廣告英語作業：廣告英語中雙關語的語用功能及其翻譯
廣告英語essay：廣告英語中雙關語的語用功能及其翻譯
摘 要: 廣告英語的獨特性在于其新穎、靈活的語及其形式多樣化，除了在詞匯和句法方面別具一格外，修辭手法也被廣泛地運用來潤色廣告語言。雙關，一種集幽默與智慧于一身的語言表達形式，因其獨特的語言魅力而倍受廣告商的青睞。結合大量的實例分析，本文詳細地探討了雙關語在英文廣告中所起的作用及其分類。通過分析與歸納，作者提出了廣告雙關語翻譯的五種策略：保留、再造、補償、解釋說明以及省略不譯。譯者在翻譯過程中可以選擇一種或者多種策略以達到譯文的最佳關聯。
關鍵詞：廣告；雙關語；語用功能；翻譯
Pragmatic Function and Translation of Pun in English Advertisement
Abstract: Advertising English is characterized by its originality, flexibility of language usage and the diversity of the forms.Apart from the distinguishing features at lexical and syntactic levels, rhetorical vehicles, as decorative devices of language, are frequently employed in advertising English. Punning, a concise way to express humor and wit, is particularly favored by advertisers to enhance the appeal of language. Drawing on existing studies in the field,the author offers five strategies in the translation of puns in advertisement, i.e. preservation, creation, compensation, explication and omission.The author argues that each of the five strategies is not always applied on its own, and sometimes two or more stratrgies are jointly employed in advertisement translation in accordance with the principle of optimal relevance depending on the situation.
Key words: Advertisement ; Pun; Pragmatic Function; Translation
Introduction
The definition of advertisement by AMA(American Marketing Association): Advertising is the nonpersonal communication usually paid for and usually persuasive in nature about products, services of ideas by identified sponsors through the various media. It is a device to arouse consumers’ attention to a commodity and induce them to use it. In modern age, people find themselves surrounded by various advertisements each day. An American writer writes: “ we find advertisement of all kinds everywhere, for example, glittering neon signs on top of high buildings and a long main streets, colorful pictures painted on buses pamphlets sent to very house, advertisement jammed between TV programs various advertisement glutting, newspaper and radio broadcast; etc.” Facing so many advertisement, how to make the advertisement impressive is the main purpose of the advertisers. In order to enhance the appeal of an advertisement, advertisers pay much attention not only to such expressive devices as plates, color and the layout of a printed page, but also to the choice of words or phrases, to make an advertisement beautiful and attractive. #p#分頁標題#e#
In the practice of the advertising English, people pay more attention to pun to make the advertisement succinct, accurate and vivid and to provide rich imagination and plentiful associations for readers so as to stimulate their desire.The frequent and wide use of figures of speech is an important characteristic of advertising English, which is an effective way to make the advertisement attractive. Among the figures, pun is loved deeply. Oxford Advanced Dictionary defines pun as “humorous use of a word that has two meanings or of different words that sound the same” [1]. A pun (also known as paronomasia) can be understood like that it is a deliberate confusion of similar-sounding words of phrases for rhetorical effect, whether humorous or serious. It leaves a deep impression on readers by its readability, wit and humor. It can satisfy the requirement of advertisement characteristics—selling power, memory value, attention value, and readability. So pun is very popular in advertisement. The article just wants to present the pragmatic function and translatability of pun in advertisement.
1 Definition and classification of pun in advertisement
1. 1 Definition of pun
Looking at the same issue from different perspectives, we may often come up with different definitions of the thing under discussion. And, not surprisingly, pun can be thus defined in many ways. There is such a humorous explanation about pun: “punning – to torture one poor word ten thousand ways (John Dryden)”. In Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, pun is defined as “An amusing use of a word or phrase that has two meanings, or words with the same sound but different meanings”. According to The Oxford English Dictionary, pun is defined as “the use of word in such a way as to suggest two or more meanings or different associations, or the use of two or more words of the same or nearly the same sound with different meanings, so as to produce a humorous effect”. In Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics, pun is defined as “A figure of speech depending upon a similarity of sound and a disparity of meaning”. From the above definitions, we can see that homonyms, homophones, and homographs all are available to construct puns with.
1. 2 Types of pun in advertisement
1. 2. 1 Pun on Polysemy
“While different words may have the same of similar meaning, the same one word may have more than one meaning. This is what we call polysemy, and such a word is called polysemic word. Historically speaking, polysemy can be understood as the growth and development of or change in the meaning of words.” Pun on polysemy is used widely, especially with the name of the product such as the following examples:
“From sharp minds. Come sharp products.”
