2013, Vol.14, No.2

The Journal of Translation Studies 2023 KCI Impact Factor : 1.49

pISSN : 1229-795X
https://journal.kci.go.kr/kats

This study examines the case study method in translation studies in terms of the ways in which the method may be used to enhance our understanding of the complex inner workings of translation. Although case studies of translations and translators, as well as source texts and translation events, are fairly prevalent in translation studies, this method remains an under-researched topic within the discipline. Case studies are often praised for their ability to provide detailed and in-depth knowledge of cases but criticised for their inability to generalize research findings. This paper starts out by exploring the concept of “empirical” in the context of translation research and the status and role of the case studies method as a subtype of empirical research method (cf. Williams and Chesterman 2002). Although “empiricism” in translation studies has often been approached narrowly in positivist terms, researchers are increasingly taking diverse opinions regarding the nature of empirical data and method. Based on this perspective, the study argues that the value of the case study method lies in tracking complex processes and linking complicated causes and outcomes. Case studies plays a key role in providing a detailed understanding of causal mechanisms in translation events and showing the complicated ways in which translation- related concepts and theories are sensitive to contexts.

Translators do not take neutral position in translating foreign language news because they are embedded in the ‘public narratives’ held by the society or the country which they belong to. Public narratives surrounding political or military confrontations could be extremely varied depending on the positions they take. The Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement is a pertinent example of a negotiation between two parties who are divided over terms and conditions of the contract in pursuing their future economic interest. The examination of Korea-U.S. FTA news translations in this paper reveals how the news texts are adopted and manipulated in accordance with public narratives of Korean society. Adopting ‘localization’ to explain various strategies used in news translation is relatively new methodology. The prerequisite required here is that news is commercial product of media companies. Compared with ‘domestication’ and ‘trans-editing’, localization puts more weight on distribution and accommodation. Foreign news pertinently adopted and manipulated in accordance with the public narratives of target society would have better chance to be broadly consumed.

Translation is not an innocent and transparent process taking place between two parties with equal power and common interests. In most cases, there are ideological gap, conflict of interests, and differences in value system. Because narratives are the best means to understand and make sense of the social world around us, by reframing narratives in the text, translators adjust the ideological gap or differences in values and interests in translation. Drawing on the narrative and framing theories proposed by social scientists, this paper sets out to explore how narratives are reframed in translation process. For the analysis of texts, 34 sets of CNN news articles and their Korean translation on the issue of “Arab Spring”, the revolutionary movements which have swept across the Arab world since the start of 2011, are chosen. It is an ideologically charged topic where American diplomatic and political interests are quite different from those of other nations around the world including Korea. Conservative Arab policy centered around the American interests, close diplomatic ties with Israel and autocratic Arab nations such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and importance of oil reserves in this region put the US in quite a difficult situation when pro-American autocratic leaders such as Mubarak and Gaddafi were ousted by the civil revolution. Thus, it was assumed that the narratives in the source text would be changed in the target text through reframing. The analysis found three new frames appeared in the target text: “dictators”, “bloody crackdown”, and “pro-democracy movement.” In the source text, the original frames were “longtime Arab leaders”, “clash between the police and protestors”, and “uprising.” By adding a new frame or replacing an existing frame with a new one, translators “suppress, accentuate, or elaborate particular aspects in a narrative encoded in the source text”(Baker 2006: 114). The main narrative in the source text was “Arab people protested against their longtime rulers. There was a clash between riot police and protesters.” Through reframing of narratives, it was changed into “Arab people staged pro-democratic movements against dictators. Bloody crackdown of riot police on protestors triggered more violence.” This kind of narrative changes in translation are reflecting the different interests and perspective between the two countries and constructing different perspectives for people.