论文总字数：33737字

摘 要

犯罪题材美剧在美国很受追捧。21世纪以来，我国的各种业余字幕组如雨后春笋般涌现出来。有了这些字幕组成员无私的努力，中国的美剧爱好者们有机会看到各种各样配有中文字幕的犯罪题材美剧。《犯罪心理》是一部广受好评的犯罪题材美剧，于2005年9月在美国首映。这篇论文将解析人人影视字幕组所翻译的《犯罪心理》第七季全24集的中文字幕和其中采用的归化翻译的策略。作者将讨论归化策略在翻译犯罪题材美剧时的优势，以期推动专业字幕翻译工作者思考相关问题。

作者首先回顾了研究背景，并展现了关于《犯罪心理》第七季和人人影视字幕组的语料。而后，作者重点讨论缩译，增译，异化翻译和归化翻译在字幕翻译中的运用。《犯罪心理》第七季的字幕特点，科学术语，文化词语都被详细讨论，并有相关例证。从归化翻译的角度，作者细致分析了字幕工作者如何巧妙运用中国网络用语和谚语来翻译英语字幕并与之相匹配。作者希望讨论出归化翻译在翻译犯罪题材电视剧时的优势，给翻译工作者以启发。

关键词：人人影视字幕组，字幕翻译，《犯罪心理》，归化翻译

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements i

English Abstract ii

Chinese Abstract iii

Table of Contents iv

Chapter One Introduction 1

1.1 Research Background 1

1.2 Data 1

1.2.1 Criminal Minds, Season 7 1

1.2.2 YYeTs’ Subtitles 2

1.3 Research Objective and Research Questions 2

Chapter Two Literature Review 4

Chapter Three Domestication and Criminal Minds, Season 7 7

3.1 Language Features of Criminal Minds, Season 7 7

3.1.1 Scientific Terms 7

3.1.2 Cultural References 8

3.2 YYeTs’ Subtitles and Domestication 9

3.2.1 The Use of Chinese Online Slangs 9

3.2.2 The Use of Chinese Proverbs 11

Chapter Four Conclusion 15

References 16

Chapter One Introduction

1.1 Research Background

Crime drama series have remained one of the most popular television genres in the United States. Through the generous efforts of amateur subtitling groups emerging in the mid-2000s, Chinese Internet users have gained access to many subtitled versions of crime drama TV series. The warm reception of subtitled American TV series by educated Chinese Internet users is highly disproportionate to the status quo of studies on interlingual subtitling in China that remains sluggish.

1.2 Data

1.2.1 Criminal Minds, Season 7

Criminal Minds is an American crime drama TV series premiered on September 2005. Criminal Minds has blazed a trail and revolved around the thinking and behavioral analysis of felonies rather than the investigation of crime scenes and the apprehension of the perpetrators. Many crime-related TV dramas prefer insightful detectives, smart police, valiant agents and evil serious offenders with high IQ. Criminal Minds, however, has started to analyze how and why they perpetrate from their behavior and then these clues will lead to the perpetrators being arrested. Under the endeavor of eminent pioneers, the Behavior Analysis Unit of Federal Bureau of Investigation has formed a set of mature theories which help them to study crime offenders’ behaviors to pinpoint their thinking pattern which contributes to their being apprehended before their next move. Language features of Criminal Minds, Season 7 are very distinguished. As Behavior Analysis Unit of Federal Bureau of Investigation consists of agents, a writer, a lawyer and a genius who can play several roles as a chemist, a linguist, a historian and an engineer. So, their words were full of scientific terms and cultural words.

The Season 7 is co-directed by Charles Haid and Chris Long. It is starred by Thomas Gibson, Joe Mantegna, Shemar Moore, Matthew Gray Gubler, Andrea Joy Cook, Paget Brewster and Kirsten Vangsness. In September 21^st, 2011, it went on its public broadcast for the first time. Among all the seasons that have been broadcast, this season enjoyed high popularity and reaped praise for its diverse but equally thrilling plots and rich feelings of the leading roles.

1.2.2 YYeTs’ subtitles

In China, subtitling groups are mainly known for their subtitled versions of American films and TV series. The most prestigious subtitling groups in China are YTET, FRM, YYeTs and Rag Bear. YYeTs is the largest subtitling group. Its members are recruited volunteers having excellent listening skills and relatively high levels of translation competence.

