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DislocationinDrama:OsageCounty5,000MilesSouth,andStillHotAsymptote

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DislocationinDrama:OsageCounty5,000
MilesSouth,andStillHot
Itiswidelyknownthatliterarytranslationpresentsvarieddifficultiesondifferentlevels.The
literarytranslationofdramatictextspresentsadditionalproblemsthatarehardtosolvewith
thetypicaltoolsavailabletotheliterarytranslator.
Dramaisaparadox:succinctandexpansiveephemeralandeverlastingwrittenbutspoken.
Translatingplays,therefore,requireshandlingtheseparadoxeswhilepreservingthebeautyof
theoriginal,themusicalityofthelanguage,itsdramaticfeaturesanditsoralstructure.
Inaddition,translationisnotalwaystranslationindrama,asitcanbeadaptation.
Geographicaldistancesandculturaldifferencessometimescallforadditionalmeasureswhen
planningthestagingofaplay.The2007playAugust:OsageCountyisadarkcomedywhich
centersonthereunionofthedysfunctionalWestonfamily,wholiveinthestateofOklahoma.
WrittenbyTracyLetts,theplayexploresfamilyrelationshipsinacarpinglight.Fromits
Chicagodebut,ithasbeenpresentedintheatersfromLondontoMelbourneandfromTelAviv
toBuenosAires.
ThisplayhavingbeenaboxofficesuccessinArgentina,we'reinterestedinanalyzingand
discussingsomecharacteristicsofitstranslationasaproduct.Themotivationsbehindactual
translationdecisionsandtheiroutcomeareaddressedhereunderthelightofGideonToury's
viewoftranslationasanormgovernedactivityandwithintheoverallperspectiveof
DescriptiveTranslationStudies(PolysystemsTheory).Farfromprescribingtranslation
practicesandtechniques,thisapproachfocusesonactualtranslationsasproductsofthetarget
culture.
Thisdescriptiveapproachallowsustobothexaminewhatwehavespottedaspotential
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translationproblemsoftheoriginalworkandhowtheyhavebeensolved,andtounravelthe
functionofthetranslatedproductinthetargetculture.
Dislocation:ASample
Ananalysisofafragmentwhichweconsiderrepresentativeofthewholeplay,intermsofthe
adapter'sattitudetowardsculture,willhelpusreachadefinitionofdislocation.Attheendof
thefirstact,thesheriffofthesmalltownofPawhusca,wheretheoriginalplayisset,knocksat
theWestons'doorinthemiddleofthenighttoinformBarbaraofthedeathofherfather,who
hadbeenmissingforafewdays.Shortlyafterreceivingthenews,Barbaratalkstoherteenage
daughterwhileshegetsreadytoleavethehousetoidentifyherownfather'sbody.This
fragmentisespeciallyusefultoourendsbecauseitincludesashortnarrativeofasocial
practicewhich,althoughcommontobothArgentinianandAmericansocieties,displaysmany
exclusivelyAmericanfeatures:thehighschoolprom.
Englishversion
BARBARA:Iusedtogooutwiththatboy.Withthatman.
JEAN:Whatman?
BARBARA:Thesheriff.
JEAN:Youdid?
BARBARA:Yeah,inhighschool.Hewasmypromdate.
JEAN:You'rekidding.
BARBARA:Thedayoftheprom,hisfathergotdrunkandstolehis
car.Stolehisownson'scarandwentsomewhere.Mexico.Deon
showedupatthedoor,wearingthisawfultuxedo.He'dbeencrying.
Icouldtell.Andheconfessedhedidn'thaveawaytotakemetothe
prom.Ijustfeltawfulforhim,soItoldhimwe'dwalk.Aboutthree
miles.Ibustedmyheelandwebothgotsosweatyanddirty.Wegave
up...gotasixpackandbrokeintothechapel,stayedupallnight
talkingandkissing.Andnowhe'sheretellingme...oh,it'sjust
surreal.ThankGodwecan'ttellthefuture.We'dnevergetoutof
bed.

