PYGMALION AND THE LATEST SLANG OR TRANSLATING UNDERCOVER

• Authors: SOCOLIUC Livia-Mara
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

Translating classical texts raises the issue of rendering not only the lexical and cultural complexities of a different culture but also filling in the age gap for the modern reader no longer aware of certain social standards, connotations, etiquette etc. To what extent do we operate on a text, do we overwrite or remain faithful to the writer? The article compares two versions of the same translation of G.B.Shaw’s Pygmallion, both authored by Petru Comarnescu. The first translation was published in 1963, while Comarnescu was still alive, and is quite a remarkable one. The second translation was published in 2015, 45 years after Comarnescu’s death, with his name on the cover yet with alterations which are at times questionable, if not unprofessional. With the obvious intent of making Shaw accessible to young generations, the editors of the 2015 translation took advantage of the “all rights reserved” stipulation and reshaped it to what they deemed to be a desirable form.

Keywords

EN

updating translation; slang; preserving specificity; dialogue

• Publisher: Inter Litteras Research Centre, STEFAN CEL MARE University, Suceava, Romania; STEFAN CEL MARE Publishing House
• Journal: Concordia Discors vs Discordia Concors: Researches into Comparative Literature, Contrastive Linguistics, Cross-Cultural and Translation Strategies
• Year: 2015
• Volume: 7
• Pages: 122-132

Contributors

author

SOCOLIUC Livia-Mara

• Ştefan cel Mare University of Suceava, Romania