Orges SELMANI

OVERCOMING CULTURAL BARRIERS - THE MISSING LINK BETWEEN TRANSLATION AND INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION An inter-linguistic analysis of a scene from Scent of a Woman Introduction One of the most challenging tasks for all translators is how to render culturebound elements in subtitles into a foreign language. Indeed, not much attention has been paid to this problem by translation theories. According to Newmark: translation is a craft consisting in the attempt to replace a written message and/or statement in one language by the same message and/or statement in another language (Newmark 1981:7). However, with culturally-bound words this is often impossible. Indeed, the meaning which lies behind this kind of expressions is always strongly linked to the specific cultural context where the text originates or with the cultural context it aims to re-create. Sometimes this kind of term can be easily rendered into the target language (TL) as in the case of topographical expressions (the River Thames cannot but be translated into Albanian as Lumi Tamiz; the Atlantic Ocean cannot but become Oqeani Atlantik, unless for some reasons one thinks it is absolutely necessary to change the source text). However, more often than not, the translator has to cope with true dilemmas. The word in the source text (ST) may be strongly rooted in the source culture (SC) and, yet, it may be too difficult to understand for the audience the translated movie is addressed to. In addition, translators may have to deal not only with lexical expressions, but also with

problems of register, syntactic order, non-standard English, regional varieties (dialects), etc. Though these elements are not always defined as culture-specific, I believe they are, since , as Goodenough argues: As I see it, a societys culture consists of whatever it is one has to know or believe in order to operate in a manner acceptable to its members, and do so in any role that they accept for any of themselves By definition, we should note that culture is not a material phenomenon; it does not consist of things, people, behavior, or emotions. It is rather an organization of these things. It is the form of things that people have in mind, their model of perceiving and dealing with their circumstances (Goodenough, 1964:36) The way people speak, construct their sentences, choose their vocabulary (according to the formal/informal situation they are in, to their geographical origin and so on) reveals much about their culture. The aim of this article is to define some of the main categories of culture-bound elements in subtitling by providing some significant examples taken from a popular film made in the USA in the 1990s, Scent of a Woman (director Martin Brest). Subsequently, I will make an inter-linguistic analysis of both the ST and the TT in English and Albanian to show what techniques have been adopted by translators to cope with the main cultural differences highlighted by the translation process. The translation of movies is a rather complicated issue in the Albanian context demanding full consideration in maybe another time. Due to the transitory stage of the copyright law, the foreign movies entering Albania with full rights know different versions from the same movie shownn on the small screen or rented in the video-shops. The situation of translating movies is rather chaotic, with
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several media presenting different versions of the same movie and different translators cutting and editing along the way playing the role of the Translation God, if there is one. (Pardon my blasphemy!). The movie Scent of a Woman was first broadcasted in the Italian version with Albanian subtitles by the Albanian Television (TVSH) in the late 1990s. Italians have dubbed the movie sometimes transferring the meaning and sometimes altering it. The same thing was reflected in the Albanian version that took for original (by mistake) the Italian version. The translation was re-edited some times ago but still maintained the same mistakes, something that altered the meaning I knew of editing. The other version I will analyze is the one of an Albanian digital platform. This time the movie was in the original. The scene under scrutiny is the one in which the two main characters, Charles Simms (the student) and Frank Slate (the colonel) are introduced to each other in the most awkward way possible. Because he is blind, the Colonel is looking for an attendant, while Charles who can afford his studies only thanks to the scholarship is looking for a job so he can go back to his family in Oregon during the Christmas holidays. Their first meeting is in fact Simmss job interview with Mr. Slade whose manners are rude and aggressive. Linguistic and Stylistic Features The linguistic and stylistic features play an important role in the translation analysis. The language used in the dialog between Charles and Frank clearly displays the former uneasiness and hesitation and the latter superiority. Frank almost always resorts to the imperative mood: Get in here. Dont call me
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Come closer Get outta here Go on), Charlie uses the indicative (in the present tense) most of the time (Im sorry My stepfather and my mum run a convenience store I attend Baird). The syntax of Mr. Slades sentences is also less regular than Simmss. Sometimes, the Colonel omits the subject, as in (Cant believe they are my blood Attend Baird Threw me in G-2). In contrast, Charlie uses regular S-V-O structures : I attend Baird; I won a Young American Merit Scholarship; I want a job. Furthermore, Colonel makes use of many Americanisms and colloquialisms (Weve gotta moron here; You patronizing me, pee-wee? Whadda you want here?) together with puns (G-2? Intelligence, of which you have none; Charlie: My stepfather and mum run a convenience store. Frank: Oh, how convenient? ), metaphorical and idiomatic expressions (you got me all mistyeyed; appleseeds- for people from the countryside). In addition Mr. Slade frequently makes use of the military jargon while addressing Charlie. All these differences result from the different communicative goals the two interlocutors want to achieve. The Colonel does not need to make a good impression. He feels comfortable and seems to enjoy the sense of anxiety and humiliation that is felt through the stammering and hesitation in the students words. The actual cultural barriers in terms of Cultural-Bound Elements Respecting all the above-mentioned characteristics is only half of the challenge the translator has to face. The translators task is made even more difficult by the presence of many culturally-oriented elements. The first aspect, as mentioned above, is the use of Americanisms. The spelling
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of many words uttered by Colonel Slade suggests a colloquial tone this is the case of the verbs gonna and wanna, the gerunds shootin and doin. Though it is almost impossible to render these peculiarities of American English in Albanian, it is undeniable the fact that they are very important elements in SL where they suggest the culture the speaker belongs to. In both versions these elements were not rendered in the Albanian language. These non-standard forms of language have not been preserved and no inventive solution has been offered. SL Frank: Get in here ya idiot. Come a little closer. I wanna get a better look at ya. TL-1 Eja brenda, idiot! Afrohu. Dua t t shoh m mir. TL-2 Hyr brenda, idiot! Afrohu, dua t t shoh m mir.