The example is an advertisement for the Sharp copier. The word “sharp” praises the consumers’ brightness, but also refers to the Sharp product. The advertisement praises the consumers who are sharp to buy the product which is sharp. The vanity of the audiences is aroused and they want to use it to show their wise, and also they believe the product is really sharp.#p#分頁標題#e#
“Money doesn’t grow on the trees. But it blossoms at our branches. Lioyd Bank.”
It is the slogan of Lioyd Bank. “branch” means “part of a tree growing out from the trunk”, but here it implies the division of bank”. The slogan encourages people to store their money in Lioyd Bank, and their money will be like the blooming flowers, yielding better fruits. After understanding its meaning, readers will figure it out in mind that their money will become more and more daily and daily, just like the leaves in spring.
1. 2. 2 Pun on Homonym
“Homonymy refers to the phenomenon that words with different meanings have the same form, i.e, different words are identical in sound or spelling, or in both. When two words are identical in sound, they are homophones. When the words are identical in spelling, they are homographs. When two words are identical in both spelling and sound, they are complete homonyms.” The follow instances will explain that:
“ ‘VIPs’ an atomical comfort.Variable Impact Pressure Sole”
The advertisement of sportshoes uses the homophonic word “VIPs”. As we know, VIP usually stands for “ very important persons”, while, here, it stands for “Variable Impact Pressure Sole”. It implies if you use VIPs, you will be a VIP. The word “VIPs’ motivates the audiences’ vanity and induces them to buy the product.
“Trust us. Over 5000 ears of experience.”
It is an advertisement for audiphone. The literal meaning is that the product has experienced a lot of texts. While “ears” and “years” are a pair of homophone. So it implies that the product has a long history and has high quality.
“Goodbuy Winter! 100% cotton knitwear $40”
It is an advertisement for the sale of winter clothes. The advertisement seems to people that it s a good and cheap to buy cotton knitwear. But when the audiences read “goodbuy winter” together, they will understand the good use of pun. “Goodbuy winter” sounds the same as “goodbye winter”. The advertisement use homophone to show two meanings: it is a good business to buy the cotton knitwear now, and winter has passed away. Naturally, people will associate the situation happening every year that when they say goodbye to winter, the clothes will have a great discount and it is good time to buy them.
“More sun and air for your sun and heir.”
The advertisement is for a bathing beach. The advertiser uses homophone skilfully, sun vs. son, and air vs. heir. The advertiser encourages people to bring their son and heir to the bathing beach to get sun and air to keep fit. Each couple hopes their son and heir will be healthy all their life. Pun makes the advertising language sound sweet, fluent and persuasive.
1. 2. 3 Pun on Parody
“Parody is a piece of speech, writing of music that imitates the style of an author, composer, etc in an amusing and often exaggerate way” [2]. Pun on parody uses the outfit of saying, apothegm, proverb or idiom to form new meanings. English has a lot of well-known phrases, idioms and sayings. They are important part of everyday language spoken by the English speakers, and have become one of the aspects of the English culture. The advertisement designers are sharp-minded and imaginative. They change a part of the expressions and put their ideas into them to achieve sensational effect. And most of them achieve a remarkable success. The transformations are not only eye catching, but also easy to be accepted by the common, who will do according to the tradition. As the sayings of idioms have been one part of the tradition, the people will be easily persuaded by the advertisement works of this kind. So pun on parody is popular in advertisement.#p#分頁標題#e#
“A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play.”
It is the slogan of Mars chocolate company. Looking at this advertisement, people will associate it with two idioms: “An apple a day keeps the doctor away” and “ All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”. From the meanings of the two idioms, the watchword tells people that a Mars’ chocolate a day will make you not be a dull boy (make you wise) and keep the doctor away (keep fit).
“Try our sweet corn, you’ll smile from ear to ear.”
It is taken from the advertisement for a kind of sweet corn. The word “ear” has double meanings: the organ of hearing and the seed –bearing part of a cereal. The idiom “ from ear to ear” also is a pun. One meaning is that people are satisfied with the product. The other one is that the consumers eat one ear by another. So the advertisement implies that the sweet corn is very delicious, and you will enjoy it and eating one by one. How can people refuse such delicious food?
