In:Between Text and Image: Updating research in screen translation
Edited by Delia Chiaro, Christine Heiss and Chiara Bucaria
[Benjamins Translation Library 78] 2008
► pp. 183–195
Taming teen-language: The adaptation of Buffyspeak into Italian
Published online: 14 August 2008
https://doi.org/10.1075/btl.78.19bia
https://doi.org/10.1075/btl.78.19bia
This paper examines the Italian dubbed version of the US TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, focussing in particular on the translation of the show’s idiosyncratic slang, the so-called Buffyspeak, and the representation of unconventional femininity embodied by the character of Buffy. Our analysis shows how the changes made in the adaptation radically alter two of the most debated elements of the programme: its youth language and its ‘feminist’ content, resulting in what we argue is a ‘tamer’ version of the show. We believe that linguistic and technical problems are insufficient to explain the normalisation strategies adopted throughout so other factors have been considered. In particular, we focus on current working practices in the Italian dubbing industry, the importance of clear generic labelling on TV and the difference between US and Italian teen series, all of which have been cited as elements that are likely to have affected the adaptation of the programme. Ultimately this illustrates that, when analysing dubbing for television, it is necessary to take into account the socio-cultural context to understand how certain strategies are chosen and why.
Keywords: dubbing, normalization, slang, teen TV, youth language
Cited by (9)
Cited by nine other publications
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Muñoz, Pablo Zamora
2024. El léxico coloquial proveniente del lenguaje juvenil en la lengua de ficción española e italiana, versiones originales
y meta. Babel. Revue internationale de la traduction / International Journal of Translation / Revista Internacional de Traducción 70:4 ► pp. 507 ff.
Magazzù, Giulia
Manfredi, Marina & Chiara Bartolini
Ciampi, Debora
2019. Constructing youth identities in dubbed movies. In Reassessing Dubbing [Benjamins Translation Library, 148], ► pp. 263 ff.
Bianchi, Diana & Federico Zanettin
Bucaria, Chiara
Zanotti, Serenella
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