"The Brothers Grimm" in the Ukrainian translation

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1

Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine

Ivan Franko National University in Lviv

Faculty of Foreign Languages

The Hryhoriy Kochur Department

Of Translation Studies and Contrastive Linguistics

Reproduction of intertextuality in the movie

“The Brothers Grimm” in the Ukrainian translation

Course paper

Puzikov Yurii

Lviv 2015

Contents

Introduction

Ñhapter 1. The characteristics of audiovisual translation

1.1 The notion of AVT

1.2 Subtitling vs Dubbing

Ñhapter 2. The characteristics of intertextuality and closely related notions

2.1 The notion of intertextuality

2.1 The notion of the vertical context

2.2 Allusions

2.2.1 The notion of allusion

2.2.2 Types of allusions

2.2.3 Functions of allusions

2.2.4 Ways of translation of allusions

Ñhapter 3. The reproduction of allusions in the translation of the film “The brothers Grimm”

Conclusion

The list of references

Introduction

“The Brothers Grimm” is an adventure fantasy film, directed by Terry Gilliam in 2005. In spite of receiving mixed reviews from critics, it gained millions of viewers all over the world not only with black comedy and fabulous atmosphere, created by the director, but also due to lots of intertextual references to the real brothers' life and their famous fairy tales. Thus, as the plot can be considered to be one big allusion, Ukrainian adaptation of this film presented the translator with complicated challenges. The present research paper focuses on investigating the linguistic methods and techniques, applied by the translator in the target text in order to preserve and render the effects of the original intertextuality.

The aim of this research is to define the main difficulties of creating a proper Ukrainian reproduction of the original English text, as well as to analyze how the allusions of the source text are reproduced in the Ukrainian adaptation.

The topicality of the research lies in the necessity to provide a proficient Ukrainian translation of foreign films generally and of British films in particular. Even an inadequate interpretation of the only title can cause serious troubles with rendering the original effect of the movie on the viewers in a specific country. The researched movie's text is remarkably “shaped” by lots of references; therefore it is of vital importance that the appropriate equivalents will be provided, so that the target viewers will be affected in a proper way.

The objects of the research are the allusions used in the original text of Terry Gilliam's film “The Brothers Grimm” and their Ukrainian reproduction.

The subject of the research consists in investigating the strategies and peculiarities of rendering the original text's intertextual references in the Ukrainian reproduction.

The research sets the following objectives:

§ To get an insight into the theoretical material on the subject of the paper under analysis.

§ To examine the notion of intertextuality, allusion, vertical context and their role in creating the specific effect on the target viewers.

§ To conduct a contrastive analysis of the source and the target texts from the viewpoint of the researched theoretical topic.

§ To analyze the ways of intertextuality reproduction, used by the translator in the target text.

An appropriate analysis of the movie “The Brothers Grimm” and its Ukrainian reproduction requires using several methods of linguistic research. The contrastive and comparative methods were applied in the theoretical part. The practical part is based on the method of dictionary definitions (used to contrast English and Ukrainian meanings of lexical units), method of linguostylistic analysis of the original and the translation, as well as Translation Studies analysis.

The novelty of the course paper lies in dealing with the intertextual references in the source text and its Ukrainian reproduction. It is thought that all modern texts are in some way “shaped” by previous texts. Therefore, the problems of the reproducing such connections is always novel and topical.

The course paper consists of the introduction, three chapters, conclusions and the list of references. The first chapter is dedicated to the notion of audiovisual translation and focuses on the methods of translation films. The second chapter dwells upon the conception of intertextuality and vertical context. It mostly focuses on the notion of allusion, its types, functions and ways of translation. The third chapter encompasses the analysis of the translation of allusions in the film “The Brothers Grimm”. The number of corpus collected constitutes 29 samples. In the conclusion the results of the research are summed up. The list of references comprises the theoretical and lexicographical resources used while writing the present research paper.

Ñhapter 1. The characteristics of audiovisual translation

1.1 The notion of AVT

dubbing film allusion translation

The translation of audiovisual products, such as documentaries, films, news, debates, concerts, television series, etc., has become one of the most important translation activities in the last decades. Nowadays cinematograph has become a significant part of modern cultures and even an important branch of business life in most countries. In the result of the development of globalization and mainstream-culture that is going overnight, such kind of products have become significantly more approachable. With the help of television, the Internet, radio and cinemas any audiovisual product can immediately reach an enormous number of audiences in almost any part of the world. Audiovisual Translation helps these products to cross the borders of languages and cultures.

According to Lau Keneth, the Audiovisual Translation (AVT) can be defined as “a discipline that is much more than mere transfer, as pictures, music, sounds and other nonverbal elements are also involved in the process, making it a kind of multi-semiotic transfer” [42, p. 1].

Delia Chiaro defines the term as follows:

“[a]udiovisual translation is the term used to refer to the transfer from one language to another of the verbal components contained in audiovisual works and products. Feature films, television programs, theatrical plays, musicals, opera, Web pages, and video games are just some examples of the vast array of audiovisual products available and that require translation” [25, p. 5]

There are two main features of audiovisual text. First of all it is received through two channels: acoustic and visual. Also there is a synchrony between verbal and non-verbal message. Àudiovisual text requires projection on a screen and it is based on reproducibleandrecordedmaterial[38]. F³lms are a very influential and powerful way to transfer values, ideas and information. Film is ñonsidered to be a polysemiotic medium that transfers meaning through different channels, such as dialoguå, music and picture. Items which used to be culture-specific tend to spread and encroach upon other cultures. The choice of film translation method or mode largely contributes to the reception of a source language film in à target culture. Understanding îf foreign films is impossible for people, who are not fluent in a foreign language. Only thanks to audiovisual translation is it possible for them to understand the plot in the proper way [28, p. 84].

