An Annotated Subtitling of the Sitcom ‘Yes, Prime Minister’

Abstract

In the realm of Arab television, subtitling is considered an important mode of audiovisual translation due to its usage in foreign TV shows of all kinds from action and drama to sitcoms. Additionally, subtitled works are important for other reasons such as language learning and serving the needs of the deaf and hard-of-hearing people. The research aims to analyze the challenges encountered in the audiovisual translation process faced in subtitling the British sitcom " Yes, Prime Minister" into Arabic. Besides, the study identifies the strategies, procedures, techniques, and methods used in transferring the humorous elements and cultural references to the Arab audience. Moreover, it provides a commentary on how the different aspects (lexical, phraseological …etc) of the sample were translated from the Source language text to their equivalence in the Target language through Annotation and classification and suggested equivalence in each case and through. examining if some of the humorous elements were preserved in the target language. Furthermore, this study endeavor seeks to contribute to the field of translation studies by highlighting the complexities involved in bridging the linguistic and cultural gaps between the source and target languages. The research further points out the creative and adaptive approaches utilized by translators to address the challenges posed by humor and cultural references, which facilitates effective cross-cultural communication and audience engagement

تعد السترجة في التلفزة العربية نموذج هام في مجال الترجمة السمعي البصري، بحيث يستعمل في سترجه البرامج الأجنبية إلى العربية مثل قنوات "إم بي سي"، وغيرها من الاستعمالات لأسباب عدة ك توظيف السترجة في تعلم اللغات وتلبية حاجات الأشخاص الذين يعانون من فقدان أو ضعف في السمع. يهدف البحث العلمي إلى تحليل المشاكل التي وجدت في عملية الترجمة السمعي والبصري الخاصة في سترجه البرنامج البريطاني "نعم، رئيس الوزراء" إلى اللغة العربية، مع التركيز على الاستراتيجيات والإجراءات والتقينيات والطرق التي انتهجت في نقل العنصر الفكاهي والثقافي إلى المشاهد العربي، وكذلك تحديد كيف تمت عملية نقل العناصر الفكاهية والثقافية إلى ما يقابلها في اللغة الهدف من خلال التعليق على كل حالة وتصنيفها واقتراح مكافئ لها، مع دراسة مدى الحفاظ على العناصر الفكاهية المنقولة في اللغة الهدف. تطمح هذه الدراسة العلمية في المساهمة في مجال دراسات الترجمية، عن طريق ابرازالتعقيدات في عملية مليء الفراغات اللغوية والثقافية بين اللغة الأصل والهدف، بالإضافة إلى إظهار الجانب الإبداعي والتكيفي التي انتهجها المترجمون من خلال التحديات التي فرضتها الفكاهة والدلالات الثقافية التي تساهم في التواصل الثقافي والتفاعل الجماهيري.

In the realm of Arab television, subtitling is considered an important mode of audiovisual translation due to its usage in foreign TV shows of all kinds from action and drama to sitcoms. Additionally, subtitled works are important for other reasons such as language learning and serving the needs of the deaf and hard-of-hearing people. The research aims to analyze the challenges encountered in the audiovisual translation process faced in subtitling the British sitcom " Yes, Prime Minister" into Arabic. Besides, the study identifies the strategies, procedures, techniques, and methods used in transferring the humorous elements and cultural references to the Arab audience. Moreover, it provides a commentary on how the different aspects (lexical, phraseological …etc) of the sample were translated from the Source language text to their equivalence in the Target language through Annotation and classification and suggested equivalence in each case and through. examining if some of the humorous elements were preserved in the target language. Furthermore, this study endeavor seeks to contribute to the field of translation studies by highlighting the complexities involved in bridging the linguistic and cultural gaps between the source and target languages. The research further points out the creative and adaptive approaches utilized by translators to address the challenges posed by humor and cultural references, which facilitates effective cross-cultural communication and audience engagement.