Cult Load Words EN 1

1 羊叶 The Analysis of Culture-loaded Words of English Subtitle Translation in Chinese Movies-Taking Farewell to My Concubine as an Example

Cult_Load_Words_EN_1

电影中英译字幕文化负载词的翻译分析——以《霸王别姬》为例

Abstract

Nowadays, popular films are increasingly active on the Internet. Confronting such a mass need for film translation, subtitle translation is winning more favor compared with traditional dubbing translation. This paper, taking Farewell My Concubine as an example, analyzes the strategies and methods of translating culture-loaded words. The conclusions are as follows: In terms of translator, translator needs to be super proficient in Chinese and English. In terms of translation strategies, domestication and foreignization are unity of opposites and complement each other, so there is no absolute and pure domestication and foreignization. In terms of translation methods, when translating the culture-loaded words, Linda Jaivin mainly adopted literal translation, free translation, specification, generalization and omission to nearly successfully preserve and convey the essence in Beijing dialect and Beijing Opera in China.

Key Words

Subtitle Translation; Farewell My Concubine; foreignizing method; domesticating method

摘要

如今，电影在互联网上越来越受欢迎。比起传统的配音翻译，字幕翻译更受青睐，电影对字幕翻译的需求巨大。本文以电影霸王别姬为例，分析翻译文化负载词时所用的翻译策略和翻译方法。结论如下：就译者而言，翻译者需精通中文和英文两种语言；就翻译策略而言，归化与异化两者对立且相互统一，没有绝对的归化、异化之说；就翻译方法而言，在翻译文化负载词时，贾佩琳主要采用了意译、直译、具体化、一般化、省略等翻译方法，成功地保留和传达了北京方言和京剧的国粹部分。

关键词

字幕翻译；霸王别姬；异化；归化

Introduction

1.1Research Background

Innovation of information technology brings energy for the advancement of broadcasting ways of film and television programs. More and more foreign popular films are increasingly active on the Internet; more and more local films with Chinese elements are also introduced abroad. Researchers on subtitling translation are becoming more and more important.

China's Opening-up and Reform facilitates the cultural communication between China and the outer world. In the introduction of foreign films and TV plays, language understanding becomes an obvious barrier for audiences. Two major solutions to solve such a barrier are dubbing and subtitle translation. "Subtitles sometimes referred to as captions are transcriptions of film or TV dialogue presented simultaneously on the screen." Relatively, the latter one is more favorable than the traditional dubbing way because of its cost-effectiveness, short producing cycle and audience-acceptability. With higher educational background and foreign language level, many Chinese audiences expect that films can be displayed with “a natural and original flavor” nowadays. Under such circumstances, subtitle translation seems to be more acceptable to get access to foreign audience. Among so many elements involved in the subtitle translation process, the translator plays the most significant part, thus becoming a key and central element in the subtitle translation system. Therefore, a good subtitle translation with “a natural and original flavor” sets high and strict requirements for the translator.（Liao, 2000: 231）

1.2 Brief Introduction to Farewell My Concubine

Farewell My Concubine, the film version adopted in this thesis is the 1993 one whose heroes and heroines are Duan Xiaolou (acted by Zhang Fengyi), Cheng Dieyi (acted by Zhang Guorong) and Ju Xian (acted by Gong Li) respectively. In the film, Xiaolou and Dieyi are fellow apprentices learning Beijing opera performance together from childhood. Later on, their cooperation in the opera Farewell My Concubine makes them famous overnight throughout Beijing city. Thereafter, they make a promise to each other that they will perform Farewell My Concubine together as long as they are alive. However, their different understandings of the relationship between the opera and life finally lead to their different choices: Until mid-age, Xiaolou deeply knows that the opera isn't his whole life, so he gets married with a famous whore called Juxian; Dieyi, however, becomes totally immersed in the complicated plots and role relationships of the operas, especially Farewell my Concubine. Around such a classic and famous opera, the love and betrayal among them become escalating with the changes of times and eventually develops into a tragedy.(Yuyong Lv and Min Li 2015:123)

It is the first film that won the Golden Palm Prize in mainland China. It has been keeping the highest-grossing record of Chinese melodrama movies in America which also marks the climax of Chinese films in America. Meanwhile, it also got great box-office successes in such countries as Japan, Germany, Korean, France and so on. It should be concluded that Farewell My Concubine has achieved great success both in the art and business. In Farewell My Concubine, Beijing Opera art is the central cultural element. It is a typical representative of classical Chinese literature art. Taking it as a case study, general and concrete subtitle translation strategies can be concluded to improve translation quality of similar subtitle translation works.

