Humour in Translation 3301-JS1807
The course offers a description of verbal humour from the perspective of pragmatics. We will discuss humor mechanisms stemming from the language structure of the text (such as semantic, syntactic and pragmatic ambiguity) as well as those resining in the shared beliefs and experiences of the speaker and hearer. Such mechanisms are linked to humour genres, such as stand-up comedy, sketch, anecdote, meme, etc. A discussion on translatability of humour and possible translation strategies will be rooted in the account of genre-specific mechanisms. The key theoretical notion in humour studies is incongruity and its resolution (Yus 2016), besides some fundamental terms from translation studies will also be applied, such as formal and dynamic equivalence, as well as domestication and interpretive resemblance. Illustrative examples will be taken from written texts and films.
Type of course
Mode
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
Students gain knowledge on linguistic and cognitive mechanisms generating humour as well as on translation strategies and techniques that can be used for translating humour. Students develop skills to analyse written and audiovisual texts for the sake of establishing which elements of such texts potentially contribute to evoking humorous effects in the recipient. Additionally, they develop the skill to find a translation strategy/technique suitable for rendering a similar effect in the target text recipient. With respect to social competences, students develop the skill to use humour in intercultural communication.
Develops EFL skills at the B2+ level.
Assessment criteria
80% of the grade - 1500-word essay
20% of the grade - completion of three home assignments
Bibliography
Attardo, S. (2002). "Translation and Humour". The Translator 8: 173-194.
Attardo, S. (ed.)(2017). The Routlege Handbook of Language and Humor. Routlege.
Piskorska, A. (2021) "The Internet and social media as a theme and channel of humor" Internet Pragmatics 4:1, 12-27.
Yus, F. (2016). "Humour and relevance". John Benjamins.
Additional information
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: