The Effect of Translator's Ideology on the Transmission of Cultural Terms in: "The Joyous Celebration "of "Jalal Al e Ahmad"

Abstract

The translation of cultural concepts is a fundamental problematic area in translation study and practice. Many suggestions have been offered to overcome these difficulties and prevent cultural misconceptions. The present study analyzed the translation of cultural concepts in a Persian culture-bound text which was translated into English for academic purpose. Data was first classified based on Newmark’s five "cultural categories" and later analyzed according to Vinay and Darbelnet’s "shift model". Finally, it was concluded that 1) Newmark’s cultural categories did not suffice for all Persian cultural terms, thus one division and one subdivision were suggested to compensate Newmark’s cultural model.2) The shift strategies "modulation" and "calque" had the highest and lowest frequency of usage respectively (opposing the declaration that "transposition" is the dominant shift observed). 3) Along with bizarre translations complete shifts in meaning was also detected. 4) The ideology of the translator had influenced the text selection and consequently the translation process and product. The results of this paper are likely to be beneficial for translation criticism and translation evaluation.