“All is well that ends well.”
This is an idiom, but here, it is taken from an advertisement of a cigarette. “End”, as a verb, means “finish”, while, as a noun, means “cigarette butt”. The sentence means that if the cigarette ends are good that the cigarette is good.
1. 2. 4 Pun on Grammar
Many advertisers use pun produced for grammar problem to attract the audiences, such as ellipsis or word with different grammar functions. If this type of pun can be used properly, it will achieve unexpected effect.
“Which lager can claim to be truly German? This can.”
It is an advertisement for Lager beer. “Can” is a modal verb. But in the advertisement, a can of beer beside it reminds people “can” has another meaning—tin. Also “Lager” refers to the name of beer. With the illustration, the whole advertisement brings a humorous effect and impresses the audiences deeply. The Coca-cola company also uses “can” to do their advertisement.
“Coke refreshes you like no other can.”
Just like last example, “ can ” has double meanings, so the sentence can be understand like that Coke refreshes you like no other (can; tin, drink) can (refresh you). It implies their product is the best one. Of course, people like to buy the best one.
1. 2. 5 Pun on Illustration and Words
A lot of advertisement associates with illustrations and words to achieve better effect, especially on TV, because people are more easily attracted by pictures than words. The illustrations and words can help people to understand the advertisement fully. Pun in the advertisement must be connected with illustrations and words, so people can understand the implied meanings. For instances:
“50% OFF.”
It is a shopwindow advertisement of E-spirit exclusive shop in Shanghai from 2001 and spring festival. The illustration is a picture with six lights, three on and three off. From the illustration, people know it does not only mean a half of the lights are off, but also means the whole sale discounts 50%. The illustration and words are vivid, and attract the passers-by’ attention more easily. #p#分頁標題#e#
“Stop at two.”
It is the title of an public service advertising (PSA) which the Population and Community Development Association ( PCDA) of Thailand uses to advocate the couple to have children no more than two. The illustration is the photo of Wistern Churchill who formed a “V” letter with his forefinger and middle finger. The gesture “V” means victory. So people also can understand that it is a victory to have only one child. This picture is famous, so people will remember it easily. To achieve the success of their country, people may more like to control the population.
2 The pragmatic function of pun in advertisement
Pun has a lot of advantages such as conciseness, wit and humor, novelty and vividness. It produces a particularly rhetorical and pragmatic effect when people use the language creatively in a specified context. The proper use can make the advertisement impressive and attractive.
2. 1 Wit and humor
Pun, the game of word, produces wit and humor effect to attract the audiences’ attention and inspires their association. In the age of rapid rhythm, advertisement with pun like a spice makes people enjoy themselves in the advertising atmosphere, and reduces their pressure in a relaxed environment.
“When the wind has a bite… and you feel like a bite… then bite on a whole Nut.”
The word “bite” has several meanings: grip, food, and eat. The whole sentence means that when the strong wind hurts you and you are very hungry, just eat some Nut. After day working, people would feel tired and hungry, while the advertisement is just the situation of them. Therefore, they would be attracted to buy the product, so they will not suffer hunger after work. Also, the sentence sounds like tongue twist.
“Excellent Taste!”
It is a word in an advertisement for a whiskey product—Jamson. In the advertisement, when the hero drank the Jamson whiskey that the heroine introduced to him, he said, “Excellent Taste”. Generally speaking, “taste” means “favor”, but here, another meaning is “the ability to appreciate what is beautiful”. So the advertisement means: this kind f whiskey as good flavor; the heroine has high appreciation. The advertiser uses pun to praise both the product and the consumers who choose their product. It caters for people’ vanity and induces them to buy the product.
2. 2 Creativeness and originality
This is typical of advertising language. An advertisement has a high demand of diction every word playing an important role. If human emotions have to be inspired, the words, strong in expressing emotions, will be chosen. In advertisement, originality is king. A new way of sending message can set a brand apart from copycats and also-rans. So it is important to use something novelsuch as coinage in the advertisement to draw people’ attention. Normally, a new created word accepted by readers can enhance the freshness and attraction of the advertisement. Good advertisers use coinage to refresh the advertisement and to achieve its propagandist purpose.#p#分頁標題#e#
“Cab Fourward.”
It is an advertisement title of Ram Car produced by Doqi company. The word “fourward” sounds like “forward”. Connecting it with the picture in the advertisement, people would know why it uses ‘fourward”. Because the four doors of this kind of car could be opened from four directions. The advertiser creates the word “fourward” from “forward” to show the speciality of the car.
