On the translation of puns Cover Image

Enjeux de la traduction des jeux de mots
On the translation of puns

Author(s): Georgiana Burbea
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies
Published by: Editura Universitatii Transilvania din Brasov
Keywords: translation; wordplay; untranslatability; newspaper headline; advertisments

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this article is to analyse the possibilities of translating wordplays which most of the time represent a challenge for translators, even the most experienced. In fact, because of their structural ambiguity, the transfer of these language phenomena from one language to another may prove more difficult that one might think. This paper is based on French example of wordplay extracted from newspaper titles, more specifically the newspaper “Le Canard enchaîné”, and from advertisements. The wordplay examples are attentively analysed in order to determine whether they can be handled by the translator.

  • Issue Year: 2015
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 9-14
  • Page Count: 6
  • Language: French