Characters’ speech in fiction: translation methods

In this article the author discusses the questions raised during the international conference “Books with Conversations: How to Translate Characters’ Speech” (Moscow, Higher School of Economics, Lomonosov Moscow State University). The conference program was focused on the problem of translation of various speech forms (dialogue, monologue, attribution, role speech, etc.) in different linguistic traditions: leading world researchers and translators (English, German, Japanese, Scandinavian languages) attempted to problematize a given topic in various aspects, both theoretical and practical, and methodological. The researchers discussed the problem of translating direct speech both in modern literature and in classic literature, which in some cases requires the “aging” of the language. In addition, the speakers referred to the comparison of the translation of characters’ speech in adult fiction, in teen fiction, and in children’s fiction, involving parent-child joint reading. Another aspect of translation, highlighted during the discussion at the conference, was the question of yakuwarigo, i.e. fictionalised orality in Japanese fiction, a type of role speech, often used in literary works written in Japanese. This type of speech often depicts such features of character as gender, age, occupation, class etc. The researchers and translators drew attention to the perception of the text: whether it will be perceived visually or audibly, whether it will be read or heard, it focuses on writing (prose) or audial dimension (drama, audiobooks, etc.). Particular attention was paid to the receptive dimension of translation: a promising direction for discussion in this case is to put it into an intermedial context, the characters’ speech can adapt to the media in which it is reproduced, and require, as a result, different principles of translation.