“Catch the Raincheetah and cheat the rain.”
It is an advertisement in Toronto Daily Star. The punny word “Raincheetah”, the name of the raincoat, sounds like “raincheater” while the word “raincheater” derives from “windcheater”. The word “cheat” in the sentence makes it wonderful and let people feel that this kind of raincoat can protect the consumers well. Pun gives people impression of novelty and interest.
2. 3 Satisfying people’s requirement of beauty
A good advertisement is a text from which people can appreciate the art of language, especially advertisement using pun. Pun in advertisement is orderly and antithetic that makes people feel the aesthetic modality of language. The characters of pun, such as vividness, wit and humor, pleasure people’s spirit and let them enjoy the beauty of language. For instance:
“Give your hair a touch of spring.”
It is an advertisement for shampoo. The word “spring” here is very vivid and like a picture in people’ mind: after using the shampoo, the long hair becomes elastic and shining. When you stand there, your hair will go with wind. Everyone likes beauty, so the advertisement caters for people’ desire and induces them to buy the product to make them more beautiful.
2. 4 Satisfying the requirement of society—Economy
With the rapid development of the society, people become busier and busier, so they require short and easy remembered advertisement to supply the message they want. But how to impress the audiences is a question. The answer is using pun. But why is pun especially favored by the advertiser? The main reasons as following:
“Firstly, advertisement is paid message, with limited space and time, so it doesn’t allow verbiage to waste the investment. Pun with double meaning has the characteristic of small carrier but plenty of connotations. So it is very economic, effective and money-saving to the advertiser. Secondly, in modern society, people pay more and more attention to effect, and get tired of the tedious advertisement. The pun in advertisement is usually formed by short sentences. Some use the name of the product as the theme of the advertisement. Some use excellent phrases to show the specialties of the product. To the audiences, it saves their time to get the information they want. Thirdly, usually, the audiences read or watch advertisement unintentionally and only can remember something unconsciously. So, to achieve expected propagandist effect, the advertisement must reduce the memory message. Pun is suitable for the requirement. The content is short, the form rhythmic, and the style novel, which are easily remembered and impressed people deeply” [3]. In a word, pun uses fewer words to express full message which is the content of Economy Principle, and it usually reaches the purpose of advertisement that is arouse consumers’ attention to a commodity and induce them to use it. For instance:#p#分頁標題#e#
“Two beer or not two beer, that’s a question. ----Shakesbeer”
Looking at the beer advertisement, people would associate it with the proverb “To be or knot to be, that’s a question” in Hamlet. Shakesbeer is the name of the beer, but it sounds like “Shakespeare” who is known nearly all over the world, so it is easy for people to remember the Shakesbeer. And the word said by Hamlet is also very famous, especially in western country. The sentence is short and the pattern is famous, so people will remember the product naturally.
“Go well, Go Shell.”
It is an advertisement for Shell Oil Company. “Well” sounds like “where”, so it implies that go to Shell company to buy oil. Only four words are used in the advertisement, but express the meaning fully and impress people deeply. Imagine that one day, when you drive your car, suddenly, the oil is run out. So you are wondering where to go, then, of course, you will remember the words “Go well, go Shell”. So you will go to Shell at once. The slogans impress the audiences deeply and persuade them to buy the product invisibly.
“Make Time For Time.”
It is an advertisement for Time magazine. The advertisement uses the pun on homonymy of the word “time” to refer two meanings: common sense of time, and the name of he magazine. The advertisement means that read Time magazine to seize time. In the society full of competition, time is important and magazines also play an important role which people have to read to broaden their view. While Time magazine will not only broaden view, but also save your time. It satisfies people’s requirement.
2. 5 Implying Warning
Some advertisements imply warming. Pun can make the warming vivid and effective so that people can pay attention to it. For instances:
“Better late than the late.”
It is a public service advertising of traffic. It derives from the proverb “Better late than never”. In the sentence, “the late” means” the dead”, and it reminds the drivers to drive slowly and carefully. The advertisement with pun here has more powerful to persuade the drivers to care their security.Another example:
“The driver is safer when the road is dry; The road is safer when the driver is dry.”
It is also an advertisement for safe driving. The excellent word is “dry” which has double meanings: without water and without drinking. It expresses if the road is dry and the driver doesn’t drink, all drivers will be safer. The antitheses and thyme of the sentence has more powerful to warm people.
