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Katrina Spencer
Dr. Christine Jenkins
Children’s Literature in Translation
Summer - Fall 2013
Literary Gymnastics: Conversing on the Practice of Translation for Children
as seen in Matilda, Manolito Gafotas and Le Petit Nicolas
There are a few widely held and chronic misconceptions about translation as a discipline
and profession. The primary one of these is that a dictionary is the sole tool a translator needs in
order to carry concepts, both those concrete and abstract, over from one language and into
another, or, for the 21st century, Google Translate, which can produce some rather heinous
renderings. This idea, however, couldn’t be further from the truth. Rather, a very intimate
knowledge of a text’s source language—the one in which it was originally written—and its target
language—the one “into which the text is translated” (Nikolajeva’s “Translation and CrossCultural Reception” 407)—are indispensable preparations that must be both wide and deep in
order to approach translation tasks most successfully. This intimate and knowledge serves as a
silo, a mental storehouse of resources that avails itself when terms, phrases and ideas appearing
in the dictionary fall short in communicating richness of meaning, when there are scant entries in
this mentioned reference guide and/or when they fail to supply alternatives for the appropriate
artistic, stylistic and/ or poetic intent of an author’s style. However, as implied, “the learning of a
language alone does not necessarily entail the level of aesthetic or cultural understanding of a
particular language that a literary translator requires” (Lathey 184). A penchant for negotiation,
compromise, flexibility and creativity are to the translator what spices are to a chef, paints are to
an artist and, for the sake of the genre we’re addressing, what a utility belt is to DC Comics’
Batman: characteristic, reliable tools, sources of inventive resolutions to difficult situations and
occasionally, if the audience is so lucky, both clever and comedic exit strategies out of
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metaphoric traffic jams—spaces in which conceptual cultural differences impede the fluency of
translation from one language to another.
Consider two historical and literary moments raised both in Maria Nikolajeva’s “What
Do We Translate When We Translate Children’s Literature?” and one within this very study: (1)
How do you translate the Biblical and metaphorical phrase “God’s Lamb” for a target readership
that has never encountered a lamb? (2) How do you relay the arrival of the season “spring” to an
audience that has only ever encountered two variations of climate: wet and dry? (3) How do you
convey the ominous connotation of Roald Dahl’s “Miss Trunchbull” (Dahl 66) into a secondary
language when it is a nonsense word—one bereft of concrete, inherent meaning—even in its
source language? The answer to each of these questions, to an extent, is… You don’t. Because
the Biblical phrase was destined for the Inuit of the Northern Artic, the translator was obliged to
select an animal that would be familiar and relatable to the target audience and ultimately chose
“seal cub,” rendering the translation “God’s seal cub.” For the Swahili speakers whose weather
was limitedly diverse, the rainy season was chosen instead of imposing a foreign concept of
“spring” onto a group that could perhaps only conjure such an idea in its imagination. And the
Trunchbull? The answer depends on whom you ask: Spanish-language translator Pedro
Barbadillo went with “señorita Trunchbull” (Barbadillo 69) and French-language translator
Henri Robillot chose “Mlle [Mademoiselle] Legourdin” (Robillot 69). Some of these are rather
crafty solutions to some undeniably challenging, linguistic conundrums. Cathy Hirano deftly
addressed these very points in her essay “Eight Ways to Say You” in which she discusses the
demands of translating children’s literature from Japanese to English:
People who have never translated often assume that it is a purely mechanical process.
The translator, proficient in both languages, simply has to substitute one word in the
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source language for an equivalent word in the target language… Translation of literature
is far from mechanical and translating between two languages that…are very different
from each other requires fairly strenuous cultural and mental gymnastics (Hirano 225)
(my emphasis).
The process for each case described above, likely eschewed the use of any dictionary at all as the
source of the challenges could not be resolved by the contents found in Merriam-Webster,
McMillan or even an Oxford volume.
Now envision those gymnastic, literary feats performed for an audience full of children,
some with the development necessary to appreciate said talent and others without it. After all,
“there is little consensus on the definition of childhood, child, and children’s literature” (Oittinen
4), and though a book may be written for a child and its translation intended for one, “Children’s
literature often (usually?) has a dual audience” (Oittinen 64), both child and parent or child and
teacher or child and principal or child and librarian or child and storyteller and so on. Not only is
the translator’s job to make the source text accessible in a secondary language, it must do so for
the very young, the tweens, the adolescents, the teenagers, the youths and the pubescent. Even
the numerous terms we use to describe children suggest a difficulty in wholly defining this
audience. However, irrespective of how we choose to define ‘child’ and demarcate the
boundaries between childhood and adulthood, it is irrefutably clear that the members of the
former and the latter groups have distinct literary needs if not demands: translator Patricia
Crampton says that
although translating adult books takes longer, there is no reason to counteract the reader’s
unfamiliarity with customs and cultural markers as is the case in children’s fiction…
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[Anthea] Bell, too, argues that ‘An adult may say: this is alien to us but foreign and
interesting. A child may just lose interest’ (Lathey 190).
Therefore, the translator’s role of mediator in lowering what foreign language pedagogues call
“the affective filter,” one’s degree of anxiety when performing a task in a foreign language, is
ultimately crucial as it heavily influences a child’s loyalty on the journey of reading a text. To a
large degree, it determines whether the book being explored is perceived as a headache, task,
source of frustration, delightful joy or source of entertainment and enlightenment. All these
judgments are being made regarding the translator’s work despite the translator’s relative
invisibility: “Children are seldom aware that the book they are reading is a translation,
and…tolerance for strangeness is usually lower in children’s texts than in literature for adults”
(Nikolajeva’s “What Do We Translate When We Translate Children’s Literature?” 285). Despite
these challenges and how facile it is for the intended audience to be unaware of the translator’s
role of mediation, Crampton believes that “children are entitled to works of genius; that children
should have access to certain types of books not produced in their own language; and that they
should also be able to read books that implicitly promote international understanding” (Lathey
187). Her point was perhaps never more cogent and pressing than in the 21st century when the
use of the Internet and international travel were never more popular, frequent and ubiquitous.
Borders are shrinking and thusly the distance maintained between the self and the perceived
‘Other.’
However, before entering into a discussion of our primary texts, Matilda, Manolito
Gafotas and Le Petit Nicolas, there is one more debate we must engage that divides the world of
translators: that of ‘equivalence theory’ and Russian scholar Mikhail Bakhtin’s ‘dialogic
translation.’ The two can be seen as the polar traditions that inform every translator’s approach to
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her/his work. Children’s literature academe Maria Nikolajeva states that “equivalence…is…a
maximal approximation of the target text to the source text. A translation, in this view, should be
“faithful” to the original, and no liberties are to be taken” (278). Equivalence theory deprioritizes
any translator’s creative license, preferring the proximity of denotation, exactitude and accuracy.
As with Pedro Barbadillo’s “señorita Trunchbull” (69), it asks the question ‘Why tailor, tweak
and interfere with the original text if it’s not necessary?’ It demonstrates a loyalty to the author
and her/his original text in encouraging what people from the United States refer to as the
‘pristine’ nature of the text—connotatively something untouched, frequently organic, pure and
holy.
The opposite view suggests that the translator should take into consideration the target
audience, whereupon changes may not only be legitimate, but imperative, if the translated
text in its specific context is to function somewhat similarly to the way in which the
original functions in its initial situation (Nikolajeva’s “What Do We Translate When We
Translate Children’s Literature?” 278).
This notion is supported by Henri Robillot with his creation of “Mlle Legourdin” (69) in French
to communicate Roald Dahl’s original “Miss Trunchbull” (Dahl 66).
It would appear that Dahl’s intention was to relay the villain’s girth and affinity for rage
in likening her to a ‘bull’ and it was also perhaps the impending violence of her gait that inspired
‘trunch’:
She was a gigantic holy terror, a fierce tyrannical monster who frightened the life out of
the pupils and teachers alike. There was an aura of menace about her even at a distance,
and dangerous heat radiating from her as from a red hot rod of metal. When she
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marched—Miss Trunchbull never walked, she always marched like a storm-trooper with
long strides and arms aswinging—when she marched along a corridor you could actually
hear her snorting as she went, and if a group of children happened to be in her path, she
ploughed right on through them like a tank, with small people bouncing off her to left and
right (Dahl 67).
How are the Spanish-speakers reading Barbadillo’s translation to have this characterization
inspired when the word for ‘bull’ in Spanish is toro and, again, ‘trunch’ isn’t a proper English
word to begin with? “Trunchbull” does not connotatively or inherently inspire fear or dread for