Audiovisual Translation is not necessarily made between two different languages (Inter-lingual Translation). It can be also provided for hard-of-hearing, blind and deaf people, with the help of sign-language and audio description (Intra-lingual Translation). A. Serban provides the following classification of Audiovisual Translation [40, p.4]:

o Inter-lingual Translation:

· Subtitling - consists in the production of snippets of written text (subtitles, or captions in American English) to be superimposed on visual footage - normally at the bottom of the screen - while an audiovisual text is projected, played or broadcast;

· Dubbing - is a process in which vocal recording (likedialogue) occurs subsequent to the original recording stage;

· Voice-over- a method that involves pre-recorded revoicing: after a few seconds in which the original sîund is fully audible, the volume is lowered and the voice reading the translation becomes prominent.

o Intra-lingual (monolingual):

· Audio description for the blind;

· Live subtitling (for instance news broadcasts);

· Subtitling for the opera and the theatre.

Since the topic of the research is dedicated to film translation, only interlingual translation is to be specifically analyzed herein. Subtitling and Dubbing are of particular interest, as far as Voice-over and the other types are concerned with television translation or with theatre translation.

1.2 Subtitling vs Dubbing

The most significant difference between subtitling and dubbing lies in the way that the receiver percepts the very translation. On the one hand, subtitling "is the form that alters the source text to the least possible extent, and enables the target audience to express the foreign and be aware of its “foreignness” at all times". On the other hand, dubbing is the method in which "the foreign dialogue is adjusted to the mouth and movements of the actor in the film" [41, p. 2]. Hence, on the contrary, dubbing allows the viewers to percept the actor as real native speaker of the target language.

In addition, J. Diaz-Cintas points out the following differences that distinguish subtitling and dubbing: [26, p. 53].

· the reduction is fundamental to subtitling, however not so much to dubbing;

· the translation of exclamations and interjections is not a problem in subtitling, but it is critical in dubbing;

· the shift from oral to written does not occur in dubbing;

· the problems of linguistic variation are practically irresolvable in subtitling;

· the translation of expletives is much more urgent in subtitling than in dubbing;

· the coexistence of two languages in the subtitled version has an impact on the translation of subtitles that has no parallel in dubbing.

Both subtitling and dubbing have certain advantages and disadvantages and both are put under the influence of certain factors that determine their choice. Hence, one of them cannot be considered to be better than the other. In case the viewer is not satisfied with the properness of one of the provided modes of translating, modern technologies allow him to have a choice between watching a subtitled version of a foreign film or a dubbed one.

Ñhapter 2. The characteristics of intertextuality and closely related notions

2.1 The notion of intertextuality

The term “intertextuality” was introduced by the post-structuralism theorist Julia Kristeva in 1967. She defines this notion as a common property of different texts, expressed by obvious connections between them (or between parts of these texts), due to which they are able to refer to each other.

Although examples of intertextuality can be clearly seen in works of ancient times, the introduction of this term in the 20^th century cannot be considered to be accidental. In the result of accelerated development of the mass media and the Internet, the major part of the mankind has a quick and free access to almost all pieces of art of any historical period. According to Polish paradoxographer Stanis³aw Jerzy Lec, “Everything has been already said. Fortunately, not everything has been thought over”. [38].

An interesting reference to this idea can be seen in the poem of the famous Ukrainian poet and writer Lina Kostenko. An extract from the very poem is provided in the English translation, made by Hennadii Pokryvailo[39]:

The silent words are frightening and mean, they hide at times to make the fears steady, and you don't know how to begin, for someone all these words has used already.

Hence, when you create something new, in order to validate its novelty you are forced to match it with something, that has been already created. In case the novelty is totally absent, it has become extremely popular to use already created forms and structures so as to point author's conversance with the masterpieces of the classic literature. Thus, the overwhelming majority of 20^{th century} pieces of art can be considered to be examples of intertextuality [38].

The notion of intertextuality is rather multiple. Therefore, different scholars can provide totally different definitions of it, depending on their theoretical or philosophical preferences. The only common assumption for all of them can be the statement, that each and every text is a kind of “reaction” to previous texts [14, p. 18]. The most universal definition of intertextuality was provided by R. Barthes: “Each text is an intertext; other texts are present in it on different levels and in various degrees of recognizability; each text is a new fabric, created on the basis of old quotations” [24, p. 78].

Intertextuality can be considered to be a kind of literary device that is self-consciously used by authors for the purpose of creating a certain effect on the target reader. Furthermore, we can analyze in what way the author conscious references to previous texts, called “prototexts”, modifies the sense of the new text, known as the “metatext”. The terms “prototexts” and “metatext” were introduced by the Slovakian translation theorist A. Popoviæ, who defined them as the primary and the secondary texts, as well as the source-text and the target text [15, p. 19].