2. 6 Marking product more profitable and competive
The speciality of pun is useful in advertisement, and favored by people. If a advertiser can make full use of it to satisfy people’s requirement, the product may precede others and gain the market.#p#分頁標題#e#
“A deal with us means a good deal to you.”
Here, the double meanings of “deal” are: the amount and business. The meanings of the advertisement are that: do trade with us is a good business to you; doing business with us, you will get a lot. Advertisers use pun skilful to inspire the audiences’ curiosity and attract their interest to do the deal.
“Powe to influence others.”
It is an advertisement for a Hector Powe Clothing Company. They advocate that if you wear their clothes, you will have power to influence other people. Because “Powe” is like “power”. It satisfies people’s desire of power, so they like to have a try. Thus, it will bring great profit to the Powe company. Maybe people with the clothes can’t have more power, but the company has the power to influence the market.
3 Five strategies of translation of puns in English advertisement
On the basis of previous studies on translation of puns, the author tentatively proposes five potential strategies for translation of puns in English advertisements, some of which have already been touched upon in the previous section. They include preservation, creation, compensation, explication and omission[4]. These five strategies, adopted in accordance with the principle of optimal relevance, have some advantages. First, they have already been widely employed in practice and are generalized from the previous studies, thus they have solid foundation. Secondly, they can cover most of the important methods proposed by other scholars as we can see in the analysis in the previous sections. Thirdly, these five strategies stem from a comprehensive perspective: such aspects as form, meaning and function have been taken into account. So we hope these strategies will prove to be effective in real work. It should be pointed out that each of the five strategies is not always applied on its own; sometimes two or more strategies are jointly employed in an advertisement depending on the situation. When there is more than one pun in an advertisement, different strategies can be applied to different pun depending on the situation. For instance, some can be preserved, some explicated, and some omitted. However, whatever the situation is, whatever strategies the translator should choose, depends on whether optimal relevance can be achieved, i.e. the choice has to be made in accordance with the principle of optimal relevance. In the following sections, these five strategies will be explained.
3. 1 Preservation
For those advertisements that mainly appeal to emotions, e.g. texts abundant with
rhetorical devices such as pun, the persuasive power lies in the successful conveyance of the rich meaning in these rhetorical devices. Preservation is one of the effective ways to represent the strength of the original, and it is also one of the often-employed approaches available to the translator, but it should be adopted on the condition that there is a large degree of overlap in both the source language and the target language in terms of linguistic features and the cognitive environment of the source language and the target language reader on the subject to be translated, so that by doing so it neither causes clash in the target language culture nor misleads the reader when he/she processes it and therefore the original and the translated closely resemble each other, and if possible have the same effects on the reader. Such linguistic features may be morphologic, phonetic, syntactic and semantic, etc., which still preserve(as much as possible)the communicative clues of the original,or resemblance in linguistic properties. Eg. An Apple for everybody keeps worries away.#p#分頁標題#e#
Version A: 電腦選蘋果，煩惱遠離我。
Version B: 天天有蘋果，煩惱遠離我。[5]
In this advertisement of a computer, the word “apple” has two meanings: one refers to the fruit “apple” and the other “the computer brand”. At first sight, the reader knows that the advertisement comes from the saying “An apple a day keeps a doctor away”, which is often rendered as “一日一蘋果，醫生遠離我”. Relevance Theory tells us that the translated has to resemble the original closely enough in relevant aspects. Guided by the principle of optimal relevance,we know that the translator has to ensure that the reader can recognize the intention of the advertiser to entertain the reader. Meanwhile, taking the reader’s cognitive environment into account,we know that the western saying “an apple a day is a healthy way of life” and it is familiar to the reader. So along this line of thinking, we think that in “Version A” the pun in the original advertisement is not preserved and hence the sense of humor conveyed by it gets lost; besides the expression “電腦選蘋果” sounds too direct whereas “Version B” effectively preserves the pun in the original, i.e. the two layers of meaning in the original are both conveyed. Besides, it also retains the form of the original. In terms of meaning, such implicatures in the original as“having an apple keeps one healthy”，“having an apple helps one get his work done” and “having an apple makes one efficient” can also be derived from it, therefore “Version B” is a better translation.