the person whose first language is Spanish. For sake of argument, let’s offer a perfunctory
alternative, ‘señorita Tanquetoro,’ that is ‘Miss Tankbull.’ Robillot’s ‘Mlle Legourdin’ is
perhaps more effective as it takes an inanimate weapon, a “club, bludgeon [or] cudgel”
(“Gourdin.”) and personifies it using the French language, the same language of its readership.
As illustrated, certainly the degree of divergence between two schools of thought in the
world of translators is both discernible, divisive and compelling. “The key question in dialogical
translation is “For whom?” unlike the question “What?” in the equivalence theory” (Nikolajeva’s
“What Do We Translate When We Translate Children’s Literature?” 278). These two approaches
will from this point forward inform the core arguments made in this investigation. However, they
are hardly the sole points of consideration that inform this study. It is ever evident, for example,
that the context—social, political and historical milieu—that surround a text during the period in
which it has been born has immeasurable bearing upon its content and expression. Likewise, the
reader’s context—social, political and historical milieu—inform the text’s interpretation:
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Louise Rosenblatt and Mikhail Bakhtin are of great interest: they both stress equality
between the reader and the (author of the) text… Rosenblatt points out that reading
always takes place in some kind of a situation: “A specific reader and a specific text at a
specific time and place: change any of these, and there occurs a different circuit, a
different event…Thus a text is a combination of printed signs that serve as symbols in a
reading situation…In every reading, the reader and the text touch each other and thus
create new meanings… the issue is not one of different texts, but of different readers,
different readings, and different reading situations (Oittinen 26-27).
It would thusly be remiss to ignore the translator’s context—social, political and historical
milieu. Author, translator and reader work in concert to gauge meaning, an elusive, precarious
and occasionally even coy abstraction that apparently is always in flux, never stationary, stagnant
or still. Indeed “Situation and purpose are an intrinsic part of all translation. Translators never
translate words in isolation, but whole situations…they enter into a dialogic relationship that
ultimately involves readers, the author, the illustrator, the translator, and the publisher” (Oittinen
3). As we continue in our discussion, we will demonstrate the multi-layered and even
collaborative nature of translation, but additionally the significance of the translator’s role.
“Thomas Holcroft …argued…that ‘A translator, is, by his office, obliged to pay more attention
than any reader can be supposed to bestow on the purport, execution, and merits of his
Author’…[Jorge Luis] Borges, Holcroft and [Anthea] Bell suggest that only the translator comes
as close to the essential qualities of a piece of writing as its creator” (Lathey 193).
With these preliminary arguments visited, essential debates engaged, renowned
translators recognized and broad thesis suggested, we may now approach our primary texts. The
earliest of the three in terms of publication is René Goscinny’s Le Petit Nicolas, an enchanting
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collection, episodic in nature, of a schoolboy, and his adventures in the classroom, on the
schoolyard, in his neighborhood and at home. Originally published in 1959, the French language
text Le Petit Nicolas inspired a series of works, here ‘portmanteaued’ ‘The Nicolas franchise,’
given its popularity. It has come to be known as a classic of the French-language children’s
canon. Roald Dahl’s Matilda came next in 1988 and tells the tale of a girl genius and the
domestic environment of emotional and intellectual neglect in which she is raised. One of Dahl’s
best known works, the chapter book has been adapted for both cinematic and theater production.
The most recent of the three texts studied here is Elvira Lindo’s Manolito Gafotas. It can be
considered ‘the Petit Nicolas for Spaniards.’ The eponymous character Manolito appeared in
1994; he is a measure more smart-alecky than his French counterpart, has a close relationship
with his grandfather and like French Nicolas, is forever at loving odds with his mother. His text,
too, is episodic in nature and has been adapted for the large screen. We will examine the contents
of these three works much less for their plot but largely for linguistic features that reveal areas of
compromise and negotiation made on the translators’ parts to effectively share these classics
with audiences of foreign tongues. In other words, we want to explore moments of inexactitude
of translation in order to highlight how, when and why children’s literature requires translators’
special considerations, creativity and, as Cathy Hirano put it, “gymnastics” (225), in order to
arrive at effective, multicultural communication that reflects the authors’ original intentions.
Three broad categories comprise the order of the systematic treatment that will follow: names,
textual alterations based on taboos and a potpourri of culturally specific items, puns and idioms,
for those special instances that evade simple categorization. This investigation will rely heavily
upon studies of strategies of translation described in translator Maria Nikolajeva’s “What Do We
Translate When We Translate Children’s Literature?” and the yet-to-be-mentioned Swedish
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pedagogue and educationalist Göte Klingberg’s Children’s Fiction in the Hands of the
Translators. The study is accompanied by a robust appendix that outlines each text’s original
content in bold for the excerpts explored and their translations into two other languages, be them
English, Spanish or French.
“What’s in a name?” ~William Shakespeare
With that, let us to the highlighting of the names, also known as ‘nouns,’ both proper and
simple. In grammar school we learned that nouns represent persons, places and things. This
assertion is no less true here in this study. We’ve already discussed one, Dahl’s villain “Miss
Trunchbull” (66) in Matilda. However, we will find that in Robillot’s translation, Matilda’s
ally’s name, “Miss Honey” (Dahl 66) is transposed to “Mlle Candy” (Robillot 66) , the name of
her school, “Crunchem Hall Primary” (Dahl 66), to “Lamy-Noir” (Robillot 69), her classmate’s
name, “Lavender” (Dahl 69), to “Anémone” (Robillot 72), and even a book, “The Lion, the
Witch and the Wardrobe” (Dahl 80), is substituted with an alternative text, “L’îlle au trésor”
(Treasure Island) (Robillot 82). Gillian Lathey describes the “translation of characters’ proper
names—always an indication of a translated text’s origins and highly significant to young
readers” (191) as a “vexed question” (191). She goes on to state that “[Anthea] Bell argues that
‘impenetrable-looking foreign names are least acceptable in books for the very young’” (191).
Generally Manolito’s names demonstrate a high degree of fidelity in translation: “Susana Dirty
Underpants” (Lindo 65), for example, remains “Susana Bragas-Sucias” (López-Ballesteros 85) in
Spanish and “Susana Culotte-Sale” (Moriarty 74) in French. Nicolas’ major characters’ name
changes occasionally reflect minor changes in spelling: “Alceste” (Goscinny 11) becomes
“Alcestes” (Benítez 15) in Spanish and “Alec” in Anthea Bell’s English translation (8). But why
do they change at all?
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Again, the “Trunchbull” would fall under Göte Klingberg’s category of “Fictitious
personal names with a special melodious ring… Such names are often names of non-naturalistic
characters” (Klingberg 46) while Goscinny’s “Alceste”-Alcestes-Alec would be on the list of
“Names given a form more used in the target language” (44). Klingberg states that “It is
reasonable to demand that personal names, belonging to everyday language and without any
special meanings that the readers have to understand, should not be altered when a foreign
culture is introduced by way of a translation” (43). Therefore, the selections of “Mlle Candy”
and “Anémone” are indeed appropriate. It is an act of foreshadowing to associate Miss HoneyMlle Candy with sweetness, goodness and benevolence from early on in the narrative. After all,
she will serve as Matilda’s guardian, advocate and support (and occasional accomplice in ‘good’
acts of evil when necessary). “Alceste” appears to be a more generic choice, although,
admittedly, the character is known to be portly as he “is always eating” (Bell 8) and “ceste”
means “belt” (“Ceste.”) in French, perhaps a reference to a protruding waistline. Nonetheless, the
English translation to “Alec” conjures no such possibility.
“Anémone,” on the other hand, the translation provided for “Lavender” (Dahl 69) may
serve in recalling the character’s characterization. As her English name might suggest, she is
apparently quite comfortable in the garden she visits to retrieve a newt with which she plans to
terrorize the hateful Trunchbull. Not wanting to miss an opportunity to communicate Dahl’s
intentions, but nevertheless limited by the possibility of alienating readers by employing the
name “Lavender,” Robillot makes the next best choice: “Anémone,” “a small plant with white,
red or purple flowers that are shaped like cups” (“Anemone.”). Thus, it would seem that naming,
when appropriate, is purposeful even in translation. The school and place “Crunchem Hall”
(Dahl 66), for example, is a pun as it is a place where the kids are crunched by the irascible
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headmistress. Think ‘crunch’ plus ‘them.’ In order to convey this idea effectively for Frenchlanguage readers, Robillot, again, makes a necessary adjustment with “Lamy-Noir” (69), a word
pairing identical in sound to “laminoir,” a “rolling machine” (“Laminoir.”), imaginatively used,
we presume, to crush students. We assume that Treasure Island is chosen to replace The Lion,
the Witch and the Wardrobe because the former text was better known by French readers.
It is not only personal names and nouns that are re-touched to accommodate new, foreign
audiences. When Matilda’s routine reading snacks are described, they are listed as “Bovril or
Ovaltine” (Dahl 21). The French-language version employs the translator’s strategy of
simplification by supplying merely “chocolat chaud” (Robillot 23) (hot chocolate).
“Simplification implies that a foreign notion is supplanted by something less specific, for
