earticle

영어

Kim, Kyunghee. (2007). A study on the translation of wordplay in the Korean literature. Conference Interpretation and Translation, 9(2), 3-34. To investigate the problems during translation of wordplay, which is thought to be the most difficult task for translators, we analyzed how the wordplays seen in the Korean literature were translated into French. First, we tried to seek for the definition and classification of wordplay, and then we analyzed the sentences showing various wordplays. A total of 53 sentences containing wordplay were found in the 24 Korean literatures. In general, the wordplays could be classified into seven groups, including those related to similar pronunciation, those related to homophone, those related to idea association, those related to unfamiliarity, those related to Chinese characters, those related to contrast of the meaning, and those related to abbreviation. Among these, the first two were most frequently seen. Of the 53 sentences translated into French, 14 were successful not only in revival of wordplay but also in perfect communication of the contents of the original works. Although 33 translations failed to revive wordplay, they communicated the contents of the original works well. Ten of these 33 translations explained wordplay by using footnotes for more effective communication of the contents. The remaining six translations failed to both revive wordplay and communicate the contents of the original works. In conclusion, the best way to translate wordplay is to translate wordplay itself. However, in cases it is not possible because of a big cultural difference, it may be a good alternative to translate the meaning of wordplay. Keywords: wordplay, literary translation, Korean literature, cultural difference