Kultuur en vertaling : die domestikering van die Leefstyl-Bybel vir Vroue
Date
2008-03
Authors
Fourie, Estea
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
Abstract
One of the biggest problems faced by translators has always been the issue
of whether a translation should be a free translation or a literal translation.
These days, the general tendency is to view a translation as a cultural transfer
of information (or intercultural communication) and no longer as merely a
linguistic transfer of information. This study took the translation of the
applications (columns that deal with life issues) in the Leefstyl-Bybel vir Vroue
(LBV), as adapted from the Bible, as subject matter. The reason for this
choice of subject matter was that these applications were translated for a
target audience (Afrikaans-speaking women) that differs culturally from the
source text readers and that the new culture, therefore, constantly had to be
taken into account in the translation.
It was found that the following theoretical approaches had been successfully
applied in the translation of the source text. Firstly, there was the
Functionalist approach, where the work of Nord en Vermeer played a
significant role. Vermeer’s Skopos Theory focuses, above all, on the aim of a
translation and Nord’s instrumental translation on the fact that a translation
must communicate successfully with the target text readers in their culture.
The LBV is functionalist in the sense that it was translated with a specific aim
in mind, namely to empower the Afrikaans-speaking women on a political level
and to counter their voicelessness and disempowerment.
Secondly, Gutt’s Relevance Theory, and the term “Indirect Translation” in
particular, were used. This kind of communication communicates the
meaning of the original in such a way that it makes sense to the target
language reader in her own context. For example, the metaphors were
adapted because the original metaphors would not have been relevant to the
Afrikaans-speaking women. New text, that the translator felt was relevant to
the target language readers, was also added to the target text.
Lastly, Venuti’s Foreignizing and Domestication were used. The LBV was
highly domesticated, which meant that the target language values were visible
to the target language culture in the translation. This domestication was
successful because the translation met the cultural expectations of the target
audience.
The concept of “Gender and Translation” was also examined. The reason or
need for the translation and why the source text had been translated for this
target audience specifically, also had to be determined. It was found that
women in South Africa had been oppressed for some time. The publisher
therefore deemed it necessary to have a Bible for women in Afrikaans.
Presenting the Bible to them in a “woman-friendly” way would assist them to
believe in their own worth.
The source text and the target text were compared and analysed on the
macro and micro levels. It was determined whether the above theoretical
approaches were successfully applied and whether the target text worked as
a communicative instrument in the new target culture. Various reviews were
consulted. These reviews and the research in this study indicated that the
LBV had been successfully received by the target audience.
Description
Thesis (MPhil (Afrikaans and Dutch))--Stellenbosch University, 2008.
Keywords
Translating and interpreting, Intercultural communication, Culture and translations