Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
Obligatorisk forside
Projekter på BA-studierne
Institut for Sprog og Erhvervskommunikation
Navn og holdnr.:
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
Holdnr.: BA projekt Engelsk F09
CPR-nr. (på
studerende):
Navn og semester for
projektet:
BA-projekt – 6. sem.
Vejleder på projektet:
Anne Gram Schjoldager
Undervisningsgruppe:
Engelsk
1
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
Shrek
A comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Author: Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Date of hand in: May 5, 2009
Supervisor: Anne Gram Schjoldager
Number of characters (without spaces): 59,975
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
1. Introduction____________________________________________________________5
2. Theory and choice of method ______________________________________________7
3. The source text (ST) _____________________________________________________8
3.1 About the film ____________________________________________________________ 8
3.2 Comedy/ Humour _________________________________________________________ 9
3.2.1 Subdivisions of humour_________________________________________________________ 9
3.2.2 Irony ______________________________________________________________________ 11
3.3 Summary of Shrek _______________________________________________________ 12
4. The target texts (TTs) ___________________________________________________13
4.1 Culture _________________________________________________________________ 14
5. Subtitling _____________________________________________________________16
6. Dubbing ______________________________________________________________18
6.1 Levels of synchrony ______________________________________________________ 19
6.1.1: Levels of synchrony in dubbing (Gottlieb 2008: 217) ________________________________ 19
7. Macrostrategies ________________________________________________________21
7.1: A model of macrostrategies (Schjoldager 2008: 72) ___________________________________ 21
7.1.1 Elaboration of A model of macrostrategies _________________________________________ 21
7.2 The macrostrategy of the subtitled version ___________________________________ 22
7.2.1 Estimation of the macrostrategy of the subtitled version ______________________________ 22
7.3 The macrostrategy of the dubbed version ____________________________________ 23
8. Microstrategies ________________________________________________________24
8.1 Expansion ______________________________________________________________ 24
8.2 Paraphrase______________________________________________________________ 25
8.3 Transfer ________________________________________________________________ 25
8.4 Imitation _______________________________________________________________ 25
8.5 Transcription____________________________________________________________ 26
8.6 Dislocation ______________________________________________________________ 26
8.7 Condensation ____________________________________________________________ 26
8.8 Decimation ______________________________________________________________ 26
8.9 Deletion ________________________________________________________________ 27
8.10 Resignation ____________________________________________________________ 27
8.11 Permutation ____________________________________________________________ 27
9. Analysis of the Danish versions ___________________________________________28
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
9.1 Segment 2 ____________________________________________________________________
9.2 Segment 7 ____________________________________________________________________
9.3 Segment 27 ___________________________________________________________________
9.4 Segment 28 ___________________________________________________________________
9.5 Segment 30 ___________________________________________________________________
9.6 Segment 31 ___________________________________________________________________
9.7 Segment 32 ___________________________________________________________________
9.8 Segment 33 ___________________________________________________________________
9.9 Segment 34 ___________________________________________________________________
9.10 Segment 35 __________________________________________________________________
9.11 Segment 37 __________________________________________________________________
28
29
30
30
31
31
32
32
33
33
34
10. Results ______________________________________________________________36
10.1 Comparison and assessment of the choices of macrostrategies __________________ 36
10.2 Comparison and assessment of the choices of microstrategies ___________________ 37
10.2.1 Subtitles ___________________________________________________________________ 37
10.2.2 Dubbed version _____________________________________________________________ 38
10.3 Would a different set of strategies be better? _________________________________ 39
10.4 Explanation of the differences in the translations _____________________________ 40
10.5 Might these differences affect an audience? __________________________________ 40
11. Discussion and conclusion ______________________________________________41
List of references _________________________________________________________42
Appendices______________________________________________________________44
Appendix 1_________________________________________________________________ 44
Transcription of scene 6 ____________________________________________________________ 44
Appendix 2_________________________________________________________________ 49
The rest of the analysed segments ______________________________________________ 49
Segment 1 _______________________________________________________________________
Segment 3 _______________________________________________________________________
Segment 4 _______________________________________________________________________
Segment 5 _______________________________________________________________________
Segment 6 _______________________________________________________________________
Segment 15 ______________________________________________________________________
Segment 29 ______________________________________________________________________
49
49
50
50
51
52
52
Summary _______________________________________________________________55
4
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
1. Introduction
In 2001, the computer animation company DreamWorks Animation SKG1 released the first
film about the ogre Shrek. The film turned out to be a huge success worldwide including in
Denmark where the film was not only subtitled, but dubbed too. Due to this, I wondered
whether the Danish translations had an influence on its success in Denmark. I namely
think that one thing a film ought to possess, to become successful abroad, is a good
translation. Therefore, I decided to take a closer look at the Danish target texts (TTs).
When I watched the film, I noticed some mistakes in the translation, and I wondered why
the translator, Hans Kristian Bang, did not correct these mistakes before the release.
Furthermore, I noticed passages in the TTs which did not cover the same meaning as the
corresponding passages in the source text (ST). Those passages might have been
complex and therefore hard to translate. That is why I wondered what made him decide
on the strategies which he finally applied to the TTs.
I want to understand the differences and similarities between subtitling and dubbing. I
intend to compare the macro- and microstrategies applied to the Danish dubbed and
subtitled versions of Shrek. I will seek to estimate which strategies the translator used and
try to find the reasons why. I will also look into whether it would be better to use a different
set of strategies. Furthermore, I will try to explain the differences in the translations, if any,
and assess why there are differences and whether they might affect the target audience.
A thorough analysis of the entire film would take up too much space which is why I chose
one particular scene which got my attention in relation to the translations. It emerges from
the DVD (Shrek) that it is the sixth scene. This scene will be the foundation of my
analysis.
After explaining my methodology in chapter 2, I will describe the ST and the TTs in
chapter 3 and 4. In these two chapters, I will outline the characteristics of the genres
comedies, fairy tales and computer animated films as these notions can in some degree
be relevant to my comparative analysis. Chapter 5 will deal with subtitling and chapter 6
1
The letters SKG are the initials of the last names of the founders of DreamWorks SKG, i.e.
Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen (Tallerico 2009). For more information on
the history of the company, see Tallerico 2009.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
will be about dubbing. These two notions are both rather important for the overall
comprehension of this thesis, and for the understanding of differences and similarities
between subtitling and dubbing. Furthermore, they are central to the comparison of the ST
with the TTs. Next, the conception of macrostrategies will be explained in chapter 7. This
chapter will also include an analysis of the macrostrategies applied to Shrek. Chapter 8
will be an outline of Gottlieb’s microstrategies, which subsequently will form the basis of
my analysis in chapter 9. The results of this analysis will be clarified in chapter 10. Finally,
I will discuss and conclude this empirical study in chapter 11. I will enclose a list of
references and two appendices, which comprise the transcription of the dialogue in scene
6 and a part of the analysis of the examined segments.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
2. Theory and choice of method
My intention is to do an empirical study of the computer animated film Shrek by means of
a comparative analysis of ST and TTs. The ST is the original English version of Shrek,
and the TTs are the Danish subtitled and dubbed versions of the film. Such a comparison
requires certain tools that can help me enlighten the differences and similarities of the
texts. First, I will need to clarify what I associate with the concept of humour/ comedy; I will
do this by examining the content of several humorous branches. After examining these
branches, I aim to define them in order to make them applicable to my analysis. Second, I
will need information on fairy tales as there are several intertextual references to the
genre in Shrek. Third, I intend to identify the characteristics of subtitling and dubbing; I will
particularly focus on Henrik Gottlieb’s (2008) conception of the disciplines, which are
fundamental for comparison of the ST and the TTs. Fourth, I will look into the theory
behind macrostrategies as defined by Anne Schjoldager (2008), and I will seek to
conclude which macrostrategies can be applied to Shrek. Next, I will look into
microstrategies as proposed by Gottlieb (1997). I intend to compare Gottlieb’s taxonomies
to those of Schjoldager (2008). First, I will try to elaborate on his microstrategies with the
help of hers, and second, I will attempt to amplify his set of strategies, if necessary.
Finally, these investigations should conclude in an assessment of the translations of
Shrek in relation to the problem statement, see chapter 1.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
3. The source text (ST)
3.1 About the film
The film Shrek is based on a picture book (with identical name) from 1990. The book was
written by William Steig (Tallerico 2009) and is a fairy tale. The film was produced by the
American DreamWorks Animation SKG and had its premiere in May 2001. Shrek was
made to entertain (Dürr 2001).
Shrek is a comic computer animated film, whose target group is quite broad, and
according to DreamWorks Animation SKG (2009) and Morten Dürr (2001) the film appeals
to all family members. Dürr, (2001) who is a reviewer at the Danish newspaper Børsen,
wrote that small children would fall in love with the characters Shrek and Donkey. Next, he
argued that older children can identify themselves with the theme of the film – to love
yourself for what you are – and finally, he stated that the intertextual ironic fairy tale
references would amuse the adult audience. It is my opinion that the film is a bit too ironic
and frivolous for older people, and Dürr does not specifically refer to elders in his review
either.
According to Ebbesen Schmidt (2008), there are three main genre categories, which have
several subgenres; these main genres are literary, music and cinematic. Genres are
recognisable from the context in which they take place, i.e. the receiver is able to decode
the genre because of his or her context knowledge (people tend to associate certain
interactions with specific genres) (Eggins 1994). I realise that other authors may have
different categorisations of main genres; nevertheless, I have chosen to use the main
genres as suggested by Ebbesen Schmidt (2008) because of their applicability to Shrek.
The film belongs to the subgenre computer animated films, also referred to as computergenerated animation (DreamWorks Animation SKG 2009), which is part of the cinematic
main genre. Animated films are created by producing images with the help of computer
modeling programmes (Shrek: Special Features: International Dubbing Featurette 2002).
Fairy tales belong to the literary main genre. Fairy tales are characterised by certain
features like magical creatures, they usually take place “once upon a time” and include a
princess as one of the characters (Wikipedia: Fairy Tale 2009 + HVAL 2009). Fairy tales
often follow particular rules of numbers (HVAL 2009), for instance, the number three is
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
often employed; e.g. Princess Fiona changes into an ogre three times during the story.
Furthermore, the film is packed with fairy tale creatures. It also starts with once upon a
time and it end ends with a slightly adjusted standard sentence and they lived ugly ever
after (where the classical ending goes and they lived happily ever after) (HVAL 2009). The
ways in which the fairy tales are displayed in Shrek accentuate the third subgenre –
comedy. As mentioned above, the classic and idyllic roles of the fairy tale creatures have
been altered and therefore, they appear to be ironic, which appeals to adults. The sub
genre comedy belongs to the cinematic main genre.
