A Study of the Relationships between Drama and Music in Translation of Librettos

• Main Authors: Chang, Li-Mei, 張麗美
• Other Authors: Kii-Ming Lo
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2001
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/92001941321759376843

碩士 === 輔仁大學 === 翻譯學研究所 === 89 === Abstract The translation of librettos is special in the field of translation studies, because librettos are usually not individual literary works, but dramas performed in conjunction with musical arts. This thesis provides examples mainly from two operas, Otello and Turandot, attempting to demonstrate the influences of different word arrangements on the dramatic effects, expressiveness and naturalness of translation works. It further discusses what technique translators can adopt to simultaneously present the dramatic effects of librettos and music. This thesis is composed of five chapters. The first chapter gives an introduction to the features of librettos, and explains what strategies and principles the author/translator who has taken the roles, functions, and goals of libretto translations into considerations has decided to apply to translation of librettos. The second chapter discusses general questions related to the concept of word order. Translation examples categorized into three important elements in word-order concept -- grammatical structure, rhetoric, and customary usage-- are provided to review their readability. Chapter three offers examples and discusses how to enhance the dramatic effects of librettos based on the concepts of drama-translations. The discussions are classified into characters and plots, both are components of dramas, with a view to find out how translators can clearly present the essence of the characters (including their qualities, personalities, and interactions with one another) and plots ( including plot explanations, consistencies, and narrating techniques). Chapter four emphasizes on how the dramatic effects of words and music can attain harmony with each other, since musical structures play essential roles in translation of librettos. According to the outcome of the studies, the two most important methods to make words go together with music are audio-visual harmony and audio-visual consistency. The last chapter sums up the findings of this thesis, and offers suggestions and issues for further studies.