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Article published In: Translation and Interpreting Studies
Vol. 15:2 (2020) ► pp.242–260

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When the audience changes

Translating adult fiction for young readers

 | University of Ljubljana
 | University of Ljubljana
Published online: 8 April 2020
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/tis.20015.zla
Abstract
Much is expected to change when a work of fiction is translated from one language and culture to another, but the intended reader is not. This paper deals with the issue of the change of the intended reader from adult to child/adolescent in translations of fiction from English into Slovene. The intended reader is most likely to change in translations of comics/cartoons, fantasy, and realistic fiction with child or animal protagonists. The reasons for the change can be both textual and extra-textual: on the one hand, books are categorized as children’s books by libraries, award boards and marketers, as well as by the publisher’s choice of translator, while, on the other hand, individual translation decisions on the microlevel can help move a book from one category to another.
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • Literature for adults, literature for children
  • Translating children’s literature
  • How does the audience change?
    • The awards and honors system in Slovenia
    • When does the audience change?
    • Adaptations of classics
    • Translations of comics
    • Translations of fantasy
    • Translations of books with child narrators
  • When the style changes the audience: A case study
    • Stylistic changes
    • Semantic changes
    • Cultural changes
  • Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
References (36)
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Zhu, Kun & Guoliang Guo
2023.  Transediting classic English novels for children in China: a narratological case study of Gulliver’s Travels . Asia Pacific Translation and Intercultural Studies 10:2 ► pp. 158 ff. DOI logo

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