HOMO LUDENS AMONG CULTURES AND TRANSLATIONS – A PRACTICAL APPROACH

Not only once have we learned about the parasitic, mimetic structure of a translation, or the inauthenticity of the invisible translator, a performer without a stage, as Robert Wechsler would describe it. Yet, beyond such a shallow disparaging perspective, (good) translation obviously means art, be...

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Main Author: Diana V. BURLACU
Format: Article
Language:deu
Published: Cluj University Press 2023-03-01
Series:Studia Universitatis Babeş-Bolyai. Philologia
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.studia.ubbcluj.ro/download/pdf/philologia/2023_1/11.pdf
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author Diana V. BURLACU
author_facet Diana V. BURLACU
author_sort Diana V. BURLACU
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description Not only once have we learned about the parasitic, mimetic structure of a translation, or the inauthenticity of the invisible translator, a performer without a stage, as Robert Wechsler would describe it. Yet, beyond such a shallow disparaging perspective, (good) translation obviously means art, being shaped by the translator’s expertise, talent and imagination, and resembling a creative Lego game rather than an already set puzzle game, hence its uniqueness. The present study aims to briefly highlight certain key-concepts in this ambiguity-fraught domain, such as abusive fidelity, domestication and foreignization (covert and overt translation) or culture-bound terms, the so-called culturemes. Mainly relying on practical illustrations, encountered while translating a series of jokes from the German language into Romanian, during a translation course within the Leipzig University, the article will focus on the ludic aspect of translation, which paradoxically does not always trigger a laughter on the part of the translator, sometimes faced not only with difficulties, but with impossible equivalences. Ultimately, the study will try to justify the reasons for which communicative translation should prevail over the semantic translation or why an authentic target-language text proves superior to a faithful-to-the-source-text translation.
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spelling doaj.art-5665821d10c843d9a1489e5d84fe28ff2023-10-31T08:14:56ZdeuCluj University PressStudia Universitatis Babeş-Bolyai. Philologia1220-04842065-96522023-03-01681195210https://doi.org/10.24193/subbphilo.2023.1.11HOMO LUDENS AMONG CULTURES AND TRANSLATIONS – A PRACTICAL APPROACHDiana V. BURLACU0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4843-5172Assistant lecturer, Department of Romanian Language, Culture and Civilization, Faculty of Letters, Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca. Email: dianav.burlacu@gmail.comNot only once have we learned about the parasitic, mimetic structure of a translation, or the inauthenticity of the invisible translator, a performer without a stage, as Robert Wechsler would describe it. Yet, beyond such a shallow disparaging perspective, (good) translation obviously means art, being shaped by the translator’s expertise, talent and imagination, and resembling a creative Lego game rather than an already set puzzle game, hence its uniqueness. The present study aims to briefly highlight certain key-concepts in this ambiguity-fraught domain, such as abusive fidelity, domestication and foreignization (covert and overt translation) or culture-bound terms, the so-called culturemes. Mainly relying on practical illustrations, encountered while translating a series of jokes from the German language into Romanian, during a translation course within the Leipzig University, the article will focus on the ludic aspect of translation, which paradoxically does not always trigger a laughter on the part of the translator, sometimes faced not only with difficulties, but with impossible equivalences. Ultimately, the study will try to justify the reasons for which communicative translation should prevail over the semantic translation or why an authentic target-language text proves superior to a faithful-to-the-source-text translation.http://www.studia.ubbcluj.ro/download/pdf/philologia/2023_1/11.pdfabusive fidelitycommunicationculturemeequivalencemeaningmediationwordplay
spellingShingle Diana V. BURLACU
HOMO LUDENS AMONG CULTURES AND TRANSLATIONS – A PRACTICAL APPROACH
Studia Universitatis Babeş-Bolyai. Philologia
abusive fidelity
communication
cultureme
equivalence
meaning
mediation
wordplay
title HOMO LUDENS AMONG CULTURES AND TRANSLATIONS – A PRACTICAL APPROACH
title_full HOMO LUDENS AMONG CULTURES AND TRANSLATIONS – A PRACTICAL APPROACH
title_fullStr HOMO LUDENS AMONG CULTURES AND TRANSLATIONS – A PRACTICAL APPROACH
title_full_unstemmed HOMO LUDENS AMONG CULTURES AND TRANSLATIONS – A PRACTICAL APPROACH
title_short HOMO LUDENS AMONG CULTURES AND TRANSLATIONS – A PRACTICAL APPROACH
title_sort homo ludens among cultures and translations a practical approach
topic abusive fidelity
communication
cultureme
equivalence
meaning
mediation
wordplay
url http://www.studia.ubbcluj.ro/download/pdf/philologia/2023_1/11.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT dianavburlacu homoludensamongculturesandtranslationsapracticalapproach