earticle

영어

This paper aims to explore the translations of sound-based wordplay from a relevance-theory perspective. In this framework, the relation between a translated text and its source text is of resemblance, rather than of equivalence, and the translator seeks optimal relevance by selecting a strategy that may reproduce the most cognitive effects with the least processing effort as long as he or she is willing to and able to do so. This paper analyzes and compares four Korean translations of wordplay in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland: two are meaning-oriented and the other two are wordplay-oriented. The study found that while the translators chose strategies based on their preferences and/or abilities, they also tended to consider the author’s intended cognitive effects and the readers’ processing effort. Based on those considerations, the translators maintained a similar word play, or changed it into a new wordplay, or ignored the original wordplay with explanation in parentheses or footnotes. They translated in such a way that readers can get the most cognitive effects with the least processing effort to the extent of their preferences and abilities.