Significantly important notion in the conception of intertextuality - especially from the viewpoint of translation theory - is the so-called “precedention” of texts. The term “precedential text” was introduced by a famous Russian linguist Yu. Karaulov. He states that it is a kind of text that is obligatory to be known within the confines of a specific national culture and, therefore, is generally familiar to all native speakers of the very culture. Most commonly these texts characterize a specific historical period of an ethnic group. Hence, the usage of references to such texts by modern authors is a very efficient way of forming the culture's national identity [p. 20].

Intertextuality can be expressed in many ways, depending on the stylistic preferences of the specific author. According to V. Heinemann, a text can be enriched with the following forms of intertextuality [23, p.60]:

· I. R. Galperin defines a quotation as “a repetition of a phrase or statement from a book, speech and the like used by way of authority, illustration, proof or as a basis for further speculation on the matter in hand” [8. p. 169];

· The notion of a hint is explained in the Free Dictionary in the following way: “it is a mean to convey an idea covertly or indirectly, but in a way that can be understood” [34];

· According to the Oxford Dictionary, paraphrase can be defined in the following way: to paraphrase means to “[e]xpress the meaning of (he writer or speaker or something written or spoken using different words, especially to achieve greater clarity” [35];

· Text collage is “[a] work, such as a literary piece, composed of both borrowed and original material” [34];

· Parody is “an imitation of the style of a particular writer, artist, or genre with deliberate exaggeration for comic effect” [34];

· Travesty is “an absurd or grotesque misrepresentation, a parody, or grossly inferior imitation” [43].

Intertextuality may serve the following functions in the text [38]:

Ø Expressive - the selection of intertextual quotations, the character of allusions and other references can be an element of the author's self-expression;

Ø Appellate - the selected references are often used to appeal to a totally specific type of receivers that can see the true value of the intention that stands for the selection of the very reference;

Ø Poetical - often the identification of intertextual references can be considered to be a kind of entertaining game, as working a crossword puzzle. The complicacy can be different: from recognizing the quotations from extremely popular films, to detecting such intertextual relations that were used by the author with no intention;

Ø Referential - obviously, the usage of intertextual references causes sharing of various types of information that was expressed in the source text;

Ø Metatextual - when the reader detects a reference in the text, he/she has two options: to continue reading, considering the referential piece to be an organic part of the text, or resort to the source text in order to get a better understanding of the very reference;

Vertical context encompasses the historical-philological information that was intentionally put in the text by the author. It follows that in order to understand and interpret this kind of information in a proper way, the receiver must have corresponding background knowledge.

The very notion was introduced by O.S. Akhmanova and I.V. Giubbenet in the second part of the 20^th century. Depending on the means of bringing vertical context in the text, the following types can be outlined:

· Philological vertical context - the usage of allusions, quotations, deformed idioms.

· Social-historical vertical context - the usage of various realia, proper names and toponyms. [2, p. 47].

L.V. Boldyrieva differentiates the social and historical vertical context (a part of philological historical information, intentionally put in the text in order to provide a description of the outer world), and the social and historical background of the period, described in the text (features, that characterize the daily life of the characters as the representatives of a certain social group in the course of a given historical period) [5, p. 9-12].

There is a fair amount of ways to bring vertical context to a literary text. I.V. Giubbenet distinguishes the following ones:

· The author provides the detailed information about the source.

· The characters of the very literary text give this information to the reader.

· The author intentionally provides references to wrong sources in order to create a comic effect.

· Famous quotations are provided as authorless, sometimes even as proverbs or sayings.

· Sometimes vertical context is not graphically marked. Consequently, that leads to a fusion of the author's words and the citatory speech.

· The author provides a comment to the used reference.

· The quotation is modified, that leads to a mixture of registers and styles.

· Comparisons (when some element of the literary text is compared to the corresponding element in the source text. This helps the reader to get a better understanding of the used references, in case he/she has proper background knowledge).

An excessive usage of alluded figures of speech can cause serious difficulties in understanding the text for the reader. Moreover, it can cause the same problems for the translator in the course of adaptation, especially when the vertical context is brought to the text without using any comments or graphical markers [9, p. 47].

2.2 Allusions

2.2.1 The notion of allusion

One of the most frequently used occurrences of intertextual connections is allusion. This notion can be defined as an indirect reference (a word or a phrase) to a historical, literary, mythological, biblical fact or to a fact of everyday life, made in the course of speaking or writing [4, p.24]. A. Mashkova does not draw significant distinction between conscious reproducing the form and content of earlier works and cases, when the author does not comprehend someone's impact on his works [18, p. 9]. In contrast, A.S. Yevsieiev states that allusion is a stylistic device that should necessarily contain author's conscious intention so as to create a desired effect on the receiver [13, p. 7].

According to The Oxford Dictionary of Allusions, “allusion is the mentioning of the name of a real person, historical event or literary character which is not simply a straightforward reference, but which conjures up some extra meaning, embodying some quality or characteristic for which the word has come to stand” [36, p. 11].

