On Subtitles Translation Of The Sitcom Friends From The Perspective Of Functional Equivalence

TV is a major cultural means of human communication nowadays. More and more Chinese are starting to show great interest in foreign movies and TV shows. Recent years have seen the rise of American TV series and it is a fashion to watch American shows in China. Along with the rising demand of people for TV products, subtitles translation of American shows is gaining importance. Consequently, the research on subtitles translation is starting to attract some attention. Subtitles translation of film and TV shows has become a new branch of translation practice which is indispensable. However, it seems paradoxical that the attention paid to subtitles translation is still far from enough, and no mature translation theories have been formed on subtitles translation in China. There are only some scattered papers on this issue.Fortunately, many other well-known scholars have gained rich experiences in translation practice. They suggest many valuable theories. Among them, Nida's theory of functional equivalence is applicable in subtitles translation. The thesis discusses the possibility and necessity of the application of functional equivalence theory in subtitles translation of the sitcom Friends. According to Nida, what is important in functional equivalence is the extent to which receptors of the target text correctly understand and appreciate the translated text compared to the receptors of the original text, which is considered as the highest criterion of translation. That is, the two kinds of audiences should have functional equivalent response in watching TV sitcoms.The thesis then focuses on how to realize functional equivalence of subtitles translation of Friends, what specific translation strategies should be used and how to deal with cultural information. It sets examples and discusses the translation of humors, culture-specific words, swearwords and taboo words and wordplay, and proposes foreignization and domestication as two methods as far as cultural information is concerned. If foreignization can retain both the original message and cultural flavor, it is a good choice. If the target audience have trouble in understanding the foreignizing translation, then domestication is a better choice. A conclusion is made that no matter what strategies or methods is adopted, the major task for a subtitles translator is to make the target audience understand the show and get a similar response compared to the audience in the source language.In the end, the author points out that Nida's functional equivalence can provide a new approach and enlightenment in subtitling translation as well as solutions to many questions. However, functional equivalence is not always applicable in subtitles translation as in some cases it is very difficult to achieve functional equivalence. What's more, the comparability of responses of audiences of source language and target language is limited in the receptor-oriented functional equivalence. Therefore, what matters most in subtitles translation is whether translators can understand what the social and cultural impact is on the original audience. At the same time, they have to acquaint themselves with the emotions and habits of the target audience so as to render a good subtitle.