example when a particular dish is simply translated as “food”” (Nikolajeva’s “What Do We
Translate When We Translate Children’s Literature?” 82). An explicit explanation of the brand
names Bovril and Ovaltine would be of little immediate utility to the intended readership. The
idea that Matilda consumes a chocolate-based drink is enough; and the fact that Bovril is a
concentrated extract used to make soups is likely an unwelcome inundation of information.
Therefore, Robillot translates what is of interest and relatable and not a bit more. He considers
what is necessary and desirable and provides just that. A chocolate-based beverage also appears
in Manolito. However, this time the brand, instead of Ovaltine, is Cola-Cao. While Englishlanguage translator Joanne Moriarty simplified the original text by providing “chocolate milk”
(66) as the alternative, French-language translators Virginia López-Ballesteros and Olivier
Malthet (from here and on to be referred to as VLB & OM) chose to render the drink as
“Nesquik” (76). This strategy that demonstrates preference for something familiar is called
domestication. “In domesticating a translated text, the translator substitutes familiar phenomena
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and concepts for what may be perceived as strange and hard to understand” (Nikolajeva’s “What
Do We Translate When We Translate Children’s Literature?” 284). So far, we have three brands
of chocolate-based drinks that reveal the popularity of this flavor of beverage internationally,
which, again, highlights relatability.
Yet it is worthy of mention that one more strategy is at play here: foreignization. Pedro
Barbadillo changed but one letter of Matilda’s Swiss Ovaltine to “Ovaltina” (23) for his Spanishspeaking audience. “The opposite of domestication is foreignization. If a translated text is
foreignized, the translator may decide to keep some words untranslated, in order to preserve the
foreign flavor” (Nikolajeva’s “What Do We Translate When We Translate Children’s
Literature?” 286) (my emphasis). Based on choices like these, it’s trying to determine the origins
of Barbadillo’s Spanish-speaking audience. After all, there is only one Spanish-speaking nation
in Europe and about twenty in the Western hemisphere. The edition’s credits list Colombia as the
place of printing and the United States as the place of publication. Another instance of this is
seen uniformly in the English, Spanish and French versions of Matilda: “Aylesbury” (Dahl 16)
(Barbadillo 20) (Robillot 20), the town Matilda’s mother goes to play bingo is identically
represented in all three texts. Nevertheless, we see that every translator’s approach to addressing
names, persons, places and things is unique. While every translation described works, they all
have distinct functions and can aim for specificity, familiarity, generic references or even exotic
unknowns. Therefore, we see some of the first suggestions that the works of translators are as
diverse as the people penning the lines themselves.
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You’re not supposed to say that!
Our next area of investigation is that of intentional textual alterations based on taboos. In
comparison, the previous alterations can, in scope, be considered minor. Generally, the situations
called for the adjustments in order to draw near to credibility and to move away from alienation.
The following changes were motivated by the desire to not offend and/or compromise the
innocence of the child reader. If the adjustments made before were done with a scalpel, the
following were carried out with larger tools, sometimes scissors, sometimes axes. (And if you
were wondering, there will be no chainsaw.) Referencing Anne Scott Mcleod’s American
Childhood, Marisa Fernández López states that
a series of taboos that have traditionally been avoided in American children’s literature.
For example, violence may be present in a tale provided that the author does not allow
more violence to breed from it… and subjects such as divorce, mental illness, alcoholism
and other addictions, suicide, and sex are all avoided… racial conflicts do not arise or are
merely referred to in passing; and the tale has a happy ending (Fernández López 41).
The taboos that interest us here are violence, addictions, homophobia, racism and xenophobia.
Although Manolito’s grandfather does a good deal of flirting throughout Lindo’s text, based on
its absence and rotund silence in all three texts, sex is roundly considered a topic that is off limits
in these narratives. (Dahl has been accused of misogyny for his frequently female villains and
Nicolas’ playdate is largely conscious of her beauty’s manipulative effect on adults: see the
chapter entitled “Louisette” starting on page 80 of Goscinny’s text. But these two topics will find
better homes nestled in another study.) However, we have works that span five decades of time.
Cultural shifts have occurred within that time frame and what were once considered “accepted
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commonplaces” (Bell 238) are now readily challenged practices and depictions by readers,
parents, teachers, librarians and society in general.
Manolito, with great irony, as it is the most recent in publication, is perhaps the text most
rife with potentially offensive or what could be seen as ‘damaging’ material. Manolito’s mother
regularly gives him “colleja[s]” (Lindo 12), a corporal punishment that can be described as a slap
to the back of his neck (“Colleja.”). Because Manolito’s friend Susana finds a “jeringuilla”
(Lindo 86) (syringe) in the park, she is no longer allowed to explore her neighborhood freely. To
describe a defect in Manolito’s gait, he is likened to a Chinese man: “ando…como Fumanchu”
(83) (I walk like Fumanchu); when Susana forces Manolito to try on her tiara, she later suspects
that he will turn out to be a “mariquita” (90) (“Mariquita.”) (a so-called ‘fairy,’ intended as an
insult or slur for male members of the queer community). In this text, and in Le Petit Nicolas, the
adjectives for ‘black’ are used synonymously for “dirty,” “filthy” and “unclean.” There are a
couple more instances in which Manolito references the Japanese as potential invaders of Spain
(96) and likens his heart palpitations to those of African war drums (98), but we won’t focus on
those here. What we do want to do is highlight the resolutions translators achieved in addressing
offensive moments in Manolito, a seemingly equal opportunity offender.
VLB & OM found no point of contention with “colleja” and therefore translated it
alternatively as a “tape” (12) (“Tape.”) (tap), “gifle” (12) (“Gifle.”) (slap, smack) and “claque”
(80) (“Claque.”) (slap, smack). The English–language translator, however, probably anticipating
cries of child abuse and possibly familiar with debates on spanking and children’s rights, took a
relatively large degree of license and translated the corporal punishment to “she chews me out”
(Moriarty 6). Consequently, there was no longer physical contact in an aggressive or disciplinary
manner from parent to child, but rather a lecture and verbal reprimand. Some might call this
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“harmonization” which “may include, for instance, changes in children’s behavior, if considered
improper in the target culture” (Nikolajeva’s “What Do We Translate When We Translate
Children’s Literature?” 283). The only difference here is that the parent is the agent of what is
considered undesirable behavior. A new debate is ignited, however, in regards to representations
of the reality that is and the way we wish it would be. Cathy Hirano states that “Although
translation should convey the meaning, and not necessarily in precisely the same words, there is
a very fine line between translating and tampering with or rewriting the original text” (227).
Which exactly was performed here? The ‘What?’question of equivalence theory is suppressed
and the ‘For whom?’ of dialogic translation is epitomized.
The syringe that was found by Susana in Manolito became “a large knife” (Moriarty 65)
in Moriarty’s English-language version. Where the Spanish-language original explicitly
mentions “drogadictos” (Lindo 19) (drug addicts) as persons residing in Manolito’s
neighborhood, Carabanchel, “criminals” (Moriarty 11) are Moriarty’s choice. The Frenchlanguage version uses both words, “seringue” (VLB & OM 75) and “drogués” (19), on the other
hand, with great directness and unabashedly. This strategy of ‘cleaning’ a text of its ‘dirty’
content is known as “purification”:
Omissions and alterations for political, cultural, or religious reasons are called
purification: the text is purified from the passages that are perceived as offensive… It
may be the matter of abusive language, the mention of bodily functions viewed as
inappropriate in a children’s book, or an expression of ideology unacceptable by the
target culture (Nikolajeva’s “What Do We Translate When We Translate Children’s
Literature?” 281).
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There is a long-standing belief that Americans are more inclined to be shocked by certain
phenomena than Europeans, namely nudity. But are there certain exposures that are universally
inappropriate for children? So far the texts only agree unanimously on censoring sex. The
Chinese gait is turned into a penguin’s gait (Moriarty 62) in English, but remains that of a
“Chinois” (VLB & OM 72) (Chinese) in French; the homophobic “mariquita” becomes simply
“girl” (Moriarty 68) in English and “pédé” (VLB & OM 78) (“Pédé.”) (queer or fag) in French;
the “negras” (83) (black) for ‘dirty’ is “filthy” in English (Moriarty 62) and “sales” (VLB & OM
72) which has no concrete color connotation in French.
What we learn from these observations is that even with the passage of time, some source
texts delay in incorporating what may be acknowledged, accepted and embraced as sensitivity,
multiculturalism and tolerance in a target culture. There is at least one instance in which the
English-language translation of Le Petit Nicolas takes a grand pass at facilitating
“modernization.” “Modernization means bringing everyday details, objects, and concepts up to
date in translation, including changing or deleting what may be perceived as offensive, such as
racism and sexism” (Nikolajeva’s “What Do We Translate When We Translate Children’s
Literature?” 283). In this particular case, Nicolas’ class is receiving a student from abroad. While
the new student’s country of origin is unspecified, his name is “Georges MacIntosh” (Goscinny