In comparison with quotations, no indication of the allusion's source is given. I.R. Galperin provides another significant difference that lies in the structural nature of an allusion: “a quotation must repeat the exact wording of the original even though the meaning may be modified by the new context, while an allusion is only a mention of a word or phrase which may be regarded as the key-word of the utterance” [8, p. 171]. I.V. Giubbennet defines allusions as a maximally deformed quotation. [10, p. 35] On the contrary, M. Wheeler considers allusion to be a common indication for a reference and a quotation as well [Wheelr, p. 134].

In order to distinguish allusion from other types of intertextual references, A. Tyutenko outlined the following criteria of allusion identification [22]:

Another researcher K. Lototska provides the following definition of allusion: “allusion is a hint, an indirect reference to something presumably known to the receiver that can be used without fear of being misunderstood and without being forced to give lengthy explanations of it. [17, p. 109].

According to K.R. Novozhilova, allusions are expressed by a hidden authorless quotation containing a hint at some literary or common cultural fact that is familiar to both the author and the target receiver [19, p. 77]. The author just mentions some detail of what he/she considers to be an analogy in fiction/history to the topic that is being discussed, without having to provide any explanations. Nevertheless, the receiver's educational level and his “intertextual competence” should be corresponding in order to be able to recognize the stylistic value of the very allusion. [16, p. 171]. Apparently, in case the text's allusion remains to be unidentified, the communication process between the author and the target receiver fails Therefore, allusions are sometimes made to things and facts which need commentary before they are understood.

S.P. Belokurova underscores that an allusion always has a wider meaning than the phrase or quotation that she refers to. Hence, this forces the receiver to correlate them and indicate their common and distinguishable features [3, p. 15].

2.2.2 Types of allusions

According to A.S. Yevsieiev, a reference to a source text can be accomplished in two ways: by a nomination and by a quotation. In such manner, Yevsieiev distinguishes two types of allusions that are based on the difference that lies in the different type of denotation [13, p. 4-5]:

· Citatory allusion - the denotation consists in the text and metonymously related objects (for instance, a parody of some specific person, that includes also reproducing his/her linguistic peculiarities); D. Diuryshyn also points out overt and covert citatory allusions [12, p. 153-154];

· Nominative allusion - all other types of denotation [4, p. 2].

M.D. Tukharelli suggests an interesting classification of allusions that is based on the semantical and structural peculiarities of allusion [21, p. 16-17]:

The Proper name allusions [PN] include the following notions:

· Zoonyms - names of animals;

· Toponyms - geographical names;

· Cosmonyms - names of astronomical bodies;

· Ktematonyms - names of historical figures, events and artistic works. According to R.Leppihalme, “these kinds of names are sometimes borrowed from Holy Scriptures or myths”. [Lepp, p. 67].

· Theonyms - names of gods, demons, mythological characters.

R. Leppihalme's also singles out key-phrase allusions [KP] that are expressed by some words or phrases. They can refer to a literary work, quotation, fact or any other expression from the source text. The researcher points out the following sources of key-phrase allusions [27, p. 68-69].

· The Bible;

· Nursery rhymes and children's tales;

· Songs;

· Well-known films and topical television programs

· Political slogans

· Commercial product slogans

· Various catch-phrases, clichés and proverbs

· Various popular beliefs, assumptions and storiesRegarding the allusion as a literary text, A. Mamaieva defines it as an allusion that is expressed by a whole literary text which is characterized with an enormous amount of peculiarities of another text and duplicates its order of parts. The example of such allusion in the world literature can be considered to be J. Joyce's “Ulysses” that duplicates Homer's “Odyssey” [4, p. 3].

Another researcher A. Kirillov has established a classification that is based mostly on the type of the source-text. The researcher has categorized allusions into 5 groups [15, p.103]

· Historical allusion (such as people, places, events)

· Literary allusion (such as characters, settings, plot)

· Biblical allusion (including texts from Old Testament, New Testament);

· Popular culture (related to contemporary people, places, events, literary works, works of art)

· The arts (related to music, works of art, theatre/film)

Much more comprehensive classification of allusions is provided by N.Yu. Novokhachova. It is based on the genre distinguishing characteristics of the text that includes the very allusion. She points out the following 10 types of allusions [20, p. 88]

· Literary and artistic;

· Folk;

· Cinematographic;

· Song-like;

· Journalistic;

· Eloquent;

· Official;

· Intermediary;

· Biblical;

· Scientific

2.2.3 Functions of allusions

The way to classify and coin the functions of allusions is still a significantly controversial issue. Different approaches to this problem can fundamentally differ, depending on the researched linkages between the allusion and the source, and its role in expressing the sense and idea of the text. Nevertheless, they often coincide in some basic principles.

Ye.A. Vasilieva singles out 2 major groups of functions. The first one lies in forming the informational unity of the text that includes the allusion. The second one is used to establish the genre distinguishing characteristics of the text. The researcher also subdivides these groups in the following way [7, p. 18-19]:

Text forming functions:

· structural function, that consists in correlation between the structures of the prototext and the metatext;

· bringing up a recurrent topic (for instance the topic of war, love, violence), that makes a significant contribution to the formation of text's sense.

· characterizing the character;

· bringing new extra sense to the text

o Genre forming functions.

· creating a comic effect;

· making the text more “open”, from the viewpoint of intertextuality;

· creating a characteristic of a character.