Spanishtranslation
BRBARA:Yosalaconesechico.Conesehombre.
JIMENA:Quhombre?
BRBARA:Elcomisario.
JIMENA:Enserio?
BRBARA:S,enlasecundaria.Albailedeegresadosfuiconl.
JIMENA:Meestsjodiendo.
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BRBARA:Eldadelafiesta,supadreseemborrachylerobel
auto.Lerobelautoasupropiohijoparairseaotropueblo.Jacinto
seaparecienlapuerta,vestidoconuntrajeespantoso.Haba
estadollorando,med(sic)cuenta.Ymeconfesquenotenacmo
llevarmealbaile.Mesenthorribleporl,asqueledijequeiramos
caminando.Unoscincokilmetros.Mereventuntaco,losdos
quedamossuciosytranspirados.Nosdimosporvencidos...consigui
mediadocenadecervezasynosquedamostodalanochehablandoy
besndonos.Yahorameestdicindo(sic)que...oh,essencillamente
surrealista.GraciasaDiosquenopodemossaberelfuturo.Nunca
noslevantaramosdelacama.

Englishretranslation
BARBARA:Iusedtogooutwiththatboy.Withthatman.
JIMENA:Whatman?
BARBARA:Thesheriff.
JIMENA:Really?
JIMENA:Youarekiddingme.
BARBARA:Thedayoftheparty,hisfathergotdrunkandstolehis
car.Hestolehisownson'scartogotoanothertown.Jacintoshowed
upatthedoorwearinganawfulsuit.Hehadbeencrying,Icould
tell.Andheconfessedhedidn'thaveawaytotakemetothedance.I
felthorribleforhim,soItoldhimwewouldwalk.Aboutfive
kilometers.Ibustedaheelwebothendedupdirtyandsweaty.We
gaveup...hegothalfadozenbeersandwestayedallnighttalking
andkissing.Andnowheistellingmethat...oh,it'sjustsurreal.
ThankGodwecan'ttellthefuture.Wewouldnevergetoutofbed.

BothAmericanandArgentinianhighschoolseniorscelebratetheendoftheirintermediate
studieswithaformalsocialgathering.However,therearesomeessentialculturaldifferences
betweenthesetwocelebrations.InthetypicalAmericanprom,thesocialconvention
establishesthatastudentneedstoaskadatetotheprom(usuallytheboyasksthegirl),pick
herupatherhouse,anddrivehertothevenue.Fordoingthis,anAmericanhighschool
studentmayneedtorentorhaveatuxedoandacar.Thesepracticesarecompletelyabsentin
Argentinianculture,wherestudentssimplygoaccompaniedbytheirfamilies.
WhiletheAmericanpromcentersaroundtheformaldanceitselfprombeingshortfor
promenadethemaineventoftheeveninginatypicalArgentinianhighschoolgatheringisa
banquetlikeformaldinner.Thus,itmaybecommoninArgentinatorefertothissocial
practiceasafiestadeegresados(graduates'party),orcenadeegresados(graduates'dinner),
butsurelynotasabailedeegresados(graduates'dance).
Ingeneralterms,thewhole"promexperience"isameaningfulsocialpracticeinAmerican
popularculture,deeplyrootedandubiquitousinmovies,televisionshows,anddrama
