"The little girl, the boxer and the kangaroo" by Gianantonio Stella: translation and commentary

Abstract

This dissertation is aimed at presenting the translation of the book "La bambina, il pugile, il canguro", "The girl, the boxer and the kangaroo", by renowned Italian writer Gian Antonio Stella. The story deals with the deep, unconditional love of a grandfather for his little granddaughter who suffers from down syndrome. It is also a novel about prejudices and challenges of life due to the child’s condition. The translating process involves making a choice between different options which may result more appropriate than others considering the TL. Supported by translation theories, this paper will illustrate and comment on translation strategies as well as choices adopted within the literary text. The overall commentary investigates the peculiarities specific to one language which do not have an equivalent in the other thus rendering the translation process extremely complicated. The primary focus has been to address such difficulties, namely cultural aspects, historical facts, the use of different dialects, Veneziano and Triestino, the presence of nursery rhymes as well as idiomatic expressions, and register. Syntax, tense, aspect and semantic extensions of both languages were also considered, with a view to discover to what extent Italian and English work differently. The final section of this study deals with conclusions and is aimed at providing useful guidelines for those approaching the translation practise.