56), he speaks “anglais” (57) (English), has “cheveux tout rouges, des taches de rousseur et des
yeux bleus” (56) (is red-headed, has freckles and blue eyes) and “des tas de dents terribles” (56)
(some terrible teeth) and lastly likes boxing (61). This description seems to characterize Georges
as a stereotypical Irishman. While Georges’ appearance in the text is not explicitly racist or
xenophobic, his function is rather limiting, particularly in that he is most exclusively a source of
comedy and exoticism. Without anyone’s trying, in this chapter, Georges almost immediately
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picks up bad words and insults in French on the playground from his peers and repeats them to
the teacher in class (62-63), much to everyone’s shock and amazement. Perhaps if Georges had a
greater role in the text as a whole, or at least recurring cameos, the English-language translator,
Anthea Bell, would have been less hard-pressed to re-vamp the text so integrally.
First, the character’s name is changed to “Jochen van der Velde” (45); Jochen doesn’t
speak English but rather Flemish (46). And when it comes to physical description of the new kid
from abroad, there isn’t any. There isn’t any at all. “Jochen,” like Georges, is still a fan of
boxing, but not because of or due to his nationality. Therefore, Bell’s attempts to usher this text
into the 21st century are rather remarkable and successful. She avoided stereotyping; she made
the humor situational and resisted making the foreigner the mere butt of a joke; and she
discouraged the attention that was focused on a newcomer’s physical appearance. These values
are indeed contemporary. We see that “textual modifications are attributable not only to strictly
commercial motives, which habitually affect secondary aspects of the work. They are also due to
profound ideological motivations and affect important passages of text, normally through a
process of purification that involves textual elimination” (Fernández López 42).
Something’s lost in translation
So, thus far, we’ve discussed misconceptions about translation as a process, equivalence
theory versus dialogic translation, the manipulation of names and nouns, specific translation
strategies like simplification, purification and modernization and the evasion of taboos. Now we
will briefly approach the category labeled ‘potpurri’ for its many elements and their diverse
nature. We will first highlight items that pose challenges because of their cultural specificity. The
items in this section are diverse and varied, some requiring greater heights and depths of
Spencer 18
creativity on the translator’s part and some none at all. The first of these items signals a sort of
meta-literature. Miss Honey teaches Matilda what a “limerick” (Dahl 78) is. However, stating
explicitly that it is a humorous and rhyming form of poetry of Irish origin could be awkward and
superfluous. Barbadillo offers the noun “quintilla” (80) (“Quintilla.”) (five-line stanza) which
encompasses two of the five points: length and poetic form but not humor, origin nor rhyme
scheme. What’s missing from the mere “quintilla” in the text is demonstrated by way of example
on pages 77 and 79 of Dahl’s text, the second of which is replicated below:
The thing we all ask about Jenny
Is, ‘Surely there cannot be many
Young girls in the place
With so lovely a face?’
The answer to that is, ‘Not any!’ (Dahl 79).
The provided translation “limerick,” however, isn’t independently holistic. In Manolito, the
grandfather says that his daughter is likely calling “091” (Lindo 30), the Spanish emergency line,
worried because he and Manolito are arriving home late. Curiously, Moriarty does not use “911”
as an alternative. Perhaps she considered that the alternative American emergency line would
alienate speakers of English in England, in Australia in Nigeria, in Kenya, in Uganda and a
number of other places. She chose to translate this culturally specific item then as “calling the
police” (Moriarty 20). In Le Petit Nicolas, Alcestes, the friend we recall who is always eating,
munches on a “confiture” (Goscinny 11). This snack is not popular or is unfamiliar in both the
Spanish-speaking world and in the English-speaking one based on the translations: “una
rebanada de pan con marmelada” (Benítez 15) (a strip or slice of bread with marmalade) and “a
piece of bread and jelly” (Bell 8) respectively. In these three cases, the particular form of poetry,
the particular emergency line phone number and the particular snack, a specific item must be
demonstrated or displayed to convey its concept in its entirety; it must be broadened and defined;
Spencer 19
it must be described by separating its parts. This procedure is known as paraphrasing in which
“the translator replaces a word in the source text by a group of words or an expression in the
target text” (“Paraphrase.”). Cathy Hirano deftly addresses this approach to translation in “Eight
Ways to Say You” when trying to communicate what juku (a school attended after school in
Japan) is to American readers. She writes:
The first thing I need to know before I even start translating is the intended readership
and the purpose of the translation. That information determines how I deal with implied
but unstated content and foreign cultural assumptions (Hirano 225).
While the texts in our study do not hinge upon the understanding of the Irish “limerick,” the
Spanish “091” or the French “confiture,” the respective translators, in the executions of their
tasks, answer the same question over and over again of dialogic translation, “For whom?”
(Nikolajeva’s “What Do We Translate When We Translate Children’s Literature?” 278).
Ha, ha! That’s so punny!
More miscellaneous items include measurements, puns (humor) and idioms and oblige us
to continue to engage the same question of “For whom?,” but also, in some cases “When?.” For
example, measurements can apply to distance, height, weight, currency, volume and even
duration of time. The moment in Manolito that we reference here is when the main character’s
grandfather offers a taxicab driver his pocket change of “veinticinco pesetas” (Lindo 13) for a
ride home. In the 1990s, the era in which this book was published, this segment of the story
would hardly be noteworthy, but is now, in 2013, rather disorienting, even for the adult reader,
primarily because Spain no longer uses the peseta as a minted currency since the introduction of
the euro in 2002. Therefore, not only the Spanish version of Manolito could use some updating,
Spencer 20
but the translators, too, must determine how they will represent the concept of pocket change to
readers who are potentially neither familiar with pesetas or euros. For the Spanish-language text
update, today the grandfather might offer “unos céntimos” (some cents or change) in Spain and
“unos centavos” (some cents or change) in Latin America. Or “un par de euros” (a couple of
euros) or “unos euritos” (figuratively, some miniscule euros) in Spain. However, the diversity of
currency throughout Spanish-speaking Latin America with Peruvian soles, Guatemalan quetzales
and Cuban pesos is worthy of mention and would likely demand a more generic choice. The
English-language text opted for “a ten cent coin” (Moriarty 6) which references no national
currency whatsoever; the French-language text, on the other hand, chose the also now outdated
“35 francs” (VLB & OM 13), again, an obsolete French currency in France where euros are now
used. Regarding the actual value of the currencies, Göte Klingberg “advise[s] against the use of
an equivalent [as]…exchange rates do shift” (55). While this is true, another argument prevails:
children are unlikely to be aware of or be engaged in discussions on exchange rates. Aside from
their fluctuations, they may not be of primary concern to kids.
Arriving late, but importantly in the discussion is a brief exploration of humor. Some
attempts at humor, like puns, are language-dependent. Cathy Hirano writes that “Probably one of
the trickiest problems [she faces] in translation is humor. More often than not, slapstick and
situational humor transcend cultural boundaries. Culture specific jokes and puns, however,
usually do not” (230). Two puns we will visit occur in Matilda. When the Trunchbull visits
Matilda’s classroom to quiz the students, she demands that they spell certain words. The children
hear the Trunchbull’s request, however, her request is based on a homophone, “a word that
sounds the same as another word but has its own spelling, meaning, and origin”
(“Homophone.”). In other words, the Trunchbull wants the children to fail in order to justify her
Spencer 21
accusations of Miss Honey’s, their teacher’s, incompetency. So, while verbally she requests that
a student spell “write” (Dahl 144), even if they do so correctly, ‘w-r-i-t-e,’ she can claim that the
student’s spelling is wrong, having expected ‘r-i-g-h-t’ for “right.” Spanish and French however
do not share these same homophones and require new choices. Respectively they are “herrar”
(Barbadillo 138) (to show a horse) and “errar” (to make a mistake of be mistaken) and the
borrowed terms “hockey” (Robillot 144) and “okay” that are used in French to signify first, the
popular sport dominated by Canadians, and second, one’s approval. “[Translator Patricia]
Crampton… admits to a delight in finding alternatives for puns, albeit in a style that replicates
that of the author… In this sense the best translators…can surely lay claim to a degree of literary
creativity” (Lathey 192). Barbadillo’s and Robillot’s choices are ultimately effective because
they achieve the same effect as the right/write conundrum. Despite the words pairings of
herrar/errar and hockey/okay having completely disparate meanings, the situation the Trunchbull
imposes on the children is equally troubling to them as there is no way to succeed. The
translators are effective in continuing to paint the Trunchbull as a wily nemesis and malicious
antagonist.
Perhaps a more subtle pun occurs when the Trunchbull starts making demands regarding
multiplications tables. She wants to know the sum total of “eight coconuts, eight monkey-nuts
and eight nutty little idiots like you[, Wilfred]” (Dahl 218). The word “nut,” in English, can refer
to a food item but also to the decaying state of one’s mental sanity. Ever the wordsmith, Dahl lets
no opportunity to access humor escape him. Barbadillo chooses “melones” (206) to replace
nuts—still a food item, but not the same genus; Robillot replaces nuts with “serins” (214)
(“Serin.”) (canaries)—still a living thing, but a distinct species. One must assume these uses
