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Shaimaa S. Shalaby

Ain Shams University

Faculty of Al-Alsun

Department of English

A CDA Approach to the English and Arabic Subtitles of the Documentary:

“13th”

Submitted by

Yara Nazih Mohamed Mostafa Emira

‫يارة نزيه محمد مصطفى عميره‬

Supervised by

Shaimaa S. Shalaby

2017/2018
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Introduction

Audiovisual translation (AVT) has gained significance towards the end of

the 20th century as previous studies have been fragmented and unfocused (Díaz-
Cintas, 2009, p. 1). AVT is able to reach large audiences, mainly through
television. It works as a bridge connecting different cultures through the translation
of “documentaries”, “films”, “shows”, and “cartoons” (Anderman & Rogers, 2003,
p.193). Moreover, subtitling, as one of the major branches of AVT, has gained a
wide range of popularity, proving to be of major significance in the transmission of
languages, language learning and culture understanding. Regarding subtitling
documentaries, there is a need first to understand what a documentary is.
Documentaries can be defined as films addressing real life events usually by
addressing a particular group of people to reveal a certain purpose. A documentary
rarely represents unbiased formation (Aufderheide, 2007, p. 2) as it mainly sheds
light on a particular problem to either solve it or condemn the opposite groups.
Documentary subtitling can reveal the manipulative power behind discourse.

Ideology is fundamental to the idea of power and dominance in modern

society (Fairclough, 1989, p. 12). Therefore, Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA)
intervenes among social groups by means of power and ideology, addressing the
status quo, to study the exploitation of power in discourse. Furthermore, CDA has
slowly witnessed issues of racial and ethnic inequality (Van Dijk, 2001, p.361).
Therefore, guided by Gottlieb’s (1992) subtitling strategies and the CDA models of
Fairclough (1989, 1992, 1995) and Van Dijk (1997), this paper is set to explore
how far subtitling has a bearing on understanding the racial power relations
between white and black Americans, as well as on the intended target message of
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the source language in the documentary: “13th” (2016), sections: (11:29-15:59) and
(22:47-29:12).

Excellent introduction! :) Very organized and well-informed.

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Theoretical Part

1. Subtitling
Ever since the emergence of the term ‘audiovisual translation’ (AVT), it has
included several translation practices where target language (TL) is produced from
a source language (SL), with sound and image interaction (Díaz-Cintas & Remael,
2014, pp. 11-12). This transfer is considered a defining characteristic of translation
activities. With variant terms, such as ‘screen translation’ and ‘film translation’,
AVT is the most common referent for such field of study, spreading in not only
cinemas but also computer screens, CDROMs and television (Díaz-Cintas &
Remael, 2014, p. 12; Anderman & Rogers, 2003, p.194). Dubbing, subtitling and
voice-over are the most popular AVT types among audiences (Díaz-Cintas &
Remael, 2014, p. 12).

1.1. Definition
Subtitling is a process of translation which aims at producing written text
and transferring all discursive and informative elements at the bottom of the screen
(Díaz-Cintas & Remael, 2014, p. 8; Anderman & Rogers, 2003, p. 195). Subtitling
can be divided into two types: intralingual and interlingual. Intralingual subtitling
mainly addresses the deaf and the hard-of-hearing, whereas interlingual subtitling
is for foreign language films (De Linde & Kay, 2014, pp.1-2). However, this
research deals with interlingual subtitling.