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productions,whilethefiestadeegresadosisnotnearlyaspresentinArgentinianpopular
culture.
Whenanalyzingthetranslationofsourcetextculturalelements,wefoundoutthatthemost
usedtranslationtechniqueswereaddition,adaptationandomission.Thesentence"Hewas
mypromdate"wastranslatedintoSpanishas"Albailedeegresadosfuiconl"("tothedance
ofgraduatesIwentwithhim").WeseeintheSpanishversionthatthesentencestructureis
modifiedonthetranslator'sownaccounttoavoidtranslatingtheproblematicelementinthe
sentence:promdate.Thisisperfectlyreasonableintranslationswhichaimatadapting
culturalelements,andtheArgentinianversionofthisplayissafelyshelteredunderthe
"adaptation"label.Interestinglyenough,though,the"dance"elementhasbeenkeptin"baile
deegresados",whichisaforeignelement.Likewise,the"date"elementhasnotbeenelided
altogetherbutithasratherbeenblurred,fortheSpanishtextstillgivestheideathattheywere
supposedtogo"together":thetranslationofthesentence"Heshowedupatthedoorwearing
anawfultuxedo"hasbeentranslatedalmostliterallyintoSpanish,exceptfortheword
"tuxedo",whichisreplacedwiththeSpanishwordfor"suit",andthephrase"takemetothe
prom"hasalsobeenliterallytranslated.
Allinall,whatwegetinSpanishisthefollowing:AhighschoolboyshowedupatBarbara's
door(foreignelement),hehadbeencryingbecausehedidn'thaveacar(foreignelement)to
takehertothedance(foreignelement),hewaswearinganawfulsuit(naturalizedelement).
Eventhoughtheword"date"isnotpresentinthetranslation,alltheseelementsofthestory
areindicativeofthefactthatheisactuallyherdate.
Thetranslationofthisexcerptaccountsforthemixtureofculturalelementsintheadapted
version,asortofblending(notethecharactersspeakthedialectofSpanishspokeninBuenos
AiresinahousethathasthetypicalAmericanarchitecture)betweenAmericanand
Argentinianculturalelements,alwaysaimingatacceptabilitybymeansofanoverall
naturalizingtendency(notethenamesofthecharacters,overalllinguisticfluency,the
presenceofculturalelementsthatareexclusivelyArgentinian).
Nowwhere,exactly,doesthismixtureofsourceandtargetculturalelementstakeplace?Is
thereaspecificgeographicalsettingintheadaptedversion?Intheexamplewearediscussing,
thespecificspatialreference,Mexico,hasbeensuppressedandreplacedwithanexpression
thatisvagueenoughsoastoevadeaspecificplace,"Stolehisownson'scarandwent
somewhere.Mexico."istranslatedas"Lerobelautoasupropiohijoparairseaotropueblo",
changingMexicointo"anothertown".Exceptforafewspecificinstanceswhichwillbe
analyzedlater,mostgeographicalreferencesarecarefullytamperedwithsoastoavoida
distinctivedesignationofanactualplace.