3.2 Comedy/ Humour
In 1998, Alison Ross introduces her book where she defines humour as something that
makes people smile or laugh. As explained by Ebbesen Schmidt (2008: 39), Ross also
defines humour as a human need to feel superior to others; she bases this definition on
the superiority theory, developed by Thomas Hobbes (Ross 1998: 64). People who feel
superior think that they are invulnerable and compelling compared with people who tend
to make fools of themselves. So, according to Hobbes’ theory (Ebbesen Schmidt 2008),
whenever somebody laughs he or she is, in fact, pleased with his or her own triumph, or
amused by the misfortune of another. Furthermore, laughs are supposed to make people
forget their own insufficiency for a while. I think that there is some truth in this, particularly
the claim that people get the opportunity to forget about their own misfortunes.
Ebbesen Schmidt (2008) recommends subdividing humour so that it is possible to analyse
the phenomenon. He uses eight subdivisions - explained below - as defined by Alison
Ross. I will define the subdivisions as Ebbesen Schmidt (2008) presented and interpreted
them since I think that his explanation of the divisions is clear and concise; I will, of
course, check his interpretations.
3.2.1 Subdivisions of humour
1. Humour, based on the incongruity theory
2. Visual humour
3. Wordplay and ambiguity
4. Allusions
5. Intertextuality
6. Parody: Attacking a target
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
7. Taboo-breaking
8. Nonsense and the absurd
Humour, based on the incongruity theory focuses on the surprising elements of
humour. Ross (1998: 7) writes that humour is created out of conflict between what is
expected and what actually happens. The receiver has expectations about what he or she
is going to hear, and therefore becomes surprised if he or she hears something
completely different.
Visual humour focuses on body language and facial expressions. It is possible to overdo
the effect of an expression in animated films and in Shrek we come across a fine example
when Princess Fiona makes a bird explode because she sings off-key. Ross (1998) writes
that visual humour can support spoken humour, which reinforces the comic aspect. Visual
humour needs, however, not be supported by a text.
Wordplay and ambiguity have an extensive list of subdivisions; however, due to the limit
of space and an immense amount of information, I will restrict myself to giving merely a
few examples of wordplay which are in certain ways relevant to the analysis. According to
Ebbesen Schmidt (2008), Ross has the opinion that practically all cultures consider
ambiguous jokes to be funny. Obviously, one still needs to study what people from each
culture consider humorous.
One type of wordplay is phonology and the notion deals with the resemblance in sound
between spoken words.
Another type of wordplay is vocabulary – words or language structures with ambiguous
meanings/ puns. Spanakaki (2007) made a clear arrangement of vocabulary. She has
based her work on the works of professor Dirk Delabastita. She gives examples of
various kinds of vocabulary. First, homonymy, identical sounds and spellings; second,
homophony, identical sounds that have different spellings; third homography, different
sounds that have identical spellings; and fourth paronymy, small differences in sounds as
well as in spellings. Ebbesen Schmidt (2008) mentions polysemy as yet a type of
vocabulary; a polysemic word can have another meaning besides its denotation.
Allusions (hints): The speaker indirectly hints something which causes certain
associations with the receiver. Ergo, the receiver must possess some knowledge on the
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
surrounding world/ the context if he or she is to interpret the hint as intended. Allusions
can also be a reference to something or someone outside the text itself (Ross 1998: 109).
Intertextuality (intertextual humour) is applied when quotes or characters/ figures refer to
a certain text, style or something which the receiver is already familiar with. Ross defines
intertextuality (1998: 111) as a reference in a text to another existing text. This means that
there are some discrepancies in the texts of Ebbesen Schmidt (2008) and Ross (1998);
for instance, Ross would most likely be of the opinion that figures belong to allusions, but I
have decided to subordinate them to intertextuality.
Parody: Attacking a target is humour aimed at certain people, institutions, or particular
sets of beliefs (Ross 1998: 2). Ross (1998: 112) more explicitly defines parody as a
mocking imitation of a person, text or genre. Ebbesen Schmidt (2008: 49) writes that the
sender can make him- or herself object of a joke too. Parody is typically expressed
through impersonations/ parodies.
Taboo-breaking (Ross 1998: 4) is often expressed through vulgarities and curses, and
concentrates on topics which taboos are often associated with; e.g. sex, religion and
death (Ross 1998). Ross (1998: 61) assumes that the conception of taboo is individual.
Nonsense or the absurd: If somebody says something which is completely incoherent, it
is nonsense; occasionally this kind of humour is used, although it may not make much
sense to the receiver. If something is so obvious that it is almost needless to utter, it is
absurd. An instance of an absurdity is given by Ebbesen Schmidt (2008): Why did that
man cross the road? – To get to the other side.
3.2.2 Irony
In relation to humorous strategies, I think that irony needs to be mentioned; I believe that
the notion is used just as frequently as the subdivisions of humour. Ross (1998: 50) writes
that irony is easily misunderstood, and to avoid misunderstandings, one needs to study
the language and culture in question. If the sender does not possess enough knowledge
about the TT language and culture, the intended function of the irony – to make people
laugh – is easily lost and the audience or the reader is not entertained. Ergo, it is difficult
for a sender to use irony since the notion is understood and interpreted differently,
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
depending on which culture one aims to address. To know which ironic approach to
decide on, one should foremost know what the TT receivers consider to be customary.
3.3 Summary of Shrek
The story takes place in the Land of Far Far Away. We meet the ogre Shrek who has
chosen to live life in solitude in an isolated swamp. Everyone who comes across him fears
him and therefore he prefers living alone – and he pretends to enjoy it.
One day his swamp gets invaded by a crowd of fairy tale creatures who have been exiled
to the swamp by the power-hungry Lord Farquaad. In order to gain back his swamp,
Shrek comes to an agreement with Lord Farquaad where he must set out on a quest to
save the lovely Princess Fiona from a fierce full dragon – so that Lord Farquaad can
marry her, and with that proclaim himself king.
The talking donkey Donkey, who is determined to assist Shrek on his quest, joins him –
more or less against his will. As planned, they safe Princess Fiona. But, on their way back
to Lord Farquaad, Shrek and Fiona fall in love, which was not part of the plan. However,
neither of them dares to tell the other, and so Fiona gets handed over to Farquaad and
Shrek returns home. Luckily, at the last moment Shrek confesses his love to the princess,
and gives her her true-love’s first kiss, which makes her turn into her true self – an ogre.
Lord Farquaad ends his life in the belly of the dragon which used to guard Princess Fiona.
The dragon has become soft at heart after falling in love with Shrek’s loyal and charming
follower Donkey.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
4. The target texts (TTs)
Shrek had its cinema premiere in Denmark September 7, 2001 and was released on DVD
March 20, 2002 (Scope: Lars Thiesgaard 2009). There are two Danish TTs, to be exact a
written translation/ subtitles and an oral translation/ a dubbed version. They are both
interlingual translations (see chapter 5). The dialogue was translated by Hans Kristian
Bang/ Medieværkstedet; Mr Bang has translated a row of films (Det danske filminstitut:
Hans Kristian Bang 2009). DreamWorks Animation SKG is the commissioner and chose
to dub the film in more than 20 languages (Shrek: Special Features: International Dubbing
Featurette 2002). Moreover, the Danish version had its very own dubbing director, Lars
Thiesgaard, who is considered a specialist when it comes to dubbed films (Scope: Lars
Thiesgaard 2009).
The subtitled version is overt (Schjoldager 2008: 30-34) because the viewer is aware that
the subtitles are a translation of the original dialogue. Hans Kristian Bang translated the
dubbed version too, in cooperation with Lars Thiesgaard. The target group is quite broad
as the receiver could be a small child as well as a middle-aged person. Assuming that the
viewers were a group of 6-year-olds they might not be aware about the fact that the
dubbed version is a translation, ergo the translation would be covert (Schjoldager 2008:
30-34). One thing that supports this argument is that Danes, as written by Gottlieb (2008:
218), are not used to dubbing, which is why they are sometimes unaware of the fact that
occasionally films get dubbed in Denmark. If, though, the receivers are adults who have
already seen the original film with Danish subtitles, they might not like the dubbed version.
To them, the film would be overt as they would be aware of the translation, and since they
presumably prefer subtitles (Gottlieb 2008).
Even though the film has been translated, I still consider DreamWorks Animation SKG to
be the sender of the Danish versions of Shrek. There are two TTs because there are two
target groups. The subtitled version has a broader target group as it is aimed at children
as well as adults (DreamWorks Animation SKG 2009). As mentioned in chapter 3.1, the
fairy tale references appeal to grown-ups, due to the intertextual ironic humour; so, even
though fairy tales traditionally seem appealing to children, they are aimed at adults in
Shrek. The Danish dubbed version is particularly aimed at small children who cannot yet
read, and who therefore presumably would rather watch a movie in their own language
13
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
than one in the original language. This means that the target group of the dubbed version
is smaller than that of the subtitled version.
According to Christiane Nord (2005: 31-2, as cited by Munday 2008: 79) functionality is
the most important criterion for a translation. This means that there must be a relationship
between ST and TT, and that this relationship must be determined by the purpose of
skopos (Munday 2008: 79), i.e. the intended function of the TT. The skopos of both TTs is
to entertain the receivers (DreamWorks Animation SKG 2009). In order for someone to be
able to translate a movie like Shrek, one would have to acquire knowledge about the
Danish culture, especially about what Danes consider to be humorous and entertaining. I
would expect the translator to take Danish cultural aspects into account in order to
determine what the two target groups consider to be amusing. The TTs are particularly
interesting because of the two different target groups and because of the need to adjust
the translations to the culture, and thereby transfer the humorous aspect.
4.1 Culture
In the extra material of the DVD (Shrek: Special Features: International Dubbing
Featurette 2002), it is uttered that no matter which language Shrek is speaking, the
meaning is always the same because the language of comedy is international. I cannot
say that I completely agree with this opinion. I think that culture ought to be taken into
consideration. Yet, Schultz Jørgensen (2005) writes that the conception of humour is quite
individual and that notions such as subculture have great influence on people’s
conception of humour. This approach to humour speaks in favour of the above utterance.
Due to that, I think that to some degree the language of comedy is international; however,
whether it appeals to people or not, depends on the individual conception of humour.
According to Munday (2008), one should reflect on the needs of the receiver of the TT
when translating. To be exact, one should consider what would be functionally suitable in
the TT culture instead of lingering on the details of the ST. A TT could be perceived
wrongly, had it not been adapted its audience. One cultural aspect that I consider
essential in connection to my analysis is Danish humour. According to Schultz Jørgensen
(2005) Danish humour among other things encompasses teasing, irony, self-irony and
sarcasm. Schultz Jørgensen (2005) has interviewed the Danish Muslim politician Naser
Khader, who thinks that Danes have an ironic approach to nearly everything. Based on
Schultz Jørgensen’s (2005) study of Danish humour and the humour which was used in
the original Shrek, I can conclude that Danish humour resembles American humour. I will
14
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
consider the humorous aspect of culture in my analysis, in chapter 9, as I consider it
relevant to the choices of translation strategies.