1.2. Challenges and Restrictions

Audiovisual programs depend on the synchrony of texts, images and sounds

(Díaz-Cintas & Remael, 2014, p. 9). The restrictions of subtitling are linguistic,
spatial and temporal. Linguistically, subtitling converts dialogue from an oral to a
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written form, potentially leading to a problem regarding the accuracy of the

translation. By deletion and paraphrasing, subtitlers omit less relevant parts of the
SL which may subsequently remove a characteristic of the speaker’s spoken
discourse (De Linde & Kay, 2014, pp. 4-5). Spatially constrained, a subtitle,
depending on the media, has an average space of 32 to 41 characters per line, in a
maximum of two lines (Díaz-Cintas & Remael, 2014, p. 41). Finally, reading
speeds impose temporal restrictions on subtitling. Therefore, companies tend to use
‘the six-second rule’ which is the time taken by the average viewer to read the two
lines of subtitle, each containing about 35 or 37 characters, thus, managing to read
about 70 to 74 characters in 6 seconds (p. 23).

1.3. Gottlieb’s Model of Subtitling Strategies

Gottlieb’s work focuses mainly on the way Danish is influenced by the
English language (Anderman & Rogers, 2003, p.202). Gottlieb (1992) proposes ten
subtitling strategies which may overlap. The ten strategies are “expansion”,
“paraphrase”, “transfer”, “imitation”, “transcription”, “deletion”, “dislocation”,
“condensation”, “decimation”, and “resignation” (p. 166). For clarification, table 1
presents the strategies and their simplified definitions.

Table 1 Subtitling Strategies and Definitions (Gottlieb, 1992, p. 166; Michael,

2012, p. 117; Ghaemi & Benyamin, 2010, p. 42)

Strategy Definition

Expansion Rendering SL into TT by adding extra information due to small

cultural differences between languages.
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Paraphrase Altering expressions in the SL to a suitable TL expression,

making the subtitle acceptable for the viewer.
Transfer Transmitting the SL into TT fully and accurately.
Imitation Maintaining every unfamiliar form of the SL. It aims at giving an
identical borrowed expression of the SL in the TT.
Transcription Preserving ambiguous expressions found in the SL.
Dislocation Using easy enough expressions to facilitate the SL expressions
for the viewer.
Condensation Reducing the SL message by giving a concise expression in the
TL, without any loss of SL message content.
Decimation Extensively condensing the SL, omitting important parts of the
message.
Deletion Deliberately omitting some parts of the SL, mainly those of no
meaningful content while emphasizing the real message.
Resignation Avoiding SL message translation due to the inability to reach a
solution for translating it.

2. Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA)

2.1. History of CDA

Discourse analysis is a process used to analyze different forms of language

used in communication. Language is viewed through CDA as a powerful method
for domination of “ideologies, identities, and culture” (Rahimi & Riasati, 2011, p.
107). A CDA approach aims at revealing the irregularities of power, society,
perceptions and ideology behind discourse (Rahimi & Riasati, 2011, p. 108;
Tenorio, 2011, p.187). Fairclough (1995) defines CDA as: “discourse analysis
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which aims to systematically explore often opaque relationships of causality and

determination” between discourse and cultural processes (p. 132). CDA
investigates power relations and struggles shaped ideologically. Moreover, Wodak
and Meyer (2001) define CDA as an approach analyzing the vague relationships of
“dominance, discrimination, power and control” in discourse. Therefore, for them
“CDA aims to investigate critically social inequality as it is expressed, signaled,
constituted, and legitimized, and so on by language use” (p. 2). Wodak and Meyer
(2001) maintain that Fairclough’s perception of ideology in discourse is key for
power, domination and resistance (pp. 126- 127).
2.2. Models of CDA
2.2.1. Norman Fairclough
Norman Fairclough’s studies in CDA are the most prominent as they
introduce guidelines needed for CDA researches (Rahimi & Riasati, 2011, p. 108).
He divides CDA into a three-dimensional level: description, interpretation and
explanation. Description is concerned with formal text properties. Interpretation
relates “text and interaction” together. Finally, explanation relates “interaction” to
“social context” (Fairclough, 1989, p. 26; Rahimi & Riasati, 2011, pp. 108-109).
Fairclough has different classifications to analyze discourse. These classifications
are nominalization, modality, passivization and activization, emotive language and
lexicalization, and thematization.

