『1、2、3，笑!』^_^
What do you say when you are taking photos?
This is a capture from Korean TV drama A Gentleman's Dignity （신사의 품격）（紳士的品格）
If you were a Korean, you’ll probably say “Kimchi!”（김치）(泡菜)
Japanese say “Yes, cheese” (はい、チーズ , Hai, chīzu), which is adapted from the US,
but it’s funny that the Japanese pronunciation of “cheese” actually sound more similar with 『妻子』(qīzǐ) in Putonghua than the real “cheese” in English.
How about Mainland Chinese and Taiwanese?
『茄子』（qiézǐ），which means eggplant，seems to be very common.
There are more ways to “say cheese” in Mandarin :
1.『西瓜甜不甜？』 『甜！』（tián）
2. 西瓜（xīguā）
3. 田七（tiánqī）
4. 一數到七（qī）
5. 錢（qián）
6. ……
Hong Kong?
我認識的人之中有人會說『芝士』，但感覺不大普遍。
Many of the Hong Konger just simply count 1 to 3 (or backwards).
No matter how many different way are there, they are all used to make a smiling face “automatically” by saying those words. Then how about the translation?
Undoubtedly, the Korean actress should be saying “Kimchi” in the TV drama, but the subtitle was “eggplant” in Chinese. Obviously, they are two very different things. Coincidentally, both of them are food. Culturally, they mean the same when you are taking photo. So, do you think that this is a good translation?
The translation of “qiézǐ” is a kind of domestication and cultural transfer. If you just want to know what’s going on in the drama and ignore all the sound around you, then “eggplant” is the simplest (and even the more appropriate) way. But if you want to learn Korean by matching the dialogue with the subtitles, then it can be misleading. Just imagine buying a spicy Korean dish when you actually want a purple-coloured vegetable. Therefore, in my opinion, 『茄子』(eggplant) is a better translation for reading. For a “listening translation”, I’ve seen people making remark after the translation to explain the literal meaning and the meaning in that typical scene.
A Gentleman's Dignity （신사의 품격）with English subtitles and remark of Kimchi.
신사의 품격 Cantonese version of subtitles and dub
In the Cantonese version,
配音為『笑下啦！』，難以言喻的怪異。
It was translated as “Smile!”, not only that the pronunciation doesn’t really make people smile, I wonder if anybody would say this when they are taking photo for themselves. Doesn’t it sound a little bit psychic?
Sources:
Cantonese version: http://www.56.com/u36/v_ODgyODUwNTc.html
Mandarin version: http://www.funshion.com/vplay/m-100246.e-20
English version: http://www.dramago.com/korean-drama/a-gentlemans-dignity-episode-20/2-3
No comments:
Post a Comment