In the next two chapters, I will deal with two notions which are central to the
comprehension of this thesis, subtitling and dubbing.
15
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
5. Subtitling
Subtitles are transcriptions of dialogues which take place during films. They are usually
displayed at the bottom of the screen. Some countries prefer subtitling over dubbing and
vice versa (Gottlieb 2008). There can be many reasons for such preferences; one
advantage of subtitling compared to dubbing, according to Spanakaki (2007), is that the
costs of subtitling are about 15 times lower. There are certain limits as to how freely one
may translate/ subtitle. This is due to certain unwritten rules, such as striving towards
using words that are verbally similar to the ones spoken in the target language. By striving
towards using words with as many shared features as possible, the original dialogue will
not disturb the reading of the subtitles.
Though not apparent from his work, Gottlieb (1997: 71) uses Roman Jakobson’s (see
Schjoldager 2008: 18-19) definition of two situations in which linguistic translation/
subtitling takes place. These situations are intralingual and interlingual translation/
subtitling. Intralingual subtitling is translation within one cultural language, for instance,
subtitling for the deaf. Interlingual subtitling is translation between two different languages.
In either situation, the translator has to interpret the ST before he or she can decide how it
ought to be presented appropriately – whether for deaf people or people who speak a
foreign language. There is yet another type of translation, i.e. intersemiotic translation
(Schjoldager 2008: 19), which Gottlieb, however, does not mention. Intersemiotic
translation does not occur as often on screen as the other two types – yet, an example
could be a subtitle in brackets saying she shushes.
Gottlieb (2008: 205-237) states that there are minimum seven different patterns of
subtitling; I will not catalogue them all, but merely mention the one that is usually used for
subtitling in Denmark, and that is subtitling from a foreign language into the domestic
majority language. This pattern has been used for the rendering of Shrek. Gottlieb (2008)
points out that not all language professionals agree on whether subtitling can be regarded
as translation or not since subtitled dialogues are typically significantly shorter than
original dialogues. A necessary segmentation in the conversation must be carried out
because of the time-and-space constraints. In fact, Gottlieb (2008: 220) claims that one
third of the dialogue gets lost in subtitles. This phenomenon is forced on the subtitler
because of the natural limit of how much a person can actually manage to read per
16
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
second, which is just about 12 subtitle characters, according to earlier studies. Yet,
Gottlieb (2008: 232) writes that commercial TV stations and branches within the DVD
industry assume that persons who prefer subtitles over dubbing can now read faster than
before, so these institutions have raised the number of characters per second to a
maximum of 16. The time-and-space constraints can result in bad translations if there is
not enough space to make an idiomatic translation of an idiom because of the time-limit.
Another reason why some experts claim that subtitling is not translation, is the fact that
subtitling is diamesic translation (Gottlieb 2008: 210), which equals speech being
rendered into written form, or vice versa. If the form is retained, it is referred to as
isomesic translation (Gottlieb 2008: 210). I am of the opinion that subtitling is translation; I
believe that a subtitler needs to possess good translation skills in order to be able to
perform this type of translation. Translators need to think about how the intended function
of the TT is brought out best, and therefore they must carefully consider their choices of
microstrategies (clarified in chapter 8). The credibility of a TT is more important than the
meaning of the individual words, and therefore, when translating interlingually, the text
must be re-coded, and not simply be translated word for word.
17
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
6. Dubbing
Dubbing is one of four subtypes within the task of revoicing, which is rather popular in
some Western European countries such as Germany, Italy, France and Spain (Gottlieb
2008: 216). Gottlieb describes Denmark as a subtitling country, which explains the fact
that many Danes consider dubbing to be a phenomenon which only takes place abroad.
However, cartoons and computer animated films are often dubbed in Denmark. Even
though such films are dubbed, they are often subtitled as well because most Danes prefer
subtitling (Gottlieb 2008).
The phenomenon of dubbing is also referred to as post-synchronisation and lipsynchronous dubbing (Gottlieb 2008: 216). When dubbing a movie, an isomesic
translation takes place, which in this case means that the spoken form is retained.
A dubbing director predominantly aims at using actors whose tone of voices resemble the
ones used in the original film, i.e. the director strives at making a covert translation. One
thing which got my attention when I watched the Danish dubbed version of Shrek, was the
fact that Shrek’s voice (spoken by Amin Jensen) was quite different from the original one.
The tone was significantly brighter and softer than Mike Myers’, the actor who spoke as
the original Shrek. At first this altered voice was a disturbing element, but then I realised
that maybe Lars Thiesgaard had an intention with this choice, to take the target audience
(the youngest family members) into consideration. A deep voice with an accent might be
too scary, whereas a nasty ogre (not usually associated with the hero of a tale) with a soft
voice would seem less frightening.
One clear advantage of dubbing is that a complete translation can be done, meaning that
all the words and implications can be rendered; and not merely the central parts as
prescribed by the limited amount of signs, i.e. the approximate number of 12-16
characters per second (Gottlieb 2008).
Obviously it is not possible to hide the fact that a film has been post-synchronised
because of the lip movements. However, in the case of a computer animated film it is less
obvious as the movements of the lips are beforehand attempted adjusted to the
corresponding actual real life motions. Nevertheless, it is an aim of the TT to try to achieve
as much lip movement synchrony as possible.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
6.1 Levels of synchrony
I believe that the visual aspect of the film is important to the viewer, which is why
synchrony levels ought to be taken into consideration before deciding on the choices of
microstrategies. For my analysis, in chapter 9, I will be using the model Levels of
synchrony in dubbing as presented by Gottlieb (2008: 217) on the basis of the works of
Candace Whitman-Linsen and Thomas Herbst.
TYPE
FOCUS
EFFECT
Total lip synchrony
Articulation
Both consonant and vowel
articulation are recreated in
the dubbed lines
Bilabial lip synchrony
Mouth
The most ´visual´ sounds
match: Bilabial consonants
remain bilabial
Nucleus synchrony
Gestures
Intonation and emphasis
match body movements and
facial expressions
Syllable synchrony
Speed
People are heard speaking
as fast as they are seen
speaking
Utterance synchrony
Turn taking
People speak for as long as
their mouths stay open
Voice synchrony
Typecasting
Each voice matches the
stature and personality of
the visible actor
6.1.1: Levels of synchrony in dubbing (Gottlieb 2008: 217)
It is not easy to achieve perfect synchrony, which is why a translator must decide which
level is the most appropriate each time. The translator will perhaps have his or her own
ideas about which levels of synchrony provide the most credible post-synchronisation of a
film, and will aim at using them. Gottlieb (2008) writes that a translator can interpret a text
more freely if the characters are not shown in close-up since the viewers’ focus on the
movements of the lips reduces. While the actors or figures are not zoomed in on, the
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
translator is able to apply the most appropriate level of synchrony. This makes it easier to
focus on microstrategies. Often, TT receivers are in no position to judge how well a
dubbed dialogue has been translated because the original dialogue has been replaced;
and if the lip movements seem successfully similar, it adds to the credibility of the TT.
Because of the option to vary the synchrony levels, it is possible to make the dialogue
appear fluent. From time to time, the attempt to adjust the translated dialogue to the lip
movements of the characters steal the scene, and due to this the syntax can be
influenced negatively as the movements steal the focus from the content of the dialogue.
Therefore, it is my opinion that a translator should first and foremost concentrate his or her
attention on the choices of microstrategies.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
7. Macrostrategies
In order for the translator to decide how to subtitle and/ or dub a film, the person would
have to estimate which macrostrategy would be appropriate. A macrostrategy can either
be ST oriented or TT oriented. A translator should always decide which macrostrategy to
employ to a TT with respect to the aim of the ST, and the primary aim of Shrek is to
entertain its audience (DreamWorks Animation SKG 2009).
Anne Schjoldager (2008: 71) recommends the translator to take three aspects into
consideration which will help decide a macrostrategy. Schjoldager (2008: 72) has
arranged the three aspects in a model, see below.
SOURCE-TEXT ORIENTED
TARGET-TEXT ORIENTED
MACROSTRATEGY
MACROSTRATEGY
Focus on source-text form and content
Focus on target-text effect
Communication of somebody else’s
Mediation between primary parties in a
communication
communication
Overt translation
Covert translation
7.1: A model of macrostrategies (Schjoldager 2008: 72)
7.1.1 Elaboration of A model of macrostrategies
If a translator considers the form and content of the ST to be more important than the
effect of the TT, then the semantic meaning is central to the macrostrategy and therefore
the text is ST oriented. If, however the effect of the TT is more important than its
semantics, it is TT oriented.
To function as a mediator means that the addresser wants to address an addressee/ a
receiver; the message goes through the translator, but the addressee is one and the
same, therefore, the macrostrategy is TT oriented. To communicate someone else’s
communication means that the message was originally meant for another addressee; and
the translator is hired to translate the text because somebody outside that communication
situation has become interested in the subject. Thereby, a new communication situation
arises in which the translator functions as a new addresser who sends a new message in
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
a different context to another addressee – the macrostrategy is ST oriented because the
content of the original text is important to the addressee.
As mentioned in chapter 4, the translation is overt, if the TT receiver is aware about the
fact that a text has been translated. If the receiver does not know that he or she is
reading/ watching a translation, then the translation is covert.
7.2 The macrostrategy of the subtitled version
In the case of the subtitled version of Shrek, the viewer would most likely be aware that
the subtitles are a translation of the film, seeing the subtitles on the screen and
furthermore, they are in a different language than the spoken dialogue – ergo the
translation is overt, which means that, from this point of view, the macrostrategy is ST
oriented.
As to the focus of the macrostrategy, I assume that it is primarily TT oriented since the
effect of the film is more important than the meaning of the individual words. The
importance of the effect becomes clear when watching the extra material of the DVD
(Shrek: Special Features: International Dubbing Featurette 2002); the directors,
undoubtedly, put a lot of emphasis to the story.
Moreover, despite the fact that the original film was produced for native English speakers,
I still assume that Shrek was meant to be translated right from the beginning – if
successful of course. So, supposedly the film was meant to be translated right from the
start, the translator’s function in the communication situation is to be a mediator between
primary parties.
Because of the conflicting results of the questions, I consider it necessary to draw up a
line, see chapter 7.2.1, below, to estimate which type of macrostrategy Hans Kristian
Bang has applied to the subtitled TT.