1.3 Brief Introduction to translator Linda Javin

Linda Javin, the subtitle translator of Farewell My Concubine, is a suitable and qualified person for both the director and the audiences. Since 1976, Linda has been playing an important and active role in broadcasting, studying and exploring Chinese culture. As an internationally renowned sinologist, translator and writer, Linda Javin has made great efforts in learning, feeling and appreciating Chinese culture. It is really a tough time full of difficulties and hardships under the specific social conditions then. After years of efforts to learn Chinese language, history, literature and many visits to China, Linda has begun to embark on her Chinese literary writing career recently. All these can prove that she is really a competent and qualified subtitle translator of Farewell My Concubine. Her wonderful bi-lingual and bi-cultural competence does give her favorable advantages in translating.(Jin Haina 2013:06)

Analysis the Translation of Culture-loaded Words

2.1 Introduction to Culture-loaded Words

Gonzalez Davies and Scott-Tennent (2008, p.783) put forward a definition of cultural references in detail, which is "expressions (audiovisual, verbal, textual, non-verbal) that are concerned with ecological, material, religious, social, emotional, and linguistic manifestation. In addition, these expressions are specific to a particular community, and they are recognized as a particular feature of that community. Such expressions, however, may lead to difficulties in comprehending these words or translating these words." And in China, a scholar defines it as "the words, phrases and idioms that mark the unique things in a culture." These words reflect the unique way of activities gradually accumulated by a specific nation in the long historical process, which is different from other nations.（Liao, 2000: 232）

It is more diverse to classify Culture-loaded words because China is an ancient national with a history of more than 5,000 years. In this course, many Culture-loaded words have accumulated continuously. Among all the materials, some scholars divide Culture-loaded words based on specific elements such as language and culture. Since different scholars hold different views on the classification of Culture-loaded words, and hence the fist can go on and on. Here is a well-accepted way by Nida. Nida (1945, p.196) divided language and cultural characteristics into five categories:(1)Ecological culture; (2)Material culture; (3)Social Culture; (4)Religious Culture; (5)Linguistic Culture.

2.2 The Features of Subtitles in Farewell My Concubine

Through comparison and analysis, the main language features of the Chinese lines of Farewell My Concubine are concluded as below: concise but emotional dialogue; strong Beijing Opera and Beijing dialect flavor; sharp but implicative expressions; rich of slang and idioms. All the features are drawn from the corresponding lines in the film and all these analysis in the language following features will be illustrated combining with the specific case interpretation. Thus, different translation strategies at different levels can be generalized and concluded to cater for the different language features.

The film takes place in Beijing and is thus featured with rich local color. The most obvious feature is the use of Beijing dialect. Beijing dialect is the basis of standard Mandarin, but there are some differences that make it easy for Chinese people to recognize which is which. Most prominent difference in phonology is the proliferation of rhotic vowels which results from the non suffix “儿” in vocabulary, Beijing dialect has a lot of words that are considered slangy and therefore occur much less or not at all in standard Mandarin. Some non-Beijing natives find it hard to understand what most of them mean, let alone foreigners. A dialect tells about the user's social class, status, profession, and many more. That is why so many translators are taking pains.

Beijing Opera is exactly a colorful part of the film has depicted. Beijing Opera was formed during the period of Daoguang(1821-1850). At the beginning, actors from Chu Opera such as Wang Honggui and Li Liu came to Beijing to perform in the Drama of Hui School. Later, combined with Erhuang melodies and Xipi melodies, in the same time, actors also absorbed the advantages of Kun, Beijing and Qin tunes from their respective schools. Beijing dialects were adapted to adapt to Beijing customs. Thus, it took shape initially. Gradually Beijing Opera developed into the most influential opera in the country. The characters in the whole film have a strong Beijing accent, and many opera excerpts in the film such as Farewell My Concubine, Peony Pavilion and Drunken Imperial Concubine are presented for many times. So it is inevitable to translate many professional terms.