connote craziness as well in their respective languages. Anthea Bell asserts that “As ever, it is the
Spencer 22
spirit rather than just the letter that the translator pursues” (233) and again, the translators are
victorious in conjuring an element of silliness that lends to humor in this situation.
The idioms appearing in these texts may indeed be the most iconic points of
differentiation between them. Idioms are expressions of speech whose origins are frequently
unknown by even the speakers who use them. An idiom is “an expression whose meaning is
different from the meaning of the individual words” (“Idiom.”) The first of these we see in
Matilda is a description of her character; she is so impressive in her genius that she is
“something to make your eyes pop” (Dahl 11). Now, the essence of an idiom is in that its
meaning is not literal. If Dahl were writing in a literal sense, he might have said ‘Upon
encountering Matilda, one’s ocular cavities widen to their veritable capacity as a visceral result
of perceived amazement.’ But who wants to read that? “Pop” is much more colorful, emotive,
accessible, fun and less likely to require a reader, particularly of a child’s age, to access a
dictionary. A good translator will aspire to accessing the nature of an idiom. A rare and excellent
translator will do so. Cathy Hirano recognizes that
Literature [requires her to]…strive to remain true not only to the essence, but also to the
style and tone of the writer in the source language while at the same time render it in a
way that is understandable to someone from a different culture and way of thinking. It is
a balancing act, requiring sensitivity and intuition, a combination of humility, vigilance,
and arrogance (Hirano 227).
Henri Robillot, with some degree of success, attempts to do the same. The “pop” statement
becomes “vous seriez resté comme deux ronds de flan” (14). Literally, and in a simultaneous
vein roughly, the phrase reads ‘you all would remain like two rings of flan,’ which, of course, is
Spencer 23
something awkward, cryptic and seemingly nonsensical, or, as Gillian Lathey phrased it,
“something that reads like hell but is a relatively faithful version” (190) to its source text.
Figuratively, one might reach and surmise a comparable parallel to the English-language eyepopping experience. Guillaume Gautier, a native Frenchman, supposed in an informal interview
that as flan wobbles given its gelatin-like structure, one would wobble after having been
impacted by Matilda’s compelling intellectual prowess (Spencer: Gautier). However, his lack of
surety are what lead us to limit Robillot’s victory. Gautier, a multilingual, 21st century,
university-aged student training to work in aeronautics, didn’t find the idiomatic phrase
accessible or familiar. How then might monolingual school-aged children interpret Robillot’s
choice successfully in 50 years? However, further, what percent of any text withstand the everticking hands of time?
Another dose of idiomatic creativity is served when Dahl describes how lost Matilda’s
librarian feels in choosing appropriate books for the child: “She didn’t quite know what [book] to
bring out” (15). Dahl’s words are very clear, yes, but Robillot’s takes some license in translating
to “Elle ne savait pas à quel saint se vouer” (18): literally, ‘She didn’t know what saint to
dedicate herself to.’ Now this phrase may be in more common use as Gautier expressed little if
any confusion regarding its meaning. However, it introduces a religious element of reference that
is not supplied in the source text. This is problematic indeed in terms of fidelity; it may capture
essence, yet it adds color not envisioned by the text’s author. Does this translation betray Dahl
and Matilda? Is it a ‘poor’ translation? There may indeed be some, as Hirano phrases it,
“tampering” occurring here (227).
These idioms, both eye-popping and saintly, nudge us toward a new arena of discussions
whose hearth we will admire from before and beyond the threshold. One of them addresses the
Spencer 24
question of ‘antiquatedness’ or ‘dating’ and another, the issue of accuracy. The first of these
references “the flan” idiom. Perhaps the phraseology, “vous seriez resté comme deux ronds de
flan” (Robillot 14), was too old to be recognized. On the opposite end of the spectrum, is
Manolito’s slang-like use of the word “tío” (15), a term used like “guy” in American English or
“bloke” in English English or “mate” in Australian English to reference an arbitrary and
anonymous male, too contemporary and time-specific to be a reliable translation for the future?
Let’s further complicate the notion if accuracy and appropriateness. Can Manolito’s intentional
and incorrect usage of a direct object pronoun in “a mi madre no la gusta” (Lindo 13) (my
emphasis) be translated at all? Author Elvira Lindo took pains to explicitly acknowledge her
awareness that her character, Manolito, wrote/spoke with a grammatical defect:
Espero que los lectores disculpen los errores gramaticales…que aparecen en el libro.
Tanto los editores como yo hemos querido ser fieles a la voz del personaje. Puede que,
con unos años más dentro del sistema educativo, Manolito supere estos fallos. De
momento, entendemos que conforman su personalidad literaria. (190) (I hope that
readers will excuse the grammatical errors that appear in the book. The editors have tried
just as much as I have to be loyal to the character’s voice. Perhaps, with a few more years
in the educational system, Manolito will overcome these mistakes. For now, we
understand that they form part of his literary persona) (my translation).
This entire ‘conversation’ between the author and her reading public becomes irrelevant and
obsolete for both the English and French translations, further reinforcing the fact that “a work
written is not the same as a work rewritten. In a new language, in a new culture, with new
readers it is given a new life” (Oittinen 31).
Spencer 25
Additional linguistic features highlighted in the charts of the appendix include
onomatopoeia, words that imitate sound but have no meaning, like in Le Petit Nicolas when
Goscinny uses “oishouinshouin” (Goscinny 57) to imitate the sounds Georges the Irishman
makes that no one understands; exclamations and insults as found in all nine ‘primary’ texts
studied here like the Trunchbull’s “piece of filth” (Dahl 144) which becomes “raclure d’évier”
(Robillot 144) (literally, ‘sink louse,’ and figuratively, ‘waterbug’) (“Raclure.”) (“Évier.) in
French; personified, inanimate objects in the French-language Matilda with “Elle écrit”
(Robillot 25) in reference to chalk and gendered nouns like “la lectrice” (2) (a female reader);
and lastly, false cognates like “fiancée” (78) and “casserole” (24) found in the same text. [In
English, “fiancée” is the equivalent to “betrothed” or ‘intended’; however, in French, it is being
used as a synonym for ‘girlfriend.’ Why wasn’t ‘une petite amie’ used, a term that references a
more casual relationship? Furthermore, in American English, ‘casserole’ is used to reference a
deep glass or stoneware baking dish. However, Matilda uses it to warm hot chocolate, which
presumably includes a generous volume of liquid and would need heating or boiling, not baking.
English speakers in the U.S. would use the word ‘pot’ for the proper culinary tool.]
Rather humanely, Gillian Lathey shares that “despite all…efforts, errors occur…
[Patricia] Crampton is convinced that every translation includes at least one major error thanks to
the aftermath of a bad night, or because the translator’s glasses slipped” (Lathey 189). For
example, Manolito recommends that a man buy an anti-dandruff shampoo. He supports this
choice by saying that the product “te consigue una novia como te descuides” (Lindo 22).
Moriarty translates this to “and if you don’t watch out, gets you a girlfriend, too” (Moriarty 16).
This translation into English allows for an interpretation that isn’t necessarily suggested in the
source text because of the “polysemantic” (Nikolajeva’s “What Do We Translate When We
Spencer 26
Translate Children’s Literature?” 278) nature of the spoken phrase. The translation provided can
best be understood based on contextual tone, gestures and facial expressions that hint toward
irony. Realistically, the phrase might be accompanied by a nudge or a wink in order to signal that
it is meant as a joke and to be taken ‘tongue-in cheek,’ or, with only a minimal and playful
degree of seriousness. Frequently“if you don’t watch out” functions as a warning of incumbent
danger. The French translation does little to clarify this conundrum or to communicate more
specificity regarding ironic intent: “et te procure une fiancée illico presto” (20) (and gets you a
girlfriend immediately). [“Illico presto” is defined here as ‘immediately’ (“Illico presto.”)]. In an
effort to shed some light on the subtlety of the turn of phrase, Spanish language professor Dr.
Mercedes Fernández Isla wrote
la oración es una condicional, que en general tiene un valor de amenaza / advertencia:
Ten cuidado en el Rastro; como te descuides, te roban el monedero. Como te descuides =
Si te descuidas (=si no estás atento), los del champú te encuentran una novia. …tendría
que haber una coma antes del "como", y si no está es porque los libros de Manolito no
son una perfección literaria. A veces están más atentos a reproducir la lengua coloquial
que otra cosa… Respecto a la traducción al inglés, [se] propone algo como If you’re not
careful / if you don’t watch it / if you let it…Quizá la primera es la mejor por cercana a la
expresión española y porque puede tener el doble sentido de cosa buena o mala. (The
sentence is a conditional one that, in general, communicates a threat/ warning: [for
example] Be careful at the Rastro [the open-air flea market in Madrid]; if you let your
guard down [while there], they’ll steal your wallet. If you let you guard down [while
there] (if you’re not attentive), the shampoo salespeople will have you wind up with a
girlfriend [that you didn’t expect]… There ought to be a comma before the “como,” and
Spencer 27
if it’s not there, it’s because the Manolito series is not a work of literary perfection. At
times editors are more interested in reproducing the local, spoken language than anything
else. With respect to the translation in English, one could propose something like ‘If
you’re not careful / if you don’t watch it / if you let it…’Perhaps the first because it’s the
nearest to the Spanish expression and can have the duplicate meaning of something good
or bad ) (my translation) (Spencer: Fernández Isla).
Regarding demystifying at times cryptic intentions, Lathey states that “Occasionally it is
