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Article published In:
FORUM
Vol. 21:1 (2023) ► pp.1–24

Foreignness as a border-crossing challenge

A Singaporean case

| National University of Singapore

Based on the concepts of foreignness delineated by theorists in border studies and cultural translation, this paper analyzes Xi Ni Er’s short stories and identifies two types of translation challenges: the untranslatability of words and the untransferability of feelings. The Singapore-specific linguistic landscape features heteroglossia and homophonic implications, and these characteristics constitute untranslatable linguistic foreignness. In addition, this paper notes social and cultural foreignness that serve the function of making readers feel what the writer feels (e.g., sorrow, nostalgia, and indignation), and it is difficult to find an effective and suitable translation strategy to trigger empathy among target readers who do not share social or cultural experiences. This paper, thus, emphasizes the importance of investigating the transference of feelings, and a survey is conducted to gain reader-based insight into the suitability of offering supplementary materials in translation. Finally, the results reveal that readers find these materials helpful and not intrusive.

Keywords: foreignness, untranslatability of words, untransferability of feelings, empathy, reader-based insight
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Bringing foreignness across borders in literary translation
    • 2.1Foreignness in the border-crossing concept
    • 2.2Foreignness in cultural translation
  • 3.Research materials and analysis method
  • 4.Foreignness identified in Xi Ni Er’s short stories
    • 4.1Singapore-specific linguistic landscape
    • 4.2Social critique
    • 4.3Cultural remembrance and vicissitudes
    • 4.4Historical resentment
  • 5.Research insights and exploration
    • 5.1Linguistic, social, and cultural foreignness as border-crossing challenges
    • 5.2Untransferability of feelings as an emergent translation challenge
    • 5.3Empirical findings from the survey
  • 6.Concluding remarks
  • Note
  • References
Published online: 6 July 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/forum.22011.che
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