Negotiating Meta-functions in Multimodal Translation: A Systemic Functional Analysis of the Chinese–English Subtitling in Chang’an
Abstract
One of the most important studies in audiovisual translation (AVT) is the 2023 Chinese animated film Chang’an, which receptively recreates the golden age of the Tang Dynasty and intertwines the stories of Li Bai and Gao Shi with classical poetry and historical images. It presents a special challenge, a chance of delivering the Tang-era poetical, historical and cultural overtones of the film to the foreign viewer through English subtitles. This study examines its English subtitles through an integrated framework of Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) and intermodal relations analysis. Findings indicate that translators strategically simplify cultural-specific terms and interpersonal cues to accommodate spatial constraints, while the film’s visual and auditory channels compensate through reinforcement and contextualization. This compensatory process indicates that successful subtitling is not executed in an ambiguous language accuracy, but rather in a multimodal negotiation strategy. The study shows the role of the cultural-dense cinematography based on the interaction of both verbal and non-verbal in maintaining the central meaning of the movie, which is significant knowledge about the cross-cultural media localization and passing of the poetic tradition.
References
- Halliday, M. A. K., & Matthiessen, C. M. I. M. (2014) Halliday’s Introduction to Functional Grammar (4th ed.). Routledge.
- Díaz Cintas, J., & Remael, A. (2021) Audiovisual Translation: Subtitling (2nd ed.). Routledge.
- Taylor, C. (2016) The Multimodal Approach in Audiovisual Translation. Target: International Journal of Translation Studies, 28(2), 222–236.
- O’Halloran, K. L. (2008) Systemic Functional-Multimodal Discourse Analysis (SF-MDA): Constructing Ideational Meaning Using Language and Visual Imagery. Visual Communication, 7(4), 443–475.
- Liu, J., Wang, Y. and Chen, H. (2023) Mapping the Knowledge Domain of Multimodal Translation: A Bibliometric Analysis. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 10(1), 1–15.
- Pérez-González, L. (2014) Audiovisual Translation: Theories, Methods and Issues. Routledge.
- Halliday, M. A. K. (1978) Language as Social Semiotic: The Social Interpretation of Language and Meaning. Edward Arnold.
- Kress, G. and van Leeuwen, T. (2001) Multimodal Discourse: The Modes and Media of Contemporary Communication. Edward Arnold.
- Forceville, C. (2006) Non-verbal and Multimodal Metaphor in a Cognitivist Framework: Agendas for Research. In G. Kristiansen, M. Achard, R. Dirven, and F. Ruiz de Mendoza Ibáñez (Eds.), Cognitive linguistics: Current Applications and Future Perspectives (pp. 379–402). Mouton de Gruyter.
- Zhang, D. (2009) On a Synthetic Theoretical Framework for Multimodal Discourse Analysis. Foreign Languages in China, 6(1), 24–30.
- Perego, E. and Díaz-Cintas, J. (2012) Subtitling: Theory, Practice and Research. Perspectives, 20(4), 479–487.
- Ramos Pinto, S. and Mubaraki, A. (2019) Multimodal Corpus Analysis of Subtitling: The Case of Non-Standard Varieties. Target, 32(3), 389–419.
- Li, X. (2023) Cultural Loss and Compensation in the English Subtitling of Chang’an. Journal of Chinese Film Studies, 3(2), 45–60.
- Zhang, Y. (2024) Translating the Sublime: A Functionalist Approach to Poetry in Chang’an. Translation and Interpreting Studies, 19(1), 88–105.
- Aixelá, J. F. (1996) Culture-Specific Items in Translation. In R. Álvarez and M. Carmen-África Vidal (Eds.), Translation, Power, Subversion (pp. 52–78). Multilingual Matters.
- Perego, E. (2009) The Codification of Non-Verbal Information in Subtitled Texts. The Translator, 15(2), 257–280.