2.3 Cases for Analysis

2.3.1 Brief Introduction to Translation Strategies

Before the specific analysis, let's have a understanding of two basic concepts of domestication and foreignization, which are important strategies in translating culture-loaded words.

The translation theory of domestication and foreignization was first put forward by Schleier Macher, a famous German translation theorist. In his book published in 1813, he put forward that there are only two ways of Translation: one is to guide the readers to get to know the author as much as possible; the other is to guide the author to get to know the readers as much as possible. In 1995, Lawrence Venuti, an American Italian translator, wrote in his important work The Translator's Invisibility, the first method described by Schleier Macher is called "foreignizing method" and the second method is called "domesticating method". That is to say, domestication is oriented by target language, while foreignization is oriented by source language.

As for Linda Javin, she once mentioned in an interview that in the face of the cultural essences in the lines, she adhered to the strategy of domestication in her translation and did not deliberately maintain the oriental flavor contained in the dialogue. Frankly speaking, she doesn't appreciate the way of retaining Pinyin combinations and then adding a lot of notes to make foreigners understood. If Chinese is pleasant to the ear, don't let the expression heard awkwardly in English. So the simplicity and directness are put above everything else to make it easy for the audience to understand.

2.3.2 Cases of Translation Methods

2.3.2.1 Literal Translation

As one of the common methods of translating culture loaded words, literal translation is to translate the source text according to the literal order or meaning, which can retain the original characteristics of Chinese language and culture.

E.g.1世卿世受国恩

岂敢昧法？

更不敢当众违背天理良心。

The government has always been good to me,

I wouldn't dare deceive the court.

Nor would I betray the laws of Heaven or my own conscience.

“天理”“良心” are terms that are quite commonly-used words in China. From literal works to daily talks, from traditional plays to modern films, such kind of expressions are useful guidelines to arouse Chinese People's self-reflection. They are invisible ethical rules guiding people's behaviors. Since they are so local and traditional, it's not surprising that it is a little complicated for foreign audiences to figure them out. Based on the "literal translation" principle, Linda brings "Heaven" into her translation. In Christian culture, "Heaven" serves as the source of various moral concepts and systems. "Heaven" and "God" are existed to guide and restrict people's behaviors. Linda's translation has wonderfully adapted to the target eco-environment and is really worthy of referencing of the subtitling workers and learners.

E.g.2磨剪子来，镪菜刀

Bring your knives for sharpening? Sharpen your knives.

Sharpening knives is a traditional craftsmanship that is disappearing in China. Their dreich yo-heave-ho can evoke many people's memories of childhood. Such lively lines full of traditional Chinese cultural elements, on the one hand, are not so easy to translate; on the other hand, deserve more efforts for the foreign audiences to figure out. Considering all these factors, Linda pays attention to the retaining of its central meaning. Actually, a more literal translation method "Sharpen your scissors, sharpen your knives" may achieve more active functions here. It's the easiest to understand, and it can save viewing and thinking time as well. As for some complicated cultural terms, the best way, the easiest as well, maybe literal translation, which can avoid misunderstanding and superfluous deducing. Finally, they benefit a lot to saving viewing time.

E.g.3什么时候洞房花烛夜啊？

What’s the time of Candle-lit-night in the Bridal Chamber?

“洞房花烛夜” is a typical expression in ancient times of China, which means the golden night of the new husband and new wife on the day they get married. The night usually is beautiful and memorable and it is the first night the new couple. As for this line, Linda did not specifically explain what is the “洞房花烛夜” , instead she use the literal meaning to depict a picture of the special night, translating “花烛夜” to “Candle-lit-night”, which is so warm and beautiful.

E.g.4横扫一切牛鬼蛇神！

Sweep away all Cow Demons and Snake Spirits!

