Genre Classification of Translation

Literary works are known to fall into a number of genres thus another type of classification of translations will be genre classification. Translators of prose, poetry, plays have their own problems. Each of these forms of literary activities comprises a number of subgenres and the translator may specialize in one or some of them in accordance with his talents and experience. The translator of a belles-lettres text is expected to make a careful study of the literary trend the ST belongs to, the other works of the same author, the peculiarities of his style, manner, etc. This involves both linguistic considerations and skill in literary criticism. A good literary translator must be a versatile scholar and a talent writer or poet.

A number of subdivisions can be also suggested for informative translations, though the principles of classification here are somewhat different. Here we may single out translation of scientific and technical texts, of newspaper materials, official papers and some other types of texts such as public speeches, advertisements, etc.

In technical translation the main goal is to identify the situation described in the original. The predominance of the referential function is a great challenge to the translator who must have a very good command of the technical terms and a sufficient understanding of the subject matter to be able give an adequate description of the situation even if it is not highly achieved in the original. The technical translator should also observe the stylistic requirements of scientific and technical materials to make the text acceptable to the specialist.

Some types of texts can be identified not so much by their positive distinctive features as by their different functional characteristics in two languages. English newspaper reports differ greatly from their Ukrainian counterparts due to the frequent use of the colloquial, slang and vulgar elements, various paraphrases, eye-catching headlines, etc. When the translator finds in the newspaper text a headline “Minister bares his teeth on…” which means that this minister has taken a resolute stand on the matter, he will rather use a less expressive way of putting it to avoid infringement upon the accepted norm of the Ukrainian newspaper style.

Apart from technical and newspaper materials it may be necessary to single out translation of official diplomatic papers as a separate type of informative translation. These are very important documents every word of which must be carefully chosen as a matter of principle. That makes the translator very particular about every little meaningful element of the ST which he scrupulously reproduces in translation. Such a scrupulous imitation of the original results sometimes in the translator more readily erring, mistaking in literality than risking to leave out even an insignificant element of the original contexts.

Journalistic (or publisistic texts dealing with social or political matters are sometimes singled out among other informative materials because they may feature elements more commonly used in literary texts (stylistic devices) which can not but influence the translator’s strategy.

There are also some minor groups of texts that can be considered separately because of the specific problems their translation poses to the translator. They are commercial advertisement comic scripts, film scripts, and the like. In dealing with commercial advertisements he must bear in mind that their sole purpose is to win over the prospective customers. Translating the captions in a comic strip, the translator will have to consider the numerous allusions to the facts well-known to the regular readers of comics but less familiar to the Ukrainian readers. In dubbing a film the translator is limited in his choice of variants by the necessity to fit the pronunciation of the translated words to the movements of the actor’s lips. The development of pop culture testifies to the role of translation as one of the most effective means of cultural interchange. One of the reasons movie studios make so many action pictures is that they do well overseas. There are no translation problems when Bruce Willis is firing or fighting someone.

Comedies and dramas are a different story. Comedy, in particular, frequently hangs on the thinnest of cultural threads. But when a comic film takes off, the distributors will do everything possible to push it overseas. Take, for instance, "There's Something About Mary," one of the biggest and silliest movies of the year. To foreign audiences, the title was mystifying. So 20th Century Fox renamed the movie country by country. In Poland, blonde jokes are popular, so the title became, "For the Love of a Blonde. " In France, it was, "Mary at All Costs.";

Scot Neeson, the executive in charge of foreign distribution at Fox, said Asians prefer literal titles. So in Thailand it became, "My True Love Will Stand All Outrageous Events."; In Hong Kong it was called, "Enjoy Yourself in the Game of Love. ";

That's poetic by the standards of Hong Kong, where the demand for literal descriptions has produced some jarring results. The Cantonese title for "Leaving Las Vegas"; translates to "I'm Drunk and You're a Prostitute.";

Occasionally, the Chinese seem to find unintended meanings in American movies. "Interview With the Vampire,"; for instance, became, "So, You Are a Lawyer.";

But there's no arguing with the Chinese take on "Babe";: "The Happy Dumpling-To-Be Who Talks and Solves Agricultural Problems." Or "My Best Friend's Wedding": "Help! My Pretend Boyfriend Is Gay.";