7.2.1 Estimation of the macrostrategy of the subtitled version
ST oriented macrostrategy ………………………………………TT oriented macrostrategy
My model shows that, even though the translation is overt, the macrostrategy of the
subtitled TT is mainly TT oriented. I think that the translator’s choice to use a mixture of
the two strategies, with emphasis on a TT oriented macrostrategy, was appropriate as the
TT oriented strategy promotes the important entertaining element of the TT (DreamWorks
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
Animation SKG 2009). The comic effect of Shrek is what has made it so popular and had
the humour not been retained then, in my opinion, it would not have achieved the same
success abroad as in the US.
7.3 The macrostrategy of the dubbed version
The dubbed version is TT oriented as its primary focus is the effect of the TT. I base this
postulate on the fact that the dialogue is more fluently Danish, and moreover the
humorous elements are generally more obvious in the dubbed version than in the subtitled
one. Most likely because of the flagrant opportunity to alter the dialogue since there is no
parallel original dialogue to which the target dialogue can be compared.
As mentioned in chapter 4, the dubbed version can be both covert and overt, depending
on the viewer. Yet, since the receivers of the dubbed film are small children, I assume that
the translator took this group into consideration when deciding on the macrostrategy. The
target group would not know or would not care that the Danish Shrek is not the original,
therefore the translation is covert.
The translator functions as mediator between primary parties in the dubbed version too.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
8. Microstrategies
After having decided on the macrostrategies, it is time to start considering the
microstrategies. Microstrategies deal with micro level problems, which are dilemmas
concerning how words, phrases and sentences should be translated in order to produce
an efficient TT.
Gottlieb has defined a set of microstrategies (1997: 75) which is composed of ten
strategies. I have chosen to use his strategies as his work is focused on subtitling. This
makes his microstrategies more relevant than strategies which were developed for other
purposes. I believe that Gottlieb’s strategies are applicable to dubbing too, as long as the
Levels of synchrony in dubbing are taken into consideration. Gottlieb employs two notions
for the description of the characteristics of each of the strategies. The notions are
expression and content. Expression means the individual words in the subtitles – it is an
investigation of whether they contain more or less information than the words in the
original dialogue. Ebbesen Schmidt (2008: 28) defines Gottlieb’s content as the meaning
of the wordings in the subtitles compared with the meaning of the original dialogue.
Furthermore, Gottlieb (1997) considers it necessary to analyse the rendering of each
individual verbal segment concerning stylistic and semantic value, so that the quality of
the subtitles can be assessed.
Gottlieb (1997: 76) writes that his first seven microstrategies provide correspondent
translation, that is, the actual content of the renderings are in general the same. The
expression of the remaining three strategies is drastically reduced; the message is,
however, more or less preserved. The strategies 5-9 are typically associated with the field
of subtitling.
The 10 strategies of Gottlieb (1997: 75) are listed and explained, below, with the help of
Ebbesen Schmidt’s (2008) definitions of the strategies. Moreover, I have taken the liberty
to compare Gottlieb’s microstrategies with Schjoldager’s strategies. I have done this in
order to clarify the function of each strategy accurately, and to make the strategies as
applicable to Shrek as possible. I will apply Schjoldager’s notions when I consider
Gottlieb’s strategies to be too vague for my analysis.
8.1 Expansion
The expression contains more information than the original dialogue and the rendering is
adequate. Expansion often occurs when it is necessary to add information about culture-
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
specific references etc. As Ebbesen Schmidt (2008: 29) points out, this strategy refutes
the claim that subtitles are repeatedly shortened. We find a classic example of expansion
in the dubbed segment 28 where the original cake is translated to lagkager (layer cakes).
8.2 Paraphrase
The expression has been adjusted, yet, the rendering is ample. The need to alter the form
of the segment has been taken into consideration, so that the function of the TT would
remain the same as that of the ST. By paraphrasing, the translation makes more sense to
the receiver, than e.g. a direct translation would. The strategy is comparable to
Schjoldager’s oblique translation (2008: 97-99), which aims to cover the meaning of the
context – in preference to the linguistic meaning. I think that her definition of oblique
translation concretises Gottlieb’s paraphrase and makes it more comprehensible. An
example of paraphrase is the dubbed segment 2; the expression was altered because
directly translated words would not have made much sense in Danish.
8.3 Transfer
The expression is complete and the rendering sufficient. Transfer (or direct translation as
Schjoldager terms the strategy (2008: 95-97)) is employed when the discourse is neutral
and takes place in a slow tempo. When transferring, the text is translated directly.
Schjoldager (2008: 96) points out that direct translation is often perceived to be the default
translation strategy. It is my experience that this statement is true as I have learned that
many people regard strategies to be inaccurate which differ much from direct translation.
The subtitled segment 28 is a typical example of transfer; cake has been translated
directly to kage (cake).
8.4 Imitation
The expression is the same and the rendering correspondent; this goes for, for instance,
proper nouns and international greetings. When doing an imitation, elements of the
original dialogue are directly transferred to the TT dialogue, so they are not translated.
This strategy is comparable to Schjoldager’s (2008: 93) direct transfer which, so to speak,
borrows the word from the ST. We find an example of imitation in segment 2, where the
name of the villain Farquaad is transferred directly to both versions.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
8.5 Transcription
The expression is atypical. However, the rendering is satisfactory. This strategy is
particularly applied to words that have connotative meanings in the source language.
Transcription involves minor alternations, such as spelling a word differently, but with
respect to the sound of the original word. That is, the translator must use his imagination
when aiming at staying as close to the original spelling of the word as possible. There are
no examples of transcription in the sixth scene in Shrek; instead I will refer to an example
given by Gottlieb (1997: 78) – the render of Eye-gor into øjgor in Danish.
8.6 Dislocation
The expressions of the ST and the TT are different. The content is adjusted; Gottlieb
writes (1997: 75) that the strategy is commonly used for musicals or visualised languagespecific phenomena. If, for example, a semantic problem occurs, part of the original
segment may have to be altered in order to adjust an expression which is so striking that
the translator must render it with respect to its original sound and meaning. For instance,
there may be a quite common way of translating a certain expression; yet, this translation
may disturb the fluency of the TT if e.g. yes were to be rendered into no. Dislocation
concentrates on the visual part of the film.
8.7 Condensation
The expression is reduced, yet, the rendering is precise albeit shorter. Thus, despite of
the shortening of the expression, the translation is still sufficient. Condensation is typically
used for the translation of normal speech. To use condensation means that unnecessary
verbal language features are omitted. There are no examples of condensation in the sixth
scene.
8.8 Decimation
The expression has been shortened and the content is limited; this is often the case if the
characters speak very fast, and if what they are saying is too essential to get left out
completely. As a solution, only the most significant elements are translated. This strategy
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
is often applied to Shrek because of the speedy dialogue. One example in many is the
subtitled segment 7; part of the original segment has not been translated, thus the
expression and the content are clearly limited.
8.9 Deletion
The expression and the verbal content have been omitted. This is often the case when the
characters chatter away and the content of their babble is really irrelevant. An example
from scene six is segment 30 where there is no translation of the original dialogue in the
subtitles. I think that the strategy is employed when the translator estimates that the
segment is not important enough to take up space in the subtitles.
8.10 Resignation
The expression differs and the content is twisted which makes certain elements
untranslatable. Resignation means to resign from something which, for instance, may
have a connotative meaning in the source language. Ergo, if something is just not
translatable, the subtitler can only do his or her best to make the translation as accurate
as possible. An example could be when a word sounds similar to another word which has
a completely different meaning. This connotative meaning makes it amusing and this
effect may be impossible to translate.
8.11 Permutation
Last, I will include Schjoldager’s permutation strategy (2008: 109-110) which I consider
very useful. An example of permutation is addition of humorous elements in the TT at
times where, in fact, there are no humorous elements to be translated. This sort of
rendering is employed due to the necessity to leave out comic elements in other places.
Permutation has been employed in segment 32, where the original goes as follows: Ogres
are not like cakes. The dubbed version, however, goes: Trolde er ikke lagkager (Ogres
are not layer cakes).
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
9. Analysis of the Danish versions
In the preceding chapters, I have introduced various forms of humour, examined the
characteristics of subtitling and dubbing, and looked into macrostrategies and
microstrategies. It is important to achieve knowledge about each of these notions if one is
to understand the differences and similarities between subtitling and dubbing, and
accordingly compare the translations of Shrek.
I have taken the subdivisions of humour into consideration whilst deciding on the
microstrategies because humour is fundamental for the reception of a comedy like Shrek,
and this effect needs to be retained. I have chosen to keep my analysis short by only
including selected segments, which I believe present an overall picture of the translator’s
choices of strategies.
9.1 Segment 2
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – You're gonna
DONKEY – Du skal
ÆSEL – Du skal altså
go fight a dragon and
bekæmpe en drage og
bekæmpe en drage og
rescue a
redde en prinsesse for at få
redde en prinsesse, for at få
Princess; just so Farquaad
en sump, som du ikke har
Farquaad til at gi’ dig en
will give you back a swamp,
fordi Farquaad fyldte den
sump tilbage, som du ikke
which you only don't have
med misfostre?
har, kun fordi han har fyldt
because he filled it full of
den op med de der væsner.
freaks in the first place.
Decimation has been applied to the subtitled segment. Obviously, this choice has been
made as a result to Donkey’s constant torrent of speech. The essential parts of the
segment have been preserved, whereas the less relevant words have been left out.
Consequently, the meaning has been translated but the comic representation of Donkey
babbling on is lost.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
The characters speak at the same speed as they are seen doing which means that the
translator has applied syllable synchrony. If the segment had been translated directly, the
wordings would confuse the reader and therefore they have been paraphrased.
The type of humour is parody, seeing that Donkey is pictured as a person who has
absolutely no idea about when enough is enough. He basically just keeps on talking
despite the fact that Shrek would prefer him to be quiet. Thus, Donkey is a parody of a
certain group of people – persons who most people think are ignoramuses. Moreover,
Donkey’s comments about the quest are ironic because he does not see the point in
Shrek going on Farquaad’s quest. Both comic strategies work best in the dubbed version.
Furthermore, Donkey mentions the freaks in the ST; this is an example of intertextuality –
a reference to the fairy tale creatures. This intertextual humour is translated splendidly in
the subtitled version – although a bit cruel – whereas the dubbed version does not work
quite as well.
9.2 Segment 7
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – You know,
DONKEY – Belejrer hans
ÆSEL – Du ved, knuste
throttle him, lay siege to his
borg, maler hans knogler til
ham med løg og hans snot;
fortress, grind his bones to
dit brød, hele det trolde-trip.
du ved, male hans knogler
make your bread; you know,
til mel; og du ved, hele det
the whole ogre trip.
der trolde-trip.
The subtitled segment is a good example of decimation. Here decimation has been
applied because the subtitler probably found the segment to be too long and monotonous.