Eg. Coca Cola可口可樂
Pun also appears in brands，for instance, “Coca Cola”, a brand of soft drink. According to American Heritage Dictionary, “cola”originally refers to “African evergreen plants having reddish，fragrant, nutlike seeds yielding all extract that contains caffeine and theobromine”，but nowadays，it usually refers to “a carbonated soft drink containing an extract of the cola nut and other flavorings”. When it was introduced into China, the translator borrowed the name and hence a name for this new type of soft drink came into being. “可樂” in Chinese also means “something that deserves to be happy about”; therefore “可口可樂” has more than one interpretation: on the one hand, it is the name of the brand, a usage of alliteration which sounds very pleasant; on the other hand, it means “both tasty and deserves to be happy about”, referring to its superb taste and its quality of being able to bring happiness or even good luck, and this really caters to Chinese reader’s interests. What is important is that, obviously, the translator has given full consideration to both the advertiser’s intentions and the reader’s expectations, making them meet each other perfectly. So not only the original pun is successfully preserved but also new values are added. Thus, it’s an ideal translation, both its quality and function are included in the translation.#p#分頁標題#e#
3. 2 Creation
In case the cognitive environment of the target text reader differs significantly from that of the source text reader or the source text touches on some social taboos or sensitive topics, preservation of the original may cause negative response or misunderstanding, while other approaches prove to be ineffective, the translator can choose to introduce new pun in the target text. By creation, we mean the translator can introduce new pun on the subjects(related but not necessarily the same as the original)in the target text. For instance, by reproducing the pun with a standard target language pun in the target text, or by turning non-pun expression in the source text to pun expression in the target text, or zero to totally new pun expression in the target text, the translator can produce the similar contextual effects in the target text. Baker says: “One may either omit or play down a feature such as idiomaticity at the point where it occurs in the source text and introduce it elsewhere in the target text…it may be used to make up for any loss of meaning,emotional force, or stylistic effect which may not be possible to reproduce directly at a given point in the target text.” If other things being equal, sometimes by creation it is possible to achieve a lower degree of resemblance but roughly the same level of overall relevance as it can bring in adequate contextual effects if the translator’s assumptions about the cognitive environment of target language reader are accurate. Here, creating similar contextual effects acts as the criterion. Nevertheless, the created new pun should be acceptable in the cognitive environment of the reader. Eg. Better late than the late.
Version A: 遲到總比喪命好!
Version B: 晚了總比完了好! [6]
This public advertisement of “safe driving”reminds one of a well known idiom “better late than never”, whose translation is “遲做總比不做好” . In the advertisement, the first “late” means “coming or occurring after the correct, usual, or expected time; delayed” , while the phrase “the late” means “the dead, especially recently deceased” . So considering the difference in the two languages, we know that the original pun can not be preserved as the two meanings in the original can’t be kept intact in a Chinese word or phrase. This may be the reason why someone thinks that an “established translation” should be adopted instead of more relevant approaches. For instance, they would think that as there is already “an established translation” there，why not borrow its structure? Hence, “Version A” comes into being. However, in order that the translated and the original resemble closely enough in relevant aspects, the translator has to，if possible，retain the linguistic features in the original. In Chinese, we know that “late” can be rendered as “晚了”, its close match in sound being “完了”，which literally means “over or finished" , so put together,they can make up a new pun．In “Version B”, we can see that the two words “晚了/完了” (/wǎn/and/wán/)sound almost the same, therefore, it is a new pun that better conveys the features of the original. Besides, considering the reader’s cognitive environment, we know that this translation also makes perfect sense. It warns people of the danger of fast or unsafe driving: it is better to be late than killed in a traffic accident. So the reader can get adequate contextual effects without spending his/her unnecessary processing effort，and optimal relevance is achieved.#p#分頁標題#e#
3. 3 Compensation
By compensation, we mean that the translator can make up for the loss of meaning, emotional force, or stylistic effect by using some other devices in the target text. For instance,by introducing a rhymed non-pun in the target text, the loss of punning can be compensated to a certain degree. Besides, using different modes of representation(e.g. replacing words with pictures)also provides a translator with possible means to realize the function of persuasion in the target text. However, this must be on the condition that these new devices should be equally relevant to the target text reader,namely, it can produce enough positive contextual effects without expending his/her gratuitous processing effort. Eg. More Time for Time.