I have made use of different labels for the two Albanian versions, that in this case are not to be considered so, as except for the punctuation marks are spitting images of each other. Strange enough when considering that one is translated from English and the other one from Italian. One solution in rendering the tone in this case is in finding a non-standard language (i.e a regional variety) in the TL. This strategy is not always advisable as Mr. Slade would be struggling with Albanian dialects and therefore would not fit the American background and foreground. The second point worth considering is how to deal with the word sir so strongly related to attitudes and social behaviors. In English, the forms of sir and mister have a clear cut division. In Albanian, the equivalent for sir
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depends on the superior we are talking to. In the scene there is a complete loss of understanding as both forms of addressing (each bearing a different connotation) are translated the same.

Charlie: TL-1 TL-2 Frank:

Sir ? Zotri? Zotri! Don't call me sir !

TL-1 Mos m thuaj zotri! TL-2 Mos m thrrit zotri!

Charlie: TL-1 TL-2

I-I'm sorry. I mean mister, sir. M falni. Desha t them zoti, zotri. M falni, por e thash pr respekt, zotri.

Frank:

Uh-oh, we got a moron here,is that it ?

TL-1 Na paska ardhur nj hajvan, apo jo? TL-2 Mir, paskemi rekrutuar budallain e fshatit.

Charlie: TL-1 Tl-2

No, mister -- Uh, that is -- Uh, Lieutenant. Yes, sir, Lieu-Lieutenant Colonel. Jo, zotriJeniTogerPo zotri, toge Nnkolonel. Un zotriToger.

Frank:

Liutenant Colonel. 26 years on the line, nobody ever busted me

four grades before. TL-1 Nnkolonel. 26 vjet n ushtri, smi ka hequr njri katr grada m par. TL-2 Nnkolonel, 26 vjet shrbimi, askush ska guxuar t m heq 4 grada. As it is seen from the example above, the TL-2 version is more accurate in terms overcoming the cultural barrier and as those who know Italian might see, the translator helped themselves with the Italian version. The term sir in English is more respectful than mister, which is formal if followed by a persons surname (Mr. Slade) but is less formal when found in isolation. . The other different categories to be found in the SL include: - History (myths, traditions) - Society : a. customs and usages b. institutions and social structure c. lifestyle and habits d. beliefs and morality

The first example from the ST is under the History category: Frank: [] Too much football without a helmet? Ha. Lyndons line on

Gerry Ford, deputy debreifer, Paris, peacetalks, 68, snagged a silver star and a silver bar. Threw me in G-2. The Colonel mentions two former American Presidents in this passage : Lyndon B. Johnson and Gerald Ford. The first one is recognized by the American
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audience simply by his name. It is not the same with Albanians, who are generally more familiar with his surname, Johnson: TL-1 Frenk: Ke luajtur shum futboll pa kask? Fronti i Lindonit

mbi Gerald Fordin. Atashe ushtarak n bisedimet pr paqe n Paris, n 1968-n. U nderova me Yll t Art dhe gajtan argjendi. M futn n G-2. TL-2 Frenk: Ke luajtur futboll pa kask? E thoshte Xh.For, ekspert

ushtarak, Paris, konferenca e paqes 68, medalje e trimris, gradim n fushn e betejs, i transferuar n G-2.

Basically, both versions have meaning-related problems that will be revealed later on. At TL-1 both American Presidents come in the form familiar to an American-only audience. At TL-2 one of them (Lyndon) disappears with no reason at all, while the other is transformed from President into an unknown person (Gerry Ford to Xh.For).