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Polysystems
Howdotranslatedworkspenetrateasystemandwhatfunctiondotheyhave?Dotheseworks,
importedfromotherliteratures,removedfromtheiroriginalcontexts,struggleinthecenter
andperipheryforces?AsexplainedbyItamarEvenZohar(1990)translatedworkscorrelate"
(a)inthewaytheirsourcetextsareselectedbythetargetliterature,theprinciplesofselection
neverbeinguncorrelatablewiththehomecosystemsofthetargetliterature(toputitinthe
mostcautiousway)and(b)inthewaytheyadoptspecificnorms,behaviors,andpoliciesin
short,intheiruseoftheliteraryrepertoirewhichresultsfromtheirrelationswiththeother
homecosystems."Thetranslation,adaptationandstagingofAgostoinArgentinaowetheir
successtothefactthatthe"principlesofselection"correlatetothe"homecosystems"ofthe
targettheatricalsystem,verymuchpervadedbytheAmericanculturaldynamicsand
aesthetics.
Playsacquirenewrelevancewhenstagedinanewsocialandculturalsettingasadaptations.
Thethemeofadysfunctionalfamily,whosemembershavesplitapartandhidesecretsthatare
graduallyrevealedasthestorydevelops,isevidentlynotuniquetoAmericansocietyandthus
doesnotdependonsuchsocietytohaveameaningofitsown.Thisimpliesthatthereception
ofatleastthethemeoftheplaywillhavewideacceptanceinthenewculturalandtemporal
frame,andwilleasilyfindacentralplaceinthenewliterarysystem.Beyondtheuniversalityof
theissuesthatthisplaytackles,ingeneralAmericanplaystendtofindacentralplaceinthe
Argentiniansystemduetocertainfactors.AccordingtoItamarEvenZohar,aliterarywork
entersthecanonwhenaliterarysystemistooyoungorintheprocessofbeingestablished,
peripheralorweak,orundergoingacrisis.InArgentina,thereisavacuumoflocalproduction
inmainstreamdramaandthisweaknessofthesystemallowsforaforeignproductiontofinda
placeasitdoesnothavearepertoireofitsown.Also,Americanculturehassystematically
penetratedthroughHollywoodmovies,makingAmericanplaces,traditions,andpeoplealltoo
familiartotheArgentinianaudience.Literarypiecesthatbelongtonationalproduction,onthe
otherhand,needtostruggleforacentralpositionintheinstitutionalizedaesthetics,whichis
foreign.ThefactthatAgostowasstagedin"calleCorrientes",afamousstripinBuenosAires
thatisanalogoustoBroadway,functionsasanindicatorthattheplay,inspiteofitsbeinga
translation,iscanonicalinthetargetsystem,which,inturn,makestheplayaprofitable
consumerproductthatwilldefinitelysell.
Dislocationindrama:translationandadaptation
Muchofthetheorystatesthatdramatranslationnotonlyentailsfindingthelinguistic
equivalencebutalsoadequateculturalandgesturalparallels.Intheprocessofthetranslation
ofaplay,thus,itisnotsufficienttofocusoncontentandmeaning,whichimpliestheideasof
fidelitytoanoriginaltextandliterality:sincetheinformationinaplayistheplayitself,itis
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necessarytogobeyondthemerereproductionofthemeaningandadapttheaesthetic,cultural
andsocialidentitiesofthework.Theconceptsof"translation"and"adaptation"arediffuse,
manytimesoneentailingtheother.However,inthisparticularcase,thesetwoprocesseswere
clearlydelimited:MercedesMornaskedBetyCouceirotodoa"literaltranslation"oftheplay,
aspointedoutbytheadapterintheinterviewwedidwithher,andthensheadapteditforthe
stage.Theprocessoftranslation,thus,wascarriedoutbetweentwodifferentlanguages,with
thepurposeofcreatingatextinSpanishfortheadaptertorecreate.Theprocessofadaptation,
ontheotherhand,wasdonewithinthesamelanguage,withthepurposeofmakingtheplay
availableandappealingtothetargetculture,inasortofintralingualtranslation.The
adaptationprocessneededtobecarriedoutbecausetheplay,stagedinthenewsetting,hadto
complywithcertainprerequisitestobesuccessfulinthetargetculture.Theseprerequisites
aredeterminedbytheforcesatstakewithinthepolysystemofthetargetculture.Asdefinedby
RosaRabadn,adaptationis"atextthathasbeenapparentlytranslatedandwhose
dependenceonthesourcetextislimitedoratleastweaksinceitdoesnotbearaglobal
relationshipofequivalencewiththesourcetext,itcannotbeconsideredatranslation.Inthese
cases,thesourcetextisnot,strictlyspeaking,theinputofthetransferenceprocessbutrather
the"sourceofinspiration"uponwhichanewtextiscreatedwithinanewpolysystem".
(Rabadn,1991:288)ItshouldbenotedherethatinthecaseofAgosto,thesourcetextis
muchmorethanjustasourceofinspirationtothetargettext.Althoughtherearemajorshifts
stemmingfromtheadaptationofculturalelements,thesourcetextisclearlyreflectedin