Version A: 想要爭取時間就要閱讀時代雜志。
Version B: 想要爭取時間嗎?閱讀時代雜志吧! [7]
In this advertisement for Time magazine, the word “Time” has two meanings: the first refers to “the period at one’s disposal” and the second “the name of the magazine” . Since in Chinese there is no similar word that can express the double meaning in the original, the original pun can’t be preserved. So in case the linguistic features in the original can’t be preserved, we can compensate for the loss through other devices. In this example, we can adopt the rhetorical question like the one in Version B. In this way,the translator can raise the reader’s attention while at the same time avoid “following the beaten track”. Generally, a question is attention-grabbing as it “compels” the reader to think more about the subject in question，for instance, “why it is so?”. A rhetorical question sounds like that the advertiser is offering help to the reader, and therefore the latter is more likely to be well received. In addition, in a rhetorical question, the question-answer pattern often implies that the “answer” is true，as in this advertisement it is suggestive of such assumptions as “reading Time really helps you save your time”, and naturally it appeals to the reader. Therefore, compared with “Version A”, which is a declarative sentence, better result can be achieved through compensation in “Version B” . Eg. OIC. Translation: 哇，我看見了!
In this advertisement of glasses, the three letters “OIC” resemble the shape of the glasses, and they read very much like an exclamation“oh, I see”. So the advertisement relies on both the visual device and sound effect to attract the reader’s attention. The pronunciation vividly represents a picture of a near-sighted reader who is so happy when he/she can see clearly what is written in the book with the glasses, and hence the exclamation. This seems to be a somewhat extreme case，as it is rare among the thousands of advertisements. Due to differences in language, it is very difficult for the translator to retain both audio and visual effects.In terms of pronunciation, he/she can easily reproduce the effect of “OIC” by “哇,我看見了!” , while in other cases, he/she has to resort to other media, for instance, the picture, so that the visual effect of the pun can be effectively compensated.#p#分頁標題#e#
3. 4 Explication
On some occasions, the underlying meaning in the original is made explicit on some grounds, for instance, grammatical or cultural, i.e. either grammatically or culturally it is not feasible for the translator to “transfer” the original linguistic features. In this case, due to the difference in linguistic devices and the cultural context, the translator has to use this strategy to supply the contextual assumptions for the reader. Furthermore, in order for the ease of comprehension for the reader, i.e. to aid the comprehension by reducing the level of difficulty involved in decoding, and hence less processing effort, the translator may deliberately choose to make the translated more explicit than the original, for instance, spelling out the underlying meaning of the pun or adding some more information that is not present but implicated in the original, so that some of the assumptions are made more manifest to the reader. Among the ways to achieve explication, two that readily come to the translator’s mind are free translation and paraphrase, through which the main idea the original contains can be conveyed to the reader. Eg. I’m More satisfied. Translation:摩爾香煙,我更滿意。In this advertisement for More cigarettes, the word “More” has two interpretations: one is “additional number or amount” and the other is the cigarette brand “More” . In Chinese, “more” means “更，再，更多(的)，更加”, etc., either adjective or adverb in nature, and can not normally be used as a brand in Chinese. So in translation, the double meaning in the original “More” can not be preserved in one item. However, in order to provide the two interpretations at the same time, the translator can resort to explication, i.e. to make the word “More” explicit: the name of the cigarette brand and the modifier in the advertisement. So if the translator intends the reader to process and retain both interpretations together with their effects, he/she has to explicate the word separately, as we can see in the above example. In the translated version, the word “More” becomes explicit, as “香煙” indicates its nature of being a cigarette brand, while “更” combined with the rest of the advertisement implies that a comparison made between “More” and the other cigarette brands, suggesting that “More” is better than the others. The reader can get adequate contextual effects from the translated version for no unjustifiable processing effort. Thus, optimal relevance is achieved. Eg. The unique spirit of Canada. Translation: 獨一無二的加拿大酒，獨一無二的加拿大精神。
In the above advertisement of whiskey, the word “spirit” refers to two different things: “essential nature of a person or group” and “alcoholic beverage, especially distilled liquor” . In Chinese, it generally refers to “精神” or “靈魂.” For the translator, his/her first attempt is always to reproduce the pun with a word containing the two meanings. Yet, considering the language difference, we know the translator can’t preserve both of them in one word in Chinese. However, he/she has to keep it in mind that the advertiser intends to communicate both of these two interpretations, for the first implies the beverage’s unique quality or flavor, while the second serves as a compliment to the beverage, suggesting that it represents the characteristic of Canada, and hence its superiority over others. Here, explication comes to play: to explicate the two meanings separately. In Chinese, “unique” means “唯一的” , “獨一無二”, etc.. We can see that through repetition of “獨一無二的” and “加拿大” , the uniqueness of the beverage is highly emphasized, giving the reader an impression that the beverage is indeed “unique and superb”. Accordingly, though unable to preserve the original pun, the translator has successfully reproduced the strength of the original advertisement.#p#分頁標題#e#
3. 5 Omission
The translator’s last resort is perhaps omission, or called deletion, which can be adopted if explication of pun may lead to redundancy or for some other reasons(e.g. stylistic reason). Nevertheless,it should be emphasized that generally speaking before the translator tries to omit the original, he/she has to be careful as to whether by doing so he/she will deviate from the advertiser’s intention. In some cases the pun in the source text, if possible, had better be represented in the target text, otherwise the effect of the advertisement being “playful” or “witty” conveyed by such vehicles may get lost. Eg. Coke refreshes you like no other can.