Therefore, he chose to maintain the overall perspective by only including a couple of the
horrible things that an ogre could do to Lord Farquaad.
I think that a direct translation would have covered the meaning very well for the dubbed
version, but instead Hans Kristian Bang chose to paraphrase the segment, which results
in a text very different from the original. The first part of the segment is not concordant
with the original meaning, and my opinion is that the segment was translated too freely,
especially since there was no need to paraphrase.
The humorous strategy is intertextuality, which I base on the fact that Donkey generalises
ogres. This intertextuality is preserved in both translations, albeit it is clearer in the dubbed
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
version. The level of synchrony is utterance synchrony since Donkey is seen talking for as
long as his mouth stays open.
9.3 Segment 27
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – You know, not
DONKEY – Ikke alle kan
ÆSEL – Nu er det jo ikke
everybody like onions.
lide løg.
alle der bryder sig om løg.
It seems that Donkey does not address Shrek as directly in the subtitled TT as he does in
the original because the first part of the segment has been omitted. The most important
part of the content is, however, retained, which makes the microstrategy decimation.
It is not as customary to use a Danish version of the phrase you know as it is in English,
which reflects itself in the post-synchronised version, which has been paraphrased.
The level of synchrony is syllable synchrony. I believe the comic element to be vocabulary
as there is a certain ambiguous meaning in Donkey’s remark, which has been transferred
to the Danish versions as well. More explicitly the humorous aspect is paronymy since the
sounds and spellings of the words of the ST and the TTs are dissimilar.
9.4 Segment 28
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – Cake!
DONKEY – Kage!
ÆSEL – Lagkager!
When seeing the expression on Donkey’s face as he thinks of this – in his opinion –
splendid comparison, there is no doubt that the humour is visual humour. The segment
also belongs to humour, based on the incongruity theory because the sudden burst-out
takes the viewer by surprise. Both comic aspects have been transferred to the Danish
versions. Moreover, the dubbed lagkager (layer cakes) associates layers, of which Shrek
is just speaking. Therefore, yet a humorous strategy is applied to the dubbed TT, namely
allusions.
The microstrategy of the subtitled version is transfer as the text has been translated
directly. In the dubbed TT the translator chose to elaborate which type of cake Donkey is
talking about which makes the strategy expansion. Layer cakes often get served at
birthday parties in Denmark, which is why Danes would be quite familiar with the dessert. I
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
think that both renderings are good as kage suits the subtitles, and lagkager brings out the
perfect associations to a Dane.
The expansion of the cake implies that the synchrony must recede into the background to
make room for the microstrategy – this is an example of voice synchrony.
9.5 Segment 30
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – Cakes have
ÆSEL – Lagkager har flere
layers.
lag.
The translator must have considered this segment to be less important, and consequently
he chose to omit subtitling it; so, the microstrategy is deletion. In the dubbed TT the
expansion of the cake is kept; the rest of the segment has been transferred.
The comic reference to the cake and its layers creates allusions with the receiver and
therefore seems funny. The viewer senses how irritated Shrek gets with Donkey for this
comparison. Parody is also used – the strategy emphasises how annoying Donkey can
be. The comic aspect is retained in the dubbed TT. The level of synchrony is syllable
synchrony.
9.6 Segment 31
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
SHREK – I don't care what
SHREK – Det er jeg ligeglad
SHREK – Jeg er ligeglad! –
everyone likes.
med!
med hvad alle kan li’!
The content of the subtitles is different from the ST content as part of the segment has not
been translated. This makes the microstrategy decimation. The dubbed version is a
transfer of the original segment.
Shrek speaks for as long as his mouth stays open, which makes the level of synchrony
utterance synchrony. Visual humour is applied to this segment as the annoyed look on
Shrek’s face and the following surprised look on Donkey’s face seem amusing to the
audience. The comic aspect is transferred to both TTs.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
9.7 Segment 32
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
SHREK – Ogres are not like
SHREK – Trolde er ikke
SHREK – Trolde er ikke
cakes.
ligesom kager.
lagkager
The dubbed version is different from the original and the subtitled version, which might not
be apparent at first sight. It is amusing because of how Shrek says that ogres are not
layer cakes. This conclusion of his is funny as people can immediately imagine an “ogrecake”. This makes the humour used allusions. Allusions are also applied to the ST and the
subtitles; even though the strategy does not appear to be as clear as in the dubbed TT.
The microstrategy of the subtitled version is transfer. The strategy of the dubbed version
is permutation because of the amusing rendering. Permutation might have been added as
a softener of Shrek’s shouting. After all, the target group is children. Moreover, in case of
previously lost jokes, one has been added here because of the obvious opportunity to do
so.
The level of synchrony is utterance synchrony, which I believe works well as the joke is
more important than the movements of his lips.
9.8 Segment 33
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – You know what
DONKEY – Ved du, hvad
ÆSEL – Ved du hvad folk
else everybody likes?
alle også kan lide?
ellers ka’ li’?
Though it is not his intention, Donkey keeps on getting on Shrek’s nerves, and the parodic
picture of Donkey continues as he simply keeps on trying his best to cheer Shrek up. The
parodic personality is transferred to the TTs.
To contribute to the funny aspect of Donkey’s jabbering away, the choice of synchrony fell
on syllable synchrony.
I consider the microstrategy of the subtitles, as well as the dubbed version, to be a mixture
of transfer and paraphrase. Neither one of the TTs has been translated word for word, yet,
they are both so close to the ST that they cannot be categorised as paraphrase either.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
9.9 Segment 34
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – Parfait!
DONKEY – Islagkage.
ÆSEL – Lasagne.
Parfait is a word that does not often occur in Danish everyday language. Instead people
usually refer to the dessert as is (ice/ ice cream), and since Danes are more acquainted
with is, parfait was translated to islagkage (ice cream gateau), which makes the
microstrategy of the subtitles expansion. Besides, the expansion makes more sense to a
Dane when speaking of layers. The microstrategy of the dubbed version is paraphrase. I
base this claim on the fact that it is a completely different word than the original. Since the
meaning of parfait is quite dim to a Dane and as lagkage (layer cake) has previously been
applied, the translator may have wanted to use a word which was less similar to lagkage. I
think that he chose to use lasagne because children, the target group, usually love this
dish.
The humour applied to the segment is parody combined with visual humour. The sudden
thrilled expression on Donkey’s face and his enthusiastic body language are clear
indications of visual humour. Both subdivisions of humour are transferred to the TTs. Both
Danish nouns sound quite differently from the English one, yet, the translator managed to
achieve a satisfactory syllable synchrony.
9.10 Segment 35
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – Have you ever
DONKEY – Har du måske
ÆSEL – Har du nogensinde
met a person, you say,
mødt noget, der sagde:
mødt nogen hvor du sagde:
"Hey, let's get some parfait";
”Nej, jeg kan ikke lide
”Hey, jeg gir’ en gang
they say, "Hell no, I don't
islagkage”?
lasagne”, som så sagde: ”Fy
like no parfait"?
for den, jeg kan ik’ li’
lasagne.”?
This time, Donkey is still being parodied. However, he himself parodies somebody else
too by doing an impression of two people’s awkward conversation.
The microstrategy of the subtitled segment is decimation since part of the parodied
dialogue is left out, and as a consequence the segment partially looses its humorous
aspect. The dubbed version uses the strategy paraphrase; Hans Kristian Bang must have
33
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
considered it necessary to rephrase the segment, probably because of his changing the
dish in segment 34. The parody works well in segment 35.
The camera zooms out and changes directions during this line, which contributes to the
reliability of the dubbed version – it adds to the covertness of the TT. The fact that the
camera is not focused on Donkey’s mouth has given the translator the opportunity to
convert the text fairly freely. I can therefore conclude that he has applied a combination of
utterance and voice synchrony. Utterance synchrony because the viewer sees Donkey
from a distance and therefore senses that he speaks fast, though not able to observe his
lip movements, and voice synchrony because the shifts in his tone of voice match his
body language.
9.11 Segment 37
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
SHREK – No! – You dense,
SHREK – Nej! Dit
SHREK – Neej! – Dit
irritating, miniature beast of
hjernelamme, irriterende
dumme, irriterende
burden!
miniature-trækdyr!
miniature lastdyr!
The connotative meaning of the original beast of burden is preserved in the dubbed
version. The Danish lastdyr (beast of burden) can either be an animal that people exploit
for transportation of things, or it can be a burdensome animal. This means that the
humorous strategy of the dubbed version polysemy, which is one of the subdivisions of
vocabulary – a subordinate to wordplay. The subtitled translation does not have the same
ambiguous meaning as trækdyr simply means pack animal. Instead the humorous
strategy of the subtitles is taboo-breaking because Shrek curses Donkey by comparing
him to a row of annoying characteristics.
The subtitled version has been paraphrased, which regrettably does not work as well as
the dubbed version. On the contrary, the subtitles are not as coherent as the dubbed
version and not as funny. Since the dubbed version has been translated directly, the
microstrategy is transfer. The choice of synchrony is nucleus synchrony, and I base this
on the fact that many of the letters of the original and the Danish version resemble each
other.
As we have seen above, the subdivisions of humour can be applied to the individual
segments of the dialogue, but the film is, moreover, supported by an overall ironic touch
34
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
which is fundamental to the film. This irony may be one explanation of Shrek’s success in
Denmark since Danes tend to be fond of irony (see chapter 4.1).
As closing remark for this chapter, I have a comment to the voice synchrony, which I think
has been taken into account when choosing the Danish voices for the post-synchronised
version. The dubbing director, Lars Thiesgaard, has chosen voices that possess many of
the same qualities as the original voices and this contributes to the covertness of the
dubbed film. Shrek, however, has a lighter tone of voice, which can be annoying,
particularly since Mike Myers did a great job, voicing Shrek in the original version. Amin
Jensen appears more child-friendly than Mike Myers, who seems to appeal more to
grown-up audiences. I think Amin Jensen was selected for the part in order to appeal to
the target group of the Danish film – small children, who would normally not associate an
ogre with the friendly next-door neighbour. Naturally, the producer would not want to scare
off an entire target group and therefore, I think, made Shrek a little less frightening.
35
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
10. Results
10.1 Comparison and assessment of the choices of
macrostrategies
When I compared the macrostrategies of the subtitled and dubbed translations, it became
clear to me that there is a difference between the two TTs. The dubbed version is more
oriented towards the function of the TT than the subtitled one is. It is easier to compose a
coherent TT oriented dialogue for a dubbed film since there is no in sync original dialogue
with which the TT dialogue can be compared. The ST dialogue can function as a
disturbing factor to the subtitles if the TT dialogue differs much from the original, therefore
a translator is more limited when subtitling than when dubbing.