S.R. Avramenko provides a classification of the functions that focuses on the inner world of the characters, their behaviour and reaction to the described historical period and the events that take place in the very text. Hence, the scholar points out the following 6 functions 1, p.4-5:

· Rendering the account of the historical period of the events;

· Characterizing personal relationship between the characters;

· Characterizing activities of character's daily living;

· Explain (explicate) spiritual and intellectual features of the character;

· Portraying the feelings of the character;

· Characterize moral and aesthetical features of the character.

The classification of Ye.M. Dronova can is considered to be a way to summarize the approaches to this problem that were discussed above. Furthermore, it expresses some unique ideas [11, p. 48-49]:

· Valuating function - helps the author to make a disclosure on the inner world of the characters, to judge their actions and some other events that take place in the very work;

· Occasional function - using references to some historical facts and real historical figures in order to reproduce the spirit of the very age;

· Constructive function - allusion makes a contribution to maintaining the informational unity of the message and provides some additional information;

· Predictable function - lies in giving the reader a clue about the following unravelling of the plot on the basis of comparison of the very work with the referenced one.

On the contrary, R. Leppihalme claims that it is extremely complicated or even impossible to provide a complete list of functions of allusions. Nevertheless, the researcher points that it is advisable to use a distinction that draws a line between allusions that function on the macro- and on the micro level. The macro level comes over the inner structure of the text and its interpretation. The micro level lays in the lexico-semantical and the stylistic level [27, p. 31].

2.2.4 Ways of translation of allusions

Apparently, the translation of allusions presents the translator with a significantly complicated challenge. He/she must be knowledgeable in history, folklore and the national literature of different countries. In order to provide an appropriate translation, the following can be applied: the vocabularies of quotations and allusions, as well as linguo-cultural encyclopedias. [6, p. 4].

L.V. Grek claims that in the course of the allusion adaptation the translator should pay attention to one major criterion: its affiliation with the culture of the source text and the culture of the receiver. Therefore, the background knowledge of the target receiver is very important to identify the sense of the adapted allusion. Hence, the researcher singles out the following types of allusions and other intertextual references:

· Universal;

· National or individual.

The universal allusion lays in the common intertextual field for both the receiver of the original and the receiver of the adaptation. Thus, the recognition of such allusion does not require any translator's comment. Nevertheless, the same universal allusion can perform a different function in different texts, depending on the author's intention. Therefore, the translator is presented with a challenge to provide a proper adaptation not only of the allusion, but also of its effect on the receiver. L.V. Grek provides the following ways to achieve this objective:

· Citation of a canonical translation that can be found in the target culture;

· In case the allusion belongs to the texts of both source and target cultures, by reproducing the prototype directly from the used source;

The national or individual allusions are alien to the culture of the target receiver. The researcher points out the following ways of their translation:

· By the accurate reproduction of the linguistic material with a corresponding comment. The main disadvantage of this method consists in spoiling the “joy, caused by recognition of the allusion”;

· By the selection of a functional analogue in the receiver's culture. The major advantage of this method lies in preserving the conditions of recognizing the allusion. Thus, this causes a reaction that is expected by the source author.

· By the explication of the allusion's sense [9, p. 3-5].

As R. Leppihalme draws a line between the proper name allusions [PN] and the key-phrase allusions [KP], the researcher establishes separate strategies for their translation. The translator can keep a PN unchanged, while a KP allusion always needs a change in wording. The PN Allusions translation can be provided in the following ways:

o Retention of the name (both unchanged and in its conventional TL form,); with three subcategories:

· using the name as such;

· using the name, adding some guidance

· using the name, adding a detailed explanation, for example a footnote.

o Replacement of the name by another (beyond the changes required by convention) name; with two subcategories:

· replacing the name by another SL name;

· replacing the name by a TL name.

o Omission of the name; with two subcategories:

· omitting the name, however transfering the sense by other means, for instance by a common noun;

· omitting the name and the allusion altogether.

The KP Allusions translation can be provided in the following ways:

· Use of a standard equivalent, that can be found in the text of the receiver's culture;

· Minimum changes (semantic calque);

· Use of extra-allusive comments;

· The use of explicit explanations that are provided as an additional information (footnotes, endnotes, translator's prefaces, etc);

· Introduction of textual features that indicate the presence of borrowed words (marked wording or syntax);

· Replacement with a preformed TL item;

· Replacement of the allusion with an overt expression of its meaning;

· Recreation of the allusion by creatively constructing a passage that reproduces its effect;

· Omission of the allusion [27, p. 79-84].

Thus, the translation of an allusion requires clear understanding of the type and the function of the allusion that is performed in the text.

Ñhapter 3. The reproduction of allusions in the translation of the film “The brothers Grimm”

“The Brothers Grimm” is a 2005 adventure fantasy film that is based on the fairy tales of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, who are also known as famous cultural researchers, lexicographers, academics, linguists and collectors of German folklore. The film was directed by Terry Gilliam, it stars Matt Damon, Heath Ledger, and Lena Headey. The brothers Grimm are portrayed as traveling scum artists that represent themselves as genuine fighters against evil spirits and other supernatural phenomena [43].

The events take place in French-occupied Germany during the historical period of Napoleonic Wars. Eventually, the brothers are forcibly taken by an Italian torturer Cavaldi to general Delatombe, a representative of the new French government. He sends them to a little German town called Marbaden, where they encounter in the local dark forest a curse that has taken 10 children. Although the local people consider the brothers to be “The great Brothers Grimm”, fighters against evil that will rescue their children and bring peace to their town, it is the first time the brothers face a genuine supernatural force.