Moran'stextandcanbeidentifiedatallmomentsintheArgentinianperformance.
TheprevailingstrategyinAgostohasbeenamixtureofinterlinguistictranslationproperand
adaptation,whichconstituteswhatwehaveherecalleddislocation:aneffectivemeansof
enhancingtheacceptabilityofdramatranslationsbyredirectingthesourcetextcultural
allusionstoanintercultural,blendlikenoplace,drawingonanallegeduniversalizationofa
notionofcultureandasearchforthecommonessenceofhumanity.Standingsomewherein
betweentransplantationandtotaladaptationtothetargetculture,dislocationworksasan
eclectictranslationstrategysinceitallowsforproximityaswellasdistance:foreignelements
ofthesourcecultureinterminglewithlocalfeaturesofthetargetculture.Asadecisionmaking
process,allstrategiesandapproachesentailrisks:transplantationmaygenerate
incomprehensionandthesubsequentrejectiononthepartofthetargetculturetotal
adaptationmaybedisturbinglyalltoofamiliaranditmaymaketheaudiencewonderabout
themysteriousoriginofthetextanddislocationmaymaketheaudiencegetconfusedabout
thesettingoftheplayifthereislackofconsistencyandcoherenceinthetreatmentofcultural
references.
Theconceptofdecisionmaking,notjustintranslationbutineveryareaoflife,necessarily
entailsapreexistent"problematic"situation.Thegenesisoftheproblemswhichcomeupin
everytranslationmaybe,ingeneralterms,linguisticorcultural,andtheirsolutionswill
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dependonthedifferentforcesatplayinthetranslationalact.Thus,upontheidentificationof
aproblem,whetherlinguisticorculturalinnature,atranslatormayfeelresponsibletothe
sourcetextandproduceanadequatetranslation,ormayfeelresponsibletothetargetculture
andproduceanacceptabletranslation.Thisdeeprooted,olddichotomy,whichcanbetraced
backtonineteenthcenturytheoristssuchasSchleiermacher,hasbeenaddressedfrommany
differentperspectivesintranslationstudiesandstillunderlieshighlyinfluentialworkscarried
outtoday,suchasVenuti'sconceptsofforeignizationanddomestication.
However,aswestatedabove,itisoftenthecasethatactualtranslationdecisionsresultina
combinationofandcompromisewiththesetwoextremes,whichleadsusbacktotheconcept
ofdislocationbeinganeclectictranslationstrategy.
TheTitleofthePlay.SomeHeatedWords.
Thetitleoftheplayhasbeentransferredduetocopyrightreasonsandthuswecannotassert
thatthishasbeenatranslationchoicebutratheranimpositionofthenormsthatgovernthe
adaptationandstagingofaforeignplay.However,thistransference,whateverthereasons
behindit,goesalongwithotherinstancesofculturaltransferenceaswillfultranslation
decisionsanditisworthanalyzingintermsoftheeffectonthetargetaudience.
ThemonthofAugusttriggersdifferentassociationsintheNorthernandtheSouthern
hemisphereshowever,therelationshipbetweenthemonthofAugust,whichiscoldinthe
Southernhemisphere,andthecharacterscomplainingaboutthehotweatherallthetime
seemstogounnoticedbytheArgentinianspectator,who,assuch,suppressesthisapparent
incoherence.ThisispossibleindramaduetowhattheEnglishpoetandaestheticphilosopher
SamuelTaylorColeridge(1817)called"willingsuspensionofdisbelief",meaningthatifa
writercouldtransmitanillusionoftruthinafantastictale,thenthereaderwouldsuspendany
assessmentregardingtheimplausibilityofthestory.Thus,theunpleasantheattransmittedin
thisplay,whichisactuallyOklahoman,doesnotclashwiththespectator'sexpectationsofhow
theweatherwillbelikeinAugustintheSouthernhemisphere.
GeographicalReferences.FromNowHereToNowhere.
Agostopresentsdifferentstrategieswhenitcomestogeographicalnames:someofthemhave
beentransferred,othersadaptedandotherseliminated.Wealreadyreferredtoaninstanceof
elimination,inwhichaspecificgeographicalplaceinthesourcetext,Mexico,wasreplacedin
thetargettextbythenounphrase"anothertown",anexpressionvagueenoughtoavoid
namingthatspecificplace,yetexpressiveenoughtoconveytheideaof"justsomewhereelseat
adrivingdistance".Amongthedifferentstrategiesusedfordoingawaywiththeoriginal
setting,wehavefoundtheuseofdeictics,vagueexpressions,explicatoryparaphrasingand
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plainomission.
Englishversion
VIOLET:Ijustdon'tunderstandsomeofthechoicesyoumake.You
arefortythreeyearsold
IVY:Fortyfour.
VIOLET:Fortyfouryearsold.Maybeyouarepastthepointof
havingchildren,andthat'sfineifyoudon'twantthem,butaren't
youinterestedinfindingahusband?
IVY:Ahusband.InPawhusca.

