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2020, The Journal of Specialised Translation

Yu, Jinquan, “Abend-David, Dror (ed.) (2019)._ Representing Translation: The Representation of Translation and Translators in Contemporary Media._” _The Journal of Specialised Translation_. Issue 33 – January 2020. 281-282.

The Journal of Specialised Translation Issue 33 – January 2020 Abend-David, Dror (ed.) (2019). Representing Translation: The Representation of Translation and Translators in Contemporary Media. London / New York: Bloomsbury Academic, pp. 229, £ 98.00. ISBN: 978 1501333873 (hardback). A s contemporary society is increasingly multilingual, multicultural and multinational, the role of translation and translators is brought to the fore. Following this critical trend, Abend-David’s Representing Translation, a continuation of his previous collection Media and Translation (2014), gives prominence to the performative and communicative role of translation and translators in contemporary media, seeing them as an integral part of everyday life. The present volume consists of nine chapters by scholars with various research backgrounds such as Translation Studies, Audiovisual Translation, Film Studies, New Media, Linguistics and Cultural Studies. In addition to the nine chapters, the volume includes the editor’s introduction, biographies of contributors and indexes. Also, each chapter starts with an introductory note written by the volume’s editor where he summarises its main contents and arguments. The nine chapters shed light on a variety of themes including the role of translators and translation in film and television (Chapter 1); translators as protagonists, agents and negotiators (Chapters 2 and 3); translation and translators in New Media (Chapter 4); translation and global communication (Chapter 5); the presentation of visual texts through alternative techniques (Chapter 6); translation within multilingual films (Chapters 7 and 9); and translation in advertisements (Chapter 8). In Chapter 1, based on the two television series Doctor Who and Star Trek, Erga Heller examines the evolution of automatic translation (referred to as a Universal Translator). She shows that, in these two series, the Universal Translator has transformed from a technical device to a human mediator, while, in practice, language engineers have been developing sophisticated translation tools to replace human translation from the 1960s to the present. In Chapter 2, Ying Xiao explores various roles of translator Bian Zhilin and performer Sun Daolin in the reception, reinterpretation and recontextualisation of Hamlet in China in different historical periods, demonstrating the searching of a Chinese Hamlet as a meta-translation, intro-translation and inter-translation. In Chapter 3, Kayoko Takeda focuses on the role of interpreters in mediating violence via the representation of interpreters in the films Ip Man, The Railway Man and The Arrival of Wang. In Chapter 4, drawing on appraisal theory, Chiara Bucaria examines Twitter reactions to the adaptation of the American TV series How To Get Away With Murder in Italy. By so doing, Bucaria argues that the agency of consumers of audiovisual content has increased, and that they have become more demanding and unforgiving. In Chapter 5, based on a number of movies involving loving couples speaking different languages, Delia Chiaro 281 The Journal of Specialised Translation Issue 33 – January 2020 examines the comic effect brought about by overcoming the language barriers between the lovers and demonstrates the linguistic diversity as the target of humour. In Chapter 6, viewing audio description as multisemiotic translation, Iwona Mazur describes its visually impaired and sighted recipients and discusses its potential benefits for sighted viewers. Furthermore, she explores universal design in audio description and the challenges involved in materialising the idea of audio description for all. In Chapter 7, with an analysis of selected examples from multilingual films in South Africa, Zoë Pettit examines different strategies employed by audiovisual translators to address multilingual elements and further explores their impacts on the viewers. In Chapter 8, based on an analysis of 158 bilingual advertisements, Ying Cui and Yanli Zhao investigate how localization strategies are used in English-Chinese advertisement translation to meet the Chinese audience’s needs and expectations. In the final Chapter, Dror Abend-David explores the purpose and function of the Yiddish Prologue in the film A Serious Man based on the dramatic function of translation, suggesting the necessity of an interdisciplinary approach to the study of media and translation. The introductory notes written by the editor before each chapter are thought-provoking and may make readers identify future research directions. Also, each chapter concludes with a glossary and a list of references, which are convenient and helpful for readers. Furthermore, it is very commendable that this volume brings together the cream of scholars from various nations to provide insights into different cultures and political realities. However, it should be pointed out that the nations covered in the volume are mainly developed countries such as Japan, Italy and the United States, while the developing countries are not given sufficient attention. For example, the volume would have been more diverse if it had included studies involving countries from South America and Africa, as they are also important multilingual and multiethnic societies that have increasing access to the media, thereby providing fertile grounds for further exploring the representation of translation in contemporary media. In sum, this volume makes a timely and important contribution to the further development of the study of translation and media, highlighting diverse and dynamic functions of translation in our new era. With the wellorganised themes and reader-friendly glossary section, the volume appeals to both experts and students in translation, media and film studies. References  Abend-David, Dror (ed.) (2014). Media and Translation: An Interdisciplinary Approach. London/New York: Bloomsbury Publishing. Jinquan Yu Zhejiang Gongshang University E-mail: jinquan.yu@yahoo.com 282