Nominalization means using noun forms to hide parts of the process by

disguising its participants, actions (Fairclough, 1989, pp. 51-52) as well as tense (p.
124). Furthermore, an action can either be described in an active or a passive voice.
The SVO structure of the active voice in “South African police(S) have burnt
down(V) a black township(O)” (p. 121) can be turned into passive as in: “a black
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township has been burnt down by South African police” (p. 124). However, the
agent, mentioned after “by” can sometimes be obscured by deletion. (p. 125).

Moreover, modality has two dimensions: relational and expressive.

Relational modality is related to the authority of the participant towards others; for
instance, “must” is a sign of obligation. However, expressive modality is connected
to the truth of a probability said or written by speakers or writers. Modality often
appears through modal auxiliary verbs, tense or adverbs (Fairclough, 1989, pp.
126-127). In addition, lexicalization and the choice of vocabulary are foundations
for social relationships. To illustrate, a racist choice of words; for instance, “coons”
(p. 68) can build up assumptions of racial ideologies of the speaker by racially
representing a particular ethnic group (p. 116). Furthermore, the theme is the
starting point in any clause. Thematization is a way of emphasizing the importance
of the elements in the clause as something worth mentioning first (p. 184).
2.2.2. Van Dijk

On the other hand, van Dijk analyzes CDA through a Socio-Cognitive

approach integrating society with both discourse and cognition. Van Dijk deals
through this approach with stereotypes, prejudice of ethnicity and the abuse of
power by upper classes which results in the resistance of the dominated lower
classes (Tenorio, 2011, p. 190). For van Dijk, discourse can be responsible for
power access (p. 191).
Van Dijk (1997) has numerous categorizations for analyzing discourse.
However, for the purposes of this research, the focus lies on a few relevant
strategies which are: categorization, comparison, hyperbole, implication and irony.
Table 2 illustrates van Dijk’s discursive strategies and their brief definitions (as
cited in Rahimi and Riasati, 2011, p. 109).
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Table 2. Van Dijk's Discursive Strategies and Definitions (as cited in Rahimi &
Riasati, 2011, p. 109)

Discursive Definition
Strategies
Categorization People categorize others on a racial, social or ethnic basis.
Comparison The “out groups” are negatively compared; whereas, the “in
groups” are positively compared.
Hyperbole A rhetorical device used for exaggeration in which metaphors
positively present the self and negatively present the other.
Implication Making inferences by analyzing attitudes of people.
Irony A rhetorical device which proves significant when stated
directly.

3. A CDA Approach to Subtitling

3.1. Power Relations

Ideologically-governed power relations are often practiced in economic and

political discourses among social and ethnic groupings; for instance: gender and
social groupings. (Fairclough, 1989, pp. 33- 34) CDA investigates how the abuse
of power, dominance and inequality in society are legitimized and countered by
discourse in political and social contexts to eventually resist inequality in society
(Van Dijk, 2001, p.352). For such reason, discourse analysts often use the terms
“power,” “hegemony,” “ideology,” “class,” “gender,” “race,” and “social order,” to
refer to the notion of social dominance, integrating the concepts of discourse,
cognition and society. (Van Dijk, 2001, pp. 353-354)
3.2. Self and Other
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Van Dijk’s studies on racial and ethnic inequality portray how the ‘other’ is
represented socially and politically by underlying verbal disparagement and
stereotyping (Van Dijk, 2001, p.361). Positive representation of the self and
negative representation of the other result from understating the other. Thus, ethnic
and racial exercise can result in racial renunciation and white elite discrimination
over the dominated ethnic minorities implicitly or explicitly (Van Dijk, 1993a, pp.
59-60; Van Dijk, 1993b, p. 265). Applying this on the racist relationship between
blacks and whites, van Dijk (1991) maintains that the white elites are the
dominating group in “the system of ideological ethnic representation” (Van Dijk,
1991, p.33).
Very well-done! I particularly love the final section where you
wrap up your argument for adopting a CDA approach to subtitling.
Fantastic effort. Try to follow my suggestions regarding the word
limit. “In writing, you must kill your darlings.” -- William Faulkner
;)
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Practical Part