YYeTs subtitles win the heart of many viewers. One prominent feature of YYeTs is that they favor domestication among common strategies. To better bring out the effects of domestication, YYeTs employs dialects, online slang, Chinese proverbs and idioms and annotations to let audience understand the foreign context to a larger degree.

1.3 Research objective and Research questions

TV plays are anchored on the daily life of people in a certain country or region, hence a glimpse of these plays can enable audience to gain knowledge of culture, history, religions, and customs of a certain country or region. American TV dramas are typical representations of this trend. Through the translation of subtitles, we know an increasing number of genuine expressions in American society. Therefore, to satisfy the needs of audience, subtitling groups have been mushrooming up. Subtitling group workers have made it easier to understand American TV plays with their excellent mastery of translation and deep understanding of American culture and society. However, given the fact that discourse in the crime-related American TV plays are punctuated with scientific terms and English slang, few people have discussed about analysis of translation of crime-related American TV plays.

Subtitle translation differs from translation and interpreting in that it is constrained by space and time. Besides, due to the absence of a unified standard in this field, many agents have been involved, including official authorities and public volunteers. The varying degree of their ability in translation have brought out a sea of works which are greeted either by praise or criticism. The methods subtitle translators have employed in their work, such as addition, deduction, reversion, foreignization, domestication and other methods have spurred an extensive discussion.

Having browsed through the literature, I have found 1,994 articles concerning Chinese subtitles. Only a few studies are crime-related. As to articles examining the translation of Criminal Minds, they have only examined the Chinese subtitles for Criminal Minds from perspectives of structuralism and skopos theory.

I intend to examine YYeTs’ subtitled versions for the 24 episodes of Criminal Minds, Season 7 and the use of the translation strategy of domestication, discuss the advantages of this strategy for translating crime drama TV series into Chinese, and give professional audiovisual translators food for thought.

Chapter Two Literature Review

Common strategies used in audiovisual translation include deduction, addition, foreignization, and domestication. Deduction is the art in short form. According to Professor Li Yunxing, many subtitle translators use deduction owing to the limited time and space of screen (Li 39). Therefore, some authorities call subtitle translation the reductive form of translation or constrained translation. In practice, deduction can be classified as three types: condensation, reductive paraphrasing and deletion. Condensation calls for the translators to translate in a concise way. Reductive paraphrasing means the translators must bring out the meaning with shorter words. Deduction is not a blind condensation of the original sentences. One operating principle is relevance. Relevant theory tells us that the cognitive structure of an individual is determined by the logic, vocabulary and encyclopedic knowledge. When it comes to the subtitle translation, it is manifested by translators’ judgment of information receivers. Just as De Linde put, reductions in subtitles is not random. Deduction is used when subtitle translators “reduce unnecessary or irrelevant information to highlight essential information during the limited cognitive activities of information receivers” (Li 39). Moreover, translators can reduce information that is hard to compensate in short intervals. He is an example in Big Bang Theory to show how deletion is used.

Amy: You have got to be kidding me.

艾米: 逗我哪!

This is a complaint of Amy about others interrupting Sheldon and her. So, apparently, her complaint is not directed at a specific person. The focus of this sentence is why she herself has encountered so much trouble. Hence, the subtitle workers delete the subject in the Chinese subtitle and translate the source sentence into a common Chinese complaint “逗我哪”, which is short and natural under this circumstances, especially if the audience take Amy’s emotions into consideration.

Addition is also common in subtitle translation. Owing to the cultural differences, some implicit information hidden in original text cannot get across the audience, which may need us to bring out the implicit meaning with addition (Gutt 195). When the hidden meanings of original subtitles cannot be appreciated by the audience if translated in a faithful way, subtitles translators may add some words, according to semantics, rhetoric devices, to bring out the full meaning or the implicit meaning in a faithful and smooth way. However, addition does not mean that we can indiscriminately add more information that is irrelevant to the semantics. Instead, the information we add is implicit or hidden in the original context and can be understood if we are equipped with more knowledge about cultural background. Although there is a limit in terms of space and time, it is necessary for translators to add more information to make the original subtitles understood by the targeted audience (Liu 52). One example is in the Episode 1 of Broke Girls, Season 3 when Caroline speaks to Han and Oleg.

