3.6.2　Globalization

While recognizing that films are undeniably an art form,drawing on the creativity of individuals and collectives,their importance as a commercial product cannot be underestimated.The aim of many film producers is for their films to engage with the widest possible audience and,in turn,boost box office takings both in the country of origin and abroad.To this extent,the quality of translation in films is an essential criterion in the success of a film within international market.Secondly,to put “globalization” into a more concrete usage,Davies suggested seven strategies in his discussion of the translation of the Harry Potter books (2003: 71).Among these seven strategies,he explained “globalization” as a kind of translation strategy,as it concerns “the process of replacing cultural-specific references with ones which are more neutral or general,in the sense that they are accessible to audiences from a wider range of cultural backgrounds” (ibid: 83).(https://www.daowen.com)

Given that the Chinese cultural background is dramatically different from that of Western cultures,the current study will show how cultural differences play a fundamental part in the E-C translation in films and vice versa.In the sample film,the impact of globalization in subtitling can neutralize the translation of some subtitles for the target audience.For example,the translation of some famous landmarks,such as the Great Pyramid of Giza,the Statue of Liberty,and Las Vegas,corresponds to standardized Chinese.Audiences with a reasonable level of education and reading ability in Chinese would know what these landmarks are.Moreover,where the original language refers to the names of some newly invented or imaginary weapons,such as freeze ray,shrink ray and squid-launcher,the translator chose to simplify these items by using common Chinese words that are intended to guide the target audience towards the image contained in these weapons’ names.