necessary to ask an author for clarification of a particular section of the text” (Lathey 189) as
some subtleties of language exchange are not only lost in translation but lost when transcribed on
paper and not witnessed, heard or seen.
One element that is not treated in this study centers on illustrations and their functions in
texts. All nine, again, include some element of illustration: in Matilda, the Trunchbull grabs
Rupert from his desk and lifts him by his hair (Dahl 149); Manolito practices karate (Lindo 85);
Nicolas has his stomach checked while ill in bed (Goscinny 124). These are a small sampling of
the many depictions of our characters. The texts, however, wouldn’t be the same without them.
We will hardly begin to approach what expectations widely-disseminated cinematic adaptations
create when it comes to books and their translations and vice versa. Clearly, the discussions these
writers, translators and texts initiate are plural, multifarious and all deserving of investigation.
With this study, however, we hope to have demonstrated the complexity, necessary
engagement and dedication required of the translating task, particularly for children’s literature.
The idea that translation can be passive and/or dictionary-based is/are now dispelled myths. Any
translated text, as Riitta Oittinen implied is a real conversation between the creator, her/his
Spencer 28
readership, all the people who engage in the process of publication and the context not only in
which the text is born, but additionally the context in which it dwells. Quoting Bakhtin’s work,
Oittinen published his words:
“At any given time, in any given place, there will be a set of conditions—social,
historical, meteorological, physiological—that will ensure that a word uttered in that
place and at that time will have a meaning different than it would have under any other
conditions” (Oittinen 30).
So, a text is not only unique to its country of origin, it is unique to the time period in which it
finds itself and unique to the hands of the reader that turns its pages.
It is in order to briefly comment upon children’s literature and its role in society so we
can respond, in this conversation, as to why pains are taken to protect a text’s fidelity, to modify
a text and to disseminate a text widely to foreign readerships. Quoting Tiina Puurtinen, Marisa
Fernández López includes in her writing:
“Children’s literature belongs simultaneously to the literary system and the socialeducational system, i.e. it is not only read for entertainment, recreation and literary
experience but also used as a tool for education and socialization. This dual character
affects both the writing and the translation of children’s literature” (Fernández López 1718).
For a very long time, the purpose of the existence of the cultural phenomenon that we know as
children’s literature was almost exclusively didactic in nature. In presenting a text to a child, we
have for a quite some time intended that they absorb the material and if not the lessons outlined
in primers, then the behavior demonstrated in religious texts. However, as the market of
Spencer 29
children’s literature has evolved and expanded, so has the diversity of acceptable themes and
content for the genre. Moreover, the assumption that children are devoid of any innate, moral
compass leans toward some erroneous suppositions. Eithne O’Connell states that “children’s
literature, is itself something of an undervalued or neglected area…there is a ‘curious
discrepancy between the ubiquity and perceived importance of children’s literature, and
scholarly research in the field’” (15). In other words, children’s literature is found in numerous
upon numerous societies throughout the world but has yet to be given its merit as a veritable and
worthy camp of rich investigation.
In regards to translation, we’ve also seen here that there’s a strong degree of subjective
interpretation at play. After all,
there is no universal agreement among the scholars of children’s literature, or even more
specifically, among the scholars of translation of children’s literature, concerning what a
translation is, what a “good” translation is, whether there is any difference in translating
books for children and for adults, and not least, whether an why translated children’s
literature is a valuable part of any child’s reading (Nikolajeva “What Do We Translate
When We Translate Children’s Literature?” 277).
If even the nebulous terms ‘translation,’ ‘adaptation,’ ‘version’ and ‘interpretation’ are up for
debate, it is no wonder that ‘children’s literature,’ something “enormously inclusive [in] scope
and…vague [in] nature” (O’Connell 16), has yet to be satisfactorily defined. And let us not
forget that the target party of all of these manifestations of children’s literature has the voice least
represented in any of these debates because “children’s literature is written by people who do not
belong to the target group: ‘Children’s books are written for a special readership but not
Spencer 30
normally members of that readership’” ” (Fernández López 17). Thus, writers and translators are
attempting to access the soul of a human being that is quite elusive to them.
It is with all this knowledge and within this broad scope that we must consider every
work of translation for children. We know now that “a society’s patterns of behavior and its
moral values are not only reflected in the textual modifications introduced in translation of
foreign works, which Göte Klingberg…defines as cultural context adaptations,… they are also
reflected in the fidelity to the first editions of texts that have been modified in their countries of
origin” (Fernández López 43). Cathy Hirano forces us to consider subjectivity even further by
posing the following question: “If… you give ten excellent translators the exact same passage to
translate, you will invariably end up with ten excellent, but very different translations. Which
one of those is ‘right’?” (229). The answer is likely ‘All of them and none of them.’ While these
findings can seem daunting for an aspiring translator, not all is without hope: “translators have
asserted… that a love for language and literature in general—rather than translation-specific
theoretical or linguistic knowledge—is fundamental to literary translation” (Lathey 193). Let us
hope that the next generation to get its hands on Matilda, Manolito Gafotas and Le Petit Nicolas
are sufficiently inspired by the choices our generations have made to continue to consider them
worthy of perpetuity, because, after all, it would seem, that extending a text’s lifespan and reach
are the translators’ ultimate goals.
Spencer 31
Matilda, original text by Roald Dahl in English and appearing in bold
Spanish language translation by Pedro Barbadillo
French language translation by Henri Robillot
Chapters 1: The Reader of Books, 7: Miss Honey, 12: The Weekly Test and 19: The Third
Miracle
Proper
names
name of a
character
page #
page #
12
English
text
Mr and
Mrs
Wormwood
Mrs Phelps
Spanish
text
El señor y
la señora
Wormwood
La señora
Phelps
Aylesbury
page #
name of a
character
name of a
place
name of a
thing (a
book)
16
Aylesbury
20
18
Pride and
Prejudice
20
Orgullo y
prejuicio
21
name of a
thing (a
commercial
brand of
beverage)
a place
21
Bovril or
Ovaltine
23
Bovril y
Ovaltina
23
66
Crunchem
Hall
Primary
69
Escuela
Primaria
Crunchem
69
name of a
character
name of a
character
name of a
character
name of a
book
66
69
69
Lavender
71
señorita
Trunchbull
la señorita
Honey
Lavender
69
66
Miss
Trunchbull
Miss Honey
80
82
name of a
character
142
The Lion,
the Witch
and the
Wardrobe
Nigel Hicks
136
11
13
15
70
13
16
20
French
Text
M. et Mme
Verdebois
Mme
Folyot
Aylesbury
Orgueil et
préjugé
(Pride and
Prejudiced
chocolat
chaud
69
Lamy-Noir
(laminoir:
rolling
machine)
Mlle
Legourdin
Mlle Candy
72
Anémone
El león, la
bruja y el
armario
82
Nigel
Hicks
142
L’Ile au
trésor
(Treasure
Island)
Victor
Patte
Spencer 32
Common
nouns
a thing
page #
page #
7
English
text
blister
Spanish
text
el ser más
repugnante
(the most
repugnant
being)
un
auténtico
desastre (a
real
disaster)
el pueblo
próximo
(the next
town)
viciosa del
bingo (a
Bingo
addict)
la lectora (a
female
reader)
cazo
quintilla
un trozo de
inmundicia
page #
French Text
11
les pires des
poisons (the
worst of all
poisons)
a description
of a hopeless
and
unintelligent
person
a thing
8
wash-out
11
11
une nullité
totale
(roughly : “a
total zero”)
10
the next
county
13
13
le comté
voisin (the
neighboring
county)
une mordue
du loto (a
Lotto addict)
an addiction
12
15
a neutered vs.
a gendered
noun
a thing
a thing
an insult for a
person
16
Mrs
Wormwood
was hooked
on bingo
the reader
21
78
144
saucepan
a limerick
a piece of
filth
23
80
137
a thing
154
the air
146
el aire
153
a fictional
being
155
pixie look
147
aspecto de
gnomo (a
gnome-like
look)
154
a collective
noun vs. a
noncollective
noun
a type of
person
215
The class
204
La clase
212
215
try not to
be smartaleck
203
211
n’essaie pas
de faire le
malin
216
giant of
204
no ser hoy
un
sabelotodo
(a know-itall)
una tromba
a hyperbolic
212
l’enorme
11
18
16
20
24
80
144
la lectrice (a
female
reader)
casserole
quatrain
une raclure
d’évier (a
water bug)
le vide (an
empty space)
allure de
lutin (a
leprechaunlike
appearance)
Les
élèves (the
students)
Spencer 33
metaphor for
a character
items in a
series that
create a pun
doom
218
eight
coconuts,
eight
monkeynuts and
eight nutty
little idiots
like you
206
a
multiplication
a neutered
object vs. a
gendered
object (in
reference to a
piece of
chalk)
an animal
218
Eight
threes
It’s writing
something
207
222
like a
halibut
a description
of a body
223
a profession
224
220
ocho
melones de
invierno,
ocho
melones de
verano y
ocho
melones
como tú
¡Ocho por
tres!
¡Está
escribiendo
214
209
the huge
figure
the matron
Mlle
Legourdin
huit serins
(canary,
ninny)
d’Italie, huit
serins des
Canaries et
huit serins
comme toi
214
8 fois 3
215
Elle écrit
(She’s
writing)
como un
pez (like a
fish)
217
210
El enorme
corpachón
218
210
la
enfermera
(the nurse)
219
comme…une
lotte (like a
monkfish or
angler fish)
l’immense
carcasse
(roughly:
“the huge
lifeless
body”)
l’infirmière
(the nurse)
207
Select
verbs
page #
English
text
page #
Spanish text
page #
French
Text
use of
conditional
vs.
imperfect
tense
13
Matilda
would
toddle
16
Matilda se
dirigía
16
Matilda
trottinait
concrete
141
glaring
135
mirando
141
promena un
Spencer 34
verb vs.
verb phrase
desabridamente
regard
furieux
use of
indicative
vs.
subjunctive
142
when you
address
me
136
cuando te
dirijas a mí
143
quand tu
me parles
to have
seen
something
vs. to have
a been a
witness
150
None of
them had