Spanishtranslation
VIOLETA:Noentiendolaseleccionesquehacs.Tenscuarentay
tresaos
ELI:Cuarentaycuatro.
VIOLETA:Cuarentaycuatro.Alomejoryasetepaselmomentode
tenerhijosyesttodobien,sinolosquers,peronoteinteresa
conseguirunmarido?
ELI:Unmarido.Ac.

Englishretranslation
VIOLETA:Idon'tunderstandthechoicesyoumake.Youareforty
threeyearsold
ELI:Fortyfour.
VIOLETA:Fortyfouryearsold.Maybeyouarepastthepointof
havingchildren,andthat'sfineifyoudon'twantthem,butaren't
youinterestedinfindingahusband?
ELI:Ahusband.Here.

Englishversion
IVY:CharlesandIaregoingtoNewYork.
(Barbaraburstsoutlaughing)
BARBARA:WhatthehellareyougoingtodoinNewYork?
IVY:Wehaveplanes.
BARBARA:Likewhat?
IVY:Noneofyourbusiness.
BARBARA:Youcan'tjustgotoNewYork.

Spanishtranslation
ELI:Carlosyyonosvamosalacapital.
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(Brbaraserie(sic)acarcajadas)
BRBARA:Qucarajovanahacerenlacapital?
ELI:Tenemosplanes.
BRBARA:Cmocuales?
ELI:Noescosatuya.
BRBARA:Nosepuedenirasnoms.

Englishretranslation
ELI:CarlosandIaregoingtothecapitalcity.
(Barbaraburstsoutlaughing)
BRBARA:Whatthehellareyougoingtodointhecapitalcity?
ELI:Wehaveplans.
BRBARA:Likewhat?
IVY:It'snoneofyourbusiness.
BRBARA:Youcan'tjustleave.

Thefewgeographicalnameswhicharepresentintheadaptedversionrevolvearoundthe
charactersofKarenandSteve.KarenistheyoungestdaughteroftheWestonfamily.She
claimstohavebeenunhappyherentireadultlife.Afteryearsofdaydreamingaboutmeetinga
charmingprincewhowouldmarryherandtakehertoBelizeonvacation,sheclaimstohave
finallyfoundhim.ShecomeshomewithSteve,herbrandnewfianc,afiftyyearold
apparentlysuccessfulbusinessmanwhoisinvolvedin"securitywork"intheMiddleEast.They
liveinMiami.Intheadaptedversion,"Miami"and"theMiddleEast"havebeentransferred,
while"Belize"hasbeenadaptedandreplacedwith"Cancun".
Englishversion
KAREN:(...)Ispentalotoftimeinthatbedroomupstairs
pretendingmypillowwasmyhusbandandI'daskhimabouthisday
atworkandwhatwashappeningattheoffice,anddidhelikethe
dinnerImadeforhimandwherewerewegoingtovacationthat
winterandhe'dsurprisemewithticketstoBelizeandwe'dkiss(...)

Spanishtranslation
CAROLINA:(...)Pasunmontndetiempoenesedormitoriode
arribafingiendoquemialmohadaeramimarido,preguntndole
cmohabasidosudadetrabajo,questabapasandoensuoficina,
silehabagustadolacenaqueleprepar,adondenosiramosde
vacacionesysilmesorprenderaconpasajesaCancnynos
besbamos.(...)

Englishretranslation
CAROLINA:(...)Ispentalotoftimeinthatbedroomupstairs
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pretendingmypillowwasmyhusband,askinghimabouthisdayat
work,whatwashappeningattheoffice,ifhelikedthedinnerImade
forhim,wherewewouldgoonholydays,andifhewouldsurpriseme
withticketstoCancunandwewouldkiss.

Englishversion
KAREN:Miami.Didn'tyouknowImovedtoMiami?
BARBARA:Wait,yes,Ididknowthat
KAREN:That'swhereSteve'sbusiness
BARBARA:right,right

Spanishversion
CAROLINA:Miami.NosabasquememudaMiami?
BRBARA:Esper,s,esolosaba
CAROLINA:EsdondetienelosnegociosMarcelo.
BRBARA:cierto,cierto

Englishretranslation
CAROLINA:Miami.Didn'tyouknowImovedtoMiami?
BRBARA:Wait,yes,Iknewthat
CAROLINA:It'swhereMarcelohashisbusiness.
BRBAR:right,right

Englishversion
BILL:I'msorry.What'sthebusinessagain?Idon't
STEVE:Youknow,it'sessentiallysecuritywork.Thesituationinthe
MiddleEastisperpetuallydangerous,sothere'saperpetualamount
ofmoneyinvolved.
BILL:Securitywork,youmean...mercenary?