Although the plot of the film is connected with the real brothers' biography only consequentially, it contains many references to the Grimm's fairytales: Jake and the Beanstalk, Briar Rose, Red Riding Hood, The Frog Prince, Snow White, etc. These references consist in appearances of the fairytales' characters, locations, quotations, etc. Moreover, these references are indirect; therefore, they can be considered to be allusions and bright examples of intertextuality. An additional point is that the film has a fairy tale structure: the opening phrase is “…Once upon a time” and the film ends with a phrase “...And all they lived happily ever after”. An interesting idea is that in the end of the film the brothers decide to start recording their own fairytales, based on their gained experience and “real life” events. In such manner, the film establishes a fabulous reference to the real brothers' life.

Example 1

“Oh, kiss a froggie and he'll turn into a prince” [00:15:04--> 00:15:08].

“Îäèí ïîö³ëóíîê, ³ æàáà îáåðíåòüñÿ ïðèíöîì” [00:15:05--> 00:15:08].

This example alludes to the fairy tale “The Frog Prince; or, Iron Henry”, that is best known through the brothers Grimm's written version. In the tale a spoiled princess comes across a frogling that helps to get her a golden ball out of a pond. Eventually, according to the modern versions of the plot, the frogling magically transforms into a handsome prince after being kissed by the princess. Nevertheless, in the original Grimm version of the story the frogling's spell was broken when the princess threw it against a wall in disgust [43].

In the film Jacob uses this allusion to refer to one of the French soldiers that intrude into the celebration of the brothers' victory over a witch. As far as the events of the plot take place in the period of French occupations, the German guests of the party consider French soldiers as enemy invaders. In such manner, Jacobs expresses his negative attitude towards the French soldier, calling him “a froggie”.

Let us consider the type of the used allusion. According to R. Leppihalme's classification it can be considered as a key-phrase allusion, as far as it is expressed by a phrase [27]. According to A. Kirillov, it can be regarded as a literary allusion, since it is based on an idea from a fairytale [15]. Also it is a universal allusion, as far as the fairy tale is familiar to both the SL and TL receivers [9, p. 3-5].

Regarding the functions that the allusion performs in the film, we can use the classification by Ye.A. Vasilieva and identify the following ones: it forms the text by characterizing the character and forms the genre by creating a comic effect [7, p. 18-19]. According to the classification of S. R. Avramenko, it renders the account of the historical period of the events and characterizes personal relationship between the characters. According to Ye.M. Dronova, it performs the valuating function, as far as it expresses Jacob's attitude to the French soldier [11].

The translator rendered the allusion by means of a sematic calque. This technique was established by R. Leppihalme [27, p. 81]. Hence, the structure, type and functions of the original are preserved. Nevertheless, the Oxford dictionary provides the following definition of the word “froggie”: informal, derogatory name for French. [35]. Hence, the translator did not manage to preserve the full negative connotation of the very word. According to the dictionary of the Ukrainian language in 11 volumes, the Ukrainian word “æàáî¿ä” can be used in offensive expressions [33, p. 500]. Thus, a possible variant of translation can be the following: “Îäèí ïîö³ëóíîê, ³ æàáî¿ä îáåðíåòüñÿ ïðèíöîì”.

Example 2

“No, no, no, no, no. Not for you, my little Cinderellas” [00:43:56 --> 00:44:02].

“ͳ, í³, í³, í³. Öå íå äëÿ âàñ, ìî¿ ìàëåíüê³ Ñ³íäåðåëëè” [00:43:58--> 00:44:05].

This allusion refers to an Italian folk tale “Cinderella” or “The Little Glass Slipper”. It is also well-known in the version of the brothers Grimm that was recorded in the 19th century. According to this version, the wife of a wealthy man passes away. But when she lays on her deathbed, she calls her only daughter and asks her to remain good and kind. Eventually, the man marries a woman that already has two own daughters. The stepsisters force the girl to live in the kitchen and do the worst work. Nevertheless, she remains good and calm [43].

In the film the very allusion is used by Cavaldi when he refers to the brothers Grimm. The local women prepared some dishes for their heroes, but the torturer Cavaldi takes the dishes away and refuses to pass them to the hungry brothers, while they are mopping the floor. Hence, Cavaldi is portrayed as one of the cruel and wicked stepsisters, that forces the “two Cinderellas” to do the nasty job.

Concerning the type of the allusion, according to the R. Leppihalme's, it can be identified as a proper-name allusion [PN], since the name of the fairytale's character is used [27]. According to A.Kirillov, it can be considered as a literary allusion, as far as its source is a fairytale [15, p.179]. According to L.V. Grek, it is a universal allusion, since the fairytale has both English and Ukrainian adaptations [9, p. 3-5].

According to the Ye.A. Vasilieva classification of functions, the allusion performs the function of creating a comic effect that makes a contribution to forming the genre [7, p. 18-19]. According to S.R. Avramenko the allusion characterizes personal relationship between the characters, since Cavaldi expresses his power over the brother by means of the allusion [1]. Due to the same reason it performs the valuating function of Ye.M. Dronova's classification [11, p. 48-49].