Version A: 沒有什么能像可樂那樣令您神清氣爽。
Version B: 清新可口，別無所求。[8]
In this advertisement for soft drink Coke, the word “can” has two meanings, one refers to “the metal container for liquids”, and the other “the modal verb”. So the advertisement can have two interpretations: “Coke refreshes you like no other can(tin,drink)can refresh you”. The pun can’t be preserved, as the translator is unlikely to find a Chinese word or phrase that can cover the two meanings of the original. So under the circumstance, the translator can choose other strategy like compensation, explication or omission to render the advertisement. “Version A” is a case of explication, in which the main idea of the original is conveyed. However, we can see that this translation seems to be a little clumsy, so the reader deserves a better translation. As we know the purpose of an advertisement is to attract the reader’s attention, interest, to appeal to the reader, so in a sense, at first sight it has to be readable and memorable. However, “Version A” seems to be incapable of achieving this purpose. To make it “sweet and short”, the translator can use the well-established four-character phrases in the Chinese version, as shown in “Version B”. The original pun is omitted in this translation for the sake of stylistic effect, otherwise the version will be longer and hence less forceful.Compared with “Version A”, this one being concise and impressive,though imperfect, it is more likely to be accepted by the reader. On the other hand, in the aspect of meaning,the phrase “別無所求” conveys a wealth of implicatures, for instance, “it suits you best”, “it is the best”, “it brings you the greatest happiness”, etc. So “Version B” can produce adequate contextual effects in the reader’s cognitive environment without causing his/her unnecessary processing effort, and optimal relevance is achieved through omission and compensation. From the above examples, we can see that some puns in the original can be preserved in the target text, while others can’t. This may be due to language constraints, difference in cognitive environment and so on. However, what is important is that relevant strategies like creation and compensation should be adopted to make up for the loss of meaning, emotional force, or stylistic effect so that the translation can closely resemble the original in relevant respects and in this way optimal relevance can be achieved.#p#分頁標題#e#
Conclusion
Advertisement is a way for the company to propaganda their product. To gain the market among the severe competition, it is important to carry out a wonderful advertisement to promote their product, and figures of speech is an effective way to achieve the purpose. Among the figures, pun is a wide and frequent approach, because it is an effective way to make the advertisement attractive, accurate, striking, vivid and forceful. Although pun violates the pragmatic maxims, it can correspond to the requirement that said by Geoffrey N.Leech, a famous British linguist, that advertising words must be vivid, conspicuous and impressive, with high readability and the force to promote sales, so it is used widely in advertisement. Pun in advertisement has many forms of expression such as pun on polysemy, homophone, hononymy, parody, illustrations and words, grammar, etc. and can result in the effects of humor, wit, beauty, economy, warning, and even makes the product more competitive and profitable. So only understand its pragmatic analysis, types and function of pun, can it be used rightly and make the advertisement sweet to the ear, and pleasing both the eye and mind.
Notes
[1] Oxford Advanced Learner’s English—Chinese Dictionary( Oxford University
Press,1997),1202.
[2]Walter Redfern, Puns(Oxford: Basil Blackwell Limited,1984),50.
[3]Du Juan, On the Diction Characteristics of English Newspaper Advertisements: Journal of Lan Zhou University (social sciences,2000), 236.
[4] 黃映秋.廣告英語中的雙關運用及可譯性探討[J].外國語,2005,(9):68.
[5] [6] [7] [8] 張昭苑,段海生.English Advertisement and Its Translation[J].重慶學院學報,2004,(3):35-38.
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