In the attempt to approach subtitling from the lens of CDA, there appears the
need to search for a corpus that is potentially loaded with ideological vantage
points. Documentaries mostly serve such a purpose as they originally adopt certain
viewpoints and pursue a script that aims at convincing the viewers with the
presented argument. However, because in subtitled documentaries, at least two
languages, with their linguistic and cultural peculiarities, are involved, analyzing
this genre provides a viable area of research. Subtitled documentaries offer a rich
repository of similarities, differences, modifications and sometimes omissions
where a likelihood of not conveying the same message or retaining the same effect
exists. The documentary film “13th” (2016), which constitutes the practical part of
this study, is an example of how subtitling when subjected to CDA can produce
informative results pertaining to power, dominance and inequality among ethnic
groups. Fascinating intro!

1. Lexicalization and Emotive Language

Example (1)
Time-lapse: 00:12:18,446-->00:12:26,162
SL:
“We are something other than this, uh, visceral image of criminality
and menace and threat to which people associate with us.”
TL:
‫"نحن أكثر من مجرد‬
‫هذه الصورة العنيفة لإلجرام‬
".‫والتهديد والعنف التي يربطها الناس بنا‬
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Strategies: Deletion and paraphrase

The CDA approach used in the SL is lexicalization as the word “visceral”

creates a disgusting effect on the reader of the subtitle. “Visceral” is a powerful
word as it portrays black Americans as a victim of the dominant group; the white
Americans. It gives the image of barbarism; a stereotype for black people.
However, regarding the CDA of the TT, it does not carry the same barbarous effect
as the SL as it is translated as ‘violent’. Violence is also another stereotype for
black Americans; however, “visceral” is a more powerful choice of words.
“Menace” and “threat” are two synonyms used to emphasize the SL by
lexicalization as well. By critically analyzing the words, the speaker in the
documentary aims at gaining the viewer’s sympathy for black communities. In
addition, the TL manages to convey the same lexical effect by translating the
“threat” as “violence”- which has a more negative impact. The word “violence”
carries connotations of physical force, giving a stronger stereotypical image
exercised by the white US population over the blacks.

Moreover, there are two of Gottlieb’s (1992) subtitling strategies used in

translating the previous subtitle. Deletion is used in omitting “uh”; a filler which
reflects hesitation. Fillers are often omitted in translation to lay emphasis on the
main message and to shorten the subtitle for spatial and temporal purposes, thus,
enabling the viewer to read the translation and fully grasp the meaning. In addition,
“visceral” is translated as ‘violent’, which is an acceptable translation for the
reader. Such translation is classified under paraphrase. Similarly, paraphrase is
used in translating “threat” into “violence” which shows the alteration of the SL
message and provides an acceptable translation.
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Example (2)
Time-lapse: 00:15:16,499-->00:15:21,838
SL:
“If there is one area where the word "war" is appropriate,
it is in the fight against crime.”
TL:
،"‫"إن كان هناك مجال يصح فيه استخدام كلمة "حرب‬
".‫فهو الحرب ضد الجريمة‬
Strategies: Paraphrase and deletion

