Translation of Forensic Novel as A Hybrid Genre: A Case Study On Trace By Patricia Cornwell

Abstract

Crime evokes negativity within our minds. Punishment and elimination of any kind of attitude or action which threatens or damages the current order within a society is of great importance in terms of sustaining the public peace and order. The concept of crime, which was involved in literature in 1800s, evolved in time just like the society and has been given different names; such as detective stories, spy stories, dime novels, crime novels and so on. With the advancements in technology, the field of criminology has also been developed extensively; and investigation of crime has become the work field of criminology and forensic specialists rather than wise detectives with strong foresight. These developments were also reflected in literature and formed today’s sub-genre of forensic novels. The aim of this study is to suggest the classification of forensic novels as hybrid texts in term of the language used, as well as proving the necessity of adopting different translational techniques during process. These texts are both descriptive in terms of being situated within literary conventions, and informative because of containing technical language and special-field terminology. This structure of forensic novels entails different translational approaches, depending on the terminology encountered. The study is based on the novel Trace by Patricia Cornwell, who is one of the foremost forensic novel authors in literature, and its translation İz by Zeliha İyidoğan Babayiğit. A total of 50 randomly selected terms/cultural items will be analyzed under two categories as (1) technical terms and (2) cultural elements; and the methods and strategies applied by the translator will be identified. These technical terms and cultural elements will be explained in light of the domestication and foreignization techniques suggested by Lawrence Venuti and strategies used in the translation of Culture-specific Items (CSIs) suggested by Javier Franco Aixelá. Also, choices of the translator in the act of translation will be analyzed. Additionally, the first samples of crime fiction, its historical development in the world, its sub-genres, when and how it was introduced with Turkey, the first attempts for authentic stories and its situation within the literature will be explained elaborately. Within the scope of the thesis, the research questions regarding the potential challenges encountered in the translation of forensic novels, and the qualifications a translator must have while translating such novels will be answered.