In the Ukrainian adaptation the translator used the technique of retention the name as such, since he just transcribed the original name “Cinderella” [27]. Thus, the receiver that is not familiar with the very fairytale in the English version will not be able to recognize the allusion and its desirable effect. Furthermore, it is no longer a universal allusion and is not able to perform none of the original functions. Much more proper would be to use the method established by L.V. Grek that consists in citation of the translation that can be found in the target receiver's culture, since there are many Ukrainian adaptations of the present fairytale [9, p. 3-5]. According to the dictionary of the Ukrainian language in 11 volumes, the word “Ïîïåëþøêà” is defined as the following: “Êàçêîâèé ïåðñîíàæ äîáðî¿, ñëóõíÿíî¿ íåð³äíî¿ äî÷êè, ÿêà âèêîíóº âñþ ÷îðíó ðîáîòó ³ íå êîðèñòóºòüñÿ í³ÿêèìè ïðàâàìè ÷ëåíà ñ³ì'¿” [33, p. 185]. Hence, a proper translation can be the following: “ͳ, í³, í³, í³. Öå íå äëÿ âàñ, ìî¿ ìàëåíüê³ Ïîïåëþøêè”

Example 3

“Because only the truest of truthful love could ever beat the Grim Reaper” [00:14:03 --> 00:14:10].

“Òîìó ùî áðàòíÿ ëþáîâ ³ äðóæáà ñèëüí³ø³ çà cìåðòü” [00:14:05 --> 00:14:12].

“The Grim Reaper” is known to be a way to imagine Death as a personified force. The first usage of such kind of title was attested in 1847. The most widely known description of “the Reaper” describes him as “a skeletal figure of mail form carrying a largescytheand clothed in a blackcloakwith ahood” [43]. In most cultures The Grim Reaper comes to his victims and causes their death by “collecting” them. Some stories describe attempts to beat The Grim Reaper by avoiding his visit, or by fending him off with bribery or tricks.

In the film under analysis, Jacob uses this allusion as a mean of exaggeration and irony, since his relationships with his brother are not very good. Being under alcohol influence at the celebration of brothers' triumph over the witch, he claims that “nothing comes between us brothers… Not even Godfather Death”, and that love between the brothers can even beat the Grim Reaper. Hence, he describes their relationships in an excessive manner.

Thus, this allusion can be considered to be universal and mythological, as far as it can be found in mythologies of most world's cultures and can be easily recognized by any modern nation [9, p. 3-5]. It can be identified as a proper-name allusion [PN], since it is expressed by personification [27]. According to M.D. Tukharelli, the allusions can be considered to be a theonym, as far as it refers to a mythological character [21, p. 16-17].

In fact, the main functions that the allusion performs in the film are characterizing personal relationship between the characters and explaining the intellectual features of the character, since throughout the film Jacob is described as a lover of myths and folklore [1]. According to S. R. Dronova's classification, it also performs the valuating function, as it provides a disclosure on Jacob's inner world [11, p. 48-49].

Unfortunately, the translator did not manage to reproduce the mythological peculiarity of the original allusion, since he used hypernymic lexeme “ñìåðòü” instead of using an equivalent personification of death. Thus, the type of the original allusion was not preserved. Although it still characterizes personal relationship between the brothers, however, the explanation of intellectual features and the inner world of Jacob was not preserved in the Ukrainian adaptation. Since the original allusion is universal, we can apply a technique established by L.V. Grek that lays in citation the canonical translation that can be found in the target receiver's culture [9, p. 3-5]. According to the dictionary of the Ukrainian language in 11 volumes, the personification of death in the Ukrainian language can be illustrated by the expression “cìåðòü ³ç êîñîþ” [33, p. 400]. Thus, the allusion can be reproduced in the following way: “Òîìó ùî áðàòíÿ ëþáîâ ³ äðóæáà ñèëüí³ø³ çà ñìåðòü ³ç êîñîþ.”

Example 4

“Whatever happens, stay behind that shield. The armor was forged by Prince Richard the Charming, who awoke Brier-Rose” [00:05:53 --> 00:05:59].

“Ïðèêðèâàéòåñÿ öèì ùèòîì Ïðèíöà г÷àðäà ×àð³âíîãî êîòðèé ðîçáóäèâ Ñïëÿ÷ó Êðàñóíþ Äèêó Òðîÿíäó” [00:05:53 --> 00:05:59].

This allusion refers to an old German folk tale, the history of which is traced back to the 12-13th centuries. Eventually, it was recorded and published by many writers and collectors of folklore. The version by theBrothers Grimm called "Little Briar Rose"is a classicfairy taleinvolving a beautiful princess, asleeping enchantment, and a handsome prince. This particular version was used as a basis for Disney's“Sleeping Beauty”and“Maleficent” [43]. Thus, Grimm's story became famous all over the globe and made a significant contribution to the development of mainstream culture.

According to the film, the brothers are hired by a man that suffers from attacks of a witch. As it eventually turns out, the witch was not real and her attacks were just a show put up by the brothers for the purpose of making the man pay them money to get rid of the witch. Right before the fight with “the witch” the brothers demonstrate their “unusual” equipment, that includes baby tears and iron arrows, and ask the man to “stay behind the shield that was forged by Prince Richard the Charming, who awoke Brier-Rose.” Apparently, the brothers are trying to impress the man and make him believe that they are genuine fighters against evil spirits and other supernatural phenomena.