When the SL speaker, president Nixon, first mentions the word “war” at the
beginning of the sentence, it is expected that the phrase “war against crime” would
follow, making the message more powerful by repeating “war” which carries
connotations of weapons and bloodshed. However, the speaker utters “fight”
instead of war; a less powerful word. In the TT, the translator renders the broader
word: “war” as a translation for fight, creating a kind of parallelism which the SL
lacks. Thus, the translator’s choice of lexicalization appeals more to emotions of
people against crimes. As for the subtitling strategies, the translator resorts to
paraphrase by altering the SL into a more acceptable form in the TL. In addition,
the translator uses deletion in “one”. This is because of the formal features of
languages as English needs a number or a definite or an indefinite article before
“area”. However, in Arabic, the word “one” can be omitted exactly like removing
the definite article before words. Deletion shortens the subtitle for the viewer
which is favorable in subtitling.
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Example (3)
Time-lapse: 00:15:24,424-->00:15:41,607
SL:
“But that was one of those code words, what we might call "dog-whistle
politics" now, which really was referring to the black political movements
of the day,
Black Power, Black Panthers, the antiwar movement, the movements for
women's and gay liberation at that time, which Nixon felt compelled to
fight back against.”
TL:
"‫"لكن ذلك كان ما نسميه "تورية الكالم السياسية‬
،‫وكانت تشير إلى حركات السود في ذلك الوقت‬
،‫ والحركة المناهضة للحرب‬،"‫ "الفهود السود‬،"‫"قوة السود‬
،ً‫وحركات تحرر المرأة وتحرر المثليين جنسيا‬
".‫والتي شعر "نيكسون" بأنه مضطر إلى النضال ضدها‬
Strategies: Resignation, decimation, deletion and paraphrase

The SL uses lexicalization as a CDA technique. “Dog-whistle politics”

means politics aimed at a certain group of people. The “dog-whistle politics” in the
context of the documentary refers to politics aimed at groups suffering from racial
discrimination; including black Americans. Moreover, the choice of words in
“compelled” and “fight back” shows how President Nixon is against these ethnic
groups. However, regarding the CDA in the TL, “dog-whistle” expression is
decimated in the SL, only sufficing with a minimal retention of the meaning by
translating ‘politics’ into ‘political’ as an adjective modifying the preceding phrase
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“code words”. The translator only uses “code words” and omits “dog-whistle” due
to the inability to translate the word as well as the absence of a TL equivalent. On
the contrary, “‫”النضال‬, implies a fight for a just cause, an expression which does not
only fall under lexicalization but also under van Dijk’s implication technique that
is governed by implicit inferences observed in the speaker’s attitude.

Regarding subtitling strategies, the translator uses resignation in “dog-

whistle”; however, the message is decimated by only translating: “code words”.
Resignation also occurs in omitting “political”; obscuring the fact that the
movements Nixon oppresses are all political. Moreover, there are several deletions
in the TT; for example, “at that time” and “really”. There is also paraphrase in
translating “fight back” as “‫ ”النضال‬as the translator alters the SL expression with a
more powerful and acceptable TL expression. This implies Nixon’s hatred towards
these groups, as if combating them is a mission for the nation.

Example (4)
Time-lapse: 00:26:20,996-->00:26:27,836
SL:
“You start out in 1954 by saying nigger, nigger, nigger.
By 1968 you can’t say nigger; that hurts you. It backfires.”
TL:
.‫ بإثارة الخوف من الزنوج‬1954 ‫"تبدأ عام‬
.‫ ال يعود بإمكانك قول ذلك‬1968 ‫بحلول‬
".‫ يرتد عليك‬.‫فهو يؤذيك‬
Strategies: Dislocation and decimation
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This example also uses lexicalization as a CDA technique. The speaker

repeats the word “nigger”, a word that is considered offensive to black people, to
stress his point that the stance towards black people in 1954 is different from 1968.
It starts out as a mental process of creating fear out of the black people. The word
“nigger” is even repeated in the following sentence, intensifying the negative effect
by repetition and use of coercive language. However, in the TL, explaining the
meaning of the SL sentence rather than transferring it lowers the impact of
discourse on ideology. In the following sentence, the word “nigger” is not
mentioned. This results in the loss of the negative impact prominent in the SL.
Concerning the subtitling strategies, the translator uses dislocation in translating
“nigger, nigger, nigger” which facilitates the message in the TL, thus, helping
viewers understand a concept which they may not be culturally aware of. However,
in the second sentence the translator resorts to decimation as he omits an important
part in the message which would only prevail with repetition.