As mentioned in the analysis of the macrostrategies, in chapter 7, I have estimated that
the macrostrategy of the subtitled TT leans towards being TT oriented, even though it
contains elements of ST orientation. I think that the translator has created a good balance
between the two orientations. I believe that the effect of the TT is significant and it is good
that it has been taken into consideration. The macrostrategy of the dubbed version is TT
oriented because of its focus on the effect of the TT on its target group, and I consider this
strategy to be proper as the effect of a film/ text is what draws an audience.
I expected the macrostrategy of the subtitled translation to be TT oriented with the
exception of the overtness of the subtitles, of course. This assumption proved to be true.
Nevertheless, it was unexpected to find an example of the microstrategy expansion (see
below), which is usually not associated with subtitling due to the limited amount of
characters (see chapter 6). As mentioned in the analysis of the macrostrategies, in
chapter 7, the function of the macrostrategy turned out to be TT oriented; the translator
turned out to be a mediator; and the translation turned out to be overt. One would expect
these focuses to have an effect on the microstrategies, and they did, but not as much as
they could have had. The translator mainly used the microstrategies decimation, transfer
and deletion, presumable because these strategies are true to the original wordings.
I expected the macrostrategy of the dubbed version to be TT oriented. However, as we
will see from the results of the microstrategies, below, it also contained elements of ST
36
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
orientation as the microstrategy transfer was applied several times. Nevertheless, this use
of transfer does not affect the quality of the translation, as explained below, and I still
consider the macrostrategy of the dubbed TT to be TT oriented. I base this on the fact that
the translator turned out to function as a mediator, the translation turned out to be covert
(see chapter 7), and the effect of the TT is significant. It is clear that the macrostrategy of
the dubbed version has greater influence on the microstrategies than it has on the
subtitles. This is particularly proven by the use of the microstrategies paraphrase and
expansion. The fact that the microstrategy transfer was used proves that a dubbed
version can to some extent be ST oriented.
The macrostrategies applied to the translations of Shrek influenced the choices of
microstrategies, especially the effect of the TT and the overtness vs. covertness had a
certain significance, which emerges from my results of the microstrategies, beneath.
10.2 Comparison and assessment of the choices of
microstrategies
The table below indicates how often the various microstrategies have been applied to the
analysed segments. I have not included the entire analysis in chapter 9 because the
included segments draw an adequate picture of the thoughts behind the translator’s
choices. Nevertheless, in order to show how often each strategy has been employed to
the two types of TTs, I have included all of my results in chapters 10.2.1 and 10.2.2. The
remaining analysis is included in appendix 2.
10.2.1 Subtitles
Deletion
Decimation
Transfer
Paraphrase
Expansion
4
6
5
3
1
Results of the analysed segments: subtitles (see chapter 9 + appendix 2)
My analysis shows that the most frequently used microstrategy is decimation. As
mentioned in chapter 8, this strategy is applied to shorten segments that are too long
according to the unwritten rule about the prescribed number of characters per second
(see chapter 6). I consider the use of decimation necessary, although not always
satisfactory since the humorous elements occasionally get lost.
37
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
Transfer has been used quite often as well. I consider the use of this strategy
characteristic for a country whose inhabitants know much English like many Danes do
(Dybkjær 2001). People who are quite familiar with a language are very observant of
aberrations in translations.
There are several examples of deletion in scene 6. The strategy often occurs as a result
of the dialogue which is full of rapid replies. My opinion is that some of the deleted
segments ought to have been translated in order to support the overall ironic humour of
the film. Even though the segments concerned may not be amusing themselves, they
emphasise other segments which are.
The frequent use of decimation, transfer and deletion shows that the subtitles lean
towards being ST oriented, and as it emerges from chapter 7, this was to be expected
because the translation is overt. This confirms that the expected macrostrategy, above,
proves to be true.
The last two notions, paraphrase and expansion, would not normally be associated with
subtitles as these strategies might disturb the reception with the Danish audience. The
translator must have considered them necessary in order to achieve a correct and
coherent translation. I consider his choices of strategies to be suitable since I support as
much focus as possible on the effect of the TT. Had the paraphrased segments not been
paraphrased, the dialogue would not have appeared fluent, which would have disturbed
the readers of the subtitles. Segment 34 is particularly interesting because the use of
expansion is the complete opposite of what people normally associate with subtitles –
subtitles are not expected to clarify anything. I think that the translator chose wisely when
deciding on using this strategy as it enhances the connotation of the original segment.
10.2.2 Dubbed version
Paraphrase
Expansion
Transfer
Permutation
11
3
5
1
Results of the analysed segments: dubbed version (see chapter 9 + appendix 2)
Paraphrase is clearly the most frequently used microstrategy in the dubbed version, which
I regard as natural and satisfactory since any translator, given the opportunity, should take
it and alter the dialogue with the intention to transfer the effect of the ST instead of its form
and content. It is easier to take cultural differences and different ways of expressing
oneself into consideration if there is an opportunity to paraphrase.
38
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
It is noteworthy that transfer occurs often as well. My explanation of this is that one should
translate directly if it makes sense to do so. There is no point going through all the
troubles with complicated structures if it is unnecessary. This argument supports and may
also be an explanation of the general perception that transfer may possibly be a default
translation strategy, see chapter 8.3.
There is a fine opportunity to expand segments in a dubbed version as long as the
ambitions for the levels of synchrony are not lowered. If needed, it is a good idea to
elaborate on dubious constructions, and the translator took the opportunity to do so in the
dubbed TT.
The last microstrategy applied to scene six is permutation, and I think that it was wise of
Hans Kristian Bang to employ it. Humorous elements are regrettably often lost in
translations, and therefore the addition of permutation should not be spared – in my
opinion.
After I have investigated which strategies Hans Kristian Bang used for his two
translations, I can now conclude that he had different preferences for the subtitled and
dubbed versions. The subtitles are translated with much focus on decimation, transfer and
deletion, which is typical for subtitling, see chapter 8. Paraphrase has been used very
often in the dubbed version, which means that this TT focuses more on the effect than the
subtitles do. Transfer occurs often too, although only about half as often as paraphrase.
The frequent use of transfer may be a bit unforeseen, but, as mentioned above, there is
no need to select another strategy if, in fact, transfer functions the best.
10.3 Would a different set of strategies be better?
My opinion is that many points get lost in the subtitled version, especially as a result of the
frequent use of deletion in scene six. I recognise the need to shorten long segments, but
in stead of using deletion, I recommend decimation as this strategy preserves the most
important parts of the dialogue, which contributes to promoting the effect. Decimation
should, however, not be applied when not necessary since leaving out information is not
an advantage to the text.
I think that the dubbed version has been translated quite well, especially considering that
the Levels of synchrony in dubbing have been taken into consideration. Other
microstrategies could have been opted, but I think that the chosen ones transfer and
promote the effect of the ST, which makes the TT quite satisfactory.
39
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
10.4 Explanation of the differences in the translations
The differences in the translations of the two versions are unavoidable because they are
each rendered on the basis of the applied macrostrategies. In the subtitled version, for
instance, the original dialogue must be taken into consideration because many Danes
understand English (Dybkjær 2001). Furthermore, the translation is overt, and if the
subtitles vary too much in relation to the spoken dialogue, people will notice, and they will
probably not be pleased with it. However, when translating the dubbed version Hans
Kristian Bang had the opportunity to adjust the strategies in ways he found suitable. Such
an opportunity enables using strategies that are more appropriate when aiming to bring
out the effect of the ST in the TT.
Due to the overtness and covertness of the TTs, it impossible to make similar translations,
and each type of translation should be rendered with respect to what suits it best.
10.5 Might these differences affect an audience?
In most cases, the differences will not affect an audience since many people will not
watch, or have not watched, both versions. However, if a person watches both versions,
he or she will most likely notice the differences in the translations, like in segment 34, and
the average viewer would probably dislike such contrasts. A person who is not familiar
with translation strategies would probably consider the dubbed translation of segment 34
to be maladjusted, and as a result to this he or she would most likely prefer the subtitled
TT.
40
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
11. Discussion and conclusion
Before I chose my material for the analysis, I considered using mal-translated segments,
which I discovered when I watched the film. But it turned out that they were merely results
of sloppiness; therefore, it would not have been interesting to look into these mistakes.
My main aim with this empirical study of Shrek was to get an understanding of the
differences and similarities of subtitling and dubbing. When I compared the macro- and
microstrategies of the two versions, I discovered that they resembled each other in some
ways, but were different in other ways.
Gottlieb (2008) mentions that subtitles are shorter than original dialogues and therefore, I
expected to find out that deletion and decimation had been used quite often in that
connection. My assumption turned out to be true and this proves that Gottlieb is right.
Transfer, paraphrase and expansion were all applied to both TTs. Even though
paraphrase and expansion are not typically associated with subtitling, they were still
employed. The strategies suit both TTs. Hans Kristian Bang only used permutation for the
dubbed TT, which makes sense because the use of this strategy in subtitling might
confuse the receiver.
The results of my analysis are interesting because they show that it is possible to apply
other strategies than the obvious ones, i.e. the ones that are usually associated with each
type of translation. This implies that the quality of translations can be improved as a result
of this versatility.
It would be interesting to get a better idea about how much people can actually read per
second. Maybe reading skills are underestimated and therefore, I think that new
investigation ought to be carried out. I would expect such investigation to show that, in
general, Danes are quite good readers. If this is the case, translators would be able to
vary their choices of microstrategies more often and perhaps abstain from employing
deletion.
Varying microstrategies is, furthermore, supported by the fact that many Danes
understand English, particularly young people (Dybkjær 2001). It is easier to vary the
strategies if the receivers have an understanding of why certain choices are made.
41
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
List of references
Det danske filminstitut/ Danish Film Institute (2009). Hans Kristian Bang: Filmografi.
Available from:
http://dnfx.dfi.dk/pls/dnf/pwt.page_setup?p_pagename=dnfnavn&p_parmlist=navneid=143
049 [Accessed 5 April 2009]
DreamWorks Animation SKG (2009). DreamWorks Animation SKG. Available from:
http://www.dreamworksanimation.com/ [Accessed 21 April 2009]
Dybkjær, L. (2001). Engelsk som andetsprog. Available from:
http://www.lonedybkjaer.dk/flx/dansk/bibliotek/artikler/artikelarkiv/engelsk_som_andetspro
g_2001_/ [Accessed 26 April 2009]
Dürr, M. (2001). ”ForShrekkelig god”. Børsen, (Film), 41
Ebbesen Schmidt, M. (2008). Speciale: Tekstning af humor dengang og i dag – med
udgangspunkt i tv-serien ”Venner”. Handelshøjskolen i Aarhus. Available from:
http://theses.asb.dk/projekter/fbspretrieve/2667/Tekstning_af_humor__dengang_og_i_dag.pdf [Accessed 30 March 2009]
Eggins, S. (1994). An Introduction to Systemic Functional Linguistics. London: Pinter
Gottlieb, H. (1997). Subtitles, Translation & Idioms. Copenhagen: University of
Copenhagen
Gottlieb, H. (2008). “Screen Translation”. In: A. Schjoldager. Understanding Translation.
