The Stance Variation and Selective Appropriation in Sports News Headlines Translation

Author: Nor Shahila Mansor, Akmar Hayati Ahmad Ghazal, Zhang Linyu (Putra University Malaysia)
Speaker: Zhang Linyu
Topic: General Sociolinguistics
The GLOCAL CALA 2022 Poster Session

Abstract

This study aims to explore the stance variation and translation strategies in translating sports news headlines from English to Chinese. The author applied Appraisal Theory (Martin & White, 2005) to observe the stance, and Narrative Theory (Baker, 2006) to analyze the framing strategy in translation practice. Bielsa and Bassnett’s Translation in Global News (2009) also provides clues in explaining the possible constraints of translators’ manipulation. This study utilized the Appraisal Theory to prove the existence of stance variation in sports news headlines translation. This study also found that selective appropriation of addition is a dominated strategy in translating news headlines. There are 57 pieces of translated news headlines with addition, as much as 69% in the database, while only 8% of translated news headlines with omission. As the concise representative of news texts and the key factor to attract readers, news headlines are important in global news translation. The present study was valuable in broadening the news headlines translation into sports news field and the study source of the bilingual news section in online China Daily was also a newly attempt in the translation studies from English to Chinese.

Keywords: stance, news headlines, selective appropriation, Chinese, English