There is an article titled “Sweep away all Cow Demons and Snake Spirits!” published on the People's Daily on June 1, 1966, which marked the climax of the Proletarian Cultural Revolution. The "Cow Demons and Snake Spirits" represents the old ideas, cultures, customs and habits that have poisoned Chinese people for thousands of years. Under the call of the Party Central Committee and Chairman Mao Zedong, hundreds of millions of workers, peasants and soldiers, revolutionary cadres and intellectuals, swept away a large number old things entrenched in the ideological and cultural position. Its momentum is like a storm, with extraordinary rapidity, breaking the spiritual shackles imposed on them by the exploiting class. Using “Cow Demons” to express “牛鬼”, “Snake Spirits” to express “蛇神” is direct, clear and distinct.

2.3.2.2 Free Translation

Free translation is the translation by meanings. That is to say, the translation is done according to the real meanings of a sentence or even a paragraph, instead of completely word to word.

E.g.1他祖师爷不肯赏饭吃，谁也没辙。

But I have no place for him. What can I do?

“祖师爷” is similar to "forefathers" to some extent in China's history. Without knowledge of the specific historical period, foreign audiences won't understand its exact meaning. Perhaps we can understand it as "destiny" "fate" or "god" of western culture, there are still cultural differences between them. From the plots in the film, we know that Mater does not want to accept Little Bean as his disciple, so he explains that Little Bean is not destined to be an actor. From this perspective, "destiny" is the most ideal choice to express the original meaning. Considering all these factors, Linda uses the strategy of "free translation" to put it as "I have no place for him" to refuse Little Bean's mother. Thus, she makes the lines easier to understand, and meanwhile, to avoid leading to a cultural misunderstanding.

E.g.2今儿个是破题儿，文章还在后头哪！

This is just the beginning. Wait till you see what's in store.

“破题” once appeared in "Romance of the Western Chamber” by Wang Shipu, a playwright of Yuan Dynasty. Since then, it has been widely used in various circumstances to refer to "the first time". From the translated version, it's clear that the translation of “破题” as "beginning" exhibits that the subtitle translator, Linda Javin, is quite familiar with the usage of the old Chinese words.

E.g.3真他妈想当太太奶奶啦你！

做你娘的玻璃梦去吧。

你当出了这门，把脸一抹擦，你还真成了良人了？

So you want to become a rich man's wife!

Go live out this goddamn fantasy' then

Don't think that when you walk out this door, you'll become a lady of virtue.

“太太奶奶” has different meanings in China in different social contexts. Without thinking or checking it, it's easy to translate it as "grandmother" "lady" or something like these. Besides, “良” means "good, kind", but here, “良人” doesn't mean "a good, kind or nice-hearted person", instead, it refers to the woman who has abandoned prostitution and become a traditional honest and good woman. Linda's translation of "a lady of virtue" is quite authentic and loyal to the original text.

E.g.4那么日后踏雪访梅，再谈不迟。

Ah, then we shall exchange poetic thoughts some other day.

“踏雪访梅” extracted from Night Vessel, written by Zhang Dai of Ming Dynasty. Originally, it's used to refer to describe the enjoyment with the beautiful scenery and the pursuit for wonderful poems of the ancient poets. In Farewell My Concubine, Mr Yuan invites Xiaolou and Dieyi to his house to have some wine and chat about certain details of the opera. The latter example is also full of cultural terms, which is said by Nakun when he tries to encourage Dieyi to talk with Xiaolou hurriedly and actively. In both examples, Linda deals with the cultural elements skillfully and flexibly.

E.g.4这武二郎碰上西门庆，不打，不打能成吗？

You know the old story about Pan Jinlian's husband meeting the man who screwed her? Did he have any choice but to fight?

It's an old story about Pan Jinlian and his husband in ancient China. When performing translation, a translator needs to place the specific written text under some relative social and cultural backgrounds. This is useful and meaningful for a better and comprehensive expression of the original meaning. The story of “武二郎”“西门庆” is typically traditional Chinese cultural element, the translated text can't be formed without relative culture knowledge. For some literary allusion, stating its general meaning to offer a general idea is very helpful for the audience to grasp the central meaning.