Aarhus: Authors and Academica, 205-246
HVAL (Helhed, Viden, Ansvar og Læring) (2009). Karakteristiske eventyrtræk. Available
from:
http://hval.dk/web/bruger/kris0685/eventyr_4__klasse/fakta_om_eventyr/karakteristiske_e
ventyrtraek/ [Accessed 28 April 2009]
42
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
Munday, J. (2008). Introducing Translation Studies. Theories and Applications. London/
New York: Routledge
Nord, C. (2005). “Text Analysis in Translation: Theory, Methology and Didactic Application
of a Model for Translation-Oriented Text Analysis”. In: J. Munday. Introducing Translation
Studies. Theories and Applications. 2nd edition. London/ New York: Routledge, p. 79
Ross, A. (1998). The Language of Humour. (Online edition). Routledge: London and New
York. Available from:
http://site.ebrary.com.www.baser.dk/lib/stats/docDetail.action?docID=10095110
[Accessed 30 March 2009]
Schjoldager, A. with Gottlieb, H. and Klitgård, I. (2008). Understanding Translation.
Aarhus: Authors and Academica
Schultz Jørgensen, A. (2005). ”Humor på dansk”. La Danesa. Øvrigt. Available from:
http://www.ladanesa.com/article.728.html [Accessed 15 April 2009]
Scope – Danmarks største filmguide (2009). Lars Thiesgaard. Available from:
http://www.scope.dk/person.php?id=10330 [Accessed 5 April 2009]
Shrek. DreamWorks Animation SKG (2002). DVD
Spanaki, K. (2007). “Translating Humor for Subtitling”. Translation Journal, 11. Available
from: http://accurapid.com/journal/40humor.htm [Accessed 2 March 2009]
Tallerico, B. (2009). “History of DreamWorks Animation”. UGO. Available from:
http://www.ugo.com/ugo/html/article/?id=17300 [Accessed 24 April 2009]
Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. (2009). Fairy Tale. Available from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairy_tales [Accessed 30 March 2009]
Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. (2009). Genre. Available from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genre [Accessed 30 March 2009]
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
Appendices
Appendix 1
Transcription of scene 6
Segment
Original
1
DONKEY – Okay,
ÆSEL – Okay, lad
let me get this
mig lige få det en
straight.
gang til.
2
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – You're
DONKEY – Du skal
ÆSEL – Du skal
gonna go fight a
bekæmpe en drage
altså bekæmpe en
dragon and rescue
og redde en
drage og redde en
a
prinsesse for at få
prinsesse, for at få
Princess; just so
en sump, som du
Farquaad til at gi’ dig
Farquaad will give
ikke har fordi
en sump tilbage, som
you back a swamp,
Farquaad fyldte den
du ikke har, kun fordi
which you only don't
med misfostre?
han har fyldt den op
have because he
med de der væsner.
filled it full of freaks
in the first place.
3
4
DONKEY – Is that
ÆSEL – Er det rigtigt
about right?
forstået?
SHREK – You know
SHREK – Måske er
SHREK – Ved du
what, maybe there's
der en god grund til,
hvad, måske er der
a good reason
at æsler ikke burde
en grund til at æsler
donkeys shouldn't
tale.
normalt ik’ ka’ tale.
talk.
5
6
DONKEY – I don’t
ÆSEL – Ej! Jeg
get it Shrek.
fatter dig ik’ Shrek
DONKEY – Why
DONKEY – Hvorfor
ÆSEL – Hvorfor fyrer
don't you just pull
opfører du dig ikke
du ik’ bare noget
some of that ogre
som en trold over for
trolde-hejs af mod
stuff on him?
ham?
ham?
44
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
7
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
DONKEY – You
DONKEY – Belejrer
ÆSEL – Du ved,
know, throttle him,
hans borg, maler
knuste ham med løg
lay siege to his
hans knogler til dit
og hans snot; du ved,
fortress, grind his
brød, hele det trolde-
male hans knogler til
bones to make your
trip.
mel; og du ved, hele
bread; you know,
det der trolde-trip.
the whole ogre trip.
8
SHREK – Oh, I
SHREK – Åh, nåe ja.
know what.
9
SHREK – Maybe I
SHREK – Måske
SHREK – Måske
could have
skulle jeg have
skulle jeg have
decapitated an
halshugget en hel
halshugget alle folk i
entire village and
landsby, sat deres
byen og sat deres
put their heads on a
hoveder på pæle,
hoveder på spyd,
pike; gotten a knife,
skåret deres milte op
taget en kniv, skåret
cut open their
og have drukket
deres milte ud,
spleen and
deres kropsvæsker.
drukket deres blod.
SHREK – Does that
SHREK – Lyder det
SHREK – Er det
sound good to you?
godt?
sådan du gerne vil
drink their fluids.
10
ha’ det?
11
12
DONKEY – Uh…
DONKEY – Nej,
ÆSEL – Aaah… Nej,
no, not really, no.
egentlig ikke.
egentlig ik’. Nej.
SHREK – For your
SHREK – Trolde har
SHREK – Bare til din
information, there's
mere dybde, end
orientering, er der
a lot more to ogres
folk tror.
meget mere i os
than people think.
trolde end folk går og
tror.
13
14
15
DONKEY –
DONKEY – Et
ÆSEL – Som for
Example…
eksempel…
eksempel?
SHREK – Example,
SHREK – Et
SHREK – For
okay… um, ogres
eksempel? Okay…
eksempel, okay…
are like onions.
Trolde er som løg.
trolde er som løg.
DONKEY – They
DONKEY – Stinker
ÆSEL – De stinker?
stink?
de?
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
16
SHREK – Yes… no!
SHREK – Ja! – Nej!
17
DONKEY – Oh, they DONKEY – Får de
ÆSEL – Nåe, de får
make you cry?
folk til at græde?
én til at græde?
18
SHREK – No!
SHREK – Nej!
SHREK – Nej!
19
DONKEY – Oh, you
DONKEY – Hvis
ÆSEL – Nåe, hvis
leave them out in
man lægger dem i
man lægger dem ud i
the sun, they get all
solen, bliver de så
solen, så bliver’ de
brown, start
brune?
helt brune og
20
sproutin’ little white
begynder at få små
hairs.
hvide hår?
SHREK – No! –
SHREK – Nej! Lag!
Layers!
21
22
23
24
25
26
Lag!
SHREK – Onions
SHREK – Løg har
SHREK – Løg har
have layers.
lag.
flere lag.
SHREK – Ogres
SHREK – Trolde har
SHREK – Trolde har
have layers!
lag!
flere lag!
SHREK – Onions
SHREK – Løg har
SHREK – Løg har
have layers.
lag.
flere lag.
SHREK – You get
SHREK – Er du
SHREK – Er du
it?
med?
med?
SHREK – We both
SHREK – Vi har
SHREK – Vi har
have layers.
begge lag.
begge to flere lag.
DONKEY – Oh, you
DONKEY – I har
ÆSEL – Aah, I har
both have layers…
begge lag.
begge to flere lag…
oh…
27
SHREK – Neej! –
nåe ja…
DONKEY – You
DONKEY – Ikke alle
ÆSEL – Nu er det jo
know, not
kan lide løg.
ikke alle der bryder
everybody like
sig om løg.
onions.
28
DONKEY – Cake!
DONKEY – Kage!
ÆSEL – Lagkager!
29
DONKEY –
DONKEY – Alle kan
ÆSEL – Alle ka’ li’
Everybody loves
lide kage!
lagkager!
cakes!
30
DONKEY – Cakes
ÆSEL – Lagkager
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
have layers.
31
har flere lag.
SHREK – I don't
SHREK – Det er jeg
SHREK – Jeg er
care what everyone
ligeglad med!
ligeglad! – med hvad
alle kan li’!
likes.
32
33
34
SHREK – Ogres are
SHREK – Trolde er
SHREK – Trolde er
not like cakes.
ikke ligesom kager.
ikke lagkager
DONKEY – You
DONKEY – Ved du,
ÆSEL – Ved du
know what else
hvad alle også kan
hvad folk ellers ka’
everybody likes?
lide?
li’?
DONKEY – Parfait!
DONKEY –
ÆSEL – Lasagne.
Islagkage.
35
DONKEY – Have
DONKEY – Har du
ÆSEL – Har du
you ever met a
måske mødt noget,
nogensinde mødt
person, you say,
der sagde: ”Nej, jeg
nogen hvor du
"Hey, let's get some
kan ikke lide
sagde: ”Hey, jeg gir’
parfait"; they say,
islagkage”?
en gang lasagne”,
"Hell no, I don't like
som så sagde: ”Fy
no parfait"?
for den, jeg kan ik’ li’
lasagne”?
36
37
38
39
DONKEY – Parfaits
ÆSEL – Lasagner er
are delicious!
vildt lækre.
SHREK – No! – You
SHREK – Nej! Dit
SHREK – Neej! – Dit
dense, irritating,
hjernelamme,
dumme, irriterende
miniature beast of
irriterende miniature-
miniature lastdyr!
burden!
trækdyr!
SHREK – Ogres are
SHREK – Trolde er
SHREK – Trolde er
like onions!
ligesom løg!
som løg!
SHREK – End of
SHREK – Basta.
SHREK – Færdig!
story.
Punktum!
40
SHREK – Bye-bye.
SHREK – Hej-hej.
SHREK – Hej hej.
41
SHREK – See ya
SHREK – Vi ses.
SHREK – Ha’ et godt
later.
42
liv.
DONKEY – Parfait
DONKEY –
ÆSEL – Lasagne er
may be the most
Islagkager er det
måske den mest
47
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
delicious thing on
mest delikate på
delikate spise på
the whole damn
hele jordkloden.
hele den her
planet.
43
elendige planet.
SHREK – You
SHREK – Jeg
SHREK – Ved du
know, I think I
foretrak næsten din
hvad, jeg ku’ faktisk
preferred your
nynnen.
bedre li’ da du
humming.
44
45
nynnede.
DONKEY – Do you
DONKEY – Har du
ÆSEL – Du har vel
have a tissue or
en serviet? Jeg laver
ik’ et
something? –
et svineri.
lommetørklæde? –
Cause I'm making a
for jeg går her og
mess.
griser i det.
DONKEY – Just the
DONKEY – Ordet
ÆSEL – Bare ordet
word parfait make
islagkage får mig til
lasagne fik mig til at
me start slobbering.
at savle.
savle.
