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Minority voices in literary fiction: a case study of translating multilingual practices

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Published/Copyright: December 23, 2015

Abstract

Translating multilingual texts is still a new field of inquiry. Transplanting a text where the function of embraced multilingual practices is strongly related to local ethnic identities can provide challenges for translators and readers alike. This study discusses the translation strategies adopted by second-year translation students on an assignment to translate part of Patricia Grace’s short story “The Dream” into Finnish. The strategies for dealing with the Maori passages in the story varied, both in terms of how many of the Maori passages were preserved and how much intratextual translation was included in the text. The strategies were investigated both in the translations themselves and in the accompanying translation comments the students produced. The degree to which the translators showed an in-depth understanding of the nuances relevant to the representation of an ethnic minority of another culture varied. There was more sensitivity to a Finnish reader’s insufficient familiarity with the Maori language and culture than to the meaning of the representations of Maori language and culture in the original text.

Funding statement: Funding: The research reported here has been supported by the Academy of Finland, project no 258434. For more information about the Multilingual Practices in the History of Written English project, see www.uta.fi/projects/multipract.

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Published Online: 2015-12-23
Published in Print: 2016-3-1

©2016 by De Gruyter Mouton

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