E.g.5这妞够厉害的呀！

What a dragon lady!

Different cultures have different cultural prototypes. Dragon is a propitious symbol in China. As a Chinese totem, all Chinese people see themselves as the grandsons of the dragons. It's a positive and lucky symbol for Chinese people. However, because of the cultural differences, the "dragon" in Western countries means more evil than good. Its fierceness and grisly outlooks make people feel uncomfortable. Thus, "a dragon lady" here, on the one hand, can show Ju Xian's courage for true love; on the other hand, the image of "dragon" can clearly show to the foreign audiences that Ju Xian is at the bottom of the society and she is despised by the social group. Linda's choice of "dragon" clearly shows her comprehensive consideration for the complicated circumstance then.

E.g.6关师父：各位爷，多捧场了啊!

Master Guan: Ladies and gentlemen, enjoy the show!

“各位爷” is a conventional Chinese way to address the male spectators with respect. However, in English, there is no such a counterpart. Therefore, the translator substitutes it with "Ladies and gentlemen", a conventional way to address the audience of a performance in English. “多捧场了啊” is also conventional in indicating the beginning of a show and literally means "support our show". However, the English convention has it as "enjoy the show." The translator thus conforms to target conventions to avoid deviation from audience's "expectancy norms" which are established by the native text in the receiver target of the translation, by their expectations of what a target language should be like.

E.g.7小石头：嗬，够横的你。

Shitou: You are really something.

“横” in Beijing dialect means harsh and unreasonable, "Be (quite or really) something" is an informal expression referring to a person or a thing is of consequence. In the above example, the replacement of “横” by "be really something" shows that Shitou is impressed by Douzi's arrogance and reveals Shitou's generous nature. Although his kindness to offer a sleep place to Douzi is unappreciated, Shitou does not say something harsh. If it is translated into "You're unreasonable", it would be too straightforward.

2.3.2.3 Generalization

Generalization is defined as the type of modulation in which the dissimilarity between source text and target text transemes is characterized by a shift towards greater generality in target text; as such it contrasts with the opposite phenomenon of specification. Generalization is acceptable if target text has no suitable alternative, or if the omited detail may be gleaned from the target text context or is just not important.

E.g.1不罚，不罚你永远是下三滥。

还想成角？做梦。

And if I don't punish you, you'll always be third-rate.

You want to be a great actor? Dream on!

“下三滥” is a traditional Chinese expression that describes some impuissant and footling people in the lower class status in China. To avoid misunderstanding of it, Linda just translates it as "the third rate", simply and concisely. As for “角”, it's a technical term specially used in dramatic performance referring to leading roles in dramas. But “成角” here means becoming a famous actor or actress. Linda's translation retains the most important and essential meaning.

E.g.2依我看，只要是唱西皮二黄，它就是京戏。

I say if it uses the traditional forms, then it’s the Beijing Opera.

"Xipi Erhuang" is a professional term in drama. "Xipi" and "Erhuang" refer to two different vocal cavities respectively. Xipi originated from Qin opera. Its singing is lively and high pitched, generally being used to express cheerful and excited feelings. Erhuang comes from Anhui. The tone of Erhuang is more stable and serious. In the development of drama, Xipi and Erhuang went through a process of slow integration. If the translator transliterates the tones of "Xipi" and "Erhuang" respectively in the subtitles, on the one hand, the audience without the knowledge of Peking Opera can not understand it completely; on the other hand, the subtitles have space limitations, and the letter translation should not be too long. Here, Linda generally translates it as "the traditional forms" to give the audience an abstract understanding.

