An Account of the Subtitling of Offensive and Taboo Language in Tarantino’s Screenplays

José Javier Ávila Cabrera

doi:10.30827/sendebar.v26i0.2501

Authors

José Javier Ávila Cabrera Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30827/sendebar.v26i0.2501

Keywords:

Offensive and taboo language, Descriptive Translation Studies, interlingual subtitling, technical constraints, (ideological) manipulation

Abstract

Offensive and taboo language presents a challenge for subtitlers, given the impact that it can have on an audience, particularly in its written form (Díaz Cintas 2001b). The present paper contains a descriptive analysis of the subtitling of offensive and taboo language, mainly from English into Spanish, from a translational, linguistic and technical point of view. Based on three of Quentin Tarantino’s films – Reservoir Dogs (1992), Pulp Fiction (1994) and Inglourious Basterds (2009) –, particular attention is paid to the way in which these terms and expressions were subtitled for the benefit of a Spanish audience. By using a multi-strategy design in which mostly quantitative and some qualitative data are combined, the main goal of the paper is to look into the way this type of language was subtitled in these films, thereby enabling other scholars to use this same methodology when undertaking research on similar projects, in the same or in different language combinations.

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Author Biography

José Javier Ávila Cabrera, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED)

El Dr. José Javier Ávila-Cabrera trabaja en la Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED) como profesor asociado del Dpto. de Filologías Extranjeras y sus Lingüísticas dentro del área de lengua inglesa, aprendizaje de lenguas con apoyo tecnológico, y traducción y accesibilidad audiovisual. Tiene un doctorado en Filología Inglesa por la UNED, habiéndose especializado en el área de la subtitulación del lenguaje ofensivo y tabú. Dentro de sus líneas de investigación están la traducción audiovisual y el aprendizaje de lenguas extranjeras por medio de las TIC (ELAO y ALDM). Ha publicado en revistas como EPOS, RAEL, ESP Today y editoriales como Peter Lang.

References

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Filmography

Inglourious Basterds. (2009). Tarantino, Quentin. Universal Pictures, The Weinstein Company, A Band Apart, Zehnte Babelsberg, and Visiona Romantica. USA and Germany.

Pulp Fiction. (1994). Tarantino, Quentin. A Band Apart, Jersey Films, and Miramax Films. USA.

Reservoir Dogs. (1992). Tarantino, Quentin. Live Entertainment and Dog Eat Dog Productions Inc. USA.