Since the Disney's version of the fairytale's adaptation is very famous, this allusion can be considered to be universal [9, p. 3-5]. According to its semantics, it can be identified as a proper-name allusion [PN], and, more precisely, a ktematonym, as it refers to a character of an artistic work [21, p. 16-17]. According to A. Kirillov's classification, it can be considered as a literary allusion, as far as its source is a fairytale [15, p.179].

The allusion performs the same functions in both the original and the Ukrainian adaptation. It characterizes moral and aesthetical features of the brothers, since it helps to describe them as great con artists [1]. Also it performs the valuating function, as far as it helps us to judge the brother's actions and the way they earn money [11, p. 48-49].

Since the allusion is universal and the fairy tale has many Ukrainian adaptations, the translator used equivalence from the Ukrainian source. Thus, all the functions and the type of the original allusion were preserved. In addition, the translator also used retention of the SL name. Since the original English name of the fairy tale "Little Briar Rose"is not widely known in Ukraine, the receiver can be very much confused by the addition of “Äèêó Òðîÿíäó” in the translation. Thus, to our viewpoint, more proper translation can be the following: “Ïðèêðèâàéòåñÿ öèì ùèòîì Ïðèíöà г÷àðäà ×àð³âíîãî êîòðèé ðîçáóäèâ Ñïëÿ÷ó Êðàñóíþ.”

Example 5

“Your half, professor. Oh, would you prefer this in magic beans?” [00:11:15 --> 00:11:21]

Òâîÿ ÷àñòêà, ïðîôåñîðå. Îó, ÷è áîáàìè â³çüìåø ÷àð³âíèìè? [00:11:16 --> 00:11:22]

This expression alludes to a famous English fairy tale “Jake and the Beanstalk”. The most known version of this tale was published by Joseph Jacobs in his “English Fairy Tales”(1890). It is believed to be the closest to the oral versions. According to the plot, Jack is a young boy that lives with his widowed mother. Eventually, they decide to sell their only cow when it stops giving milk. Jack goes to the market and comes across a man who offers “magicbeans” in exchange for the cow and the boy makes the trade. His mother becomes furious and throws the beans outdoors. A giganticbeanstalkgrows overnight which Jack climbs to a land high in the sky, where he comes across a giant and steals his two treasures: a goosethat lays golden eggs and aharpthat plays by itself [43].

In the very beginning of the film young Wilhelm Grimm, his mother and ill sister are waiting for Jacob who should return soon after selling the family cow. Nevertheless, Jacob brings back a handful of beans rather than the much needed cash. Apparently, this causes their sister's death and a constant conflict between the brothers. The usage of the very allusion takes place right after the brothers' “victory over the witch”, when Wilhelm offers Jacobs to take his part of the income. Jacob refuses to take the money. Wilhelm becomes angry and says “Oh, would you prefer this in magic beans?” Thus, he carries Jacob back to the day of their sister's death.

Regarding the type of the allusion, it is obviously a key-phrase allusions [KP], since it is illustrated by a phrase [27]. According to A. Kirillov, it can be considered as a literary allusion, as far as it is based on the plot of a fairy tale [15, p.179]. Also it is universal, since “Jake and the Beanstalk” is widely known in Ukraine [9]

The allusion forms the text by creating a characteristic of Wilhelm. [7, p. 18-19]: It makes us understand that Wilhelm still puts blame on Jacob for their sister's death. Thus, it also characterizes personal relationship between the characters and portrays their feelings [1]. In Ye.M. Dronova's classification this function is called the valuating function. [11].

The translator reproduced the allusion by means of semantic calque [27, p. 81]. Thus, the type and functional peculiarities were preserved. Furthermore, the emotional colouring of the SL allusion is adequately reproduced, thus, the target receiver is able to perceive the allusion without any losses of the desired effect.

Example 6

“Such big eyes you have. And big ears you have. And such a pretty, pretty mouth” [00:44:55 --> 00:45:06].

“ßê³ â òåáå âåëèê³ î÷³, ÿê³ âóøêà âåëèê³, ³ ÿêèé ó òåáå ðîòèê ãàðíèé” [00:44:57 --> 00:45:07].

This example refers to a famous European fairytale called “The Little Red Riding Hood”. Its numerous variants significantly differ from each other, however, the most widely known was recorded by the brothers Grimm. It tells the story about a girl that wears a red hooded cap. Her mother asks her to deliver food to her ill granny in the forest. A Big Bad Wolf comes across the girls and wants to eat her. She naively tells him where she is going. He goes to the granny's house, gets in by pretending to be a girl and swallows the lady. Soon the girl also arrives and finds the wolf disguised as her granny. The following original conversation takes place: "What a deep voice you have!" ("The better to greet you with"), "Goodness, what big eyes you have!" ("The better to see you with"), "And what big hands you have!" ("The better to hug/grab you with"), and lastly, "What a big mouth you have" ("The better to eat you with!)". According to the most original variants of the plot, at this point the wolf swallows the girl and the story ends. Nevertheless, in the Grimm's variant a hunter with his axe comes to rescue both the girl and her grandmother [43].