Caroline: Let me turn off the lights for a more dramatic impact.

卡洛琳：让我把灯关上，给你们感受一下这房间的精彩效果。If the subtitle translators translate it into “让我关上灯，为了更精彩的效果”, the audience will be baffled about the purpose of Caroline’s move. But the translators add more words to make the Chinese sentence more complete so the audience can figure out the meaning. Therefore, addition is a useful way for the audience to get across the meaning of the source text. Foreignization, another well-received method of translation advocated by many translators, is a way which makes the audience strive to procure some ideas and perspectives to figure out the concepts presented in the original context. The linguistic term “foreignizing” translation has gained currency since Antoine Berman employed it to depict the type of translation championed by German philosopher Friedrich Schleiermacher when he wrote in his essay On the Various Methods of Translating (1813). As early as in the masterpiece Strategies of Translation, Lawrence Venuti raised the question of dividing the different strategies into domesticating strategies and foreignizing strategies. According to Shuttleworth and Cowie, foreignization is the strategy of retaining the foreignness of the information from the source text, and involves breaking the conventions of the target language on purpose to preserve its meaning (43-44). In Schleiermacher’s view, foreignization is moving the audience towards the author. It is oriented towards the source language culture. Foreignization deviates from the targeted mainstream values and preserve the original culture (Liu 52). In the foreignization, the translator will retain the original culture and the author’s meaning in the original language. One famous example is “条条大路通罗马”, which is a foreignizing translation of “All roads lead to Rome.” When the subtitle workers use foreignization, the very process of creative estrangement involved is utterly more loyal to the original, more faithful to the reader and more contributing to literature for its prolific productivity (Zhang 27).Domestication is the strategy which equips the recipients with the knowledge to understand the familiar concepts of the source. Domestication is the strategy of making text closely conform to the culture of the target language, which may involve the loss of information from the source text. According to Venuti, domestication advocated a fluent and transparent style to remove the strangeness of the original text (Venuti 305). It is more concentrated on the target language culture and advocates that subtitled translation should meet the needs of the targeted audience (Xu 36). When using domestication for translating materials, the translator will adapt the translated text to the targeted language while dismantling the cultural and linguistic barriers to appeal to the audience. Essentially, Domestication makes the subtitled text conform to the targeted culture and attach importance to the reactions of the audience (Wang 251). Domestication calls for a smooth translation which downplays the strangeness of the original context to a large degree. It is aimed at removing the hindrances between cultures and making the original context closer to the culture where the audience live, thus realizing the cultural equality (Liu 51). As domestication absorbs the essence of foreignization, it is more elegant. “Better to reign in hell than to serve in heaven” is a household saying in English world that is often translated as “宁为鸡头，无为牛后” in Chinese. This is a typical example of domestication. Therefore, subtitle workers should take into consideration the cognitive and receptivity of the target audience and strive to make the audience understand the meaning conveyed by the original text. Subtitles are meant to enable more viewers to understand. If they fail to achieve this effect, then subtitles lose their value.

Chapter Three Domestication and Criminal Minds, Season 7

Criminal Minds, Season 7 is prominent in its language expressions full of scientific terms and cultural references. Like other crime-related dramas, YYeTs used foreignization for scientific terms which broadens the vocabulary in relevant fields, like chemistry, law, forensic pathology, anthropology, or other fields in China. However, it is the use of domestication for cultural references, English proverbs or plain sentences that enthralls the Chinese audience. To make Chinese subtitles appeal to Chinese audience, the YYeTs has endeavored to use domestication to translate the English sentences into Chinese online slang or proverbs and that has harvested praise from a great number of Chinese people.