A culture-bound element which belongs to the category of Society is the expression convenience store, used by Simms to explain what his parents do. As he says: My stepfather and mum run a convenience store TL-1 Njerku dhe nna ime kan nj dyqan ushqimesh. TL-2 Njerku dhe nna ime kan nj supermarket.
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This term can be included in subsystem b life-style and habits, since it is linked with peoples daily lives, with the way they shop and work, and even with the opening and closing hours of the shops (and, consequently with their way of life in general). Convenience stores are very popular in the USA, where many of them stay open 24 hours a day. They can be found alongside roads and gas stations and sometimes even at railway stations. Yet the terms dyqan ushqimesh and supermaket are the ones chosen by the Albanian translators. Dyqan ushqimesh is a typical Albanian shop, rather an extinct species nowadays, selling only a limited range of items (mainly flour, sugar, oil). It is rather out-dated to consider it a cultural equivalent of convenience store. Whereas supermarket, which is the equivalent of supermarket in English, is totally different from a convenience store, which could have been translated more correctly as minimarket (this term being used in Albanian as well). Therefore the culture-bound element in the ST has been ignored and even the underlying meaning of the passage altered. When the Colonel asks Charles whether the convenient store is convenient, he is not just making a pun by exploiting the linguistic similarities between the words. He is also implying that they are poor people or that they at least pretend to be so (Charles will then be addressed as a crook for holding a scholarship, and at the end of the scene, as a poormouth). In fact, in Albanian peoples minds to run a supermarket or even dyqan ushqimesh does not imply to suffer from a lack of money, it is though as a rather profitable business. Another problem is raised with the translation of Too much football without a helmet?. In English this question is rather easy to understand as it is an undisputable issue the fact that football refers to the American football where players are required to wear a helmet (quite military) in fact even though they
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are, in fact, playing. The Albanian word futboll refers to the English word soccer, that follows different rules from the American football. As for the helmet part, despite the fact that European soccer players are dying in the soccer fields due to heart failures while ours are frequently attacked in the fields by their own fans, they do not wear the same uniforms, thus they dont know the use of a helmet as they do not play under bombing, in a construction site or mine. I would include in group c (life-style and habits) the expressions Clinique and Chestnut Hill, which are linked to the high standard of living of the American lite. After being asked about how is [his] skin by the Colonel, who wants his attendants to be presentable, Charles explains: Ah, well, I have a few zits, ah, but my roommate, he lent me his Clinique because, well hes from Chestnut Hill TL-1 Kam pasur disa akne. Por nj shoku im i dhoms m dha nj locion pasi sht TL-2 Kam pasur disa purra. Por nj miku im m dha nj locion, sepse sht nga nj familje e pasur. Kto gjr

The term Clinique has been rendered with the more general one locion, which beside not giving the brand name in the ST, does not communicate that Charles has been lent a good quality product. Chestnut Hill is an elegant suburban village in Massachusetts (Boston) where many people from the higher ranks of society live. Since this is not known to the majority in Albania, the Albanian subtitles in the TL-1 do not even give a hint of this fact, while those in
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TL-2 again reflect the Italian version of the original (Lui di una famiglia per bene). Some of the more remarkable differences between the culture-bound elements in the ST and their translation are linked to wider and more general assumptions about social roles and social perceptions of other. Frank: Cant believe they are my blood. IQ of sloths and the manners of banshees. Hes a mechanic, shes a homemaker. He knows as much about cars as a beauty queen and she bakes cookies that taste like wing-nuts Frenk: Sm besohet q jan gjaku im. Koefiienti i inteligjencs s majmunve t Bengalit, dhe sjellja e orve t liga. Ai sht mekanik, ajo shtpiake. Ai merr vesh nga makinat aq sa nj mbretresh bukurie, ndrsa ajo gatuan biskota me shije bulonash flutur. Frenk: sht e pabesueshme! Gjaku im! Kan tru sa nj mishkonj dhe sjellje prej njeriu t pagdhendur. Ai sht mekanik, kurse ajo shtpiake. Ai merr vesh nga makinat aq sa nj femr q bn striptiz. Ajo bn biskota q kan shijen e naftalins. Here Slade is describing his next-of-kin. He uses the expression beauty queen in a kind of paradoxical simile to imply that her husband is an awfully bad mechanic. A beauty queen is, of course, the winner of a beauty contest and she is chosen (at least, this is the supposed criterion) both for her physical appearance and for her talents (that is, for what she can do on stage and for the way she answers questions). Apparently, there is no reason why the translators could not write nj Mis, since this is normally how women taking part in a beauty contest are referred to in Albania. The part sa nj femr q bn striptiz
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is pejorative and completely out of place. Another element, which belongs to North American society (and more specifically, to the educational field), is the Young American Merit scholarship Charles won. The Albanian subtitles in both versions give quite a faithful translation : TL-1 Kam fituar nj burse studimi si nxns i mir. TL-2 Kam fituar edhe nj burse studimi pr t rinjt q premtojn. However, the adjective American has not been translated at all, though the award mentioned is supposedly specifically for students from America. The most surprising change from ST to TT has been to translate wood-chips in Franks question: What does your daddy do in Gresham, Oregon, count wood-chips? Here, again, the Colonel is trying to humiliate Charles. Wood-chips are things of no importance, residues of wood of little use. But when watching the film, the Albanian audience learns that the characters stepfather is searching for mushrooms in TL-2 and in TL-1 the culture-bound element is faithfully translated as ashkla druri. In both cases the solution is not the right one as the mushroom collection is not a pointless occupation and looks more Italian than English or Albanian, whereas ashklat e drurit do not render the meaning of futility. TL-1 bn yt at n Gresham t Oregonit? Numron ashklat e drurit?
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TL-2 bn yt at? N pyjet e Origons? Mbledh krpudha? Another problem is the one related to the measuring of time. Different cultures measure time in different ways. Our equivalent for 1 A.M should be 1 e nats. Such a thing was not taken into consideration by the translators as the two versions of : Charles: 1 A.M TL-1 N 1:00 t mngjesit. TL-2 N mesnat Translation Techniques At this point, an analysis of the main translation techniques used for the Albanian subtitles can be made. They can be catalogued according to some of the most frequently adopted procedures:
1. Im sorry, I mean mister, sir/ M falni. Desha t them zoti, zotri./

