Is translating poems for children a child’s play? A linguistic analysis of the English translations of “Lokomotywa” by Julian Tuwim
Laura Saks
University of WarsawLaura Saks is an MA student in the Faculty of Applied Linguistics at Warsaw University; she is a member of the student research group “BAJT KN”. In 2019 she participated in the pro-seminar in Saarbrucken entitled “Text und Fachtext in Theorie und Praxis”. Her research interests focus on the translation of “untranslatable” poetry in theory and practice.
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3105-2458
Abstract
The aim of the present article is to demonstrate the challenges connected with the translation of children’s poetry, and to offer a qualitative analysis of different translation strategies employed in two English translations of the Polish poem for children “Lokomotywa” by Julian Tuwim. The translation analysis is based on the translation strategies proposed by Lawrence Venuti and Peter Newmark. It focuses on the linguistic and cultural differences between Polish and English, and examines the choices of the translation strategies made by the translators, and the impact they may have had on the reception of the poem in the target language. The comparison shows that although there may be some limitations in terms of the target language and culture, the translators are able to find suitable and effective solutions and simultaneously convey the source text’s form and content. The conclusions placed at the end of the paper summarise the features of both translations and emphasise those strategies applied by the translators which are effective and thanks to which the translations are likely to live up to children’s expectations.
Keywords:
poetry translation, translation strategies, translator, poetry, comparative analysis, source text, target text.References
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University of Warsaw
Laura Saks is an MA student in the Faculty of Applied Linguistics at Warsaw University; she is a member of the student research group “BAJT KN”. In 2019 she participated in the pro-seminar in Saarbrucken entitled “Text und Fachtext in Theorie und Praxis”. Her research interests focus on the translation of “untranslatable” poetry in theory and practice.
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3105-2458