3.1 Language features of Criminal Minds, Season 7

3.1.1 Scientific terms

As a crime-related television drama, Criminal Minds covers some common professional fields like criminology, law, and ballistics like other counterparts. Criminology, law and ballistics are dominant in such television dramas. “Suspect”, “victim”, “casualties”, “defendant”, “execution”, “rifle”, “22 caliber” and words like these are often heard in crime-related television dramas. Criminal Minds, Season 7 is no exception. The leading roles are all agents from Behavior Analysis Unit of FBI determined to catch the felons with their behavior analysis of those offenders, so it is understandable that words in criminology, law and ballistics play a vital part in the Season 7 of Criminal Minds. What is noticeable about Criminal Minds, Season 7 is that this eye-catching season focuses more on predicting the next move of suspects in the nail-biting environment than on the apprehension of them. The sophistication of plots and the complexity of human nature make the hunting for perpetrators an arduous work which takes brainstorming, precise analysis, joint efforts, and technical support as well as painstaking travels. It is oriented towards the scientific analysis of suspects’ minds so it is no wonder Criminal Minds, Season 7 covers psychological terms like “post-traumatic stress disorder” and “Stockholm syndrome”. As this scientific analysis stems from the careful medical checking of the corpses of the victims and the crime scenes, Criminal Minds is also teeming with terms from forensic pathology, forensic anthropology, forensic toxicology, anatomy, chemistry and engineering. Words like “dilated pupil”, “limb”, “sulfuric acid solution”, “auditory hallucination”, “methamphetamine”, “front wing”, “hydraulic pressure” are prevailing in this season. Apart from this, Criminal Minds deals with cases throughout the country, so geographical words as “sedimentary rock” and “crater” are inevitable.

3.1.2 Cultural references

As an American drama, Criminal Minds mirrors the kaleidoscope of American judicial system and the people involved in it, -- agents, police, felons and victims. Their words, their thinking, their deeds are epitomes of the culture where they were born and live. Every footage arouses imagination and enlighten the audience. In every episode, the background settings can lead us to know a differently new facet of America--the community where the victims live, the life the victims and the bereaved live, the living environment that caused the psychopath, the way American justice departments fight against crime and protect its citizens as well as the way the masses mourn the losses. Schools, communities, hospitals, and police stations can become a hell in this crime-related drama yet it offers us a better view about how different systems are operated in the United States. For example, to make children safe, the United States set Amber Alert to ensure children’s safety against kidnappers which is quite illuminating to Chinese given the sad fact that children abduction is rampant nationwide. Besides, as America is a country of immigrants, the different holidays, conventions, and religions shown in the drama are windows through which the Chinese audience gain a keener and more comprehensive perception of different peoples in the world. Additionally, Criminal Minds quotes a renowned person at the beginning of every episode which not only matches the plots but also enlarges the knowledge storage of audience about English proverbs and can let Chinese viewers take in the quintessence of English culture. These words of great minds with incisive thinking and unique acumen, either show respect for human rights and justice or condemn crime, are rooted in the western culture and offer Chinese audience a chance to embrace the world from another perspective.

3.2 YYeTs’ subtitles and domestication

3.2.1 The use of Chinese online slang

There are several Chinese subtitled versions for Criminal Minds, Season 7. In my opinion, YYeTs’ subtitled version is the best. To make the Chinese subtitle appeal to the public, subtitle workers from YYeTs mainly employed domestication. Domestication is meant to make it easier for the audience to make out the plots. However, as the Chinese audience have different knowledge and educational backgrounds, subtitle workers of YYeTs must use some translation tactics to make the Chinese subtitles of Criminal Minds understood by the viewers. To fulfill this expectation, these subtitle workers use proverbs or online slang for varying degrees of readability. Slang is common in today’s life as it plays a pivotal role in daily discourses. Online slang is new but it gains common currency among young Chinese. To make the Chinese subtitles of Criminal Minds understood by most audience, online slang makes a regular appearance in the screens. Many of the audience is constituted by the Chinese young people. Therefore, translating the English sentences into Chinese online slang can be favorable to the publicity of this drama. As a result, a considerable number of sentences with online slang can be spotted in the screen.

Example 1 Garcia: He is a low-level gun-runner who angrily crossed paths with Doyle.加西亚：他是个菜鸟军火走私犯，跟多伊尔有过节。

Analysis: “菜鸟” is an online slang used to describe those who are new to a field and whose abilities rank at the bottom of their trade. This word fits the literal description of “low-level”. Though “low-level” can be translated as “低级”, the phrase “低级” is more likely to appear at a written article instead of the screen. “菜鸟” is the opposite as it is a catchy phrase used online and then the Internet users bring it to daily conversation and refer it to anyone. So translating “low-level” into “菜鸟” can arrest the attention of these young audience and represent the flexibility of translation.