Spanishtranslation
MIGUEL:Disculpame,Culeselnegocio?
MARCELO:Mir,esencialmenteesuntrabajodeseguridad.La
situacinenMedioOrienteespermanentementepeligrosa,asque
hayunatremendacantidaddedineroinvolucrado
MIGUEL:Trabajodeseguridad.Quersdecir...mercenario?

Englishretranslation
BILL:I'msorry.What'sthebusinessagain?
STEVE:Youknow,it'sessentiallysecuritywork.Thesituationinthe
MiddleEastisperpetuallydangerous,sothere'saperpetualamount
ofmoneyinvolved.
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BILL:Securitywork,youmean...mercenary?

Itwouldbenotonlypointlessbutalsohighlyunpracticaltoconceivedislocationasconsisting
ofjustspottinganddeletingconcretespatialreferences.Instead,dislocationmustbe
understoodasawayofrecreatinganunnamedsettingwhichwilldisplaysomecharacteristics
ofbothsourceandtargetcultures.Inthissense,dislocationmaybeseenasasortofrelocation
toaninterculturalnowhere.
CulturalReferences.DecisionsStagedonAssumptions.
Inlinewiththeprevailingstrategyconcerninggeographicalreferences,somecultural
elementshavebeentransferred,othersadapted,andotherseliminated.Thegroundsforthese
differenttranslationdecisionslieupontheadapter'sassumptionsofhowthesecultural
referenceswouldimpacttheaudience.
Adaptation:Whenthefamilycomesbackhomeafterthefather'sfuneral,theyhavedinner
together.Whilethewidow'sbrotherinlawisgivingaspeechaboutthedeceased,Karen's
fianc'scellphonebeginstoring,playingthethemefrom"SanfordandSon."InAgosto,this
ringtonehasbeenadaptedandreplacedwithasongbyShakira.Apartfromreplacingan
elementthatwouldnotmeananythingtotheArgentinianaudience,thischoiceaddsuptothe
overallconstructionofthecharacter:heisamiddleagedmanwhoseoccupationisnotvery
clearexceptthathehasbusinessesintheMiddleEastandhehasflirtedwithhisfiance's
teenageniece.Inaddition,thepresenceofthesongbythegloballyknownColombiansinger
Shakiraisconsistentwiththeconstructionofthenoplacewheretheperformanceisset.
Anotherexampleofadaptationisthereplacementofthereferencetothe1955filmTheNight
oftheHunterwithTwilight.Thefirstoptionputstheemphasisontheteenager'slovefor
films,assheispresentedasamoviebuff,andthesecondoptionplacestheemphasisonher
ageandonthelatestboxofficesuccessinArgentinaregardingfilmsforteenagers.
Transference:Thesong"LaydownSally"byEricClapton,andallthereferencesmadetoit
throughouttheplay,hasbeentransferred.InspiteofthefactthatinArgentinaitwouldnotbe
verycommonfora65yearoldwomantobeaClaptonfan,this1977piececonstitutesa
universalclassic,and,assuch,itachievesthefamiliareffectintendedintheoriginaland
showsViolet'sreminiscenceofheryouth.Anotherexampleoftransferenceisthereferenceto
the2004filmMariaFullofGrace,whichisinfactaColombianfilm.Itsinternationalsuccess
andtheOscarnominationofCatalinaSandinoforbestactressmadethefilmhaveglobal
recognition.
Elimination:ThereferencetoJohnna'sCheyenneoriginandthereferencetothe1989film
PowwowHighwayhavebothbeensuppressedinAgosto.JohnnaexplainstoBarbara's
teenagedaughter,Jean,thatsheisCheyenne,andJeanreplieswithareferencetothefilm:
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Englishversion
Johnna:It'saCheyennetradition
Jean:You'reCheyenne
Johnna:Mmhm
Jean:"LikethatmoviePowwowHighway.Didyouseethat?

Spanishtranslation
BLANCA:Esunatradicin.
JIMENA:Comoenlapelculaaquella...