seen
anything
quite like
this
before.
143
Ninguno de
ellos había
presenciado
algo así antes
150
Aucun
d’eux
n’avait
encore été
témoin
d’une scène
pareille.
indicative
vs.
subjunctive
vs.
infintive
151
stand up
when you
speak to
me
144
ponte de pie
cuando me
hables
151
lève-toi
pour me
répondre
making a
facial
expression
216
scowling
204
el ceño
fruncido
212
fixait d’un
regard
farouche
216
sitting
motionless
205
inmóvil en su
pupitre
213
immobile à
son pupitre
217
taught
205
ha enseñado
213
a… appris
217
That’s
adding up!
205
¡Eso es una
suma!
213
c’est une
addition !
218
I’ve got to
add up
206
Tengo que
sumar
214
Il faut que
j’additionne
221
glanced
swiftly
209
miró
rápidamente
217
lança un
bref coup
d’oeil
223
Give my
Jenny her
210
Devuélvele a
Jenny sus
218
Donne à ma
Jenny son
Spencer 35
salarios
wages
Idiomatic
expressions
page #
English text
page #
10
Her mind was
so nimble
14
11
something to
make your eyes
pop
14
11
from cover to
cover
15
15
18
67
68
salaire
Spanish
text
Tenía una
mente tan
aguda
llamaba la
atención
page #
French Text
14
Elle avait
l’esprit si vif
14
14
de cabo a
rabo
15
She didn’t
quite know
what to bring
out.
a young
teenager’s
romance of the
kind that is
written for
fifteen-year-old
schoolgirls
18
18
to be
completely
carried away
by it all
with small
people
bouncing off
her left and
right
a brand- new
exercise book
21
No sabía
muy bien
qué
escoger.
alguna
novela de
amor de
las que
suelen leer
las chicas
de quince
años
no mostrar
su
entusiasmo
vous seriez
resté comme
deux ronds de
flan (to be
flabbergasted,
dumbfounded,
astounded)
la première
page a la
derrière
Elle ne savait
pas à quel
saint se vouer.
71
71
18
18
un roman de
jeune fille à
l’eau de rose
22
donner libre
cours à ses
émotions
tenían que
apartarse a
derecha e
izquierda
70
projetant les
petits de part
et d’autre
un
cuaderno
de
ejercicios
71
un cahier tout
neuf
Spencer 36
69
she can
liquidise you
like a carrot
71
puede
hacerlos
papilla
72
77
making the
understatement
of her life
79
79
158
Clever, my
foot !
What the
blazes is this?
---
haciendo
la
afirmación
de su vida
---
220
220
she yelled at
nobody in
particular
208
223
out for the
count
She’s out cold!
210
By golly,
somebody’s
floored her at
last
211
224
226
Miscellaneous
page
#
7
English text
an
exclamation
12
a
measurement
12
What’s
wrong with
the telly, for
heaven’s
sake?
a lovely telly
with a
twelve-inch
the title of
chapter 1
208
The Reader
of Books
---
page
#
11
156
¿Qué
demonios
significa
eso?
gritó, sin
dirigirse a
nadie en
particular
fuera de
combate
---
215
¡Caramba,
al fin
alguien ha
podido
vencerla!
220
Spanish text
La lectora de libros
elle aura tôt
fait de vous
réduire en
bouillie
comme une
patate
proférant le
plus bel
euphémisme
de sa carrière
Doué, mon
œil !
Par l’enfer!
Qu’est-ce que
c’est que ça?
216
elle cria dans
le vide
218
sans
connaissance
Elle s’est
trouvée mal
Sacredieu!
Enfin
quelqu’un l’a
envoyée au
tapis !
219
page
#
11
16
¿Qué demonios
tiene de malo la
televisión?
16
15
un precioso televisor
de de doce pulgadas
16
French Text
Une adorable
petite dévoreuse
de livres
Et la télé ça te
suffit pas?
Vingt dieux!
une belle télé
avec un écran
de 56
Spencer 37
a
measurement
12
a form of
poetry
the title of
chapter 13
a common
noun
a word for
spelling
an
exclamation
and insult
79
141
142
144
148
screen
a town eight
miles away
15
a un pueblo situado
a ocho millas de allí
16
The thing…
‘Not any!
The weekly
test
middle
names
write (right)
80-81
81
135
Lo
que…¡Ninguna!”
El examen semanal
141
136
mi segundo apellido
142
Le cours de
jeudi
autres prénoms
138
herrar (errar)
144
hockey (okay)
You
ignorant
little
slug !...You
witless weed!
You emptyheaded
hamster!
You stupid
glob of glue!
Yes, I jolly
well do
141
¡Insecto
ignorante !... ¡Asno
estúpido! ¡Cabeza
de chorlito!
148
Espèce de
limace
ignare!...Double
zéro! Ane bâté !
Triple buse !
148
Sí, tonta de remate
(roughly: Yes, [you]
stark raving mad
[person])
---
156
Et comment!
156
Mlle Candy
prétend…
boucle-là.
vous ont gardé
un mauvais
souvenir (you
have an
unpleasant
memory [of]…)
D’après ma
mere
(According to
my mother)
J’ai eu
drôlement mal
au crâne après
sarcasm in a
facetious
reply
156
an omitted
paragraph
158
Miss Honey
tells me
that…quiet.
---
sarcasm/irony
215
did not
particularly
enjoy the
last occasion
203
no la pasaron
precisamente muy
bien (you all didn’t
have such a great
time)
211
215
My mother
said
203
Mi madre dice que
211
215
My head
was jolly
sore
afterwards
I wish I was
203
Me dolió
terriblemente luego
211
204
Me gustaría ser
212
215
dans une ville
située à une
dizaine de
kilomètres
Chacun…parie !
Si seulement
Spencer 38
an
exclamatory
insult
217218
218
218
218
an adjective
216
grown
up…I’d
knock her
flat
You
blithering
idiot!...You
festering
gumboil!
You
fleabitten
fungus!...you
stagnant
cesspool!
properly
flustered
You
bursting
blister!...You
moth-eaten
maggot!...
mangled
little wurzel
too
frightened
and
bewildered
to even
speak
slimy
205
¡Tonto de
capriote!...¡Flemón
purulento! ¡Hongo
venenoso!...pedazo
de alcornoque (cork,
idiot, fool)?
214
j’étais assez
grand…je lui
rentrerais dans
le lard
Miserable
crétin!...Virus
ambulant!
Moisissure!...
têtard pourri?
206
totalmente
confundido (totally
confused)
¡Ampolla
reventada!...¡Gusano
asqueroso!…
pedazo de
inmundicia
214
perdu (lost)
214
Pauvre
raclure!...Extrait
de punaise
(bug)!...pustule
206
demasiado asustado
y aturdido para
poder hablar
214
trop affolé et
ahuri pour
pouvoir ouvrir
la bouche
204
viscosos
212
visqueuse
mayor para ajustarle
las cuentas
206
Manolito Gafotas, original text by Elvira Lindo in Spanish and appearing in bold
English language translation by Joanne Moriarty
French language translation by Virginia López Ballesteros and Olivier Malthet
Chapters 1: Los de mis barrio se quejan, 2: El cuerno de Manolito, 6: El uno para el otro
Proper
names
page #
3
English
text
Big Ears
López
page #
9
Spanish
text
Orejones
López
page #
French
Text
Grandes
Oreilles
Spencer 39
4
Manolito
Four-Eyes
10
Manolito
Gafotas
9
Manolito le
Binoclard
63
Ozzy
84
Yihad
73
Yihad
65
the Oneand Only
Susana
Dirty
Underpants
85
la Susana
BragasSucias
74
Susana
CulotteSale
English
text
dog
page #
Spanish text
page #
French Text
9
cochino (pig)
9
cochon (pig)
Common
nouns
an animal
page #
monetary
currencies
6
a ten-cent
coin
13
veinticinco
pesetas
13
deux francs
slang for
“man”
8
the dude
15
el tío
14
il
parts of the
body
10
tooth…leg
18
pierna…cabeza
(leg…head)
16
jambe…tête
(leg…head)
monetary
currencies
21
two euros
30
seiscientas
pesetas
27
35 francs
hyperbolic,
non-specific
expression
of distance
21
boondocks
30
el quinto pino
(literally: the
fifth pine)
27
C’est a
perpète.
(figuratively:
“that’s
forever or
miles away)
one item
substituted
for another
65
a large
knife
86
jeringuilla
(syringe)
75
seringue
(syringe)
generic food
item vs.
brand name
66
the
chocolate
88
los colacaos
76
les verres de
Nesquik
3
Spencer 40
items
milks
systems of
measurement
67
inches
89
pulgadas
(inches)
77
centimètres
(centimeters)
brand names
vs. a generic
name
67
Cocoa
Krispies
89
chococrispis
77
Chocapic
physical
violence vs.
verbal
reprimand
70
lecture
92
colleja (a slap
on the back of
the neck)
80
claque
(roughly: a
thump)
false
cognates
68
girlfriend
90
novia
78
fiancée
French
Text
Mais elle
ne mene
aucune
enquete sur
les origines
de
l’humanité,
elle
m’appelle
comme ça
avant de…
Verbs
page #
English
text
she doesn’t
call me that
because
she’s a
sociologist
researching
page #
Spanish text
page #
10
no me llama
así porque
sea una
investigadora
10
16
and if you
don’t watch
out, gets
you a
girlfriend,
too
22
y te consigue
una novia
como te
descuides
20
et te
procure une
fiancée
illico presto
17
she was out
of luck
26
se jorobó
24
…bien fait
pour elle
4
Spencer 41
20
look at the
time
30
mire usted la
hora que es
26
regardez
l’heure
qu’il est
22
(“running”
is a manner
of
speaking)
32
lo de
corriendo es
un decir
28
(<<en
courant>>
est une
façon de
parler)
75
You didn’t
have to spit
on me
99
tampoco era
para que me
escupieras
86
fallait pas
me cracher
dessus
page #
English text
page #
Spanish text
page #
French
Text
6
all’s well
that ends
well
12
santas pascuas
12
sans
problème
6
I just grin
and bear it
12
me aguanto
12
je ne me
plains pas
23
My grandpa
had
lost…tongue,
too.
33
Es que mi
abuelo ni tiene
dientes…lengua
tampoco.
---
---
69
She had me
frazzled
91
Me tenía frito
80
J’en avais
ras le bol
Miscellaneous
page #
Reinterpretation
of violence
6
English
text
It’s not
because
she’s my
mom…
reason.
Idiomatic
expressions
page #
Spanish text
page #
French Text
12
La colleja es una
torta…estudiando.
12
La tape est une
gifle… des
études.
Spencer 42
Intentional
gramatical
errors
6
My mom
doesn’t
like
13
a mi madre no la
gusta
13
Ma mère n’aime
pas
purification by
substitution
11
criminals
19
drogadictos
18
des drogués
figure of
speech
17
I held
back a
smidgen
23
me corté un pelo
21
je me suis un peu
calmé
figure of
speech
17
What on
God’s
Green
Earth
23
a qué santo viene
21
d’où diable vient
culturally
specific phone
number
20
calling
the police
30
llamando al 091
26
d’appeler la
police
culturally
offensive
comparison
62
I walk
like a
penguin
83
ando como un
chino…andando
como Fumanchu
72
je marche
comme un
Chinois…comme
Fumanchu
metaphor
based on color
62
filthy
83
negras
72
sales
homophobic
attribute
68
girl
90
mariquita
78
pédé
citation of
specific culture
vs. citation of
extraterrestrials
73
unless
Spain
were
invaded
by
Martians
96
a no ser que
España fuera
invadida por los
japoneses
83
à moins que
l’Espagne soit
envahie par les
Japonais
citation of
origin vs.
omission of
origin
75
were like
drums
98
parecían tambores
africanos
85
des tambours
africains
Spencer 43
Le Petit Nicolas, original text by René Goscinny in French and appearing in bold
English language translation by Anthea Bell
Spanish language translation by Esther Benítez
Chapters 1 : Un souvenir qu’on va chérir ; 7 : Djodjo ; 9 : Les carnets ; 10: Louisette; 15 : Je suis
malade
Proper
names
names of
characters
page #
page #
Spanish text
page #
5
English
text
Geoffrey…
Cuthbert…
Eddie
12
Godofredo…
Agnan…
Eudes
5
French
Text
Geoffroy…
Agnan…
Eudes
name of a
character
6
Rufus
13
Rufo
8
Rufus
name of a
character
8
Alec
15
Alcestes
11
Alceste
name of a
character
45
Jocky…
Jochen van
der Velde
52
Choco…
Jorge Mac
Intosh
56
Djodjo…
Georges
MacIntosh
name of a
language/
nationality
46
I know the
rudiments
of Flemish
53
Yo poseo
ciertos
rudimentos
de inglés
57
Moi, je
possède les
rudiments
d’anglais
names of
characters
46
Jeremy,
Max and
Matthew
53
Joaquín,
Majencio,
Clotario
57
Joachim,
Maixent et
Clotaire
renationalized
names
63
Louise
72
Luisita
80
Louisette
name of a
character
97
Auntie
Pauline
107
tía Pulqueria
120
tante