2. Activization and Passivization

Example (5)
Time-lapse: 00:12:04,432-->00:12:15,818
SL:
“If you looked at the history of black people's various struggles in this
country, the connecting theme is the attempt to be understood as full,
complicated human beings.”
TL:
،‫"إن نظرتم إلى تاريخ معاناة السود في هذه البالد‬
‫ستجدون موضوعا ً واحدا ً وهو أنهم يريدون أن يفهم اآلخرون‬
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".‫أنهم مخلوقات بشرية كاملة ومعقدة‬

Strategies: Deletion and expansion

The CDA strategy of passivization is used in “to be understood” to obscure

the subject. The SL aims at attracting sympathy as it shows how black Americans
struggle to be seen as normal “human beings”. It is a problem of hegemony as
white Americans view themselves as a dominant, superior species. This shows the
racial discrimination practiced over black citizens of the US by white Americans.
However, in the TL, the passive voice is not maintained. It is turned into the active
voice by adding the subject: “others”. Although there is no clear indication of a
specific subject, it still gives the TL a less obscure subject than the SL. Regarding
translation strategies, the subtitling strategy of expansion is used due to the
addition of the subject “‫”اآلخرون‬, adding extra information. The translator also
generalizes the struggles by omitting the word “various” in the TT, which is
regarded as deletion.

Example (6)
Time-lapse: 00:28:55,108-->00:28:58,820
SL:
“They are often the kinds of kids that are called super predators.”
TL:
‫"غالبا ً ما يكونون ممن يُسمون‬
".‫بالمعتدين الخارقين‬
Strategy: decimation
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Regarding the CDA strategy performed in the SL, Hillary Clinton, the
speaker, uses passivization. She does not mention who calls the black African
American youth “super predators”. This obscures the subject which supposedly is
the white US authority. Moreover, another strategy overlaps which is
lexicalization; although, it is used negatively. “Super predators” is a term imposed
on young African Americans at that time, stereotyping them as criminals.
However, the choice of calling them “kids” gives a shocking effect as to what
extent would ‘a kid’ be a criminal. Moreover, critically analyzing the TT, the
investigation manifests the same passivization strategy, obscuring the subject.
However, there is no mention of the word “kids”. This maintains that the subtitler
has succeeded in portraying the effect in passivization, but failed in giving an
emotive word to describe the super predators even more negatively. However, as
for the subtitling strategies, the translator condenses the sentence; yet, part of the
meaning given by the word “kids” is lost, therefore, the strategy used here is
decimation.

3. Modality

Example (7)
Time-lapse: 00:13:47,994 --> 00:13:55,460
SL:
“if we were to give the Negroes their freedom, um,
then we would be repaid, as a nation, with crime.”
TL:
،‫"وإنه لو أعطينا للزنوج حريتهم‬
".‫ بزيادة الجريمة‬،‫فسيكافئوننا كأمة‬
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Strategies: Expansion and deletion

The speaker uses the modal verb “would” in the SL to refer to a possible
future action. This tone is used by the dominating elite politicians and government
to legitimize the stereotype of black Americans as violent and criminal. Moreover,
the choice of words is ironic because a nation should be “repaid” with positive
rewards, not something that can cause national calamity. However, in the TT, the
modal is removed as there is no sign of a probability but rather a sign of certainty
using the future tense. In addition, the translation in the TL uses Gottlieb’s
subtitling strategy of expansion in “‫”بزيادة‬. The translation not only adds to the
meaning but it also adds to the irony as it reflects that crime is already present in
America; however, it will increase to a higher level. In the previous sentence, the
filler “um” which gives the speaker time to think of the right expression to use is
removed to lay emphasis on the message without distracting the audience.