Example 2 Strauss: Maybe adding a woman to their team improved their game. 施特劳斯：或许增加个女性成员让他们的段数升级了。

Analysis: “improved their game” was translated into “让他们的段数升级了” and this proper translation was eye-catching. “段数” was originated from the online games and it refers to the level. New and creative, this word soon sweeps the online websites and wins the hearts of young Chinese, Instead of translating “improved their game” into “提高他们的水平”, the subtitle workers use “让段数升级” to describe the improvement of the team’s tactics and this innovation has captivated many audience.

Example 3 Garcia: Look, master of all things Italian, I am having a Fellini Festival at my house this weekend. 加西亚：听着，意大利专业户，这周末我要在家搞费里尼节。

Analysis: “专业户”, which was used to refer to rural residents engaged in a certain production activities, such as bee-cultivating, and fish-farming since 1980s, has become a popular online phrase used by people to describe those who excel at something now. “意大利专业户” means that Rossi is good at many things relevant to Italy. “专业户” is a wonderful and innovative compliment compared to the platitudinous translation of “大师”. Besides, in Chinese, “大师” is equivalent to the excellent mastery of knowledge and the superior status in a certain trade, which was not manifested in source text. Hence, “专业户” is a perfect choice for praising Rossi for his cooking skills.

Example 4 Morgan: You know, Rossi, you could always give Penelope a cook lesson. 摩根：罗西，其实你可以给佩内洛普上上烹饪课。

Penelope: Oh, my gosh, that would be amazing. 佩内洛普：我的老天，那就太赞了。

Analysis: “赞” means “wonderful” or “awesome” in Chinese. At present, Chinese young people tend to click likes in their social applications like Wechat, QQ, and Microblog. The likes are translated as “赞” in Chinese. So “赞” is a catchy word in the daily conversations conducted among youngsters. The subtitle workers have translated “amazing ” into “赞”, which is a good way to cater to the Chinese audience unknowingly.

Example 5 Strauss: I thought that was for the media. 施特劳斯：我还以为那是为了上镜。

Analysis: “上镜” is a heated phrase as many Chinese fans are fond of disclosing the beautiful photos of their idols and bragging about how good their idols look in the camera. Looking good in the camera amounts to “上镜”. When Strauss sees that the women killer wears lipstick, she assumes the woman wants to look good in media coverage. Therefore, “上镜” is concise and appropriate to describe the intention of the woman wearing lipstick. As “上镜” is new in Chinese dictionary and most Chinese people do not know the corresponding expression in English, the translation of “be for the media” into “上镜” can be greeted with applause from the audience.

Example 6 Rossi：They are using the hostages as human shields. 罗西：他们用人质当肉盾。

Analysis: “肉盾” emerged in online LOL games and then has gone viral in various websites. Literally, the subtitle translators can translate “human shields” into “人盾”, however, this translation may seem a little redundant in Chinese. “肉” means flesh in English. The translation of “肉盾” can spark people’s imagination of being exposed to blood and flesh of badly mutilated human bodies, so this translation can better remind the audience of the criminals’ venomous thoughts of using hostages to shield them from gunshots.

3.2.2 The use of Chinese proverbs

Another remarkable feature of YYeTs’ subtitled version is the appropriate use of Chinese proverbs. Sometimes, the subtitle workers translate English proverbs into Chinese proverbs. But even it is just a common sentence, the brilliant translators can also use Chinese proverbs to make the English expressions seem more familiar to the Chinese audience. The use of Chinese proverbs can not only prove their excellent mastery of both English and Chinese, but also can help Chinese audience grasp the meaning of original sentences and the twisting plots. In addition, the Chinese audience can learn how to translate Chinese proverbs into English versions by watching the Criminal Minds.

Example 1 Hotchner: Who is going to make the contact? 霍奇纳：谁来联系？

——Rossi: You are staring at him. 罗西：远在天边，近在眼前。

Analysis: In this conversation, Rossi recommends himself to make the contact. “You are staring at him” is a humorous way of self-recommendation. Though the subtitle workers could translate “You are staring at him” into “就是你现在正盯着的那个人。” However, if they had translated as this, then it would fail to convey the hidden humor in the English sentence. By translating it into “远在天边，近在眼前” , translators bring out the humor and the translation is greeted with a knowing smile of the audience.

Example 2 Hotchner: Some of the best lessons are learned from past mistakes. 霍奇纳：吃一堑，长一智。

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