E.g.3反正这两杯子也沾上了四旧了

Anyway, jade cups were part of the old society

With abundant political background, on August 8th, 1966, as the film mentioned “in the era of Communist revolution, the on-going Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution will be a revolution that reconstructs people’s mind”. "四旧" as a derogatory word, refers to the collective name and general designation of old ideas, including old culture, old customs and old habits. For a time, streets, factories, communes, time-honored stores and schools were changed into revolutionary names such as "Anti-road Construction", "Dongfeng Store" and "Red Guard War School" , destroying the authority of "bourgeois reactionary academic authorities" such as scholars, writers, artists and scientists. Violence became commonly seen in the streets. Instead of illustrating what is “四旧”, Linda chose “old society” to generally express the real social situation at that time, almost everything should be put out the label of “old, bad” to be accused and criticized.

E.g.4尘世中，男子阳污，女子阴秽

There is foulness in both men and women.

This sentence comes from the mouth of Mr Yuan, a drama addict. The word "尘世" is unique to Chinese. It is used by Buddhists or Taoists to refer to the world, with a deep religious color. However, the main religious belief in western countries is Christianity, and "尘世" has no corresponding word in English. In this sentence, Linda translated the sentence into existential sentence, which is a good way to generalize the meaning of the word. In fact, this sentence means that in the eyes of people who believe in Buddhism or Taoism, men and women on earth are all dirty. If the translator rigidly corresponds "阳污" to "man" and "阴秽" to "woman", the translation will only overlap meaning, resulting the translation not authentic.

E.g.5来给师哥勾勾脸

Will you give me a hand with my make up?

The facial makeup in Peking Opera is a special makeup method. The traditional facial makeup mainly refers to clean facial painting. "勾脸" is one of its painting techniques. In order to let the audience clearly understand the meaning of dialogue, it is literally and generally translated as "make up".

2.3.2.4 Specification

Specification is distinguished from the other type, generalization, in that here the shift which occurs between source text and target text in the direction of a higher level of explicitness. In other words, a shift towards greater specification will produce a transeme the meaning of which is made more precisely, by either the addition of extra words or the use of words with a less general meaning.

E.g.1别介，都是下九流谁嫌弃谁啊

Don’t be foolish. Prostitutes and actors are equally despised by society.

The mother (prostitute) of the little boy (Cheng Dieyi) took him to the troupe and hoped that the master would accept him. After seeing the little boy's sixth finger, the master said he had no gift to sing. So the mother knelt down (sexually) and hinted that the master would benefit as long as he accepted the disciple. So the master said this sentence. There is a saying of "三教九流" in ancient China. The three religions here refer to Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism. The nine religions are divided into upper, middle and lower levels. The translator does not directly translate the "inferior" but translates the contents of the reference, which not only makes the meaning more thorough, but also does not increase the viewing obstacles of the audience.

E.g.2小爷我今儿练的是九转金炉的火丹功。

I have been practicing Kungfu to keep myself warm.

When dealing with those terms with strong cultural meanings, it's proper and wise to conclude some specific tiny terms into a general broader concept. As a result, the translator can save efforts; the audiences can get the general meaning without being entangled in those unimportant tiny details. Kungfu in the translated text, though fails to express the original Taoist cultural meanings, it really saves much screen space and viewing time, thus, it's easier for foreign audiences to understand.

2.3.2.5 Omission

Being opposed to "addition", omission means that some words in the original text do not need to be translated, because although there are no specific words in the translation, potential meaning has been shown. In other words, omission is to delete some unnecessary words, or words that are cumbersome or contrary to the language habits of the translation. But omission does not delete any ideological content of the original text.

E.g.1各位爷都站好甭动。真钱买真货。我小石头今儿个玩儿真的,让爷儿们都开开眼。

I'll give you something to look at.

This scene describes Little Stone and his partners was performing in the street to earn money, but no one gives a reward. In order to attract the audience, Little Stone decided to perform a wonderful show. He decided to hit his head with a brick, so he said the above lines. Because the morpheme of the actor is fast, the picture switches to that he hits his head with a brick as soon as the voice falls, so the translator uses a short sentence to express it. This not only does not affect the audience's viewing of the wonderful picture, but also completely expresses the semantics.