4. Van Dijk’s CDA Strategies

Example (8)
Time-lapse: 00:23:15,185-->00:23:22,609
SL:
You're black with crack cocaine, you goin' to prison
for basically the rest of your life.
Um, and if you're white, you're pretty much getting slapped on the wrist.
TL:
.‫ فستُسجن لبقية حياتك‬،‫"إن كنت أسود البشرة ومعك كراك‬
".‫ فستنال عقوبة بسيطة‬،‫إن كنت أبيض البشرة‬
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Strategies: Deletion, imitation, expansion and paraphrase

This part of the SL can be viewed under Van Dijk’s strategies of comparison
and categorization. The comparison shows that the practiced justice on black
Americans by the whites would result in the injustice of court sentences. By
categorizing the blacks and whites racially, the speaker explains how the whites are
treated differently even with possessing “crack cocaine”. The choice of using the
phrase “getting slapped on the wrist” shows the triviality of the punishment of
white citizens in comparison to black ones. In the TL, the translator maintains the
same strategies of categorization and comparison; however, he does not use
powerful lexicalization. Moreover, regarding subtitling strategies, the translator
deletes the word “cocaine” as it is already understood from the word “crack”.
However, the word “crack” itself is an example of imitation. In addition, the
translator explains the meaning of “getting slapped on the wrist” for the audience
through paraphrase and still gives an acceptable translation. Expansion is used in
"‫"البشرة‬, adding extra information and stressing that all the discrimination
happening is because of different skin colors.

Example (9)
Time-lapse: 00:25:02,584-->00:25:14,596
SL:
In many ways, the so-called war on drugs was a war on communities of
color,
a war on black communities, a war on Latino communities.
TL:
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،‫"في نواح كثيرة‬

‫كانت الحرب المزعومة على المخدرات‬
،‫حربا ً على مجتمعات ذوي البشرة الداكنة‬
،‫حربا ً على مجتمعات السود‬
".‫وحربا ً على مجتمعات ذوي األصول الالتينية‬
Strategy: Transfer

Van Dijk’s strategy of irony is prominent in using the word “the so-called”.
It shows how it is not really a war, it only appears to be one due to the dominating
effects of the white population over the blacks. The “war” is in fact a strategy
against ethnic groupings. Moreover, in the TT, van Dijk’s irony is also transmitted
in “‫ ”المزعومة‬giving the same effect as the SL message, which is a war on ethnic
groupings, not an actual war combating drugs. It is a cover politicians hide under
to reach goals of power and authority. Regarding the subtitling strategies, transfer
is used by the translator as he transmits every expression in the TL accurately.

Example (10)
Time-lapse: 00:25:40,372-->00:25:44,751
SL:
“He played on fear of crime, and law and order to win the election
easily.”
TL:
‫"عزف على وتر الخوف من الجريمة‬
‫واألمن والنظام‬
".‫للفوز باالنتخابات بسهولة‬
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Strategy: dislocation

Van dijk’s hyperbole is used in “he played on fear of crime”, showing how
politicians use fear to manipulate people’s minds just like playing a game for the
purpose of having fun. The manipulation of power and ideology is a matter
politicians often resort to in order to reach a hidden goal. In the TL, the translator
uses the CDA approach of hyperbole accurately like the SL. The translator not
only uses the verb “play” but he associates it to a string of a musical instrument,
giving the image of a musician attracting the audiences just like a politician may
attract voters through discursive and ideological manipulation. Furthermore, the
subtitling strategy used here is dislocation as the translator facilitates the message
by making it appeal to the Arabic reader using a musical metaphor.

Excellent analysis with very strong examples! You may remove

a couple of them, though, to keep within the set word limit.
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Findings

Based on the SL message and its subtitles, the analysis shows that not all
subtitling and CDA strategies are used. The findings indicate that out of Gottlieb’s
(1992) ten subtitling strategies, only eight are used with different recurrences.
These strategies are: expansion, paraphrase, transfer, imitation, dislocation,
decimation, deletion and resignation. In CDA as well, not all features are
maintained in the TL. Illustrated in Diagram 1 below are the findings of Gottlieb’s
subtitling strategies used in the selected parts of the documentary and their
recurrences, followed by those of the CDA features in both SL and TL in Diagram
2 and Pie Chart 1.