Englishretranslation
BLANCA:It'satradition
JIMENA:Likeinthatmovie...

Theelisionof"Cheyenne"contributestothenoplacesetting:evenifanArgentinianspectator
maynotknowthatthere'saCheyennetribeinWesternOklahoma,theywillmostprobably
associatethispeoplewiththeUnitedStates.TheelisionofthefilmPowwowHighwayis
attributabletothefactthatanArgentinianspectatorwouldnotrecognizethismovieand
thereforethereferencewouldnotmeananythingtothem.
Finalthoughtsorpreludetoaquest
Literatureisconceivedofinthepolysystemsviewasanessentialconstituentinsociety,
regulatedbylawslikealltherestofhumanactivities.Thus,aliterarysystemcomprisesnot
onlythetraditional(canonic)genresbutmanyotherpopularforms.Whenitcomesto
translationwithinthisapproach,whichhasbeenlabeledasDescriptiveTranslationStudies,
thefocusisorientedtothetargettextratherthantothesourcetext.
ThetranslationandadaptationofAugustpreservesthebeautyoftheoriginal,itsdramatic
featuresanditsoralstructure.IthasalsoproventobeahugesuccessintheArgentinian
theatricalmarket.Itranforalmosttwostraightyears,withincredibleboxofficefigures.This
versionraisesquestionsofinteresttotranslators:Whatstrategieshavebeenused?Whatisthe
effecttheyhave?CanOsageCountymaintainitsqualitiesover5,000milessouthof
Oklahoma?IsAuguststillAugustwhentheseasonschangeintheSouthernhemisphere?
Thetranslationdecisionswehaveanalyzedatamicrolevel,thatis,adapt,transferorelide,
revealthepositionoftheadapterinrelationtothesourcetext,thenewaudience,andthenew
setting,andatthesametimereflectbothtranslationtrendsdiscussedabove:adequacy
orientedtranslationandacceptabilityorientedtranslation.Atamacrolevel,ontheother
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hand,thetranslationandadaptationprocesseshave,inourview,accomplishedaskillfuland
sensitivedegreeofnaturalnessthatinturnmadetheplaybecomeasuccess.Thecombination
ofchoicesatamicrolevelaccountsforthedelicatebalancethatMorn'sadaptationpersues
andconstituteanexampleoftheimpossibilityofusingcategoricallyunifiedtranslation
techniquesindramaand,inanycase,inliteraryworksingeneral.

Workscited:
EvenZohar,Itamar:"ThePositionofTranslatedLiteraturewithintheLiteraryPolysystem."PoeticsToday
11:1(1990),pp.4551.
Rabadn,Rosa.Equivalenciaytraduccin:problemticadelaequivalenciatranslmicainglsespaol.
Len:UniversidaddeLen,1991.

[]

Readbio
JosefinaCoissonandAlejandroArmandoaretranslationscholarsfromArgentina.

JosefinaCoissonwasborninCrdoba,Argentina,in1973.Sheworksasafreelancetranslatorandasaprofessorin
thechairsofJournalisticTranslationandLiteraryTranslationintheSchoolofLanguagesofUniversidadNacionalde
Crdoba.Inthesameinstitution,sheisfinishinganMAinTranslationStudiesandisamemberoftheresearchproject
"Ecocriticism,greencriticism:theenvironmentinthesocioculturaldiscourseoftheEnglishspeakingworld".Shehas
publishedpapersonliterarytranslationinnationalandinternationalacademicpublications.
AlejandroArmandowasborninCrdoba,Argentina,in1985.HegraduatedfromtheSchoolofLanguages,
UniversidadNacionaldeCrdoba.HeworksasafreelancetranslatorandasstudentassistantintheChairofLiterary
Translationinthesameuniversity.Hehasrecentlypresentedapaperondramatranslationatthe2010American
LiteraryTranslatorsAssociationconferenceinPhiladelphia.HealsomasterslinguisticskillsinLatinGrammarandhe
hasrecentlytakenonhisthirdlanguage:French.Alongwithhavingapassionforlanguages,Alejandroisavoracious
readerofSpanishandEnglishLiterature.

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