M falni, por e thash pr respekt, zotri. = Faithful translation/ deletion and paraphrase
2. Car telephones / telefona makine / telefona celular = word-for-word

translation / substitution
3. Senior / maturant / viti i tret = faithful translation / paraphrase 4. Convenience store / dyqan ushqimesh / supermarket = adaptation /

substitution
5. Chestnut Hill /

/ nga nj familje e pasur =

paraphrase
6. Wood-chips / ashkla druri / krpudha = word-for-word translation /

substitution
7. Appleseeds / fara mollsh / indianve = word-for-word translation / 13

faithful translation As it is clearly displayed by the examples, the tendency to make the foreign become familiar has completely blurred the translation as an act of communication between cultures. The terms, which were not understood by the translator, were transformed into something else that still left the target audience puzzled and bewildered as changes led to a new and different meaning, which was not in the original.

Conclusions I was very judgmental throughout this analysis as the translation of movies is only a minute part of a larger and worse picture, if I am not mixing metaphors here. Movies are the most popular form of entertaining nowadays where people, while being not aware of them, acquire most foreign culturebased elements. Audiences should not struggle to decipher the meaning behind the subtitles as they get more difficult due to unknown phenomena. Here in fact, I did not refer to the poor translation in general because that is a big problem to tackle in a 10-page paper. In the Albanian context, I see the cultural elements as the unspoken language of movies. They get lost in translation as they do not speak to us, audiences. And if they do not speak, they do not communicate the message they intend to. Observing cultures and getting to know them is only half of the job for the translators. As culture is reflected in language, language is used in communication, and communication is the concept both disciplines share, there are certain procedures and strategies that might come in handy if one wants to make a sense whatsoever of the material in the Target Language. As we (as translators) ponder in the limbo between the source and the target text, the target readership has the right to be exposed to cultural diversity, something that
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translation should seek to render.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY Audiovisual Material: Scent of a Woman Arom Gruaje, Martin Brest, Universal Pictures, version i Televizionit Publik Shqiptar Scent of a Woman Arom Gruaje, Martin Brest, Universal Pictures, version i nj platforme dixhitale shqiptare Dictionaries: The American Heritage Dictionary. Houghton & Mifflin Arpino, Giovanni. Il buio e il miele. Baldini e Castoldi; Milano.1993. Goodenough, Ward H. Cultural Anthropology in Linguistics in D. Hymes ed. Language in Culture and Society. A Reader in Linguistics and Anthropology, Harper & Row: New York, 1964. Newmark, Peter. About Translation. Multilingual Matters: Clevedon, 1991. Approaches to Translation. Pergamon Press; Oxford, 1988. A Textbook of Translation, Pergamon Press: Oxford, 1981. Paragraph on Translation, Multilingual Matters; Clevedon, 1993. Nida, Eugene, and Taber, Charles. The Theory and Practice of Translation. E.J. Brill: Leiden, 1982. Web resources: On-line Dictionary of English, http://www.dictionary.reference.com http://www.wikipedia.com

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