analysis ...................................................................... 92 4.4 The uses of ‘muso giallo’ ......................................................................... 98 4.4.1 Ethnophaulism: insulting people of Asian origins ......................... 98 4.5 Investigating the origins of ‘muso giallo’ ............................................... 100 4.5.1 From Puccini to Full Metal Jacket ................................................ 100 4.6. Xenophobic implications of translation effects ..................................... 102 Closing remarks ............................................................................................ 103 Chapter 5 Pragmatics and parody in the use of slurs .................................................. 105 2 5.1 Second Sequence: Walt at the barber’s (00:29:16,000-00:30:00,000) .. 105 5.1.1 ST analysis ................................................................................... 105 5.1.2 Comparative analysis ................................................................... 106 5.1.3 Remarks on the second sequence ................................................. 111 5.2 Third Sequence: Thao at the barber’s (01:10:25,000-01:13:32,000) ..... 111 5.2.1 Analysis of ST .............................................................................. 112 5.2.2 Comparative analysis ................................................................... 116 5.2.3 Some observations on sequence three .......................................... 125 Chapter 6 Racial slurs as aggressive verbal duelling ................................................. 129 6.1 Fourth Sequence: Rescuing Sue (Full Timing 00:32:38,000-00:34:35,000) ............................................................................................................................... 129 6.1.1 Black slang, ST analysis .............................................................. 130 6.1.2 Comparative analysis of TT ......................................................... 132 6.1.3 Remarks on the fourth sequence .................................................. 140 6.3 Sequence five: The ‘gook’ goes ‘gay’ (Full Timing 00:12:40,000- 00:14:15,000) ......................................................................................................... 140 6.3.1 From race to homophobia ............................................................ 143 6.3.2 From homophobia to racism ........................................................ 148 Closing remarks ........................................................................................... 152 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 153 Bibliography ............................................................................................................... 161 3 Abbreviations AVT: Audio visual translation. FTA: Face Threatening Act, with particular reference to Brown and Levinson’s definition within Politeness Theory, Discussed
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