E.g.2他这一亮相,那台底下听戏的人不都吓跑了。

He would scare off the audience

This line is what Master Guan said to Little Bean's mother when he found an extra finger on Little Bean's right hand. While speaking this line, Master Guan stretched out his right hand and made an appearance of being on the stage. Therefore, if the translation of "his appearance" is omitted, this meaningless information vocabulary can be deleted naturally, which does not affect the audience's understanding of the plot at that time, also does not deviate from the meaning of the original lines, and will not cause the audience's confusion. It is a good way to accurately convey the information and let the audience understand the content of the film.

E.g.3陈:唉，袁四爷今儿个来看戏

段:没见我盖着唢呐唱吗？把血都挣出来了

Chen: So, Master Yuan has come to see us tonight.

Duan: I know. I sang so loudly I drowned out the horns.

“今儿个” is a typical time indicator in Beijing dialect. It usually refers to "today". In view of the context, it can also be translated as "tonight". In translating Duan's response, the translator tries to relay its meaning than to represent its form. She omits “把血都挣出来了”，also a typical dialectal expression, which literally means "drive the blood out" and "do very hard" in the real sense. "I sang so loudly" is added to facilitate understanding. The translator also makes efforts to find the most understandable way from the target culture.

Conclusion

3.1 The Conclusion

In terms of translator, translator needs to be super proficient in Chinese and English. In terms of translation strategies, domestication and foreignization are unity of opposites and complement each other, so there is no absolute and pure domestication and foreignization. The translator, the recreator of dialogues in the process of translation, should choose the most appropriate translation strategy to reconstruct the meaning of the original text. In terms of translation methods, when translating the culture-loaded words, Linda Jaivin mainly adopted literal translation, free translation, specification, generalization and omission to nearly successfully preserve and convey the essence in Beijing dialect and Beijing Opera in China.

3.2 Advice

Due to the cultural differences behind translation, some films cannot achieve the same effect abroad as at home. It is true that the two important purposes of subtitle translation are to provide the audience with plot information and to convey the cultural connotation contained in the film. Plot information is the premise of cultural connotation. If the audience of target language cannot understand the plot, it is difficult to achieve cultural communication. Therefore, in the face of handling with culture-loaded words in subtitles, the translator should focus on the purpose of information, put letting the audience understand the film content above everything else, and then give consideration to the cultural purpose.(Xu 2014:11)

The subtitle translation in Farewell my concubine mainly adopts the domestication strategy rather than foreignization. Truly speaking, foreignization can retain the cultural characteristics of the original language in translation, making the readers of the target language feel the exotic customs and the unique charm of the source culture. Foreignization could be taken as a means of resistance to the cultural colonial policy of the strong culture, break its "domestication" and strive for winning a place for the weak culture in the forest of global culture. Therefore, there is still a long way for Chinese translators to spread Chinese culture to the countries abroad.

References

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Du Aqing杜阿晴.目的论视角下电影字幕中文化负载词的翻译——以电影《霸王别姬》《风月》为例Translation of Culture-loaded Words in Film Subtitles From the Perspective of Skopos Theory -- Taking the Films Farewell My Concubine and Temptress Moon As Examples[J].福建教育学院学报Journal of Fujian Institute of Education,2013,14(04):94-97.

Hu Zhihui胡智慧.从归化的角度看电影《霸王别姬》的字幕翻译Subtitle Translation of Farewell My Concubine From the Perspective of Domestication[J].海外英语Overseas English,2018(09):99-100.

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Xiao Xiang. The Transmission of Peking Opera Culture in the English Subtitle Translation of Farewell, My Concubine[J]. Frontiers in Educational Research, 2020, 3.0(13.0)

Xu Min徐敏. 电影《霸王别姬》的汉英影视字幕翻译评析On the C-E Subtitle Translation of the Film Farewell My Concubine[D].浙江工商大学Zhejiang Gongshang University,2014.

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Zhang Kaijuan张凯娟. 电影字幕翻译中的语域对等研究 A Study on Register Equivalence in Film Subtitle Translation[D].西南大学Southwest University,2019.

장샤오솽 and choi donghyuk. Comparative Analysis on Clothing Expression of Peking Opera in China by Era - Focused on Farewell My Concubine[J]. Journal of Korea Society of Color Studies, 2017, 31(1) : 75-82.