Diagram 1. Recurrences of Gottlieb's subtitling strategies

Diagram 1 shows that deletion is the translator’s most prominent strategy

with seven recurrences. Deletion easily enables the viewer to fully comprehend the
subtitle before getting replaced by new ones. Following deletion are paraphrase
and decimation with five and three recurrences respectively. In paraphrase, the
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translator focuses on delivering an acceptable TL, whereas in decimation the

translator uses easy expressions to simplify the SL message for the viewer.
Furthermore, expansion is manifested three times. It helps to balance the structural
differences between English and Arabic and to simplify the SL message delivery
by adding extra information. Dislocation is indicated twice in translation,
facilitating the message for the target audience by using more familiar target words
and expressions. Using transfer only once implies that the translator is not
restricted by the literal translation of the SL. Similarly, imitation is used once
because the TL word is known by its English name. Resignation is also utilized
once due to the inability to translate the expression in Arabic. The recurrences of
the subtitling strategies show that the translator puts the viewer first then the SL
message by simplifying the subtitles.

As for the manifests of Fairclough’s (1989, 1992, 1995) and Van Dijk’s
(1997) CDA approaches, the analysis shows similarities and differences in SL and
TL recurrences as shown in Diagram 2 and Pie Chart 1 below:
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Diagram 2. Fairclough: CDA techniques used in the selected parts of the

documentary

Pie Chart 1. Van Dijk: CDA techniques used in the selected parts of the
documentary

As indicated in Diagram 2, lexicalization and emotive language take up the

biggest share in SL with eleven recurrences and in the TL with seven. This is not
surprising as such CDA techniques are often used by ethnic minorities to assert
other’s sympathy. Passivization is used twice in the SL, highlighting its preference
to obscure the subject or any authoritative force. However, it is used only once in
the TL; subsequently, the other passive is substituted by a subject through the
active voice which is more favored in Arabic than the passive voice. Moreover,
modality has the lowest frequency as it is completely omitted in the TL and occurs
only once in the SL to foreshadow a future probability. As for Pie Chart 1, Van
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Dijk’s (1997) CDA manifests of comparison, categorization, irony and hyperbole

recur equally with 25% each in both SL and TL, indicating that the translator
manages to transfer the message as it is, objective and unbiased. Van Dijk’s CDA
features are used to derive sympathy towards the black ethnic minority.

Conclusion

In conclusion, documentaries discussing issues of race and ethnicity usually

tend to convey personal ideological views to the audience to gain sympathy. A
major domain of transferring this to other languages or cultures is audiovisual
translation- of which subtitling is a recognized practice. Analyzing the viewpoint
of the SL speakers and the translator is crucial in analyzing the implied biases in
SL and TL. Although the translator does not give an undivided heed to all
subtitling strategies like Gottlieb’s (1992), analyzing the subtitles in accordance
with such strategies sheds more light on the discursive similarities and differences
between SL and TL. Moreover, in subtitling, the translator preferably puts the
audience first; that is why deletion and simplification of the TL are sometimes
necessary to render the message easier for the viewer. The unification of both CDA
and subtitling strategies are key to analyzing documentaries connected to ethnic
and racial issues.

Wonderful work! The statistical analysis is a clever move, but

I’d like to know if it’s based on your analysis of the entire segment or
only the examples selected in the practical part. You also need to put
CDA before subtitling findings to stay consistent with the method of
analysis where we grouped examples according to CDA strategies.
Finally, I know you concluded that the translator's bias was not
ideological but more viewer-centered. However, it’d be very useful to
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explicitly mention and emphasize the translator’s neutral position

early on, particularly in the subtitling strategies part.
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