48
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
Appendix 2
The rest of the analysed segments
Segment 1
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – Okay, let me
ÆSEL – Okay, lad mig lige
get this straight.
få det en gang til.
The original dialogue has not been translated in the subtitles. This is an example of
deletion because the segment has been omitted completely. The line is not particularly
significant to the conversation that takes place between Shrek and Donkey. The translator
has applied paraphrase for the dubbed version which means that he has strived to
transfer the functional content of the original dialogue to the post-synchronised one. If he
had focused on the individual words, then the linguistic aspect of the translation would
have been transferred instead.
Bilabial lip synchrony has been used for this segment, which means that the most visual
sounds match. Nevertheless, there is also some likeness to total lip synchrony since some
of the vowel articulations are equivalent to those of the original.
Segment 3
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – Is that about
ÆSEL – Er det rigtigt
right?
forstået?
Once more we see an example of deletion in the subtitles. Segment 3 is a rhetorical
question as it is really Donkey’s own conclusion of what he just said. The line is not
actually important to the content of the conversation, which is why it has been omitted.
The dubbed part has been translated according to paraphrasing, that is, a translation
close to the original as regards bringing out the function of the ST in the TT.
The synchrony is nucleus, which is apparent from the transferred intonation and emphasis
of the original. This transfer means that what he is saying matches his facial expression in
49
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
both Danish and English. This focus on his expression implies that we are taking about
visual humour.
Segment 4
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
SHREK – You know what,
SHREK – Måske er der en
SHREK – Ved du hvad,
maybe there's a good
god grund til, at æsler ikke
måske er der en grund til at
reason donkeys shouldn't
burde tale.
æsler normalt ik’ ka’ tale.
talk.
Here the humorous aspect of allusions is employed because Shrek refers to the fact that
everybody knows that donkeys are not supposed to be talking.
The subtitles are cut down which indicates that the strategy is decimation. The
microstrategy of the dubbed TT is paraphrase. The dubbed segment is rather similar to
the original segment, although not quite. This is why the strategy is paraphrase rather
than transfer.
Syllable synchrony is applied to the fourth segment. The moment Shrek turns around, we
see a touch of lip synchrony as the movements of his lips match the sounds in Danish.
Segment 5
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – I don’t get it
ÆSEL – Ej! Jeg fatter dig
Shrek.
ik’ Shrek
Again, the subtitles are left out which means that the translator applied deletion. Since the
words are different from the ST-words, the strategy of the dubbed version resembles
paraphrase the most. First of all, Ej! is added in the TT. Ej is sort of a contemporary
shortening of the Danish interjection nej (no). The closest you come to a translation of the
term is now which, however, has another meaning. I reckon that the interjection has been
added because it sounds similar to the English pronoun I. This contributes to the
trustworthiness of the synchrony. Furthermore, in the original version, Donkey says it. In
the dubbed version, he says dig (you), so the pronoun has been altered from third person
50
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
to second person, which means that the utterance is aimed more directly at Shrek.
Consequently, the segment seems more provocative.
The choice of synchrony is bilabial lip synchrony because the translator has clearly tried to
adjust the words to the sound. However, the lip synchrony does not seem total. Therefore
it cannot be defined as total lip synchrony. The comic aspect does not reveal itself until
the next segment.
Segment 6
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – Why don't you
DONKEY – Hvorfor opfører
ÆSEL – Hvorfor fyrer du ik’
just pull some of that ogre
du dig ikke som en trold
bare noget trolde-hejs af
stuff on him?
over for ham?
mod ham?
I believe that the microstrategy applied to the subtitled segment is paraphrase. The
choices of words are a bit atypical, which may be caused by the verb pull which has
several meanings in English. In this case none of these meanings would make any sense
in Danish. Donkey’s boldness fades compared to the original segment. The dubbed
version is quite different from the original and the subtitled versions. I prefer the dubbed
version over the subtitled one. I believe that it has been rendered this way to make
Donkey appear as bold in the TT as he does in the ST. To succeed, it would be necessary
to adjust the entire segment. The microstrategy is paraphrase since the whole sentence
has been rendered into something which makes Donkey appear just as perky to Danes as
he does to the receivers of the original.
Syllable synchrony is predominant in this segment as in many other segments throughout
the film. In addition, nucleus synchrony can be applied to the sixth segment as well
because of the transferred intonations. Again, this emphasis on Donkey’s ways indicates
that the comic subdivision is parody. This goes for the dubbed version as well as the
subtitled one. Another humorous element is intertextuality; I base this on the fact that
Donkey applies the same yardstick to all ogres – ogres are naturally associated with mean
brutal monsters.
51
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
Segment 15
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – They stink?
DONKEY – Stinker de?
ÆSEL – De stinker?
Shrek has just told Donkey that ogres are like onions. Donkey wonders why, and firstly
concludes that the connection is that they both stink. This is an example of wordplay, one
of the subdivisions within vocabulary – to be more explicit polysemy, which weights the
connotative meanings of words. Shrek has just mentioned onions with respect to their
connotative meaning, whereas Donkey can only think about the denotation of onions. This
is what makes this segment funny.
The subtitler has used the microstrategy transfer, i.e. the text has been translated directly.
However, there is one thing worth noticing and that is that inversion has been used, which
I think can be explained by the readers’ immediate interpretation of the subtitles. A
receiver, familiar with English, would possibly pause by this segment, had the translation
retained the original word order because he or she would have noticed this reversed
order. In the dubbed version no inversion takes places, so there is no doubt that the
applied microstrategy is transfer.
Total lip synchrony is employed, and I base this on the fact that the English word stink and
the Danish word stinker are practically identical. This verb distracts the audiences’
attention from the first word to which total lip synchrony is not applied, but more likely
syllable synchrony.
Segment 29
Original
Subtitled version
Dubbed version
DONKEY – Everybody
DONKEY – Alle kan lide
ÆSEL – Alle ka’ li’
loves cakes!
kage!
lagkager!
The microstrategy applied to the subtitles is transfer as the segment has been translated
directly; with the exception of the verb loves. The verb has been altered to the verb phrase
kan lide (like) which has a slightly different meaning in Danish. The verb phrase has
probably been used because it is more common in Danish than the more emotional
English verb. The strategy of the dubbed version is expansion because of the elaboration
on which kind of cake Donkey is talking about.
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Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
The humorous element in the segment is parody. Again, Donkey is referred to as the kind
of person who just does not know when to quit talking. Syllable synchrony is employed for
the dubbed version as the translator focuses on making the Danish Donkey speak as fast
as the English one does. As we do not see Donkey’s face during the last part of the
segment, the synchrony seems fine, in spite of the expansion to layer cake.
53
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
Summary of
Shrek
A comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Number of characters (without spaces): 59,975
Number of characters of the summary (without spaces): 3,945
54
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
Summary
My thesis, Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and
dubbing, is an empirical study of the differences and similarities between subtitling and
dubbing. This empirical study is carried out through a comparison of macro- and
microstrategies applied to the Danish translations of Shrek.
My introduction to the thesis is presented in chapter one. This introduction, among other
things, includes my primary aim with the thesis, which is to understand the differences and
similarities between subtitling and dubbing. Next, my problem statement substantiates
how I intend to investigate this aim. Furthermore, my motivation for working with Shrek is
presented in the introduction. Finally, the subsequent chapters are introduced briefly.
Chapter two goes more thoroughly into theory and choice of method. I explain in details
how I intend to carry out the empirical study, by doing a comparative analysis of source
text/ ST/ the original English version of Shrek and target texts/ TTs/ the Danish subtitled
and dubbed versions. I explain how I intend to clarify what I associate with the genres
comedies and fairy tales. Furthermore, I call attention to the need to examine the
characteristics of subtitling and dubbing, and to investigate the theory behind macro- and
microstrategies.
The ST is presented and analysed in chapter three. I explain the origin of the film and look
into the characteristics of Shrek. Furthermore, three main genres are presented shortly,
and accordingly the subgenres computer animated films, fairy tales and comedies are
described. Comedy is elaborated with the help of Alison Ross’ subdivisions of humour
(1998), and with the help of Ebbesen Schmidt’s (2008) interpretation of her subdivisions.
Finally, the chapter contains a short summary of the ST.
The two Danish translations of Shrek are presented and analysed in the fourth chapter, for
instance, the target groups are specified. This chapter also elaborates the importance of
taking cultural aspects into consideration when translating.
Chapter five is an introduction into the field of subtitling, and it is about the characteristics
of the notion. The chapter deals with preferences for subtitling or dubbing, intralingual and
55
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
interlingual translation, and time-and-space constraints. Chapter five is based on the
works of Henrik Gottlieb (1997 + 2008).
Chapter six is about dubbing and begins with clarifying where and why dubbing is used.
Second, the aims of dubbing directors are presented. Third, the advantages of dubbing
are discussed. Next, the Levels of synchrony in dubbing (Gottlieb 2008: 217) and their
influence on dubbing are introduced.
In chapter seven, the characteristics of macrostrategies are described with particular
focus on three aspects which Anne Schjoldager (2008: 71) recommends taking into
consideration. These aspects are characterised by being either ST- or TT oriented. The
macrostrategies of the subtitled and dubbed TTs are analysed at the end of this chapter.
Gottlieb’s (1997) microstrategies, which form the foundation of my analysis, are explained
in details in chapter eight. To be precise, these strategies are expansion, paraphrase,
transfer, imitation, transcription, dislocation, condensation decimation, deletion and
resignation. I extended his taxonomy by including one of Schjoldager’s (2008: 209-210)
microstrategies, i.e. permutation.
A row of selected segments from scene six are analysed in the ninth chapter. I compare
the ST to each TT by analysing the choices of microstrategies, and by looking into
whether the translator managed to transfer the humorous strategies of the ST to the TTs.
Furthermore, I identify the levels of synchrony in the dubbed version.
The results of the analysis are discussed in chapter ten. I compare the two Danish
translations to each other by discussing their similarities and differences. First, I discuss
the results of the analysis of the macrostrategies. Second, I clarify why certain
microstrategies have been applied to the Danish translations of Shrek. Furthermore, I give
some thought to whether other strategies could have been used. Next, I elaborate on the
differences in the translations, and finally I try to estimate whether these differences in the
translations might affect the receivers.
In chapter eleven, I discuss my expectations for the choices of strategies. Second, I
shortly explain why I consider my results to be interesting. Finally, I try to come up with
56
Shrek – a comparative analysis of macro- and microstrategies in subtitling and dubbing
Jane Elisabeth Thomsen
My examination number: 281587
Examination number: 23887
good advices in respect of what could be done next to achieve more knowledge on the
fields of subtitling and dubbing, which might improve the quality of translations.
57