Pulchérie
Common
page #
English
page #
Spanish
page #
French Text
Spencer 44
nouns
a social
status
5
text
teacher’s
pet
12
text
el ojito
derecho
5
le chouchou
an
opportunity
vs. a
warning
7
one last
chance
15
la última
advertencia
10
un dernier
avertissement
a dessert
8
a piece of
bread and
jelly
15
una
rebanada de
pan con
marmelada
11
la confiture
a naming/
description
of a
punishment
8
making
him do
lines by
copying
16
la
conjugación
del verbo
11
la
conjugaison
du verbe
a social
status
45
a new boy
52
uno nuevo
56
un nouveau
attributive
insult
46
You’re a
loony!
54
¡Estás
chalao!
61
toi, tu es un
dingue
a sport
47
soccer
54
tenis
61
tennis
attributive
insult
57
a disgrace
67
unos
golfillos
74
des petits
vauriens
fathers vs.
parents
58
our dads
67
los padres
75
nos papas
variable
pronoun
usage
58
When we
got to the
corner
68
Cuando
llegamos a
la esquina
76
Quand on est
arrivés au
coin
variable
pronoun
usage,
twice
61
they
oughtn’t to
discuss
such
matters in
front of
little
71
no había
que discutir
esas cosas
delante del
niño
78
il ne fallait
pas discuter
de cela
devant
l’enfant
Spencer 45
Nicholas
use of
pronoun,
third
person
plural
63
they only
play at
dolls…
they’re
always
crying
72
no saben
jugar más
que a las
muñecas y
a las tiendas
y lloran
todo el
tiempo
80
ça ne sait pas
jouer a autre
chose…ça
pleure tout le
temps
term of
endearment
65
Such a
dear little
chicken
74
¡Qué
monada de
niña!
84
C’est un vrai
petit poussin
Select verbs
page #
expressing
frustration
physically
6
expressing
obligation
personally
and
impersonally
implying a
social status
vs. making it
attributive
English
text
clasped her
head in her
hands
page #
Spanish
text
se llevó las
manos a la
cabeza
page #
8
he had to
keep his
strength up
15
había que
alimentarse
11
qu’il fallait
bien qu’il
se
nourrisse
45
He comes
from
abroad
52
Es
extranjero
56
Il est
étranger
57
He didn’t
look too
pleased
66
No tenía
una pinta
muy
satisfecha
73
n’avait pas
l’air
content
64
Louise and
I went up
73
Luisita y yo
fuimos a mi
83
on est allés
dans ma
13
9
French
Text
s’est
frappe le
front avec
la main
Spencer 46
to my room
Idiomatic
expressions
a masked
threat
cuarto
chambre
64-65
fluttering
her
eyelashes
74
movió sus
párpados
muy de
prisa
84
Elle a fait
bouger ses
paupières
99
she hit the
roof
108
se puso a
gritar
121
elle s’est
mise à
crier
page #
English text
page #
Spanish
text
page #
French
Text
6
She didn’t
look too
pleased
13
No tenía
pinta de
estar muy
contenta
8
Elle
n’avait pas
l’air
content
8
great fat
tummy
16
gorda cara
11
grosse
figure
9
our teacher
really
started
handing out
punishments
17
empezó a
distribuir
castigos a
diestro y
siniestro
13
a
commencé
à les
distribuer
drôlement,
les
punitions
46
was very
cross
53
estaba muy
picado
(roughly:
was hot
from anger)
57
était très
vexé (was
vexed or
irritated)
63
or you’ll
have me to
deal with,
understand?
72
si no
tendrás que
vértelas
conmigo,
¿entendido?
82
sinon, tu
auras
affaire à
moi,
compris?
Spencer 47
64
Miscellaneous
page #
adjective
5
We shook
hands
73
Nos dimos
los dedos
(literally:
we gave
each other
our fingers)
82
On s’est
donné les
doigts
(literally:
we gave
one
another
our
fingers)
English
text
impossible
page #
Spanish text
page #
French Text
12
insoportables
8
insupportables
6
you
wouldn’t
have had
any trouble
14
no habría tanto
lío
9
Il n’y aurait
pas d’histoires
adjectival
figure of
speech
6
You’re all
messy!
13
¡Pero si estáis
completamente
negros!
(literally: But
you’re all
black!)
9
Mais vous êtes
tout noirs
(literally : But
you’re all
black !)
physical
description of
a character vs.
an omission
45
---
52
un niño que
tenía el pelo
todo rojo,
pecas y los
ojos azules
56
un petit
garçon qui
avait des
cheveux tout
rouges, des
taches de
rousseur et des
yeux bleus…
nous avons vu
qu’il avait des
tas de dents
Spencer 48
terribles
onomatapoiea
46
it was just
a lot of
jabber
53
uanshuinshuen
57
oishouinshouin
exclamatory
insult
47
nitwit
54
¡Cara de
payaso !
61
Espèce de
guignol !
47
What’s the
matter with
him?
54
¿Qué le ha
dado ?
61
Qu’est-ce
qui lui prend ?
description of
talent for
sports
47
ever so
much
better
56
se las
arreglaba
62
se débrouillait
drôlement
description of
sharp intellect
47
He was a
really fast
learner
56
aprende a todo
gas
(figuratively:
He learns at
full speed)
62
apprend
drôlement vite
an insult
48
Loony,
great fat
nitwit,
dirty lie !!
56
¡Chalao !
¡Cara de
payaso!
¡Cochino
embustero!
62
Costaud,
dingue, espèce
guignol!
an adjective
59
He left the
door open
a crack
68
Había dejado
la puerta
entornada
77
Il avait laissé
la porte
entrouverte
prepositional
phrase
65
dropped
them on
the floor
74
los tiró al
suelo (She
threw them on
the ground)
84
les a jetés par
terre (She
threw them on
the ground)
figure of
speech
98
so there
108
eso es, sin
bromas
120
non mais sans
blague
Spencer 49
figure of
speech
100
My mom
is a good
cook
109
Se come bien
en mi casa
(roughly: “We
eat well at
home.”)
123
On mange très
bien à la
maison.
(roughly: “We
eat well at
home.”)
figure of
speech
101
But we do
seem to be
awfully
unhealthy
in our
family
today
111
Pero no
tenemos
mucha suerte
hoy
125
on n’a
vraiment pas
de chance avec
les maladies, à
la maison,
aujourd’hui
(We’re not
very lucky
with illness at
home today)
Works Cited
“Anemone.” Onelook.com < http://onelook.com/?w=anemone&ls=a>. 17 Dec. 2013.
Bell, Anthea. “Translator’s Notebook: Delicate Matters.” The Translation of Children’s
Literature: A Reader. Ed. Lathey, Gillian. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters, 2006.
“Ceste.” Wordreference.com. <http://www.wordreference.com/fren/ceste>. 17 Dec. 2013.
“Colleja.” Wordreference.com.
<http://www.wordreference.com/es/en/translation.asp?spen=colleja>. 17 Dec. 2013.
“Claque.” Wordreference.com. <http://www.wordreference.com/fren/claque>. 17 Dec. 2013.
Dahl, Roald. Matilda. Illus. Quentin Blake. New York: Puffin Books, 1988.
---Trans. Henri Robillott. Illus. Quentin Blake. Gallimard, 1988.
---Trans. Pedro Barbadillo. Illus. Quentin Blake. Distrito Federal: Alfaguara, 1989.
“Descuidarse.” Wordreference.com.
<http://www.wordreference.com/es/en/translation.asp?spen=descuidarse>. 18
Spencer 50
Dec. 2013.
“Évier.” Wordreference.com. < http://www.wordreference.com/fren/%C3%A9vier>. 19 Dec.
2013.
Fernández López, Marisa. “Translation Studies in Contemporary Children’s Literature: A
Comparison of Intercultural Ideological Factors.” The Translation of Children’s
Literature: A Reader. Ed. Lathey, Gillian. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters, 2006.
“Gifle.” Wordreference.com. <http://www.wordreference.com/fren/gifle>. 17 Dec. 2013.
Goscinny, René. Le Petit Nicolas. Illus. Jean-Jacques Sempé. Paris : Éditions Denöel, 1985.
---El pequeño Nicolas. Trans. Esther Benítez. Illus. Jean-Jacques Sempé. Madrid : Alfaguara,
2002.
---Nicholas. Trans. Anthea Bell. Illus. Jean-Jacques Sempé. New York: Phaidon Press Limited,
2005.
“Gourdin.” Wordreference.com. < http://www.wordreference.com/fren/gourdin>. 17 December
2013.
Hirano, Cathy. “Eight Ways to Say You: The Challenges of Translation.” The Translation of
Children’s Literature: A Reader. Ed. Lathey, Gillian. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters,
2006.
“Homophone.” Onelook.com. <http://onelook.com/?w=homophone&ls=a>. 18 Dec. 2013.
“Idiom.” Onelook.com <http://onelook.com/?w=idiom&ls=a>. 18 Dec. 2013.
“Illico presto.” Wordreference.com.
<http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=1049560>. 18 Dec. 2013.
Klingberg, Göte. Children’s Fiction in the Hands of the Translators. Malmö: CWK Gleerup,
1986.
“Laminoir.” Wordreference.com. <http://www.wordreference.com/fren/laminoir>. 17 Dec. 2013.
Lathey, Gillian. The Role of Translators in Children’s Literature: Invisible Storytellers. New
Spencer 51
York: Taylor & Francis, 2010.
Lindo, Elvira. Manolito Gafotas. Illus. Emilio Uberuaga. Barcelona: Editorial Seix Barral, 2013.
---Manolito. Trans. Virginia López-Ballesteros and Olivier Malthet. Illus. Emilio Uberuaga.
Madrid: Santillana S.A., 1996.
---Manolito Four-Eyes. Trans. Joanne Moriarty. Illus. Emilio Uberuaga. Amazon Children’s
Pub., 2010.
“Mariquita.” Wordreference.com.
<http://www.wordreference.com/es/en/translation.asp?spen=mariquita>. 17 Dec.
2013.
Nikolajeva, Maria. “What Do We Translate When We Translate Children’s Literature?” Beckett,
Sandra L. and Maria Nikolajeva, eds. Beyond Babar: The European Tradition in
Children’s Literature. Lanham: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2006.
---. “Translation and Cross-Cultural Reception.” Wolf, Shelby A., et. al. Handbook of Research
on Children’s and Young Adult Literature. NewYork: Routledge, 2011.
O’Connell, Eithne. “Translating for Children.” The Translation of Children’s Literature: A
Reader. Ed. Lathey, Gillian. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters, 2006.
Oittinen, Riitta. Translating for Children. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 2000.
“Paraphrase.” Wikipedia. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Untranslatability#Paraphrase>. 17 Dec
2013.
“Pédé.” Wordreference.com. <http://www.wordreference.com/fren/p%C3%A9d%C3%A9>. 17
Dec. 2013.
“Quintilla.” Wordreference.com.
<http://www.wordreference.com/es/en/translation.asp?spen=quintilla>. 17 Dec.
2013.
“Raclure.” Wordreference.com. <http://www.wordreference.com/fren/raclure>. 19 Dec. 2013.
Spencer 52
“Serin.” Wordreference.com. <http://www.wordreference.com/fren/serin>.18 Dec. 2013.
Spencer, Katrina. Personal Interview with Mercedes Fernández Isla. 20 Dec. 2013.
---. Personal Interview with Guillaume Gautier. 7 July 2013.
“Tape.” Wordreference.com. <http://www.wordreference.com/fren/tape>. 17 Dec. 2013.
Additional Resources of Repute for Continued Investigation

Ardizzone, Sarah. A children’s literature translator.

Bakhtin, Mikhail. The Dialogic Imagination.

Bell, Anthea. A children’s literature translator.

Crampton, Patricia. A children’s literature translator.

Fédération Internationale des Traducteurs (FIT).

Gág, Wanda. A children’s literature translator.

Hallford, Deborah and Edgardo Zaghini, eds. Outside In. Chicago: Milet Publishing,
2005.

International Board of Books for Young People (IBBY).

Lindgren, Astrid. One of the most prolific Swedish writers of children’s literature and
author of Pippi Longstocking.

Marsh Award for Children’s Literature in Translation. ,
<http://www.marshchristiantrust.org/Childrens_Literature_Translation>,

Mildred Batchelder Award.

Pierre François Caillé Medal.

Pohl, Peter. “In spite of Being a Translation.”

Robinson, Douglas. The Translator’s Turn.

Translators’Association.

Translators’ Guild of the Institute of Linguists.

Venuti, Lawrence. The Translation Studies Reader.
Spencer 53